Representing Ourselves in Clay

The children have been very interested in drawing self-portraits. We placed mirrors out on the table to encourage them to really observe their features and include them in their drawings. 

The children were eager to discuss their similarities and differences so we read a book about diversity. 

This lead to great discussions regarding the uniqueness of individuals and how everyone is special! Because the children have been working actively with sculpting this week (check out these awesome animals!!) we challenged them to create a self-portrait sculpture. 

Our children amaze us each day! Check these sculptures out!

Plasticine

Plasticine is a great sculpting material. It's firm so it holds its shape well and comes in a variety of colours. It's very challenging to manipulate so it works well to strengthen the little hands and fingers that create with it. Strong fine motor muscles help with future pencil grasp and writing abilities. 

Autumn Print Making

We love to spend time outdoors! Bringing children outside helps them connect with nature and find areas of wonder and inquiry that might not be available in the classroom. This time of year is filled with endless possibilities for exploration and appreciation of nature.

Today we went on a leaf hunt with the children. We have observed their growing interest in both signs of autumn and printmaking, so we decided to combine the two into an activity.

The leaves were plentiful!

Back inside, we used a small piece of Crayola Model Magic sculpting materials, some rollers, and our autumn objects to make prints.

First we rolled the clay so it was flat and smooth. There was a lot of math talk that emerged from the children as they discussed the size of their objects and how large or small their piece of clay needed to be. As they rolled they would hold their objects up to the clay and measure to see if the object fit inside.

There was also discussion about which side of the leaf would print the best. The children quickly realized that the veiny side left a better print, and the best kind of print was created when the leaf was rolled into the clay with the roller and then gently peeled off.

Here is how we've displayed this experience in our classroom.

Print Making with Clay

We invited the children to create their own prints with classroom materials (shells, rocks, plastic animals, building blocks) and fast drying clay.

First the children had to form a small, smooth surface that would be the original shape of their printing surface. Next children selected their printing materials and had to firmly press their object into the clay. Once the object had been pressed deep enough into the clay, it had to be carefully removed so it didn't disturb the print.

We let the prints dry over night and turned them into necklaces!  Beautiful!