Every year before Halloween, Dinosaur Wizards gather at the Park. Dinosaur Wizards come in all varieties – from T-Rexes, Stegosaurs, Pachycephalosaurs, Triceratops, Raptors & Spinosaurs. Whether quadrupedal or theropods they Come. There are Pterosaur & Dragon Wizards too! There’s something Magical at the Park and this Time of Year that brings the Dinosaur Wizards from Near and Far. What Magic that may be is a Tale (or is it Tail?) for another Time!
You can make Dinosaur Wizard Staffs for Your Prehistoric Pals or for decorations in your home or yard. Pride of Madera has a root ball that makes a fantastic top for a Wizard Staff. You may have something just as cool in your neighborhood. For the rod part of the staff, I use Elderberry, Liquidambar or Walnut branches. Sometimes, I’m lucky and find a root ball with a trunk long enough to make a complete Dinosaur Wizard Staff with just a little trimming! I measure each Dinosaur to determine the best height for their Wizard Staff. After cutting, a screw dowel connects the two pieces. Some Museum Earthquake Putty or Paste on the tops of the root ball allows for placement of the tea candles. I like the paste the best. Staffs 3 & 8 in the group picture below are new for Dave the T-Rex and Raphael the Raptor. The others were from last year. Stay tuned for more types of Dinosaur Wizard Staffs.
Saturday October 8th was another Great In-Person Reading to Kids Event! Proof of Vaccinations & Masks are required for the Readers to participate. The theme for the reading was “Halloween, Magic & Monsters”. Our 4th grade book “Pip Bartlett’s Guide to Magical Creatures” by Jackson Pearce was a lot of fun. The 5th grade book was scary “The Peculiar incident of Shady Street” by Lindsay Currie (I read it on my own). There isn’t enough time to read the entire book with the children’s novels. However, the books for all the grades are donated to each School’s Library encouraging the kids to check them out and finish the stories or read them again.
This month our craft choices were drawing Magical Creatures, making paper bag Puppets of Magical Creatures or making 3D Haunted Houses. The kids screamed for the 3D Haunted Houses! Some of the kids took home paper bags to make puppets later. I provided a sample of a completed Haunted House and made another for the kids to see step by step. All the kids did a fantastic job adding their own unique design to the Haunted Houses. One little girl in a princess costume was initially reluctant to make the houses. However, she managed to get ghoulish very fast as she pointed out the red for blood that she added to one of the windows! AAAAHHHH! The Day ended with a Magic Show for Everyone!
Anne the hatching T-Rex joined me at the ReadingtoKids Event to the Kids & Adults delight. Nicholas her brother stayed home. These T-Rexes are named after the Children in the movie “The Others”. A Classic Haunted House Tale. Here are the steps for you to make your own Haunted Houses. All you need are 4 pieces of construction paper – Black, Yellow, White and your choice of color for the doors, scissors, stick glue, invisible tape, short pieces of wire (or pipe cleaners), marker, white gelly roll pen, pencil and/or crayon. Fold the Black piece of construction paper in half and the halves toward the center making 4 panels. Use a crayon or pencil to create the roof shapes in each panel. Then cut them out with the scissors. Now you have your four walls. Use the Yellow construction paper to make your window designs. I used Brown for the doors. Cut them out and attach them with the stick glue.
A black marker is a great tool for finishing the details on the windows & doors. A pencil, artist pen and markers are used to add a black cat, spider and Dinosaurs on the windows. You can make bats from the scraps of black paper and a ghost from the white paper. I searched online for images of both to provide inspiration for my drawings. I made 5 bats of various sizes. The white gelly roll pen made the eyes for the bats. The invisible tape attaches the wires (or pipe cleaners) to the house as well as the bats & ghost to the other ends. I started with the smallest bat and worked to the largest going away from the house to give the look that the bats are flying towards you. After making this one I’m going to update my first two Haunted Houses. Every time I make a craft new ideas pop in my head for how to improve the next one!
Stay Tuned for More Makeovers, Crafts & Dinosaur Fun Facts!
Check out Your nearest Natural History Museum. Remember Social Distancing & Masks to keep You & Others Safe while Everyone Enjoys Their Learning Experience. Consider a Membership with the Museum. In addition to Supporting Their Valuable Work there are Benefits to You. Special Preview Events for Members Only as well as Virtual Access Exclusive for Members. For more information and access to general public eLearning check out the links below.
The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County www.nhm.org under Research & Collections / Digitized Collections will allow you to browse their Collections. Check out the latest Activities on their site. Haunted Museum Happens Saturday, October 22nd from 5 – 10 PM.
The American Natural History Museum www.amnh.org You will find eLearning for Families, Students & Educators. Explore the Museum Virtually. Check Out SciCafe: Video Talks and Meet the Icons: Stories behind the Exhibits! There are Video Series covering Behind the Scenes at the Museum with Space & Dinosaur Explainers.
Chicago’s Field Museum www.fieldmuseum.org You can talk to “Maximo the Titanosaur” online, Yes Really! Visit Sue the largest T-Rex discovered! Check Out “Brain Scoop” and the Learning Resources – many are also in Spanish.
Check Out Your Libraries eBooks. My local Library has over 900 eBooks on Dinosaurs! Here are four books for Drawing Dinosaurs that you might find at your Library. Ask your Librarian about others.
1-2-3 Draw Dinosaurs and other Prehistoric Animals A step by step guide by Freddie Levin (2001)
Draw 50 Dinosaurs and other Prehistoric Animals by Lee J. Ames (1977)
Draw it Dinosaurs by Patricia Walsh (2006)
I Can Draw Dinosaurs by Terry Longhurst (2003)
Stay Safe & Well.
Please Remember to Wear Masks & Social Distance as Appropriate Not everyone has been Vaccinated. And even vaccinated many Young & Old have compromised immune systems. Protect Yourself, Friends, Family & Everyone You Pass!
Thank You!
I used watercolors to make Dinosaur Designs on my N95 Masks (New Ones above). I couldn’t get a yes or no from 3M regarding any impact this might have to the effectiveness of the mask. Many Museums sell Dinosaur Themed Masks Check them Out!
“Encouraging the Appreciation of Art and Education through the Inspiration of Dinosaurs”
Paul & Prehistoric Pals
Your feedback is appreciated, comment below or email:
Thank you!