How to Create Comics with Children

[Sponsored Review]

We shared the benefits of reading comics and graphic novels for the children in our post here. In this post, we are sharing how to create comics with your children through reading some books from Scholastic.

Dog Man: Guide to Creating Comics in 3-D

This New York best-selling series from Dav Pilkey is a good starter for the children to learn how to draw comic-book characters. The children love to read this series, and through the step-by-step instructions on how to draw some of the best Dog Man characters, they would be able to gather some ideas how to create their own comic characters. In addition, the characters can be brought to life in 3-D using the 3-D glasses in this book, it is so interesting!

This book is packed with 3-D glasses, a write-on, wipe-off pen, a drawing pad, and over 30 stickers from the New York Times bestselling series. The children can practise creating their own comics characters on the write-on.

Product url: http://www.readershouse.com.sg/product/dog-man-guide-to-creating-comics-in-3-d/


After learning how to create their own comics characters, the children can learn to create the story outline. Where can they get ideas from? One way is through their daily life experience, another way is to draw ideas from reading other comics and graphic novel. Here are some graphic novel from Scholastic that our children are currently reading.

Wings of Fire Graphic Novel

The number one New York Times bestselling Wings of Fire series soars to new heights in the third graphic novel adaptation!

Synopsis:

Glory knows that the dragon world is wrong about her being "a lazy RainWing." Maybe she wasn't meant to be one of the dragonets of destiny, but Glory is sharp and her venom is deadly... even if that's still a secret. So when the dragonets seek shelter in the rain forest, Glory is devastated to find that the treetops are full of RainWings that nap all day and know nothing of the rest of Pyrrhia. Worst of all, they don't realize - or care - that RainWings are going missing from their beautiful forest. But Glory and the dragonets are determined to find the missing dragons, even if it drags the peaceful RainWing kingdom where they never wanted to be - into the middle of the war.

Product url: http://www.readershouse.com.sg/product/wings-of-fire-graphic-novel/

CatWad

Catwad, the snarky blue furball with a funny take on just about everything, is back in this second graphic novel in an all-new series from New York Times bestselling author Jim Benton!

Synopsis:

Catwad and Blurmp are back and ready for more adventures! In this newest collection of hilarious stories, the dynamic feline duo explore fine art, travel to an alternate reality where the world has become extraordinarily dumb, get into gaming, and more! From monsters under Blurmp's bed to all the reasons you should NEVER eat salad, this newest volume of Catwad has something for everyone!

Product url: http://www.readershouse.com.sg/product/catwad/

Discount Code for Scholastic Books at Reader's House

All PeiPei.HaoHao readers can enjoy 20% off discount for Scholastic books on Reader's House website!
Discount code: PEIHAO20
Website: http://www.readershouse.com.sg
How to use: At the cart checkout, type PEIHAO20 and then click Apply Coupon
Terms and Conditions: The discount code is applicable to only Scholastic books on Reader's House website, it is not applicable to the shipping fee.

Scholastic Asia

Website: http://scholastic.asia/en and http://www.readershouse.com.sg

Disclaimer: We received the books for review purpose. No monetary compensation was received. All opinions and photos are mine. 

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Using Fidget Spinner to Teach Children Art, Science and Mathematics

To be honest, I did not like the idea of getting fidget spinners for my children. They requested for the fidget spinners when many of their friends had those. However, I did not see the purpose of fidget spinners at all - what was the great deal of balancing the fidget spinners on the fingers? Does it really help the children to relieve stress or to stay focused? 

Eventually, we brought the fidget spinners for our children. It was because we thought that they had put in effort in studying for the semestral assessment, so we wanted to reward them for their effort. While the children were happily spinning the spinners, I saw the opportunity to teach them art, science and mathematics!

Using Fidget Spinner to Teach Children Mathematics

The children learnt about the meaning of diameter and radius of a circle. They measured the diameter of the outer circle, and marked out the diameter on a white cardboard. I helped to cut the circles using a circle cutter. 

The children then used blu tack to mount the circular cardboard on to the fidget spinner.

Using Fidget Spinner to Teach Children Art

By placing a felt tip marker at the same spot of the cardboard, a beautiful pattern can be created.

The children also did an experiment by drawing a straight line from the centre to the edge of the circle, and they were thrilled to see a spiral pattern!

Using Fidget Spinner to Teach Children Art

We made spinner colour wheel a few years ago using marker pen. The effect was beautiful, however, the marker would stop spinning shortly. The children have learnt the colours of a rainbow, and they were excited the effect of blending the colours!

Do you have any ideas on how fidget spinners can be used to educate the children?


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DIY Terrarium for Family Bonding - Masons Home Decor

[Sponsored Review + Discount Code]

The first time we had some form of gardening experience was a few years ago, when we grew beans on cotton wool. The bean plant declared that it couldn't survive any more after a few days. Recently, we tried to grow bean plants again, but unfortunately, history repeated itself. So you can tell that we do not have green fingers. However, our children didn't lose their interest in growing plants. It was timely that the nice folks from Masons Home Decor sent us a big box of DIY Terrarium Kit! 

Everything that we needed to make a terrarium were included in the DIY Terrarium Kit: 

• Shovels
• Spray bottle
• Instruction sheet
• Glass jars
• Premium terrarium mix
• Decorative pebbles
• Activated charcoal
• Ornaments
• Fittonia plants
• Succulent plants

I like the idea of  having all the supplies in a single kit, so that I don't need to hunt for the materials all over the places.

Take a look at our final products, are they beautiful? Well, I think we may be too ambitious to put so many plants into a single jar!

The instruction sheet indicates 3 simple steps, which look quite straight forward. However, for us the non-green-fingers (remember I mentioned that we couldn't even grow bean plant in cotton wool), we almost wanted to put the plant with the container into the glass jar! Ok, I know it sounds silly, please don't laugh....  

So here is our detailed step-by-step method:

Step 1: Cover the bottom of the jar with a layer of small rocks, which serve as the water drainage layer.

Step 2: Add a thin layer of activated charcoal which reduces odour and toxics. Then fill the glass jar halfway with the premium terrarium mix.

Step 3: Remove the plant from their containers. Dig a hole in the premium terrarium mix that is big enough to place the root of the plant. (No photo for this step, as my hands were busy with the plant!)

Step 4: Decorate the top layer with pebbles and ornaments.

Step 5: Use a brush or tissue paper to clean the glass jar.

Our family had great fun making terrarium together, it was nice that we were given 4 glass jars so we could make one terrarium each. In addition, terrarium making is an educational activity for children to learn about the science of a plant, as well as the art of beautifying the household!

[Discount Code - 15% off Storewide]

The nice folks from Masons Home Decor offers PeiPei.HaoHao's readers 15% off discount storewide! Key in the discount code peipeihaohaoXDM15 at checkout!

Masons Home Decor

Website: https://www.mason.com.sg

Disclaimer: We received a DIY Terrarium Kit for review purpose. No monetary compensation was received. All opinions and photos are mine.

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Imaginarium: Over the Ocean, Under the Sea @ Singapore Art Museum at 8Q

Time flies, Pei Pei and I visited "Imaginarium: A Voyage of Big Ideas" about one year ago (read our experience here), and she still remembers the fun hands-on activities during that exhibition! We were looking forward to "Imaginarium: Over the Ocean, Under the Sea", and decided to drag ask Hao Hao to join us.

A beautiful installation greeted us even before we entered Singapore Art Museum at 8Q!

This installation Underwater Labyrinth was enclosed in the room with glass panels, and we could only view it from outside. It was a challenge to take a good photo due to the reflection. Or perhaps my poor photography skill.

I was amazed by the installation Dimana Mogus (Where is Mogus?) at level 1. The creators must have spent a lot of time to make all these beautiful crochet creations! That reminds me of the little crochet bear that I have been working on for months, and I am still at the... er... 7th row?

I wonder how long it took to make this giant octopus!

Look up! This reminds me of Leo Lionni's book Swimmy!

The children had a fun time running and jumping around, while I was fascinated by all those crochet creations!

At level 2, the children spent some time making origami penguin, angelfish and seal.

At level 3, before we entered the room, the staff reminded the children not to touch the installation. While the kinetic sculptures captured the children's attention for 5 seconds, we left the room in less than 5 minutes.

The only installation that piqued the children's interest was this one. A creative use of mirrors and symmetry.

Plastic Ocean was a thoughtful installation that reminded us about the harm of plastic debris to the sea creatures.

What a pity that we did not visit the installation ADA, which was an interactive art-making machine, because of the long queue.

While the creations are beautiful, I think the children would appreciate the exhibition more if there were more hands-on activities like "Imaginarium: A Voyage of Big Ideas".


Singapore Art Museum at 8Q
Address: 8 Queen's Street Singapore 188533
Admission:
Free for Singaporeans and permanent residents
Adults - SGD10
Students with valid student pass - SGD5
Senior citizens (60 years and above with valid ID) - SGD5
Children under six - free
How to get there:
By bus - SBS 7, 14, 16, 36, 111, 131, 162, 175, 502, 518; SMRT 77, 167, 171, 700
By MRT - Bras Basah MRT
By car - parking available at Waterloo Street, Queen Street.


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Playeum Children's Centre for Creativity - Hideaways

[Media Invite]

Igniting children to explore, create and learn through play is the key mission of Children's Centre for Creativity. This exactly aligns with my parenting belief. Located at Gillman Barracks, Children's Centre for Creativity is set up by an award-winning non-profit organisation Playeum.

We visited their second hands-on exhibition "Hideaway - Creating with Nature", which features installations that provide an interdisciplinary and engaging experience, serving as an important reminder of the world's ecosystem.

So what are the installations that you and your children can expect at "Hideaway - Creating with Nature"?

Creative Cave
Suitable for infants and toddlers as it provides multi-sensory experience through touch, sight and hearing. It serves as a warm-up installation for the younger children before they explore other exciting installations.

Knock, Knock! Who lives there?
This is the Bug Hotel that is placed in the natural habitat of the insects!

Of course, for safety reason, the children cannot go out, but they can view the hotel through a window. To get up-close to the hotel's "residents", there is a live stream video for the children to see what they are doing. And there is a magnifying glass for the children to look at the permanent resident at the window - a giant spider!

To allow the children to feel the texture of the materials that make the Bug Hotel, there is Sensory Bug Hotel indoor.

On the Identification Table, the children can match the insect specimen to the pictures, they can also draw the insects and even write letter to them!

Other than the magnifying glasses, there is a camera that is connected to a projector, so that the children can view the "up-sized" version of the insects!

The Dark Space
As the name implies, it is really dark inside! But no worries, you can still see your children under UV light! Using the fabric, the children build a giant spider web!

Welcome to My World
The children can imagine themselves as the tiny insects, and build their own shelters.

The children get to build bee's nest and moth cocoon too!

Make-believe Hideaway
Clay time is conducted frequently for the children to create a make-believe hideaway through collective effort.

Sounds of Earth - Nature's Ensemble
Let imagination run wild by creating musical instruments with natural materials! What can you make with toilet paper rolls, egg trays, bamboo poles and green beans?

There is also an outdoor installation - The Tunnel of Sound - for the children to make noise sound!

We enjoyed our afternoon at Children's Centre for Creativity! The children unleashed their creativity and made many interesting structures! Usually they are quite scared of those insects, but they stepped out their comfort zone to take a closer look at the insects and learnt more about them!

Children's Centre for Creativity
Address: Blk 47 Malan Road, Gillman Barracks #01-23, Singapore 109444
Website: http://www.playeum.com
Opening Hours: Tuesday to Sunday 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Admission: SGD20 per child / parent pair, additional adults SGD10 each. Tickets are purchased at the centre.
How to get there:
MRT - Labrador Park Station (Circle Line) 5 to 10 minutes walk
Bus - Along Alexandra Road, Opposite NOL Building (Bus Stop Number 15049) Bus no. 51, 57, 61, 83, 97, 97e, 100, 166, 175, 408, 963 or 963E
Parking - limited parking lots outside the centre, check carpark charges here

Disclaimer: We were invited to Playeum Children's Centre for Creativity. No monetary compensation was received. All opinions and photos are mine.

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DIY Labels with Watercolour Pencils

We paste labels on the children's belongings to minimise the chance of mixing up their belongings with other classmates. We also paste labels to organise our stuffs at home. Other than purchasing the customised labels, we made our own creations too.

Materials:

White labels

Watercolour pencils

Small paint brushes

Container for water

Instructions:

1. Draw on the labels using watercolour pencils.

2. Dip the small paint brush into the container of water, press the brush gently at the side of the container to remove excess water. Paint the labels with water.

3. Leave the labels until they are dry.

We like the effect of our DIY labels! One thing to note about this kind of labels is that they are not waterproof, so they cannot be used on things like water bottles.

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Minion Open-ended Kaleidoscope Tutorial

When we visited Imaginarium at Singapore Art Museum some time ago, Pei Pei showed me this when I was looking at the installation.

An open-ended kaleidoscope! It was a very creative idea! So we went home to make our own open-ended kaleidoscope!

Since it is the season for Minions again (yes we love the Minions movie), we recycled our toilet paper roll Minion that we made long time ago (read our tutorial on Project Toilet Roll - Minions from Despicable Me), and turned it into open-ended kaleidoscope! Of course you can have other designs like owl, butterfly, panda, fish, or even Merlion!

Materials:
Toilet paper roll x 1
Reflective silver paper (we bought from Popular bookshop)
Scissors
Pencil
Ruler
Colour paper, washi tape

Instruction:

Step 1:
Measure the diameter of the toilet paper roll. The dimension of each of the shorter side on the reflective silver paper (side X) is 0.867 times of the diameter. E.g. our toilet paper roll has diameter of 4.2 cm, so side X is about 3.6 cm. Leave about 1 cm allowance.

Step 2:
Fold the reflective silver paper, with the silver colour side facing in. Slot it into the toilet paper roll.

Look at the beautiful patterns using our "washi-fy" chair, pattern paper and even LEGO figurine!

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