Yummy Food Is a Great Teaching Tool!

Hi, my name is Sabrina and I am an Account Manager at Discount School Supply®. As a mother of a 17-month-old daughter, I am constantly looking for dual purpose products that can be used for education as well as playtime. Thankfully, I found such a product in our Yummy Plush Play Food Set (YUMMY), a 25-piece plush food play set which includes: bacon, an orange half, grapes, a whole banana, a strawberry, a tomato slice, a whole apple, a lettuce leaf, a whole carrot, corn on the cob, half an avocado, a pea pod, broccoli, a baked potato with butter, two halves of a hardboiled egg, two slices of wheat bread, a tortilla, beans, Swiss cheese and milk.

This product really can be used for so many things. I’ve used it for color recognition, shape and textural/sensory play, and as a way to find out what my daughter wants to eat. We play a game where I will lay out a few pieces of the plush food set (depending on what we have in the pantry) and I will let her choose what she wants to have for dinner. Or I will put different combinations of foods together and let her know what we will have to eat for that particular meal. For instance, I will put the eggs, bread and bacon strip on her plate for breakfast or the banana on her plate for snack while I’m preparing the actual meal.

What I like about the product the most is that the colors are vibrant and true colors, not dull or faded tones. The pieces are appropriately sized for what they represent (with exception of the banana and corn on the cob) yet are still small enough for her little hands to grasp, and it’s not one of those toys that “gets old” after a few uses. My daughter has been playing with these since she was nine months old, and even now, eight months later, still loves to use them. She received a new play kitchen for Christmas and she will be getting even more use out of this food set in the years to come. 

Savannah at nine months old playing with the strawberry =)

Insta-Snow® is Great for Indoor Activities!

Hello. I’m Regina Eardley, Discount School Supply® Account Manager for South Texas. I’ve been working with children and art for more than 15 years, and I have found many art materials that children really enjoy. But I think that Insta-Snow® creates Insta-Fun!

Even if the weather outside isn’t frightful, you will find Insta-Snow® (SNO) delightful! As an educator I have found so many wonderful things to do with this product. And it’s something that can be adaptable for students of most ages and abilities.

This polymer product comes in a powder form and when mixed with water grows to more than one hundred times its size to create a wonderful sensory product with the look and feel of real snow. I use the twist-top Nancy™ bottles (NANTWS) filled with approximately 4 ounces of cold water and about ½ scoop of the powder to produce about two cups of snow. You can use water at room temperature, but if you use cold water it really feels like snow. I love the reaction of someone touching it for the first time. I hear comments like, “Oh, it’s really cold to the touch!” or “It really feels like snow!”

There are many fun ways to incorporate Insta-Snow® into your daily lessons. I love lessons that can cross curriculum areas such as math, science, language arts, geography and art. Here are some of the things I have done with students. To begin, I have two students paired at a 14” x 8 1/2” tub. I like the translucent bins with lids in clear (BBCL, BBLCL) or aqua (BBCA, BBLCA). One student will measure out 1/4 scoop of Insta-Snow® powder. The second student will hold his hands cupped together over the bin. The powder is poured into the second student’s hands along with about 2 ounces of water from the twist-top Nancy™ bottle. After the snow has formed, we repeat the process, allowing the students to switch roles. This gives each student an opportunity to measure the substance and feel the chemical change taking place in her hands. When both students have completed the process, I have them repeat it. But this time, instead of using plain cold water in the Nancy™ bottles, fill them with one of two primary colors of Liquid Watercolor™: red, blue, or yellow. For example, one student may use blue and the other student may use yellow. When they each add their colors, the snow will begin to turn green because blue and yellow make green. They have just completed both a science lesson on chemical change and an art lesson on color-mixing.

We take the project a step further by putting a lid on the container. The bins have a nice slot for an index card, so I like to label the bins with the student’s name and the date on which we did the project. We set the bins on a shelf in the room, and each day we graph how long it takes to begin to see condensation on the lid. We discuss absorption and how the water is separating from the powder. This is a great way to introduce academic language and teach basic math graphing skills.

During the weeks we are watching the condensation, we may also introduce a literacy lesson and read stories with a snowy setting or write a story or poem about snow. We many also look at our classroom maps or globes and discuss regions that get snowfall and those that don’t.

In South Texas, my students don’t see snow frequently, and, if they do, it is usually very short-lived. This product offers an exciting, interactive way to experience snow, and it is an opportunity to develop knowledge across the curriculum. Insta-Snow® comes in two economical sizes including a 100 gram jar or a 454 gram class size, and it can be found in the science section of our catalog or on our website at http://www.discountschoolsupply.com/Default.aspx?es=4589500000w.

So, if you are looking for a great hands-on activity for the classroom, let it snow, let it snow, let it snow…Insta-Snow®, that is! Your students will love it.

Angeles Value Line™ is a Real Value!

Hello, my name is Thom Parsons and I’m part of the Merchandising Team at Discount School Supply®. Part of my job as an Assistant Merchandising Coordinator is to help to select new furniture items for our catalogs. Our primary philosophy and objective when selecting any new products is always to provide Discount School Supply® customers with high quality products with exciting and innovative features and benefits at great prices!

Birch 10-Section Wall Locker (VB9160)

Our new Angeles Value Line ™ Birch storage units definitely meet and exceed the objective listed above! Outstanding quality at low prices, with lots of exciting new features and benefits, made in the good old U.S.A., incredibly easy to assemble (more on that to follow), eco-friendly and shipped absolutely free within three days with a lifetime warranty!! How’s that for starters!!? Want more? Okay, allow me expand on everything listed above!

Birch 5-Section Preschool Locker (VB9154)

All Angeles® Value Line ™ Birch units feature a CLEERseal ™ UV Finish which is easy to clean, sanitizer-safe, eco-friendly, non-yellowing and resistant to stains, scratches, and abrasions. All Value Line™ Birch storage units are constructed of 5/8”-thick, 11-ply birch plywood, with smooth, rounded corners and edges for safety and fully finished wood-grained recessed back panels. All units include a kick plate that prevents items from rolling under the units. Mobile units come equipped with heavy-duty 2” casters making them easy to move around the classroom. All units have 14 ½” deep storage cubbies, perfect for books, games, toys and other classroom essentials! 

Birch Mobile Divided Storage (VB9150) 

Okay, now back to the incredibly easy assembly. And I can speak to this first-hand because I was lucky enough to be the one chosen to assemble these units when they were shipped to my location for our photo shoots! All units are built using dowel-pin, cam-lock, bolted construction. What does this mean? It means practically no tools! All Angeles® Value Line ™ Birch units are shipped ready-to-assemble with easy-to-follow instructions and a small bag of connecting bolts, dowel-pins, cam-locks, and a single hex-wrench. That’s it! You won’t even need to open your toolbox! True story: the first sample unit we received for photography came without instructions (because it was a sample), and I was still able to fully assemble it in less than 10 minutes. It just doesn’t get any easier than that!

Birch 2-Shelf Storage (VB9147)

Did I happen to mention eco-friendly? Besides the aforementioned CLEERseal ™ eco-friendly UV finish, all Angeles® Value Line ™ Birch units are GREENGUARD Children and Schools® Certified. Plus, all Value Line™ Birch units are shipped in packaging that is 100% recyclable! How’s that for eco-friendly!?

Birch Mobile Divided Storage (VB9149)

Check out our full selection of Angeles® Value Line ™ Birch storage units online at http://www.discountschoolsupply.com/Default.aspx?es=4589500000w. View the video and other images of any of the Value Line™ Birch units online. Additionally, several new Value Line™ Birch items are coming soon, including the narrow 3-shelf mobile storage unit; the 18”D x 35 ½” W x 62” H teacher’s storage cabinet; 15-, 20-, and 25-tray cubbie storage units shipped with opaque trays, and 5-packs of opaque cubbie trays made exclusively for our existing Value Line™ Birch units!

For more information, watch our video here:

Angeles® Sinks Are So Versatile!

I’m Judy Short, an education consultant in the state of Georgia for Discount School Supply®. I’ve been with Discount School Supply® for 13 years and taught preschool for about 10 years before that. It’s important to me to keep current on child care rules and regulations and industry standards.

I recently attended a child care licensing orientation meeting in Atlanta, GA. The 35 attendees were there to learn about opening a child care center. And although it was not an in-depth meeting about rules and regulations, some rules were touched on briefly.

One that stood out in my mind was the rule about washing hands. Although the rule had not changed, it was a bit different. When I taught many years ago, washing hands was important in my preschool class before and after art, eating a snack or playing outside. Soap and water was used, however, there was no hot water allowed in the classroom. And of course we all are familiar with the rule about how long to wash hands; to the tune of "Happy Birthday" or "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star." The difference in the rule is the requirement for hot water.

One of my customers is a preschool classroom, which is a lab school in a high school setting. Washing with warm soapy water is required immediately before entering the lunch room. For those preschoolers in a high school environment, the lunch room is down long halls and through many doors. And of course a child-sized sink in a high school bathroom is unthinkable!

Another modification to the rules is with infants. No longer are towlettes or hand wipes acceptable for washing the infant’s hands after a diaper change. Warm soapy water is required.

Many facilities such as older schools, smaller churches are not equipped with hot water or even sinks in the classrooms. Expensive plumbing is not an option in most cases.

New products are introduced daily in the early childhood industry. The newest product available to help make the required rules accessible to your facility is the Angeles® Lil' Portable Hot Water Sink (LILPREM).

Angeles® makes a variety of portable sinks to fit the need of any child care facility. There are teacher-sized sinks, child-sized sinks, double sinks, each with its own fresh water supply and waste water tank. There’s even a Portable Hygienic Changing Table (KIDDIE). All of these products have scald free hot and cold running water and best of all they come assembled! No expensive plumbing is required. Accessories include Slip Resistant Risers (LILSTEP) and EZ Flow™ Water Sensor (SENSOR) for hands-free washing.

There’s also an EZ Fill-N-Roll™ Kit (ROLLDOLLT)which makes refilling and transferring water easier. No heavy lifting with the adaptable hose and easy-to-roll dolly.

The preschool inside the high school facility I mentioned earlier installed a single preschool hot water sink(LILPREM) with an ABS Top and Basin right next to the cafeteria. And by installing, I mean they took it out of the box and plugged it in! Now they meet the requirements for washing hands immediately before lunch. And don’t forget the sinks are portable. If you need to change the location, just unplug and roll to the next location!

Watch our video for more information!

Brilliant Glittery Glitter Dough!

Hi my name is Cyndi Williams and I am the Product Development Manager for Excelligence Learning Corporation. I really enjoy playing and creating new projects with our Colorations® Glitter Dough (GLITTDO). We offer six brilliant colors in a set, all non-toxic to little ones. Our Glitter Dough adds sparkle to any play table and is fun and easy to work with. It can be a learning tool by using it to cut out numbers, shapes, and letters of the alphabet. It is good for learning about textures, and Glitter Dough can be used with raised patterns or embossed surfaces. Also, our Glitter Dough does not contain latex, dairy, casein, eggs, peanut or tree nuts. This is fantastic information for children with allergies.

I have a set of Glitter Dough in my home. When my nephew Kraemer comes over to visit, he always asks to play with it. We set it up on my kitchen table and play for hours. We create our own superheroes, creatures, blobs, bad guys, and even buildings. We pretend the superheroes are saving people, and sometimes, in the process, our buildings get knocked down or destroyed. Our Glitter Dough makes it easy to rebuild so our superheroes can go on to fight the bad guys another day! It is so much fun!

Sometimes, Kraemer likes to use my cookie cutters with the Glitter Dough, and we practice learning different shapes by cutting them out in different colors. Our Glitter Dough cleans up easily with soap and water. It never seems to crumble, and with the re-sealable tub, it lasts a long time!

Due to the nature of my job, I visit preschools frequently. I see children playing at the art station and they often have Glitter Dough. It makes me happy to see our product being used, but even more so, I love the fact that children are enjoying themselves and creating things with our Glitter Dough. It’s fun for children because it stimulates their imagination and allows them to create something great! The possibilities with Glitter Dough are endless.

Check out our video for more information!

Pantone in Paris!

My name is Mary and I am one of the Arts & Crafts buyers at Discount School Supply®. I would like to share a story with you.
This summer I took a trip to Paris and was delighted to see a "Pantone" exhibit at the Pompidou Museum. Within the museum was a snug passageway that opened up to an amazing chamber overflowing with wildly shaped furniture and cases filled with vibrant 3-dimensional displays. The walls were lined with brilliantly colored canvases that invoked in me a childlike sense of happiness. I just wanted to jump on the furniture -- but, instead, I decided to take in the art.

In the back section of the exhibit hung a series of resist paintings. One in particular caught my eye. The entire canvas was black with the exception of a few perfectly placed circles that popped in rainbow colored swirls. As I looked closer, the base of the canvas was covered with red, blue, yellow, green, orange and purple. Atop was a thick layer of black paint, with only the circles showing the underneath colors. The contrast of the stark black to the vivid colors made me recount the first time I did resist art in Mrs. Wortman’s 5th grade class.

She never had much money to buy supplies, but she always found clever ways to inspire us. She cut up her old manila file folders into squares and had us fully cover the square – first with bright colored crayons and then with a layer of black. Her recommendation was to color as hard as we could so that the colors underneath would pop. I remember coloring so hard and outrageously that the crayons would get hot to the touch.

Using a pair of blunt-tip scissors, we would scrape off the black, making a design. I remember being mesmerized by the contrast of the black to the vibrancy of the colors beneath; I scraped nearly every inch of that square just to see the “reveal” time and time again. Once our class was finished with the squares, Mrs. Wortman arranged and hung them together like a quilt.

Today, it’s much easier to create resist art. As an Arts & Crafts buyer for Discount School Supply®, I was delighted to be able to construct the Colorations® Scratch Design Boards (SDBOARD). These sheets of multi-colored cardstock are pretreated with a non-toxic, easy-to-scratch-off paint. Similar to scratching off a lottery ticket, the black paint can be removed with a wooden stylus (SDJPEN), craft stick (CRAF) or a finger nail. Inspired by Mrs. Wortman, I designed them in 5” x 5” squares, which is enough space for a child to draw in, but small enough for a teacher to be able to arrange in “quilt” style. For safety reasons, I thought it best to avoid using scissors for scratching off the surface and designed a small wooden stylus in the same dimensions as a child’s primary-sized pencil. The stylus is easy for young children to manipulate.

I hope that children today enjoy the stimulating contrast of resist art as much as I did, and maybe someday they’ll be able to recount their own childhood experiences of drawing on scratch art paper.

Watch our video for more information!

Moving and Learning…It’s a WIN-WIN!

My name is Lara Lauer, and I am the Michigan Account Manager with Discount School Supply®. From the time I was a little girl, I was always in motion. I was constantly involved in sports. I still love to be very active and recently completed my second marathon. For me, staying active is just part of life. I have learned how important it is in relieving stress and how much it helps me to stay healthy and in shape.

We all realize that not everyone is active. Over the past three decades, the childhood obesity rate has more than doubled for preschool children aged 2-5 years. When I visit child care centers, one of the most prominent requests I get is for new, fun, active play items. The GET UP AND GO DICE® (GODICE) are perfect for sneaking in active play while teaching at the same time. The dice promote healthy physical movement along with enhancing gross motor skills. They also help to reinforce language, math awareness and social skills. The GET UP AND GO DICE® can be used for inside or outside activities. The students love to see their teachers get up and move!

One of the coolest things about the GET UP AND GO DICE® is that they include 10 blank cards which allow teachers and students to be creative. The blank cards can be personalized with fun and unique challenges, like “act like a monkey” or “fly like an airplane.” What other activities or movements can you think of? The dice come with a handy activity guide that includes even more fun ideas. When children learn to move while they learn, we hope that it becomes “just part of life” for them. That’s a WIN-WIN situation for everyone.

Check out our video for more information!