On Monday I led our small co-op in creating this Tiffany style art project. I was efficient enough to gather all the materials, but unfortunately not so with-it that I brought my camera. Thus, there are no pictures of the process or any finished artwork besides Rebecca's.
I followed the instructions on Kids and Glitter--visit there for the details. The children drew simple designs on cardboard and glued yarn onto the outlines. The yarn was covered with foil, then colored with permanent markers and outlined with black Sharpies. If the cardboard is cut to the suggested 6 1/2" x 9" it can be attached to colored cardstock to frame the picture.
We followed the suggested Lenten theme, but this technique can be used to make all sorts of beautiful images. Enjoy!
so we started by choosing a particular branch that hung over the railing. We started drawing when it had only brown swellings.
I drew (after the first day) in a small, spiral notebook, but had the children use larger paper that could be punched and stored in a three-ring binder. When the paper is separate, it's so much easier to make another try if a child gets frustrated with an unsatisfactory picture.
We observed almost every day, but only drew when the change was significant.
These buds are turning green, but they are not leaves--just the covering of the blossoms.
Blossoming time is getting closer...
With open blooms to draw the next day:
And then the leaves appeared! The reason cherry trees (and others) are so beautiful in the spring is that the blossoms open BEFORE the leaves do. It's one thing to know this, but another to watch day by day by day, and really SEE it. The drawings so far go from March 17 to April 14.
The next stage was really cool! The petals fell off, but the carpel and stamens remained. The ovaries of the pollinated flowers began to swell--the beginnning of their fruit.
When the cherries were still tiny (see below), we dissected one. The pit was there, but still soft.
All along we had noticed that the side of the tree facing the afternoon sun (our house shades the other side from morning sun) progressed more quickly. As the cherries grew, we noticed that not only did one part of the tree ripen more quickly, but the sunny side of each cherry also changed color sooner!
Another service I provided my children (besides encouragement and some writing) was color advice. We used Prismacolor pencils, which come in many tints and shades, and also blend well. On some of my pages I recorded colors that were accurate for the current stage. I even tried out (for all our benefit) different combinations/blends to help get just the right green (it changed frequently) or new red highlight. It was fun for me to experiment, and my students appreciated the chance to be accurate without sorting through the big box of 72. (Yes, 72--it was a Christmas present one year!)
This long ago, long-term project (June 2 is the last recorded date) is still one of our best ever. We've always had a great affection for our tree and its fruit, but that up-close-and-personal view made the harvest that much sweeter.
My favorite message:
On Tuesdays, after writing co-op, the children follow a "how to draw" video. The large group (15-ish), has already been sitting for more than hour, so sometimes they get a bit restless. We're sticking with it, though, figuring it's still an effective use of our together time.
Another mom had asked for pictures for a nursing home, but didn't suggest a subject.
Here are some pictures. Most of them don't look right to me--the colors seem washed out, and I'm not sure if it's due to the settings on our new monitor or my (lack of) picture-taking skills. 
The piece is called "Clear Water" (River Series Shawl) by 
Again, the photos look pale to me, but maybe you can get an idea of how well suited the colors are to me:
MANY THANKS again to my loving family (and clever daughter) for one of the best, most unexpected presents EVER!