“Beautiful Junk means trash. But… I like it…”

Before break, children were introduced to “Beautiful Junk,” which are recycled materials that we can reuse and repurpose in the Studio and in PK classrooms.  Families are invited to drop off bags of materials in the bins outside of the Studio that we can sort throughout the year!

We began by reading Not A Box by Antoinette Portis.  This book is great, as it’s all about a rabbit that uses a cardboard box and his imagination to create a race car, a pirate ship and a robot costume.

Following the read aloud, I brought a large shoebox to the table and children made predictions about what they thought was inside.  As I began to reveal the items, children instantly made connections to the book and were overflowing with ideas of what the materials could be used for.  We talked about what they were (can, blackberry box, cork, water bottle top) and about what material they were made from (metal, cardboard, plastic).  This led to sorting and labeling materials, which now makes it easier for friends to find specific materials that they need for projects.

Jax: Let’s build with straws that bend!

Maya: It’s junk that’s beautiful.  Like old plastic cans that you can color to make beautiful.

Leba: That material looks like what you make waffles with.

Uhura: It’s junk that’s beautiful.  Maybe someone washed it.  Like a can that gets washed can be really shiny.

Kyrie: That material looks like a trash can.

Jahir: If you rub those toilet tubes together it sounds like a frog.

 Frances: This is like a net for catching a fish.  I know I’m going to catch a BIG fish in this net.  Lots of fish, like big fish and tiny fish and little baby sharks. 

King: Is it… just trash?

Sallie Chappell: Could I use Beautiful Junk to make a cupcake?

Hope: This material is smooth and soft.

Jacob: Skunks like junk!

Connor: That junk just looks like garbage.

Geo: Beautiful Junk means trash.  But… I like it.

Ethan: This thing feels soft.  Like a scarf.

Jayden: What can this be used for?  Is it a flag?  Like for “Capture The Flag?”

Nora: I saw a plastic bottle top on the playground and that’s Beautiful Junk.

Mina: We can use this stuff to build planets.  Like Saturn.

Adele: Beautiful Junk is junk that looks good.  Like buttons.

Asa: Junk is garbage, but Beautiful Junk you can use again.  Like, this is a bag for garlic but now I can use it as a net.

Hailey: Ew… junk like… stinks!

Feel free to drop off any interesting materials that you find around your house for us to create something new with!

“Junk is ew… but if it’s Beautiful Junk, then it’s fancy!”

Last week, children were introduced to “Beautiful Junk,” which are recycled materials that we can reuse and repurpose in the Studio and in PK classrooms.  Families received a letter asking for donations and were invited to drop off bags of materials in the bins outside of the Studio.  Please continue to donate and fill our bins throughout the year.  By the end of the week, bins should be labeled so that families can sort their materials for us to use!

We began by reading Not A Box by Antoinette Portis.  This book is great, as it’s all about a rabbit that uses a cardboard box and his imagination to create a race car, a pirate ship and a robot costume.

Following the read aloud, I brought a large shoebox to the table and children made predictions about what they thought was inside.  As I began to reveal the items, children instantly made connections to the book and were overflowing with ideas of what the materials could be used for.  We talked about what they were (can, blackberry box, cork, water bottle top) and about what material they were made from (metal, cardboard, plastic).  This will make sorting and labeling the bins easier next week!

Phoenix: My daddy has shoes from a box like that.

Waju: I wish Mrs.Hughes was here to see this special box.  She likes treasure boxes.

Autumn: This is a thing for eggs.  It’s a really special box.  It protects them.

Amal: The rabbit would like all the Beautiful Junk.  It would be like a beautiful present for him.

Trebor: We could use this junk to make a collage.

Eli: You can use the materials to make a plan.

Mariyah: It’s a shoebox. I want to sit in it.

Elijah: It’s metal!  It clashes into metal and that’s what makes the sound.  It’s shiny and good to play with.  Did you know a magnet sticks to metal?

Waju: Beautiful Junk is if you’re at a scrap yard and you find junk and you think it’s good and you want to make something with it.

Isaac: Junk is like… dirty things.

Eden: This Beautiful Junk is amazing!

Ali: It’s so very yuck.

Jax: That’s a thing for babies (fabric)… like Pampers.

Luca: When I blew it (packaging peanuts), it flew all up in the air.  It flies up all by itself.  It mixes up and goes up and out.

Amen: Maybe cats would like these (corks).  It looks like it came from a tree.

Elliott: That’s fabric for making a curtain.

Isabella: Beautiful Junk is what you use to make something cool.

Alden: That tube looks like a dough roller.

Elizabeth: It’s things for sauce (small cups) … like for ketchup.

Eva: It (corks) smell like candy and looks like a roly poly because it’s round.

Cameron: I saw so many junk in the hallway.

After children were familiar with the materials, I invited them to openly explore and build with them in the sensory table.  Friends collaborated and enjoyed creating new objects together.

Autumn: Let’s pretend the straw is like a magic wand.  Turn Ms.Cushner into a… frog!

Luca: Shiver me timbers… I’m a pirate!

Nazeer: I want to make a dump truck.  I need cardboard to do that.

Frances: Hey, that fabric is from my house.  Junk is ew… but if it’s Beautiful Junk, then it’s fancy!

Trebor: The straw is like a wand.  Abracadabra… turn my grandma into here!

Mariyah: We love you, Beautiful Junk!

Naomi: Those are tops for wine, but you could use them to make a treehouse in the woods.

Kai: Ah! Stuff can fall out of the bottom of it (toilet paper tubes).

Belen: These look like cupcake cups.  I’ll make blueberry cupcakes.

Yuri: I’m a skeleton with tubes on my arms like the bones.

Frances: The ribbons are like dancing strings.

Please continue to donate Beautiful Junk for us to build with throughout the year!