Crafting Christmas Cheer with Salt Dough Ornaments!

If you’ve never tried making salt dough, get ready for a fun and creative Christmas craft! This simple recipe calls for just three ingredients, making it a perfect project for your homeschool. Not only will you create beautiful handmade ornaments that can be cherished for years, but you’ll also have a wonderful opportunity to delve into storytelling with your family.

Start by gathering your ingredients, and then let each child select a unique symbol to shape from the salt dough. The possibilities are endless—think candy canes, ballet slippers, trees, or even a cozy scarf! This is a great chance to spark their imagination and connect it to a favorite story. Choose a book together as a family, and as you read aloud, encourage everyone to take turns.

Once you’ve chosen your symbol and read your story, it’s time to let creativity flow! Children can personalize their dough creations with color using crayons, markers, or paint. You can even dye the dough with food coloring for a splash of vibrancy. Then, roll it flat and use cookie cutters or mold it into a delightful sculpture. To hang the ornament, either create a hole at the top to pass a string or hook through and secure, or tie the hanging string around the ornament. Once your masterpieces are complete, you can choose to air dry them or bake them for a sturdier finish.

So gather your materials, dive into a good book, and watch creativity blossom in your homeschool!

Salt dough recipe:

Ingredients

  •  2 cups all purpose flour

  •  1 cup salt

  •  1 cup water
    Instructions:

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the flour and salt.

  • Slowly add water, stirring and mixing as you go to form a so dough similar to the texture and feel of play-dough.

  • Shape the dough into a ball and knead for approximately 5-10 minutes, adding a bit more flour if the dough is too sticky or a bit more water if it’s too dry. You should be able to roll a ball of dough in your hands without it sticking, but not crumbling apart.

    • Option #1: Roll dough on a flat surface with a rolling pin and cut shapes with cutters or plastic knives.

    • Option #2: Shape or sculpt the dough with hands and fingers to create the desired shape.

  • Make sure to pierce the ornament to allow you to thread string or a hook for hanging AFTER baking or drying.

  • Bake thin ornaments for 30-60 minutes in a warm oven (180°-200° F). For best results, air dry any sculptures thicker than 1⁄4 inch overnight before baking. Some larger sculptures will puff when baked, so air drying for 2-3 days will be sufficient without the need to bake.

  • Add the string, ribbon, or wire to hang your dried ornaments!

Variations:

  • Add food coloring to tint the dough

  • Add glitter or Epson salt crystals to the ornament (sprinkle and press the particles to the surface, and then reshape or cut)

  • Add spices, beans, pressed flowers, or whatever else you can get to stick!

  • Replace ¼ or ½ cup flour with cinnamon or other spices for a fragrant dough

Ready, Set, Go

It’s time for some encouragement. You may be excited about the new school year, or you may be dreading it, but I want to encourage you . . . you are not alone. Along with so many organizations, we are here to support you.

  • We will happily teach your children through live classes or tutoring (including correcting their homework).

  • We will teach you through our ATP (Adult Training Program) seminars so you are better equipped and more confident to bring quality language arts instruction to your home and/or co-op.

  • We invite you to join our monthly webinars to learn more about our philosophy and the products we offer, or to find encouragement when you attend our “Community Connections” webinars where we discuss specific educational pain points for families who are homeschooling.

  • We encourage you to join our “The Write Journey” private FaceBook group where you can ask any questions and learn from others’ questions and comments about teaching quality reading and writing.

Be encouraged: you and your children are not alone!

If you find yourself feeling overwhelmed, you have permission to simplify. SIMPLIFY. The beginning of the school year may seem like a strange time to encourage this, but I remember how overwhelming AND exciting the beginning of a new school year felt. Perhaps you plan to ease into the new school year, rather than jumping in with every subject on every day of the school week. I encourage you to start strong with reading, writing, and math; then weave in or add the next subject when you and your children are ready. Remember: find joy in creating a learning environment, rather than living under the burden of the “To Do” list . . . or the “Lesson Plans”. These lists and plans are there to help you, but when they feel burdensome, lighten your load. 

Like many of you, I remember feeling ready once again for a routine in the fall, after a “break from the routine” over the summer months. Set yourself (and your children) up for success by expecting a simple routine. SIMPLE. ACHIEVABLE. Include chores and family rhythms into your plan. Homeschooling is not “doing school at home”, but it is weaving a plan/routine into your daily lives, with times of intentional learning alongside playful learning.

One year older and one year wiser, right? That is the goal. Have fun along the way because “learning” brings JOY! Don’t ever lose sight of that truth. Even if it’s hard work, the very nature of learning brings joy.

Speaking life,

Kris

Our upcoming classes

Often, the task of writing anything starts with the question, “What is the purpose of this writing assignment?” Many think of creative writing or story-telling. Some think of poetry or journaling. Still others think of research papers and long essays. However, in most instances, students must learn how to address writing prompts, identifying whether the prompt asks a question of the student or tells the student to write about a specific topic.

Writing Foundations

Our Writing Foundations classes help students learn to respond to writing prompts in all situations. The size of the compositions grows with each level, but all levels address these needs:

  •  Gather the ideas related to the prompt

  •  Decide which ideas to use in their writing, or composition

  •  Organize the ideas for flow

  •  Put the ideas into complete sentences

  •  Edit or correct the sentences for strength, correct grammar usage, and quality

  •  Produce a final composition that the student knows is strong because all the steps are well addressed

Check out the various levels for students to learn our writing process!

Elementary Writing Foundations (typically 4th-6th grade) trains students to consider the prompt, decide their ideas or perspective, and then write a paragraph of either 8 or 11 sentences about that given prompt, or topic. 

Tuesday 11:30-12:30 PST/ 1:30-2:30 CST/2:30-3:30 EST

Thursday 11:30-12:30 PST/ 1:30-2:30 CST/2:30-3:30 EST

Intermediate Writing Foundations (typically 7th-8th grade) trains students to consider the prompt, decide their ideas or perspective, and then write more than one paragraph about that given prompt, or topic; they will also learn about thesis statements, transition sentences, and an overall conclusion.

Thursday 11-12 PST/1-2 CST/2-3 EST

Advanced Writing Foundations (typically 9th-12th grade) trains students to consider the prompt, decide their ideas or perspective, and then write a five-paragraph compositions about that given prompt, or topic, and teaches students to identify the type of essay required, such as expository, personal reflection, persuasive, argumentative, or research reporting, all while following MLA formatting rules. This class allows the advanced writer to grow in their ability to dig deeper for content about more challenging prompts.

Thursday 9:00-10:30 PST/12:00-1:30 EST

If your children have already taken a Writing Foundations class, we invite them to join one of our Reading & Writing classes to learn how to study literature deeply and write about it as they practice the writing methods they learned in their WF class.

Reading & Writing

If your student has already taken a Writing Foundations class with us, help them continue practicing the writing skills in a Reading & Writing class for the grade level! They will also learn the valuable skills to deeply study literature instead of simply reading to find out what happens in the story.

1/2 Grades - Wed. 11:30-1:30 PST/1:30-3:30 CST/2:30-4:30 EST

My Father’s Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett  

3/4 Grades -  Tues. 9-11 PST/11-1 CST/12-2 EST

The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden 

5/6 Grades - Wed. 9-11 PST/11-1 CST/12-2 EST

Twenty- One Balloons by William Pene du Bois

7/8 Grades - Wed. 9-11 PST/ 11-1 CST/ 12-2 EST

Hattie Big Sky by Kirby Larson 

High School Grades- Tues. 9-11 PST/11-1 CST/12-2 EST

Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne

The Write Tools

Time and again, The Write Journey hears comments from parents about the overwhelming expectations for their children when it comes to writing. They are expected to simply know how to write many words on any given topic. The expectation also demands that students find themselves naturally able to write because they read many books, or simply because they are older. These often misguided or unfair expectations may leave a student feeling as if they did something wrong, or as if they are not smart enough to complete the task. We come against this methodology with our Writing Foundations classes. Our goals aim to equip and empower the writer to address a writing assignment with specific skills to complete the task. The writer’s toolbox that we help students fill enables them to pull out the correct tool at the appropriate time.

Our focus for students is that they would gain mastery over the skills. This means that they need instruction, time, and practice. An athlete may begin with some natural abilities, but properly learning the fundamentals, plus hours of practice make a professional athlete stand out. The same is true with writing. A student may begin with some natural skills such as good ideas, eloquent phrases, and correct spelling. However, these are just parts of the whole. A student trained in the writer’s craft we teach will be able to pull all of their skills together to form a well-written, thoughtful, skillful composition. It simply takes the proper instruction, time, and practice.


Preparing For Class: What Steps Can I Take?

If you have a child signed up for either a Writing Foundations Class, or for a Reading & Writing Class, there are several steps to be ready on the first day of class.

  1. If you haven’t already done so - REGISTER your student for class

  2. Double check the times and days on your order, as the start time for the earliest classes is now 9:00 am pacific/12:00 pm eastern

  3. If your student is enrolled in a Reading & Writing class, order the novel that the class will be studying

  4. Mark your student’s teacher’s email address as a contact to ensure emails don’t go to spam.

  5. Search for your class email (which should arrive within the week of Aug 12-16th at the earliest - this will advise the official day and time of the class as well)

  6. Verify that you have access to the TWJ (Elementary or Intermediate) Writing Foundations Handbooks

  7. Share your student’s Gmail address with their instructor via email

  8. Make sure your student joins the Google Classroom through the emailed invitation

  9. Update Zoom on your student’s device

  10. Verify that computer camera and microphone are working

  11. Get ready for classes, but do not read any part of your books yet!

  12. Gather supplies (novel, writing utensils, lined paper for note-taking, earbuds, etc.)

  13. IMPORTANT: Plan to attend one of the following Orientation webinars (30 min.) for ALL families (even returning). Click on one of the links to register for the webinar. The purpose of this orientation is to make sure we are working together to bring quality education to your children. What is your role as parent, and what is our role as instructors? When you attend, you are able to ask clarifying questions and get your answers right away. Simply put: this is the best way to ensure your children are getting the best support.

As always, please reach out to The Write Journey teachers or office with any questions, and we look forward to classes beginning the week of August 27th-29th!