ARTS MANUAL

WAR CHILD HOLLAND

UGANDA

“ Using Arts in our work with children –

Every person can be an artist!”

© Adapted from Gjakova – Kosovo Manual

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Table of Contents Basic approaches to the teaching of Art and Craft t o children

� Art and its objectives

o What is art?

o Why teach art/craft to children?

� How to Teach Art and Craft

o Scheme of Work

o Planning an Activity in Art /Craft

o Timing

o Method

� Storage

� Tools and Materials

� Colours

� Improvising of art and craft materials and tools

� Role of the Facilitator/Activity Leader

� Setting and Environment

� Evaluation and Appreciation

Different types of activities and when to use them

Drawing and Painting

• Doodling “Taking a pen for a walk”

• Imaginative pictures

(a) story telling

(b) relevant visual aids

(c) visits

(d) discussion

(e) jungle/desert/Africa

(f) illustration stories

(g) place you like to be

(h) waves and fishes

(i) express your mood

(j) “What if………..”

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Painting

• String painting

• Spray painting

• Drawing together

Mosaic, Collage, Mural

• Newspaper collage

• Mask

• Cartoon bodies

• Many faces, many emotion

Pattern

• Writing pattern

• Leaf pattern

• Stone painting

• Texture pattern

• Name design

• Name initial

• boarders

Paper folding and cutting

• Making cards

• Mandalas

• Making envelopes

• Patchwork qult

• Rainbow fish

Modeling

• Introduction to clay modeling

• Thumb method of modeling

• Coil method of modeling

• Modeling natural object

• Construction using mixed media(natural media)

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Basic approaches to the teaching of Art

and Craft to children

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ART AND ITS OBJECTIVES

WHAT IS ART?

We must bear in mind that usually when we talk of Art we also include Crafts. In

other words, the word ‘Art’ is very often used as a general term for the two

activities. All the same we must realize that specifically, ART refers to the visual

means of conveying a message. In this message, the artist may express his

emotions, mood, certain experiences and /or a new idea. The object of art, e.g.

collage work, a painting, etc. does not have to be functional; it may simply have an

aesthetic value, that is convey beauty.

On the other hand, CRAFTS refers to various skills of changing working materials

from their original state in such a way that they end up as functional objects, i.e.

objects which can be used in performing a duty. For instance, a useless piece of

wood could be reshaped into a spoon, which can be used for eating food.

WHY TEACH ART/ CRAFT TO CHILDREN.

1. Art and Craft are taught so that children may develop their own creative

power. Although we acknowledge the fact that all children are creative in

one way or another, we have to give them practice in the use of their

brains so that they can creatively develop original ideas in whatever they

do, be it solving a problem in science, archaeology, administration, or

composing songs, etc.

2. Art and Craft being practical subjects, they train children to co-ordinate

their senses. For instance, while the eyes visually note the structure of,

say a piece of wood, the hands feel the grain of that wood. And during

carving various senses work hand in hand and involve themselves jointly

in deciding how the pieces of wood is going to be changed to a more

useful shape. Thus, although the children will have other activities e.g. in

physical education, which will offer chances of training their sense of co-

ordination, Art and Craft offer yet another unique opportunity to do the

same thing.

3. Art and Craft train children to be aware of the existence, beauty and

structure of their environment. We do not live in various objects: trees,

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birds, animals, houses etc and all these things have some effects on our

lives. The only way we can response to the existence, beauty and

structural value of these things usefully is by getting close to our

environment. Fortunately, some aspects of Art and Craft activities, e.g.

nature drawing, do bring us closer to our environment. Thus, Art and

Craft offer a good chance to acquaint us with our immediate

environment, which plays a major role in our lives. It is from our

environment that we get food, clothing materials for scientific and

medical experiments etc. We cannot help depending, directly or

indirectly, on our environment.

4. Participation in Art and Craft activities helps children to acquire and

improve a socially acceptable sense of discipline, which is a major

requirement in any field. During Art/Craft activities, children work within

specified periods of time and they have to obey rules or instructions

given by their teacher. These conditions of working help in establishing

and strengthening children s’ sense of discipline.

5. When a child is involved in Art / Craft group work, he inevitably learns to

share things with other people. He also learns the importance of helping

and co-operating with other people especially in solving problems. Also

he learns to appreciate other people’s ideas and methods of working. If

properly taught, the child will see the need to appreciate his and other

people’s values.

6. Art is a strong medium of self –expression. It is a visual language

through which children can learn to express their emotions, mood and

personal feelings.

7. Through Art and Craft activities the child learns to control his muscles,

especially those of the hand, as he struggles to produce a work of

art/craft. At the same time he learns to produce neat and accurate work,

a quality, which would be applicable in many other fields, he might be

involved in future, the same quality links up with self confidence and

reliance which the child acquires as he makes efforts to produce a worth-

while work of art and craft. A combination of all these qualities, especially

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self-confidence and self –reliance, in turn help to mould the child into a

good reliable citizen.

8. Art and Craft are two of the few subjects, which offer room for pleasure

and mental relaxation. They also offer the child freedom in decision-

making as he makes selection of colours, shapes and materials during

Art / Craft activities.

HOW TO TEACH ART AND CRAFT TO CHILDREN.

SCHEME OF WORK.

In conducting any activity, one must have a clear plan of what he wants to cover

during a certain period. This plan serves as a guide or reminder of what is to be

taught at a given time. When this plan or programme is designed to encompass

subject –matter for several activity over a period of weeks, months or years, it is

called a Scheme of Work. It is different from a syllabus in that it is prepared with a

small group (i.e. a limited number of group, if not one group) in mind. Unlike a

syllabus, it is concise and more specific in content.

An example of the Layout of a scheme of Work in Art for three weeks.

Weeks Topic General Aim/s Subject Matter

Reference Materials & Tools

Remarks

1 PRINTING To make pupils more aware of pattern and design shapes

LEAF PRINTING Making patterns and designs

The name of the source of information. If it is a book quite the title and page

Powder colours, brushes palates, water, leaves, newsprint paper, rags water jars

Example: This lesson was not successful because I failed to control my class

2 PAINTING To train pupils’ sense of observation

STILL LIFE PAINTING Drawing and painting objects like a gourd, Pot, etc

(As above) Soft pencils, sugar paper, crayons, a gourd a plate

(As above)

3 DRAWING FIGURE DRAWING the portrait of an old man from observation

(as above) Charcoal, sugar paper, fixative

(as above)

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If your general aims are saying, two or three, list them all down.

If you have more than one activity, single or double, in any week, then you will

need an “activity Column”. This column should show particulars and details of

those activities within that week. The layout of your scheme of work will then be as

follows: -

Week Activity Topic Subject Matter

Reference Materials Remarks 1 1 WEAVING 2 DRAWING 2 1 MODELING 2 PAINTING

PLANNING AN ACTIVITY IN ART / CRAFT

AN ACTIVITY PLAN WOULD INDICATE THE THINGS LISTED BELOW:

CLASS: (e.g. ideal group) ACTIVITY: ART / CRAFT DATE: (When the Activity will be taught) TIME: (e.g. 2:15 pm 3:25pm, when the l activity will be conducted) TOPIC: (e.g. printing) SUBJECT MATTER :( e.g. Leaf Printing: Patterns ad designs will be made). SPECIFIC AIMS /S: (e.g. to show pupils how to obtain patterns ad design through Leaf Printing). MATERIALS AND TOOLS: (e.g. powder colours brushes, rags, palettes, newsprint, leaves, water, jars, water) TEACHING AIDS: (e.g. patterns, designs, slides, etc). ORGANISATION: (For instance, if the children are going to work in groups, you should state the number of groups involved and label them e.g. Group A, Group B, Group C) METHOD The method includes the steps to be followed, these may be as indicated below: - Step 1: INTRODUCTION Step 2: DEMONSTRATION. Step 3: APPLICATION. Step 4: CONCLUSION.

(a) Clearing up. (b) Display and appreciation of the children work. (c) Assignment for the next activity to be given if there is any.

TIMING.

Proper timing of an activity is very important. Time is one of the factors, which help

in determining the nature of activity to be done. It would be very difficult to plan an

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activity properly if you did not know the time allotted for it. If the time factor is

ignored, it will be difficult to achieve the aim of an activity, for each particular aim

must be defined within the limitations of available time. If the question of allotted

time is not considered during the planning of an activity, unforeseen events might

take place, For instance, (a) time may expire before the children are halfway with

their exercise and this would leave the children dissatisfied with their performance.

For young children, especially the under nine, the activity would be a

disappointment.

To enjoy the feeling of achievement, the children must see the result of their efforts

when or before the activity ends. Or (b) the activity may end too prematurely, which

is the other extreme which in turn may have a damaging effect on your

organization and class control unless you keep the children fully occupied with

extra work.

To time your activity properly, you should especially consider the average working

speed of your children. All the same, to be on the safe side, always keep aside an

extra activity for the children in case your activity ends prematurely. On the other

hand, if you have a slow group your activity should be good reason the exercise s

not finished as scheduled, it should be finished in the next Art / Craft activity.

Whenever possible, Art and Craft activity should comprise of ample time. This is

because Art and Craft are practical subjects and part of the activity is taken up by

introduction, demonstration, issuing of tools and materials and clearing up at the

end of the activity. This leaves only a short time for Application and Development.

In any case, planning of activities comprising of combined periods becomes much

easier.

METHOD (explained) (a) Introduction

Always and especially when children are below 5 years, you as the facilitator

should take great care not to make your introduction long. If it is long, the children

will be bored and may lose interest in your activity even before they start working.

This would be disastrous; the introduction should be brief clear and up to the point.

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On the whole, two points play a very important role in the introduction, namely: -

(a) Explaining to the children what the current activity is all about and

perhaps how it is related to the previous activity.

(b) Motivating the children, i.e. arousing their interest so that they plunge

into the activity with maximum enthusiasm and willingness. Thus, the

children should be made to feel that they are going to draw or weave

because they, not only are interested and they, therefore, hope to enjoy

the activity. This is the sort of attitude that would make the children

exploit their creative resources in a bid to express their moods, emotions

and various ideas effectively.

There are several ways of motivating children

(a) Through simple, clear and relevant verbal explanation.

(b) Through story telling, poetry, reciting etc

(c) By means of visual aids e.g. relevant photographs, drawings

or any previously completed works of Arts / Craft, films, slides

etc. It must be stressed here that visual aids like drawings,

photographs, sketches on the board, etc should be out of the

children’s’ view after use. If this is not done, children will be

tempted to copy them, an act which should be discouraged at

any level of learning unless the teacher consciously allows it

for a justifiable reason.

(d) Practical demonstration by the activity leader or an invited

guest.

(b) Demonstration.

Demonstration is a physical explanation of an activity. When w doing it, it makes it

easier for their children to understand the process of carrying out the task that they

are supposed to embark on. If a demonstration is to be successful in achieving the

intended aim, it must be conducted properly. A good demonstration should be brief

and very clear. That is, only a few minutes should be spent on it and, whatever is

done, it should be done in such a way that the children will have it all clear in their

minds before they start working. And to ensure that the demonstration is a success

the activity leader must make the necessary preparation in advance.

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For instance, the facilitator should fully understand the activity to be demonstrated.

Secondly, he should ensure that all the required tools and materials are handy.

He/she should not interrupt the demonstration by dashing to collect things that

ought to have been collected in advance. Poor preparation leads to a waste of the

activity leader and the children’s’ valuable time.

The activity leader should also see the rest of the activity; the activity leader should

see the children enjoying a good view of his activity. This can be achieved if the

children stand around the activity leader in a semi circle that is if the children

cannot see the demonstration from a sitting position.

Depending on the nature of the topic and subject matter, demonstration is

sometimes not necessary. And where it is not necessary, it should be left out. All

the same, in such a case, accurate verbal explanation of what is to be done must

be given.

(c) Application.

Issuing of Materials and Tools

The issuing of tools and materials should be done after the introduction, I say this

because some children tend to be tempted to fuddle with the materials/ tools and

this means they cannot pay full attention to your introduction. The result being that

they are not likely to do what they are supposed to do. But if they have nothing on

their desks or tables to play with, they have no alternative but to listen to you

attentively.

To make distribution of materials and tools a smooth exercise, have the materials

prepared and ask a limited number of children to help you. These children or group

leaders are normally called, to serve the rest of the children for a couple of weeks

after which they can be relieved of their duties by another lot.

(d) Development.

After the activity starts, you should go round visiting each group or individual

children with the aim of guiding them. However, if your help is not needed, do not

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disturb the children unnecessarily unless you deliberately want to call their

attention to some point related to their work.

Development stage is also the time when, if necessary, extra motivating ideas as

well as additional materials and tools are given to the children. However, if you, as

the activity leader, have to inject new ideas into the children‘s mind, you must be

careful not to thwart their interest through the use of wrong methods. The best way

to achieve your aim without upsetting the children interest is to show some

appreciation of the efforts made while at the same time you give guidance where

necessary. The approach may be something like this: “It is rather too empty. Don’t

you think it would look better if you added something else like an animal?”

During the entire activity, you should try hard to get the children deeply involved in

their work with minimum interference from you. Whatever problems the children

are capable of solving for themselves let them solve them. Your role should

establish an atmosphere whereby the children will feel that the activity you are

conducting is their own activity, not your activity. One way of doing this, as I

suggested, is giving them a chance to participate in problem solving and decision-

making.

(e) Conclusion.

When it is time to stop working you can ask the group leaders to collect the

children’s’ work while the rest of the children clear up their desks or tables and

wash anything that needs washing. Enough time e.g. 15minutes should be set-

aside for this stage during the planning of activities. Later, when the children have

all settled in their desks once again, you can hold a short lively discussion about

the work done. If the activity is say, on “drawing” some pictures should be

displayed on the wall or on the ground if displaying facilities are poor. If the display

is on the ground the children should form a semi circle around the work for them to

have a good view.

During the discussion, remember to comment on the children’s work with caution to

avoid discouraging the young artists. On the other hand, while it is advisable to

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offer praise and encouragement generously during both development and

discussion time, you should be careful not to overdo it; flattering children too much

can be harmful to them. Children should not be made to believe that anything they

do is “wonderful”, otherwise they will never make any improvement in their work.

As their activity leader, you should point out intelligently the mistakes, which you

think they can avoid in later exercises without making them lose interest. This point

cannot be over emphasized.

(f) Assignment

If you had planned to give the children an out-of-class assignment, the best time to

do it is towards the end of your activity just before dismissing the class. The

assignment may involve any of the many activities, which are best done during the

children’s free time e.g. collection of materials for the next activity. Such materials

may include seeds, stones, shells, bones, feathers, animal skins and hides,

gourds, empty cans etc.

If you are to give an assignment, you should make sure that the children have

clearly understood what they are supposed to do. You should also tell them what

the deadline for the completion of the assignment is. You should also ensure that

the children have the means to complete the assignment in terms of time and

materials so that it does not create added stress.

STORAGE

Works of Art

A good portion of the children’s’ work should be stored somewhere carefully. This

way the children will realize that their work is being taken seriously. If children work

were to be destroyed only a day or two after the activity, the children might develop

a wrong attitude towards the value of their work. Of course, everything cannot be

stored for lack of space; the time duration for storing the items depends on the

availability of space, the importance attached to them and their quality. Thus, some

items may be preserved for a couple of weeks while others may be preserved for

longer.

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Some schools or Child friendly spaces do not have any stores where Art/Craft

products are stored, in such a situation shelves fixed along the walls. These

shelves can be made with timber or poles, which may be lined with leaves, and

graded, would be of great help in holding modeled or constructed items. Drawings

and paintings, if arranged flat in carton folders, can also be stored on these

shelves.

On the other hand, if you are lucky to be in a school or a child friendly space with a

store, make sure you get the walls lined with shelves for extra storage facilities. A

brittle or the most precious articles would also ease the way you arrange articles in

the store or cupboards matters very much. You should use the available space

with economy so that maximum quantity can be accommodated comfortably.

Materials and Tools

One way of cutting down on the expense normally incurred in replacing materials

and tools are to use and look after them carefully. Tools in particular are quiet

expensive to replace and so they should be used properly after which they should

be returned to their respective places where they will not be easily accessible to

the pupils. Certain items like brushes do not only need to be stored properly, but

thy must be washed thoroughly if their bristles are to last long. The children should

constantly be trained to treat the tools with care. As for brushes, after they have

been washed, they should be put in a tin upside down

(Fig.1).

Fig 1: Note the bristles are pointing heavenwards-large bamboo sticks or old Cans can be used to

hold a good number of brushes.

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Materials like fresh colours, glue, paper, bananas bark, and fabric etc that has

been left over after lessons should be stored somewhere for future use. Unless a

piece of material is totally useless, it should not be thrown away. You should think

of ways of converting the left –over materials into useful items.

TOOLS AND MATERIALS

The medium or material used in the art creation can be used to express

themselves in a vivid manner. A variety of materials can be helpful in allowing

children to express themselves, but at the same time must be careful not to have to

many medium that will overwhelm the child. Physically malleable materials allow

the child to have direct control over the material, which is important in situations

that children feel they have no control. The materials must be simple enough to

use so that children can express themselves without having extra training with that

material. Natural materials are also useful in constructing art because not only are

they easily accessible but they are familiar and promote creativity and

resourcefulness for the children.

Thick wax crayons (or paint) are the easiest to use and look after, and are suitable

in all weather and school conditions. The thickness discourages children to work in

too much detail, and to work freer. They can also be used flat to make

backgrounds and fill in spaces. All artwork should preferably be drawn or painted

freehand – no rulers or pencils!

COLOURS

Colours play an important part in the expression of moods and emotions. Thus like

lines, colours are a medium of visual communication. Through them, a teacher can

pass a message too his pupils or vice versa without the use of supplementary

explanation. It is a good idea, therefore, for the Art activity leader to be acquainted

with the theory of colours so that he/she can impart its basics to the children.

We should bear in mind that the best time to impart knowledge of colour theory to

people is when they are still children, i.e. when they are engaged in discovering

and experimenting with the contents of their environment. However, the facilitator

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should be careful not lecture to young children about the topic; color should be for

children to discover and experiment with. The best way of teaching this topic is

doing simple exercises involving colours, e.g. asking children to collect various

articles of different colours and to sort out these articles according to certain colour

schemes. For a start, this kind of simple practical exercise will, at least, teach them

the names of colours. (See activity list for more activities involving color). The

activity leader can refer to the colour wheel below (Fig2).

Fig 2 Colour wheel showing primary and secondary colour.

All colours are classified under four main categories namely: primary, secondary,

tertiary and neutral colours.

PRIMARY COLOURS

These are the colours, which are

obtained by mixing any two primary

colours in equal proportions, thus.

Red + Yellow = Orange

Red +Blue = Purple or Violet

Blue +yellow = Green.

TERITIARY COLOURS.

These are the colours, which are

obtained by mixing any two

secondary colours, thus

Violet +Orange = Dark Brown

Green+ Violet = Olive

Green +Orange = Light Brown.

These colours, obtained by the mixture very much depend on the proportions of the

mixed secondary colours.

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NEUTRAL COLOURS.

The neutral colours are black, white and gray. They are the colours, which neutralize or

change the tones of other colours. For instance red can be changed into a lighter tone

e.g. pink by adding whit to it. On the other hand, black is used to subdue the brilliance of

other colours e.g. light blue can be changed into dark blue by adding some black colour

to it. Grey is a mixture of white and black. It is important to note the source of these

neutral colours of the spectrum; whereas black is the absence of all colours.

EXPRESSION THROUGH COLORS

Apart from being decorative media colours as stated above, express mood, For

instance, they can express a warm or cold atmosphere. Warm colors are the positive

colour which are brilliant and which are capable of expressing some excitement and

livelihood e.g. red. Cool colors are the colours, which visually express a pacific cool

situation e.g. green and blue.

Colours also express emotions and other quantities e.g. red can be used to express

violence or anger black can used to express depth especially in three dimensional

images; white, unlike black, can be used to express highlighted area on three

dimensional images; blue can signify dignity while a dull dark blue would signify

sadness. Blue is also used to suggest mystery due to its apparently receding quantity,

hence its use in suggesting distance in pictures.

Children should be given the freedom of choosing and applying the colours that they

think say what they have in their minds. Very young children are fond of coming up with

surprising colour schemes and it is not very use usual to see a green goat appearing in

a picture. However, with some patience and understanding, the facilitator will gradually

find out why certain colours are preferred by a particular child. Then he/she would

decide whether he should call the children’s attention to the existence of the other

colours or to leave him alone. The activity leader findings and decision would be based

on the child’s explanation of his work. What is important to remember though is that

suggestions concerning the colours that the teacher deems suitable for certain parts in

a picture should only be made if the child is clearly confused and needs help.

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It is important to note that certain color combinations create a harmonious atmosphere,

e.g. red and orange or blue and purple, etc. This is because these colors are related for

example orange contains some red and purple has some blue, thus such colors could

be used in a picture which is supposed to express harmony. On the other hand, if one

wants to suggest discord, violence or disagreement of some sort in a picture, he may

have to include some clashing colors i.e. the opposite colors which appear in the color

wheel above e.g. yellow and purple or red ad green. The children under the guidance of

the teacher should do some experiments on such color schemes. Such practical

exercise would be far more useful to the children than a whole lecturer on the subject.

Children may use representative colors and you can then use your knowledge of color

to understand their art. Other children may struggle to express themselves and then

you can suggest colors to express certain emotions

IMPROVISING OF ART AND CRAFT MATERIALS AND TOOLS

One of the biggest and most serious drawbacks in conducting Art / Craft activities is

lack of adequate materials and tools. One of the general reasons is that Art/ Craft

materials and tools are abit too expensive for every school, organisation and activity

leaders to get sufficient supplies. Fortunately for many activity leaders, especially in the

rural areas, there is a solution when manufactured materials/ tools are unavailable.

Art / Craft activity leaders and the children should resolve to make the best use of their

environment by exploiting whatever useful materials and tools the environment can

offer, whenever possible, they should improvise for whatever they lack.

Given below are some suggestions concerning various items that can be obtained

without spending large sums of money? The main headings in bold capitals are the

items to be improvised for. Below each of these main headings is a list of some of the

natural or local materials/ tools that have been suggested as being suitable cheap

substitutes.

PAPER

(a) Bark

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(i) Banana bark, if cut up in small pieces; can be used for making mosaic

pictures. No additional colour is needed on this material to enhance its

aesthetic properties

(ii) Tree bark: Certain tree barks peel off easily. When dry, they can be painted

on the smooth side using local dyes or other colours.

(b) Leaves

Large leaves of various plants, e.g. arrow-root can be used for drawing

exercises. Shapes of animals, people, abstract forms etc can be scratched on

these leaves with sharp sticks.

(c) Scrap Paper

The sources include brown wrapping paper, paper bags like cement bags and

flour bags, old newspapers, magazines and books, cartons etc. Depending on

their structural qualities, these various types of paper can be used for activities

like mosaic and college making, modeling in paper machine, etc.

DRAWING PENCILS

(a) Charcoal.

Burn many hardwood sticks in a well-controlled bonfire at home or in school.

Then select only the charcoal sticks, which are soft enough to make clear soft

marks without breaking. The charcoal sticks should be broken into small pieces

of about 10cm in length each. If they are not broken this way, they will break

easily during drawing, which may cause some inconvenience.

(b) Chalk.

If soft stones, which provide natural chalk, e.g. limestone, are easily available

locally, they should be dug and stored in a dry place for drawing purposes.

Children can be asked to bring such chalk from home to be stored and used by

them in art activity.

DRAWING AND LETTERING PENS.

(a) Bamboo sticks

Small bamboo sticks can be sharpened into the shape of a fountain pen nib

using a sharp knife. If well made, the bamboo pens are useful tools for drawing

as well as lettering. Other sticks of hard wood can be used also if bamboo sticks

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are not available. These pens should be about 14cm in length or the size of an

ordinary pencil or “biro” pen.

(b) Feathers.

Sharpen the tip of a large feather’s shaft to obtain a quill pen, which is useful in

drawing and lettering activities

BRUSHES

(a) Sticks

Choose a well-shaped stick from fibrous wood and chew its end. Chew the end

patiently until you have a fine soft brush.

(b) Sisal

Get some sisal and tie it tightly round the first few centimeters of one of the sticks

end. Then trim the tip of the sisal to make a nice round brush. (Children can be

asked to bring sisal from home. The left over sisal should be stored in a dry place

for other craftwork).

(c) Animal Hair.

Do some experiments with different types of animal hair, i.e. soft ad coarse hair

from various animals, e.g. cows, goats, etc. Tie the hair round the end of a stick

and trim it with scissors. All the same, do bear in mind that stiff brushes are the

best for children at the Lower age Level.

(d) Feathers.

Collect a couple of feathers and mount them to the end of a stick and carefully

trim them with scissors. Use different types of feathers and experiment with

painting using the different brushes. Note the differences in effects. Very young

children will find feather brushes to be rather difficult to use but after some

practice, some of them may succeed in handling them with reasonable

effectiveness.

Brush Making.

There are two main categories of fiber: natural fibers, which can be obtained from

animal hairs or from certain parts of various vegetables and plants and man made

fibers, e.g synthetic, acrylic and nylon fibers. These two types of fibers are different in

their chemical structure and are therefore suitable for different forms of fiber –work. This

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fact makes it necessary to experiment with as many types of fibers as one can get. This

is one way of discovering new and most appropriate uses of a material.

However, stress should be laid on the use of the cheapest and most easily available

fibers. In most cases and especially in the rural areas, this will turn out to be the natural

fibers. Whenever a source of this type of material is available, it should be exploited fully

in teaching various crafts involving the use of fibers.

Materials and tools Sisal fiber, thin smooth sticks that may be about 20m long each, cotton string, sharp

knives, scissors.

Methods 1. Sisal fiber brush

A number of hours or days before conducting the activity, ask the children to bring their

own sticks and some sisal fiber. Remember collection of material is part of children’s

job. It is good to train them to look for their own materials. This makes them feel they

are participating usefully in a activity.However,where there are problems in obtaining

these local materials, the organization should make a great effort in making them

available even if it means buying them from other parts of the country.

To make sisal fiber brush follows the steps below:

1. Place some sisal fiber all round one end of the stick so that it cover about 3 cm

of the stick .the fiber should project beyond the tip of the stick by about 2 cm (fig

3) below

2. Bind the fiber very tightly to the stick

3. Finally trim the tip of the fiber mass and any remaining string neatly with scissors

or a sharp knife

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(Fig 3) showing steps making sisal brush

2. STICK BRUSH

• In making a stick brush, the sticks should be cut from living wood. if they

are hard and dry, they may be very difficult to chew. Also apart from

being green, the wood from which the stick will be cut should be the

fibrous type. Various localities will produce different types found in their

surroundings. This kind of information concerning the availability of the

best types of fibrous wood can be gathered from the parents of the

children and other relatives.

• Remove the bark and beat the end of the stick with a stone a few times to

make it easy to chew.

• Chew the beaten end of the stick properly.

• Use a sharp knife or scissors to trim the brush

• Experiment with painting using this brush

PAINT AND DYES.

(a) Flowers, Fruits and Plants.

Squeeze juice from various flowers and fruits e.g. Mukawa fruit (for purple dye)

and wild berries to obtain various colours. Some water should be added to the

juice thus obtained. You can also obtain colours by cursing leaves. Green leaves

will produce a greenish coloured dye, etc. Also if you boil certain plants, e.g.

Mwiganjo (for brown colour), you can get some very strong dyes. The colours

thus obtained should be preserved in clean containers, e.g. bottles or gourds, for

future use. But take care not to store the dyes too long or they will lose their

brilliance. Try to find out how long each of the different kinds of dyes can keep

fresh.

Some colours can be used straight from their sources: flower petals can be

squeezed directly onto the paper, thereby staining it with some colour. This

method can be used to paint pictures or objects provided the flowers are fresh at

the time of use.

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(b) Roots and Barks.

Boil the roots of certain local trees and plants, e.g. Gakaraku plant (for red dye),

Musavula plant (for scarlet red dye). You can also obtain dyes by boiling the bark

of various trees e.g. Munyamwe. Contact local syers for further valuable advice

on local sources of dyes.

(c) Charcoal, Earths, Chalk and Soot.

Grind charcoal (for black colour) or earth e.g. yellow –ochre, red earth etc that

can be dug in some localities. Paint can also be obtained by grinding soft

coloured stones into a powder. This powder should be sieved and mixed with

some water to form a paste, which can be applied on a surface during picture or

design making. You can also obtain paint by grinding school blackboard chalks

thoroughly into a powder. Various colours should be obtained. The powder is

then mixed with water to the required consistency. A little glue should be added

to make the paint adhesive. A part from the above sources. Some colour can be

obtained from chimneys, etc.

PALETTES.

Some objects, however crude they may look, only need a little modification to be

converted into useful cheap palettes. These objects include dry empty pods from

various trees, pieces of the bark of a tree which can be trimmed into functional

shapes and sizes, egg shells, sea shells, non porous stones which can be carved

into containers for storing paint, smooth leaves, lids and tins, waste cellophane or

polythene papers, china, plastic or metal plates etc.

GLUES

(a) Tree Sap.

Some trees produce a sticky liquid sap, which can be used to stick objects

together. Thus, it serves the same purpose as factory produced glues such as

Gloy. The following are a few examples of the trees, which produce useful sap:

Euphorbia, matata, Mwerere, Warrle tree, the Temple tree and the Banana tree.

Sap can also be obtained from certain fruits e.g. raw banana fruit.

(b) Bones, Horns and Hooves

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Collect some animal bones, horns and hooves from the local butcher or friends

and put them in a big container e.g. sufuria or debe. Add plenty of water and boil

the contents for a couple of hours. AS the water evaporates, a sticky liquid will be

left in the container. This is your glue. Pour it out into some other container/s and

store it. Put a lid on the container to keep off dust and other unwanted rubbish.

(c) Flour Paste

Mix some maize flour with water to make a thick paste. Boil this paste for

about half an hour and it will now be ready to be used as glue after cooling. Thick

wheat flour paste can also be used for the same purpose. This paste however,

should not be boiled; otherwise it will turn into hard lumps.

MODELLING MATERIAL

Clay

Most factory manufactured modeling materials e.g. plasticine, are too expensive

for most schools and activity leader to affords. Fortunately the activity leader

does not have to depend entirely on these expensive materials if they can obtain

clay. After all, clay has an overriding advantage over the artificial materials on

account of, among other things, its natural elasticity and aesthetic quality. Many

parts in the rural areas do provide good clays which can be obtained either free

of charge from riverbeds of from some people at a reasonable price. These clays

can be obtained in various colour shades e.g. reddish-brown, gray or yellow.

On the other hand, if clay cannot be obtained at all, children can use mud

from the school or child friendly space compound to model simple

temporary articles.

FIBRES

(a) Sisal Fiber

Sisal fiber is widely used in the country and is not difficult to get. Where it is for

sale, it is sold at prices that most schools can afford. It is useful for craftwork, e.g.

for rope, mat and brush making. Many other items can be made from it. It all

depends on one’s requirements. Like many of the fibers below, sisal is

reasonable easy to handle and takes dyes easily.

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(b) Fiber from Bark of Trees

The bark of some trees provides strong fiber which can be used to make a

variety of craft articles, e.g. mats, carpets, all sorts of ropes, toy balls, brooms

etc. Some of these trees include Mvumu tree, Banana tree, Mugio tree, Mukeu

tree, Murinda Ngurue tree etc.

(c) Banana Leaf Stalk.

(d) Bark of Creepers.

(e) Cotton and Wool.

Cotton and wool provide thread, which can be woven into various craft articles,

e.g. bags, mats belts, harts etc.

(f) Animal Mane and Tail Hair.

The hair from various kinds of animals like horses, cows, goats, squirrels,

monkeys etc would be very useful in making articles like brushes, brooms etc.

(h) Raffia.

Raffia may be used for making baskets, bags, carpets etc.

(I) Rushes and papyrus Reeds.

(j) Maize Cob Husks.

There are many parts of the country where maize is grown. In most cases, only a

portion of the maize cob husk is used to feed livestock, while the other portion is

left to rot in the gardens. Such husks as are not needed could be collected by the

pupils and used in craft activities. They could be used to make various articles in

school and child friendly space.

(k) Bark of Bamboo and Cane .

The bark can be used in construction activities for example in constructing model

houses, vehicles, baskets etc.

(l) Skins and Hides

These would provide leather, which in turn could be used to make leather articles

like belts, wallets, shoes or sandals, sword sheaths, bags etc.

ROLE OF THE FACILITATOR/ACTIVITY LEADER Giving children crayons and paper seems simple to do, but facilitators must be able to

distinguish between what is a normal reaction and what is more concerning. When

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children display complex issues within their artwork, facilitators must be aware of those

issues and refer them to someone with more in-depth knowledge of the psychosocial

needs of children. Facilitators, unless trained to do so, should not try to analyze or

interpret the expressions of the children. Misinterpretation of their work can be

damaging to the child’s self-confidence or the facilitator could give inappropriate

guidance based on an inaccurate interpretation.

Facilitators need to be able to exert some self-control and self will as to not impede on

the art of the individuals; they must be careful to protect the spontaneity and natural

essence of the project. Furthermore, it is crucial for the facilitators to acknowledge what

the children are doing and give value to their work.

The same applies to hanging the work on the school or Child Friendly Space walls. The

activity leader can for instance say, “All these drawings together make a wonderful

ocean,” (jungle, pattern etc.) or “did you enjoy drawing today?". After the activity has

been explained say something like “enjoy yourselves” and let the children get on without

interrupting them. After a while one can walk around and when necessary encourage

e.g. “we have some lovely hot deserts” or “lush green jungles” etc.

Do not be tempted to analyze the children’s drawings. This requires a special training

and even trained art therapists are very careful when looking at artwork and avoid

judgments. If very worried about a child’s work ask for help but remember the purpose

of doing art work is to stimulate the natural healing power that art (music / drama) has.

The aim of the work is to stimulate this natural process.

SETTING AND ENVIRONMENT In working with children we try to create a safe and enjoyable environment where

children feel free to participate in the activities. Children must feel free so that they can

find inner freedom to rediscover creativity and expression. If possible, it should be a

place that children can place claim to through the display of their work and materials.

Older children in schools prefer working at desks. If possible make squares of the desks

or a U-shape of all the desks with the children facing inwards. Younger children like

sitting (or lying) on the carpets and working on a smooth plank or board (hardboard).

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Conducting art in a group setting can be helpful, for when children hear thoughts and

emotions of others it can awaken something inside of them as well. The group setting

allows for important social interaction between the children and develops social skills.

This forces children to go beyond the limits of their own space and engage in the space

of others. Examples include creating collective murals or drawings and having clay

figures visit each other and develop a collective story. In doing this children are not only

able to interact but also reclaim their ability to work together. Furthermore, the group

provides a much needed sense of belonging.

EVALUATION AND APPRECIATION

BASIS OF EVALUATION.

It is important for an activity leader to know what he should look for in the work of Art he

wants to evaluate. To evaluate a piece of work successfully, he should first of all realize

that any work of Art is made up of several elements, which should be analyzed during

evaluation. He should discard the misconception that some laypersons have regarding

this topic. They believe that evaluation of any work of Art is very simple since all you

have to do is to look at the work and decide whether it is “good” or “bad” Thus to them

there are only two measures. Good and Bad. For instance if they instantly “Love” or

some other work then painting is “good”, if they “hate” it, it is “bad”. Technically these

conclusions may be correct, but then the observer should arrive at them through a

systematic process so that he is able to tell the artist or his Children why the painting is

good or bad. This systematic process is the process of analyzing the elements of the

work of art and finding out the part they play in the whole work. The following are the

main elements:

1. Subject Matter.

The work of art should have subject matter i.e. an elaborate topic or theme. If the

work of art does not reveal a topic or theme e.g. “Dancing, Fighting” etc, it may

be confusing hence it may not appeal to the observer.

2. Form.

The work of art should also reveal form – form in this case meaning the

composition or organization of shapes, areas of colour (tone and texture), lines

etc especially in the case of two dimensional works of art drawings, painting,

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mosaic pictures etc. In three-dimensional works, form would be recognizable as

the overall quality or appearance of the work.

3. Meaning.

For a work of art to be considered as successful, it must be able to convey a

meaningful message. This message may be conveyed to the observer through

the structure and organization of shapes or the use of specific colours and colour

combinations which are capable of expressing certain moods, e.g. sadness,

anger, happiness etc.

4. Originality or Personal Styles.

One of the quantities that should be encouraged in Art is self-expression through

one’s creative style/s. The Art activity leader should try to discover the child’s

own way or style of solving a given problem. So long as the child knows what is

to be achieved, for example creating a picture of people fighting, and so long as

he has the necessary tools and materials, he should be allowed by the activity

leader to make use of his personal style and creative instincts. And should be

successfully achieve the intended goal in his own way, he should be duly

rewarded with marks, verbal praise.

DISPLAY.

In any types of meaningful evaluation done either by the Art activity leader or the

Children or laypersons, displays play an important role. In the first place, the displays

give the observer a chance to compare one work with another without much difficulty.

This is important especially to the Art activity leader who should relate an individual

children’s work with that of the rest of the children. By comparing work this way, he gets

to know the level of performance of, not only individual children, but also the whole

class. “By the same token, individual children also get a good chance of comparing their

work with others” This way they learn new ideas which would help them improve their

own standards.

Secondly, display of works of art allows the observer to view the works from the most

convenient distance. This is important because for a proper evaluation to be done,

different types f works should not be viewed from exactly the same distance. For

instance, paintings should be viewed from a greater distance than lightly –shaded

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drawings: the reason being that it would be difficult to recognize and appreciate the true

function of the colours and colour areas from close quarters.

Some effort should be made to stage proper displays. To have a good display, one

should consider the space available, which he should use, with some sense of

economy. In other words, one should not, for instance, leave very large gaps between

the works unless there is a good reason, as this might lead to wastage of useful display

space. On the other hand, he should not cram the work in a small space in such a way

that they overlap a great deal. As it was pointed out earlier, if the space available for

display in the child friendly space is not enough, the display can be carried out outdoors.

This applies to both two-dimensional and three-dimensional works of art. In schools

where lighting facilities are poor, outdoor displays either under a shed or in the open.

Poor lighting tends to minimize the quality of art objects especially if they bear dull

colours.

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DIFFERENT TYPES OF ACTIVITIES AND

WHEN TO USE THEM

DRAWING AND PAINTING

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The activities can be used as part of (cycle group I DEAL group) activity program or

they can stand-alone and be used separately in schools or Child Friendly Spaces.

The activities in this manual are split up into three different categories:

1. WARM UP ACTIVITIES:

Warm Up activities are always simple, enjoyable and accessible so that all children find

them easy to participate in. They can be used to stimulate and prepare the children for

the main program of activities or they could also be used to prepare children for class

lessons. Warm up activities and games can also be used to help to bond a group of

children together.

The activities quite often involve stretching, shaking and freeing the body, concentrating

the mind, freeing the voice and group co-operation. Most last for about 5 minutes.

2. MAIN ACTIVITIES:

Main activities can provide children with opportunities to reach specific objectives which

need a little more time to work on i.e. developing trust within the group, exploring

emotional expression, freeing the creative imagination etc. Main activities can also be

used to explore a topic or theme e.g. the sea, animals in the jungle etc. These activities

can last for as long as you thing is appropriate. The art activities in this manual are all

MAIN ACTIVITIES.

3. COOLING DOWN ACTIVITIES:

These activities are used to bring your session to a close in a firm but calm and relaxed

way. They can be used at the end of your program of activities. The activities involve

cooling down the children i.e. relaxing their body and mind so that they can leave the

class in a calm and relaxed manner.

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(1)Doodling or “Taking a Line for a Walk”.

Some people call this activity “taking a pencil for a walk”, which unfortunately may give

one the impression that only a pencil can be “taken for a walk”. Thus, it is safer to use

the word “line” instead of “Pencil” since in this case, the question of what can or cannot

“take a line for a walk” does not arise.

Aim. To help children to improve their ability in making simple drawings through the use of a

few selected lines.

The world “improve” has been used above because “doodling” is not a new occupation

to the children. Doodling is one of the aspects of drawing, which the children will have

experienced practically before enrolling themselves for school. It is a common sight to

see young children scrubbing on the ground with fingers sticks or charcoal, while they

play at home. These children may be as young as three years old, if not younger.

However, their work at this early age is done without much regard to the end product. It

is in school, then that they are trained to put some thought into their hand movements

so that their scribbles or doodles can show an element of organization.

TIME: Appox.30-45 minutes

Material and Tools Soft pencils, crayons, poster colour or powder colours, brushes, colour trays, water jars,

rags, paper newsprint, sugar paper etc.

Special Reguiremenst: Darwing board for each child

Method.

1. Obtain a blank sheet of paper and freely draw a curved line from any edge

of the paper, if possible without lifting your pencil;, draw curved lines as

well as straight horizontal and vertical line. In fact, you can start with any

type of line-straight vertical lines, curved lines etc. provided the lines do

cross and recross themselves. Thereby creating shapes (Fig 4) as a line is

“taken for a walk” one should observe the abstract images being created

so as to help in controlling the shapes.

Care should be taken not to have too many images or shapes in the same picture.

Drawing should stop as soon as an interesting design or pattern has been created.

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2. Colouring is perhaps the most exciting part of the activity and the children will be

looking forward to it with enthusiasm. However, they should be the colours they

have at their disposal. The idea here is not to make them aware of the fact that

colours are for improving the quality of the drawing and not for destroying it.

To help the children further, limit them to a few colours three children colours, for

example. All or most of the shapes may be painted, depending on individual

children taste and sense of balance and design (Fig .5).

(Fig 4) (Fig 5)

(2) Imaginative Pictures

Although there are hundreds of activities that can be done, no particular activity can be

recommended as being the most suitable for every child. This is because choice of

subjects depends on a number of things, namely the children, ages, their environment

and their already acquired personal experiences. These factors should be considered

when choosing an activity for the children. It is important that the activity chosen be

close to the lives of the children, the children would draw inspiration from things near to

their everyday lives. All the same, inspiration should be supplemented by the activity

leader motivation of his children.

The following are a few suggestions for

ACTIVITY; 1. Boys hunting.

2. Mother ad father harvesting maize

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3. Three men fishing from a canoe.

4. Girls fetching water

5. A village on fire.

6. My sister cooking

7. Boys doing “ High jump”

8. Girls carrying firewood

9. People digging in the shamba.

10. Two children fighting.

Aim To get the children to make use of their past and present experiences and imaginative

power in producing drawings and paintings

One of the best ways of expressing one’s emotions, mood and ideas freely and

effectively is the drawing of imaginative pictures. When given the chance, children will

always feel delighted to express themselves and although there are many ways of doing

so, the imaginative drawing should be exploited. There is a lot that the activity leader

can learn about a child’s spiritual and psychological; qualities, fears, likes and dislikes

etc. However, what a child produces and how much freely he manages to express

himself, depend on a number of external factors and influences how he is motivated, the

encouragement he receives from the activity leader (if he receives any at all), his

working conditions, facilities available, etc.

Materials and Tools Paper, sugar paper, newsprint or cartridge paper poster or powder colours, brushes,

palettes water jars, rags, soft pencils or charcoal.

Method.

Hold a brief but active discussion on your activity with the class. Three activities will be

enough. Give the class a chance to make their own suggestions and discuss them.

From the suggested activity, you and the class may come out with three or four suitable

activities, if you are having group work each group can work on a single activity.

However, if certain children end up with pictures, which are not really based on the

original activity, they should not be penalized for this. The list of activities that you put

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on the black board is only a guide or a straight point for ideas. Children should not feel

they are forced to stick to the given ideas.

Motivating the children is very important since it is supposed to be one of the sources of

interest and it should be incorporated in the discussion. Depending on the mind, it can

be done in several ways.

(a)STORY TELLING.

You or one of the children can tell a very short interesting story from which the

children would choose activity for drawing.

(b)RELEVANT VISUAL AIDS.

These could be photographs, paintings, drawing, films, slides etc. After a visual

aid, say a painting, has been used, it should not be left hanging, has been used,

it should not be left hanging in front of the children for a long time otherwise they

may be tempted to copy from it.

(c)VISITS

Visits to interesting places, e.g. museums, prehistoric sites, game reserves, etc

would have to be made days before the lesson is taught since organizing them

consumes a considerable amount of time.

(d)DISCUSSION.

Discussion of mythological or religious characters and events can be a rich

source of inspiration.

When children have decided on the activity of their picture, they can first of all

sketch their ideas on paper. This can be done in pencil or charcoal. Later,

colours can be applied. Using colours like poster or powder colours may prove a

big challenge to the children so the activity leader should be on the lookout for

the cases that need assistance. However, if children messes his painting beyond

rescue, it is best that he starts a fresh one on another sheet of paper to avoid

more mess and mounting frustration.

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The followings are some of activities that can be group under imaginative

composition.

(e) Jungle/Desert/Africa

Activity objectives: - Stimulating imagination - Enjoying creating “own” Jungle, Desert or African village - Educational, learning about other lifestyles and countries

When to use: - After the children have got to know each other and have basic stability. - When they are able to concentrate and are confident in expressing their interest

in life. Now educational themes are suitable. Age group: Above age 8 Materials:

- Colored crayons (wax or oil) - Paper approx. 25 x 32”

Time: Approx. 20 – 25minutes Special requirements:

- A drawing board for each child if you are working on carpets. - Pictures of the jungle / desert - Plastic animals

Activity instructions 1. After a song (see below) talk about the Jungle, Dessert or Africa with the

children. Ask and tell about the animals, plants, people etc. Look at pictures, books, cards etc.

2. Draw with ‘jungle’ colors, horizontal squiggles for the ground and vertical squiggles that can become trees. Draw in animals, birds, flowers etc. using all colors

3. Draw with ‘desert’ colors horizontal squiggles for the sand and the sky. Look for camels, travelers, oasis’ etc. and draw them in using all colors.

4. Draw with ‘hot’ African colors the desert ground (see above), the jungle (see above), the sky and the hot sun. Look for an African village, African people and animals. Draw with all colors.

Other suggestions - These drawings are best used in combination with a music workshop. - Before drawing, sing songs that relate to the jungle or the dessert and play

rhythms etc. - Think up some other places and lifestyles (e.g. Eskimos, Japan, and

Australia) and use new songs and pictures.

(f) ILLUSTRATING STORIES

Activity objectives:

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- Stimulating creativity and imagination When to use:

- After the children have got to know each other and have basic stability.

- When they are able to concentrate and are confident in expressing their interest with the class.

- When learning to use their fantasy could help them to deal with their feelings and emotions.

Age group: All ages Materials:

- Wax crayons, oil pastels or paint - Paper approx. 25 x 32”

Time: Approx. 20 – 25minutes Activity instructions

1. After a story has been told or read, hand out paper and crayons 2. Ask children to tell about parts of the story they liked (for example, in Snow

White, many children say ‘the apples’ or ‘Snow White’ or ‘the dwarves’). 3. Talk about what these things could look like and let the children draw freely

(- if some children can’t choose, help them by suggesting something simple – e.g. a lovely, big, red apple)

4. Make backgrounds using the flat part of the wax crayon. Other suggestions:

- This can be used in combination with drama workshops. After a drama warm-up, a story is read or told, then the

(g) Place you like to be

Activity objectives: - Containment - Creating a feeling of being safe and finding a pleasant place to be

When to use: - Use near the end of your program, when children feel free to express

themselves personally within the group. Age group: All ages Materials:

- Wax crayons, oil pastels or paint – basic colors - Paper approx. 25 x 32”

Time: Approx. 20 – 25minutes Special requirements:

- A drawing board for each child if you are working on carpets. - It is not suitable to stick the pictures on the blackboard.

Activity instructions 1. Draw your own border. Working from the outside of the paper inwards, using

any color or colors – leave a white space open in the middle of the paper. 2. Think of a place that you would really like to be. It can be a real place or an

imaginary place, somewhere you know or somewhere you would like to be. Other suggestions

- Uses in combination with drama - after drama warm-up or drama visualization – then draw.

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- Or use in combination with music – sing and write own words to Coconut Tree (some people like . . . but I like. . .) – draw afterwards

- Use with circle warm-ups – name game + where you like to be.

(h) Waves and Fishes

Activity objectives: - Freeing - Experiencing the movement of waves - Using imagination to find fishes in the waves

Time: Approx. 20 – 25minutes Age group: All ages Materials:

- Colored (wax) crayons - Paper approx. 50 x 35”

Special requirements: - A drawing board for each child if you are working on carpets.

Activity instructions 1. “We are going to the sea or the river to look at the waves” 2. “Choose your color for water and hold up your crayon – any color is good” 3. “Close your eyes, (if you like) and with your crayon draw the waves – little waves and

big stormy waves etc.” Cover all the paper with waves – keep the crayon on the paper and draw backwards and forwards.

4. “When the waves are ready, look for fishes and draw them in any colors and patterns. Also draw any other animals that live in the sea.”

5. Stick all the drawings on the school blackboard to make “1 big sea” Other suggestions:

- This drawing fits in well with a “Water Theme” workshop using movement and imagination.

- In music, sing water songs, make the movements of the sea and animals and use the ocean drum.

- Or use in combination with the storybook - The Most Beautiful Fish in the Sea.

(i) EXPRESS YOUR MOOD

Activities objectives: - Self expression / creative outlet - Self empowerment - Stimulation of creativity

When to use: - Use near the end of the programme, when children feel free to express

themselves personally within the group. Age group: Above age 9 Materials:

- paper, coloured pencils, music instrument

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Time: - Part A 30 - 40 minutes - Part B 20-30 minutes

Special requirements: - Children have to be able to recognize different moods and the expression of

these; most children from the age 9 or 10 start recognizing these mood Activity instructions

Part A: - Talk with the children about what kind of different moods there are. - Ask them how you can see in what kind of mood somebody is. (talk about,

face expressions, use of voice (like intonation, soft/loud), body language, etc..

- Let the children draw faces; ask them, while they are doing this, to show each other the different moods and reactions.

Part B: - Make cards of the different faces. By example; 4 cards of angry, sad, happy,

surprised, hopeful, in love, etc. - Let all the children take a card; do not let them show the card to other

children. - Let them use a music instrument and their face expression to show the

group, what kind of mood is on their card. - The group has to guess what the expression is. - If they guess it wrong, it can be nice to talk about why they didn't guess it.

(Did the group not observe the reaction very well, or was there something misleading in the expression; e.g. sometimes children show the emotion anger with a big smile on their face.)

Other suggestions - You can give every card a special sign, e.g. with colours. Different

instruments correspondent with the sign. - You can do this game without instruments; then use the voice. E.g. let them

say "a word” in different ways, or sing a song in different ways. - It can be nice to start with the Warming Up activity "milling to music - mood

expressions". - If the activity is too difficult for the children, start with "milling to music -

mood expressions" or sing a song in different ways – happy, angry etc.

(J) “What If………….”

Activity objectives: -To encourage and promote a sense of imagination and creativity When to use: - This activity is best towards the end of a group meeting to help them imagine the future Age group: Above age 10 Materials: -Any and all mediums could be used for this activity depending on what is most available Time: 40-70min Activity instructions

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1. Have children brainstorm a list of questions that begin with “What if”. (For example, what if I had a million dollars? What if I could do anything I wanted for one day? What if I could travel anywhere in the world, where would I go?)

2. Either have the children pick one question as a group or individually select a question they would like to answer.

3. Using the materials available have the children express their answers to the question through art and craft.

4. If time allow for the children to present their artwork to the group

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PAINTING

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(3) STRING PAINTING

Activity: String Painted pictures

Aim

To show children how to use a string to produce pictures.

Time: approx. 30-40minutes

Age group: All ages

Material and tools.

String (cotton, sisal or wood), dye or powder colours, palettes, brushes,

water jars, rags, water, paper, e.g. newsprint.

Special reguirement: drawing board Method.

1. Mix powder colours in a palette or the lid of a tin. The colour should

not be too dilute. Two or three colours can be mixed separately.

2. Fold a plain sheet of paper in the middle.

3. Unfold the sheet of paper and leave it flat on the table.

4. Take a string and dip it in any colour. Alternatively, instead of dipping

the string into a colour, you could place it on a newspaper spread on

the table and paint it with a brush.

5. Arrange the string, which is now charged with colour, on one of the

lying flat on the table. Arrange the string in such shape. Once you

have laid the string, do not tamper with it otherwise you will mess the

paper. The two ends of the string should be left hanging over the

edges of the paper.

6. Refold the sheet of paper so that the string is sandwiched between

the two “pages” the one on which the string is lying and the bank one.

This should be done without lifting the sheet of paper from the table.

7. Hold the sheet of paper in position with one hand and pull the string

by the two ends with the other hand. Preferably the string should not

be pulled right through. The pulling should be done without using any

force.

8. When this is done, unfold the sheet of paper and peel off the string.

You will notice two identical shapes, one on each page

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9. If the painted shape is too small for the paper, another one can be

added on the same paper by repeating the same process. Moreover,

if you want different colours in your painting, all you have to do is to

wash the string and dip it in a different colour after which you should

arrange it on the same paper. However, you should arrange it on

picture dry first before you establish other shapes on the same paper.

Depending on the colour combinations used in one picture, a very

interesting effect can be obtained through the superimposition of

shapes.

10. If necessary, the finished pictures can be trimmed.

(4) SPRAY PAINTING

Activity:

Spray paintings: patterns or pictures, made using silhouette like shapes.

Aim To introduce pupils to the ides of using silhouette like shapes to create patterns or

pictures.

TIME: approx. 45 55 minutes

Age group: all ages

Material and tools Inks or powder colours, paper e.g. cardboard, manila, newsprint or cartridge paper,

soft pencils, brushes, scissors, sharp knives, a diffuser (if available), a soft board.

Special reguirement: sprayer

Methods Using a Brush

1. Drawing shapes, cutting them out and fixing them on the board is done

the same way as in the first method. However, instead of placing the

board in a slanting position you should lay it down flat on a table or desk.

2. Obtain a tooth –brush or an ordinary painting brush and dip it in powder

colours or drawing ink.

3. Hold the brush over he fixed shapes and carefully move a stick or your

index finger across the bristles. It may be necessary first of all to

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experiment on some other paper to gain experience in spraying a

surface evenly. See that you do not charge the brush with too much

paint or ink at any time.

4. Wait for the paint or ink to dry before removing the fixed shapes.

NB Instead of using cut-ours to produce positive shapes, one can use real

objects e.g.

Leaves, seeds, shells, dead insects, keys, blades, coins, scissors, buckles,

earrings, set –squares, rings, buttons etc Like paper cut outs, real objects

can be fixed on a flat surface and sprayed on (Fig 8). The methods and

techniques are the same as those explained above.

(Fig 6)A brush was used to spray Water Colour: paper cut-outs were used.

(5) DRAWING TOGETHER

Activity objectives: - Social exercise - Drawing together - Learning to ‘listen’ to each other - Taking turns - Interacting together - Enjoying making something together

When to use: Use as a group bonding exercise near the beginning of a program, and where more social interaction is needed.

Age group: All ages Materials:

- Wax crayons or paint or pastels

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- Paper - different size according to size of groups. Time: Approx. 20 – 30minutes Special requirements:

- Make groups of 2 – 8 children Activity instructions

1. ‘Passing Around’ – e.g. 4 children. Each chooses one color and draws something on own piece of paper. After a few minutes, pass on to left-hand neighbor. Draw on this new piece of paper with your own color crayon. Continue passing on until the child receives their original paper back. (The other 3 / 4 children have drawn on his / her paper and finished the drawing.)

2. 2 or 3 children take it in turns to draw on 1 piece of paper. It can be a free drawing, each child just adding something. The children can also draw at the same time, but make sure the paper is big enough and that they do not only stay on their part of the paper – e.g. roads can be drawn between houses to connect to each others’ drawings.

3. Large groups of children work simultaneously around 1 large piece of paper – use themes e.g. summer, village life, and things you like etc.

Other suggestions Use where interaction is desirable in combination with drama and music

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MOSAIC, COLLAGE AND MURALS

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(6) NEWSPAPER COLAGE SEASON CALANDER: Activity objectives: -To provide amusement through exaggeration and distortion -To stimulate imagination and creativity When to use: Anytime Age group: Age 6-11 Materials: -Paper -Crayons, markers or colored pencils Time: 30-40min Special Requirements: This activity may be difficult to explain, so it is important to provide an example and a thorough demonstration. Activity instructions

1. Have children trace his or her foot in the center of the sheet of paper. 2. Once the shape of his or her foot is drawn that shape will serve as the

mouth for the face the are going to draw 3. Have children draw faces surrounding the foot-mouth, emphasizing that this

face is supposed to be unrealistic and silly. Really encourage the children to be creative.

4. Tell the children to develop creative names for the faces they create and share them with the group.

(7) Masks

Modeling masks and using them for drama and other related activities are occupations that excite children a great deal. Children like fun and in modeling masks, they get it in plenty since they can make the mask acquire the sort of expression, e.g funny, angry etc they want.

Most children are very creative and all they need are a few suggestions and

guidelines on modeling masks. In other words, all the children need is enough

motivation and encouragement. To help you achieve your goal, therefore, it is

advisable that you use actual masks which vary in their “facial” expressions when

introducing the subject.

Aim To train pupils in the skill of modeling light weight masks using strips of paper.

Time: approx 25 35 minutes

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Age group: all ages

Material and tools.

Old newspapers or newsprint paper, grease or wheat flour paste, scissors,

brushes, a sharp knife, clay or wire gauze. Some colouring materials, e.g powder

colours, may be needed for decorating the finished masks.

Special reguirement: lastics

Method using Paper strips.

1. Mix clay properly until it does not stick to your hands.

2. Using the same clay, model a life size mask. However, if you do not

have clay, use a piece of wire gauze to model the frame work of the

mask. The mask should have all the necessary features, e.g the ears,

the nose, etc. Do not cut any part of wire gauze when modeling these

features. Model them by simply making depressions on the wire

framework.

3. When this is done, apply some grease or sawdust onto the mask. The

grease or sawdust prevents the strips of paper which you will cover the

mask framework with from sticking permanently to the framework. The

grease can be applied with a brush or with the hands.

4. Tear a newspaper into long thin strips.

5. Cover the whole mask with a layer of these strips. Place one strip at a

time on the greased framework.

6. When this is ready, apply some glue on the entire mask; now cover by a

layer of the newspaper strips. Use a brush or hands to do this. Make

sure every centimeters of the mask has been smeared with glue.

7. Next, stick another layer of strips of paper on the first one in the same

way, i.e sticking one strip at a time.

8. Apply glue to the mask’s second layer of strips and repeat the process

until you have a total of four or five layers.

9. Leave the mask alone to dry. This may take a couple of days.

10. When dry, remove the paper mask from the clay or wire gauze

framework. It should come off easily unless you forgot to apply some oil,

grease or sawdust to the frame before applying your strips of paper.

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11. Trim the edge of the mask with scissors and cut two holes for the eyes.

Use a sharp knife to cut the holes.

12. Decorate the mask by painting it in brilliant colours.

NB separating the paper masks from their frames and decorating them

can make an activity altogether i.e as a follow up to the first stage of

modeling the masks which is the first activity.

(8)CARTOON BODIES

Activity objectives:

-To introduce the concept of isolating parts from wholes and recreate wholes from

parts

-To provide amusement through exaggeration and distortion

-Awareness of self and others through depicting physical characteristics

When to use: Anytime

Age group: Age 8 and above

Materials:

- Paper (2 per child)

- Pencils

Time: 40min

Activity instructions

1. Have children divide their paper into 4 sections and label each section ( one

ears, eyes, mouths, noses)

2. Instruct the children to draw as many different varieties of each body part as

they can think of. Suggest drawing them in different shapes and sizes,

maybe even expressing different emotions.

3. Have children share their drawings with the group or in pairs.

4. On another sheet of paper have the children make different faces using

different combinations of the body parts they drew.

Other suggestions: If there is limited time you can have the children draw body

parts one session and then compile faces as an assignment or at the next session.

This can also work nicely in combination with the “Many Faces, Many Emotions”

activity.

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(9) MANY FACES, MANY EMOTIONS

Activity objectives:

- To acknowledge the emotions of self and others

- Explore how to express those emotions

- Use art as an outlet for emotions

When to use: This activity works best once a group is more comfortable with each

other and the facilitator

Age group: Age 6 and above

Materials:

-Paper

-Markers, pencils or colored pencils

Time: 40min

Activity instructions 1. As a group, brainstorm a list of emotions and feelings that they experience

2. Have each child select an emotion that they would like to express visually

3. Challenge the children to represent that emotion using visual means and

without using any words

4. When the artwork is finished have the children explain their work to a small

group or to the larger group.

5. Discuss the different emotions that were created and how everyone

expresses emotions differently.

Other suggestions: It may be best to have the children express their emotions

first with just pencils and then later have they add color and discuss how different

colors express different emotions. This can be part of the same activity or a

separate activity. The art creations of emotion do not have to be only in drawings,

but could be in mask making or challenge them to create an emotion using natural

materials. When sharing their work you could also have children try to guess what

emotion was being portrayed. This activity could also work well in combination

with drama activities dealing with emotions.

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PATTERN MAKING AND PRINTING

(10) Writing Patterns.

Pattern work is a wide area, which comprises of a large number of subjects. It is

an interesting area which offers a good opportunity to activity leader and children

to experiment with various materials and techniques based on adapted and

original ideas.

Aim:

To use the learnt skill in writing to make patterns.

Time: approx15-25minutes

Age group: 3year and above

Materials and tools Nib or bamboo pens, ink, pencils, rulers, crayons.

If powder or water colours are to be used to decorate the patterns then the

following items will be necessary: brushes, palettes or shallow tin lids, etc water

jars, rags and water paper e.g. newsprint or sugar paper.

Special reguirement: graphic pen

Preparation.

Among your teaching aids, there should be some good examples of writing

patterns. You can prepare two or three different patterns in good time before your

activity. And to make the patterns more effective in their purpose, do them on

large sheets of paper and use contrasting colours. These colours need not be

many. Two or three colours should be enough for you to produce beautiful

patterns.

A part from using your visual aids for you explanation, you would also have to

demonstrate on the board, step by step, how the patterns are done. If you have

coloured chalks your work will be a lot easier. However, be careful not to spend

too much time on the introduction as a whole, about 5-7 minutes should be

enough for the explanation and a brief, but well done, demonstration.

Methods 1. With a ruler and pencil, draw a number of horizontal parallel lines, just

as in writing lessons. These lines are merely guidelines and should

therefore be drawn lightly.

2. Using any type of writing e.g. cursive writes one letter and joins it to a

second one you can use pencil or pen and ink straight away. Other

media, e.g. crayons, can be used for writing the letters.

3. Repeat this letters a couple of times and if you want, fill a whole line.

4. In the second immediate line, write a second set of letters, which can

be your own initials. The two or more sets of letters should touch so as

to form patterns.

5. Colour or shade most of the spaces formed by the letters.

6. Note that capital letters can also be combined to form patterns and.

(11) LEAF PATTERNS.

Aim

To show children how they can obtain patterns similar to the texture patterns

through leaf printing.

Time: approx 15 25 minutes

Age group: all ages

Materials Different well veined green leaves, poster or powder colours, paper, e.g.

newsprint, cartridge or Manila paper, brushes colour tray, old newspapers, rags,

water jars.

Method 1. Obtain several well-veined leaves outdoors.

2. Cover your desk or table with old newspapers to avoid messing its

surface.

3. Place a leaf on the table and hold it in position with one hand.

4. With a bush, apply the already mixed fairly thick paint paste on the leaf,

preferably the underside where veins stand out more clearly. Do not

apply too much paint on the leaf.

5. Lift the leaf and place it carefully on blank sheet of paper.

6. Hold it it position with one hand and press it firmly with the other hand

or a roller.

7. Slowly peel off the leaf. If the print does not show vein impressions due

to too much paint on the leaf, try printing once again without adding

more paint. You should now get a clear print.

8. Two or three different colours, e.g. red, orange and dark blue, can be

used on the same paper. If a leaf has to be used with a second colour,

it should be cleaned with water before a fresh colour is applied on it.

9. Very attractive patterns can be obtained if some effort is made in

arranging the impressions during printing see (Fig 7 and 8).

10. Once again, remember that very smooth leaves do not give clean

impressions.

Fig 7 Fig 8

(12) STONE PAINTING

Activity objectives: - To stimulate creativity and imagination - To encourage resourcefulness When to use: Anytime Age group: All ages Materials:

- Stones - Art brushes - Paint - Water containers

Time: 45 min Special requirements: This activity may require several examples to stimulate the children’s creativity and imaginations. Activity instructions

1. Send children to collect one stone each, a stone which the believe is unique and large enough to paint on

2. Have the children imagine an object, animal or image that the stone resembles. (Some children may struggle so you may have to help their imaginations)

3. Allow the children to use the paints to help the figure they imagined become a reality.

4. Allow the children to display their stones and be sure to acknowledge their creativity and imagination References

(13)Texture Patterns.

Aim

To make the children aware of the various forms of textures of materials found in

their surroundings.

Time: 35 minutes

Age group: above 2 years

Materials and tools

Light paper, e.g. newsprint, crayons, oil pastels, marking pencils, various objects

with well textured surfaces or structure, e.g. baskets, combs, coins, well veined

green leaves, sisal mats, tree barks, stones, insect wings, etc

Preparation In case time is not sufficient for the collection f the texture articles, ask he pupils

to look for the articles in their free time. There are many things they can obtain

either on their way to school or at home. Each pupil should have his own

collection with him for the lesson. All the same it would be a good idea to have

your own collection for demonstration purposes. You could also help the pupils

whose collections are poor with yours.

Method 1. Place paper on the surface of any well textured article.

2. Rub a portion of the paper with crayons or any other medium. The

impression of the texture appears instantly.

3. To get a clear texture pattern, the rubbing process should be done

gently. One hand should hold the paper in position during rubbing.

4. Cover the whole surface of paper or a large portion of it with small area

of various texture impressions. These impressions or patterns can be

in different colours See (fig 9)

Fig 9

(14)NAME DESIGN Activity objectives:

- To promote self-identity and awareness - To encourage expression through images

When to use: This is a great introduction activity Age group: Age 8 and above Materials:

- Paper - Markers, colored pencils or crayons - Masking tape

Time: 30-40min Activity instructions

1. Have each child write their name in a creative way with large block letters that can be filled with designs

2. The children should fill in each letter with a different design that is either a repeating pattern or a drawing that represents their likes and interests.

3. Have the children tape the name design to themselves or carry it around and introduce themselves to the other children by explaining the designs they used

(15)NAME INITIAL Activity objectives:

- Getting to know each other - Self-empowerment: by drawing their own initial and the things that they

like, the children are encouraged to have a positive feeling about their own identity.

When to use: - Use at the beginning of your program to get to know each other.

Age group: All ages Materials:

- Wax crayons - Paper approx. 32 x 25”

Time: Approx. 20 – 25 minutes Activity instructions

1. Ask the children to draw the initial of their 1st name in the center of the paper. They can draw a large initial, using the whole space in the center. They can choose any color(s).

2. Use the remaining space to draw things that the children like to do, eat, go to etc. (see ‘Suggestions’ below)

Other suggestions

(16)BOARDERS Activity objectives:

- Containment – basic structure - Making a border (picture frame) within which different things can be drawn

When to use: - At any stage of your program. The structure can give the children a feeling

of security. Age group: All ages Materials:

- Wax crayons, oil pastels or paint – - Paper approx. 25 x 32”

Time: Approx. 20 – 30minutes Special requirements:

- A drawing board for each child if you are working on carpets. Activity instructions

1. A border to the paper can be made using own color choices, with stripes, plain colors or other patterns. Work from the outside of the paper inwards.

2. Ask children to leave a white space in the middle of the paper for another drawing.

3. Examples: - Fill in with patterns - Where you like to go - Initial of your name and things you like to do - Safe place etc.

Other suggestions: - Themes from the ‘Examples’ above could be used in combination with

drama or music.

PAPER FOLDING AND CUTTING

(17) MAKING CARDS Subjects: Greeting cards, Easter, Christmas, Weeding, Birthday, Recovery and

Success cards, etc

Invitation cards, Engagement, Weeding and Party cards etc.

Aim.

To stress to the children the most important characteristics of card designing.

Although designing cards is a fairly specialized field, the aim of the activity is to

make the pupils aware of the basic general layout of cards. And although the

pupils may not produce first class cards in one or two activities, they should be

able to, at least, make simple cards based on the general layout taught to them.

This kind of achievement would give them some satisfaction, joy and pride in the

comparative success of their efforts.

Time: 1 hour 30 minutes

Age group: 6years and above

Materials and tools Strong paper, e.g manila , crayons or printing ink, felt pens (if available), scissors,

sharp knives , strong glue, soft pencils, set –squares, drawing compasses , rulers

, brushes.

Special reguirement: card stock

Preparation.

Before you start your activity, make sure you have enough materials, plenty of

paper, enough paste, etc. Then during the introduction, motivate the children by

showing them some of the cards you may have designed yourself.

To make the design –work easier for the pupils prepare large cards or ask them

to work on large cards of, say 14cm x 20cm each.

Method 1. Obtain a blank card of; say 11cm x 20cm, or bigger. The card can be

cut out from a sheet of manila paper

2. To obtain the shape of a card with 4 pages, fold the card in half neatly

3. Decorate page one with a pattern. e.g spray pattern, leaf print pattern

or a free style pattern, design or picture done in crayons

4. Write the title of the card on the same page, i.e page 1, e.g Easter

Greetings

5. Write a brief clear message on page three, e.g “Best Wishes during

Easter.”

(18) Mandalas Activity objectives:

- Concentration – working from the center of the paper outwards - Reflective activity

When to use: - This exercise is more personal than making patterns, but not emotional

like the “Places you like to be’. - Can be used at all times in the program especially to give a calm,

structured activity in a mixed-media workshop. Materials:

- Wax crayons or paint - Square paper approx. 20 x 20”

Time: Approx. 25 – 30minutes Special requirements:

- Work at a table Activity instructions

1. Choose a color 2. In the middle of the paper, make a small dot / square / flower shape /

“own” shape etc. 3. Using any colors, work out symmetrically from the center, usually ending

in a circle 4. Make any patterns with any colors 5. Let the children draw or paint freely, not making an exact pattern

Other suggestions - This exercise can also be done in pairs – taking in turn to draw a “layer” of

the Mandala - Can be used as a main activity or for warming down - for where

concentration is needed. This can be used as a warm up activity, or use after a circle ‘name game’ with likes and dislikes.

(19) MAKING ENVELOPES.

Aim To help children to acquire the skill of making functional envelopes.

Time: 25-45 minutes

Age group: 6 and above years

Materials and Tools Manila or cartridge paper, paste, pencils, rulers, set squares, drawing

compasses,

Scissors, razor blades.

Method 1. Have with you a real envelop which c you should show to the pupils during

the introduction. Show it to them when it is open and when it is closed.

Then proceed onto demonstrate how an envelop is made.

2. Obtain a square card, ABCD, which should be large enough for easy and

effective demonstration. The card should not be smaller than 20cm by

20cm.

3. Fold the card twice, once a long its length and once along its width. You

will have 4 equal divisions AHOE, EOFB, HDGO, and OGCF

4. Fold flap HDG along line HG, flap GCF along line GF and flap FBE along

line EF, so that the points of all these flaps meet at O. the result is an open

envelop.

5. Secure the 3 folded flaps with some paste.

6. To close the envelopes simply fold flap AHOE.

The children can be shown how to fold a letter which can then be inserted in one of

(20) PATCHWORK QULT Activity objectives:

- To promote a sense of group unity - To express and accept differences - Create understanding of personal and group identity

When to use: - This activity can be used when a group is first getting to know each other Age group: All ages Materials:

- Paper - Crayons - Masking tape

Time: 30-45 min Special Requirements: It is important to prepare the small paper square in advance. This activity also works best if there is place to display the final product. Activity instructions

2. Explain to the group the idea of a patch work quilt- a blanket made up of many squares placed together

3. Give each child a 6cmX 6cm square of paper and have them draw their own design that represents him or her- maybe have them draw their likes and interests

4. When each child has complete his/her square collect them all and tape them together to form a large square or quilt

5. Display the quilt somewhere where all the children can see it and discuss how many small beautiful pictures can be put together to make an even more beautiful design

Other suggestions: - If the supplies are available it would be wonderful if the squares could be of cloth and the children would paint on the cloth. Then, instead of taping the squares together they could be sewn together. If large enough, this quilt could serve as a mat that the group could sit on whenever they met.

(21) RAINBOW FISH

Activity objectives: - To promote the idea of sharing - To understand each child’s individual talents and gifts

When to use: Anytime Age group: 7-10 years Materials: -Large Manila paper -Paper -crayons or colored pencils - Storybook”Rainbow Fish” by Marcus Pfister -scissors - Masking tape Time: 45min Special Requirements: This project requires having the storybook of “Rainbow Fish” and therefore may not be possible. To prepare the facilitator should become familiar with the story, as well as prepare a large paper image of a fish without scales for the children to tape their scales at the end of the session. Activity instructions:

1. Read the storybook “Rainbow Fish’ 2. Discuss what the children believe the message of the story is. Discuss the

importance of sharing and that everyone has a special gift to share.

3. Have each child design a scale for the fish that represents the special gifts and talents that they can share with others

4. Compile all the scales together on a large paper image of a fish! Be sure to acknowledge all the talents and gifts the children have.

MODELLING

(22) An introduction to clay modellling.

Clays.

There are many types of clays. These clays differ in several respects, e.g in

chemical content and in colour. Talking about colours, clays can be found with

various interesting colours yellow ochre, red-brown, grey etc. Most of these

colours change during firing.

PREPARATION OF CLAY (a) After digging your clay which may be found in river beds and other

places pick out all foreign bodies e.g leaves, sticks, stones. Lumps of

clay, if there are any, should be ground to a power and then sieved

using a wire sieve.

(b) Put the fine clay in water contained in a debe or some other large

container and wait for the bubbles and the hissing sound that will result

to stop.

(c) Then work on the mixture with your hands, adding either more water or

clay to get the right hardness.

(d) To find out if the clay is properly kneaded, cut off a piece of it with a

piece of wire. If the cross-section shows holes, it means the clay has

not been prepared well yet. In this case, continue kneading the whole

lump until you are satisfied that it is well mixed. Now cut off a lump,

and start modeling.

NB. Whenever possible allow the children to try and prepare their own clay.

This practice helps the children to understand their material better. This

understanding in turn helps them learnt more easily how to control the

material in their efforts to model particular articles. The experience they

gain this way is certainly worth the trouble.

MODELLING:

Modeling can e done either with hands only or by use of a kick-wheel.

Unfortunately, most people/activity leaders do not have a kick –wheel which if

available makes the modeling of certain articles e.g round containers, easy. On

account of this problem, then, I will confine myself to modeling with hands only.

Clay modeling is one of the activities which require ample working space. Normal

Child space are unfit for modeling due to lack of enough space a problem created

by the presence of furniture, i.e desks, chairs, tables, etc. The best place of this

activity is, therefore, outdoors. This could be under a large shed or in the open,

perhaps under a Tree, provided the weather remains fine. On the other hand, if it

is impossible to work outdoors and if there is no special room for crafts, the

furniture in the activity room will have to be re-arranged. This is one way of

creating sufficient space for movement during work.

There are several techniques of modeling which will be explained individually

later. All the same, it must be stressed that it is important that you realize your

aim when teaching any technique. Understanding of one’s aims saves time and

contributes to the acquisition of the intended knowledge.

Emphasis should also be laid on the attitude towards the use of the clay. The

pupils should be encouraged to be proud of using clay as a medium of self

expression. They should not be allowed to develop the misleading idea that clay

is a dirty material which is degrading to use.

DECORATION.

After clay articles have been made, they can be decorated with various objects if

their

walls are fairly stiff. For instance, (a) the outer surface can be incised beautifully

with sharp sticks, (b) pebbles and seeds can be pressed into the surfaces for

decoration: this can be done with the help of slip (i.e clay in a liquid state).

Finished articles can also be decorated either after drying powder colours for

temporary

decoration or after firing using glazes.

DRYING There are special places where clay articles are kept for sometime to dry.

However, since most schools, especially those in the rural areas, do not have

such facilities, it might suffice to rely on the heat of the sun. All the same, pupils

should be warned not to keep their articles in the open where they will be in direct

contact with the sun’s rays. Rather the articles should be kept in a shady place so

that they should dry evenly. Even drying is the means of avoiding cracking either

during the drying process or during firing.

FIRING.

If you want to do a serious job as far as the firing of clay articles is concerned, it

is

advisable for you to consult more detailed books on pottery. There are many little

things

one should study carefully if advanced work in firing is to be done. However, here

are a

few general hints on firing.

(a) Before firing articles, make sure they are completely dry; otherwise they

will crack during firing.

(b) Also to avoid cracking, firing should be done slowly. It should also end

slowly to avoid warping. As in drying a lot of care should be taken to

ensure that the firing is done evenly, otherwise the articles will wrap and

crack.

(c) Remember that overheating will make the clay articles melt, while under

firing will leave them porous. Thus, under fired articles are likely to leak.

(d) Most people, activity leader or schools do not have factory made kilns and

the best these schools can do is to use home –made kilns which can be

constructed cheaply. Simply ways of firing clay articles in child spaces

should be advice by the activity leader who may get useful advice from

local potters.

A simple Local Method of firing Clay Articles.

Choose some free space away from buildings (to remove the risk of setting them

on fire). On this space dig a wide shallow hole, about half a metre dep. The size

actually depends on the number f the items to be fired. Then on the floor of the

hole, spread some dry leaves, say bananas leaves. On these leaves, arrange

some dry fire wood, then green grass. On this green grass, arrange some green

fire wood. When this is done, you can now arrange he items to be fired on top of

the fire wood. If the hole proves to be smaller than intended, it is better to either

fire a few articles at a time or do dig another hole where the rest of the articles

can be fired. It would not pay to put all the articles in a heap since they would not

be properly fired.

When the article has been well arranged, the item to be fired on top of the fire

wood. If the hole proves to be smaller than intended, it is better to either fire a

few articles at a time or to dig another hole where the rest of the articles can be

fired. It would not pay to put all the articles in a heap since they would not be

properly fired.

When the articles have been well arranged, cover them with green grass,

followed by some green fire wood. On top of this pile, add a layer of fire wood

which should be well covered with some green grass. Then secure the sides of

the pile with logs or stones. Lastly, light the fire.

Green grass, leaves and fire wood are used so that they can check the fire. If dry

materials only were used, the fire would burn very quickly, thus destroying the

articles being fired.

Just how much fir wood, etc, is needed to fire a certain number of articles and

just how long the firing should take will very much depend on practical

experience since this kind of kilns does not have specific control mechanisms.

(23) THUMB METHOD OF MODELLING.

Subjects: Clay pots, calabashes, sufurias, pans buckets, flower vases, mugs,

shoes, plates, spoons, lamp shades, bells etc.

Aim.

To introduce children to the use of clay as a medium for modeling. The

children will learnt how to model simple articles through the “thumb method”

Time: 50 minutes and above

Age group: all ages

Materials.

Clay or mud, water rags

Special reguirement: paints, plasticine

Preparation.

Have enough clay and water for mixing it. If possible, you should allow the

pupils to mix their own clay so that they can have the experience of how this

is done and how the clay actually feels during the process. The preparation of

the clay can be done outdoors on flat non absorbent material, e.g hard

outdoors on flat non absorbent material, e.g hard stone slabs, plywood etc if

the weather is fine. This would have to be done under close supervision.

Do caution the children that the mixed clay should not be so soft that it sticks

on the hands. It should be just soft enough for the pupils to create depression

in it without any problem.

Method.

Slice off a lump of clay the size of your fist and rotate it in your hand into a

ball.

With your thumb make a hole in the lump of clay, which should be very

plastic.

Continue rotating the ball while you model the wall, base and the rim of your

containers

The container should have fairly thick walls to avoid cracking.

if a container has to have a handle, roll some little clay into a short thick coil

and model it onto the side of the container. This should be done while the

clay article is still wet.

After a day or so, the articles, sides can be decorated with a scratched

pattern. A stick can be used to do this.

(24)COIL METHOD OF MODELING

Activity: Pots, mugs, gourds, jars, flower vases, etc

Aim To introduce the children to the use of the “coil method” for modeling objects in

clay.

Time: 50 minutes and above

Age group: all ages

Materials Clay, mud, or plasticine, paper (e.g square pieces of cardboard) or leaves on

which modeling will be done, (if plasticine is to be used, water is not necessary.)

Methods.

BASE

1. Take a small lump of clay and roll it in your hands into a ball.

2. Press it into a disc of the required thickness. This is the base of your

container.

3. Place it on a square piece of cardboard or leaf etc.

MAIN BODY

1. Mix clay properly with water until it does not stick to your hands.

2. Cut off a lump of the clay and roll it either between your palms or on

the smooth flat surface of a stone, a piece of plywood, etc into thin

coils. The coils should have the thickness of a “Biro” pen or lead pencil

and about 20cm in length each.

They should be plastic and just moist enough not to crack when bent.

3. Place a coil all round the base emit-clockwise. Continue building up the

body of the container this way, i.e spirally. When the coil is too short,

join a fresh one to it by simply pressing the ends together.

4. When the container is completed, do not lift it as the base will still be

loose. To fix it, use bits of clay (Pellets) with some slip (Clay in liquid

form) to join the coils on the inside of the modeled container.

5. While the container is still on the cardboard, put it in a shady place to

dry evenly. This may take a couple of days.

6. If possible, when the modeled articles are well dried, they can be fired

and if glazing facilities are available, these articles can be glazed.

NB Decoration can be done.

(a) Before the articles are dry, i.e when they are just stiff enough to

stand some pressure. Patterns or designs can be scratched on

the surface with sharp or blunt sticks. Pellets can also be stuck

on the surface using slip.

(b) When the articles are completely dry, they can be painted with

powder colours, water colours any strong dye or with other

media.

(c) After firing any medium (e.g power colours) can be used for

decoration. However, a permanent decoration can be obtained

during glazing i.e if glazes and glazing facilities are available.

(25) Modeling Natural Objects

Activity:

The following activities can be taught in a series of lessons.

1. Modeling shapes of fruits, e.g oranges, bananas, paw paws, lemons,

passion fruit, grape fruit etc, vegetables, e.g cabbage, carrots and

cassava, trees and shrubs. A number of these objects can easily be

obtained locally.

If possible, the pupils should have the objects on front of them to

enable them to model the correct shape and structure of the objects

correctly. Mind you, this practice does not amount to the same thing as

copying from a photograph or a painting in a still life drawing lesson,

copying is reproducing not from nature but from another reproduction

and should be discouraged.

2. Modeling shapes of people and all sorts of animals.

3. Modeling shapes of birds, e.g the hen, eagle, ostrich, duck, parrot, etc

and their eggs.

Aim.

To make the children aware of the forms and shapes of various natural

objects by asking them to study and model them.

Time: minimum of 50 minutes

Age group: all ages

Materials.

Clay or mud, water jars, objects to be modeled e.g fruit, vegetables, etc

modeling sticks.

Method.

When introducing the activity, it is important to point out that the idea of the

exercise is not simply to produce a shape, however vague it may look. The

aim is to study the characteristic form and shape of the given natural object

and try to capture these qualities in the model. Thus, a banana, for instance,

should not be modeled to look like a candle.

Of course it is realized that the pupils have not acquired much skill in

modeling, but this is nor enough reason why they should not be made aware

of what to look for in an object. Their results may not measure up to the

activity leader ambition, but it is important that the children learn to make an

effort at interpreting shapes.

If the specimens are few, children can model in groups. As a teacher, you

would have no help the children in organizing themselves whenever

necessary. Working outdoors is sometimes made impossible by a number of

factors e.g rain, wind and heat; however, if these are not your problems, let

the children work in the open. Working outdoors would be ideal for group –

work due to, among other things, the free working space available.

The finished models should be displayed, preferably in an open well-lit place

for all the children to see. A well organized discussion carried out mainly by

the children would be very fruitful. Later perhaps, some of the models can be

used in other activity, mathematics, geography, science etc.

(26) CONSTRUCTION USING MIXED NATURAL MEDIA.

Subjects: Figure of various creatures’ e.g wild and domestic animals, insects,

birds, human figures etc.

Aim To develop children imaginative power further through the construction of

representational three dimensional objects.

The idea is to get the children to exercise their creative talent and imagination in

converting cheaply obtainable or natural materials into recognizable shapes of,

say animals, insects, human figures etc. if the children are motivated well enough

and are given enough time to collect the materials during their free time, very little

money, if any would be spent on this activity.

Time: 60 minutes

Age group: all ages

Materials

Potatoes, carrots, yams, cassava, leaves, grass, stones, hair, feathers, sticks etc

Method Children should have a collection of various materials from home. You, the

teacher, should also bring some materials in case what is brought by

some children is inadequate.

Once again, you can remind the children what is expected of them. This can

be done in the way of a brief discussion about the things that can be

done.

During the discussion, show the children some of the things you have made.

This should help in arousing their interest all the more.

Let the children construct their own figures. In the meantime, visit individual

children or groups of children, offering encouragement.

NB If possible, conduct the above activity, outdoors where children are likely to be

inspired by Nature’s richness and variety.