COLLAGE (and beyond...)

Last week we made collages with salt, green peas and sand! As you can see in the photos the scooping with the spoons and the feeling of the material was a huge part of the project and just as important as gluing it onto the paper. Whoever felt he had too much material on his board, went to pour it back into a big bin, also very fun!

Then we added pompons, and glitter, and foam-shapes, and sticks! I always like the kids to talk about their work, and one said that she will hang the collage next to her bed so when she wakes up at night she will look at it and not be scared of the dark because it will be shiny!

These are some of the collages. I think they are wonderful, but let me point out that many times when I have thought of a kid's project as finished, I have seen them just take it apart again, until there's nothing left on the paper except for some glue...

It's important to let the kids decide what they want to do with their art, even if it means there won't be anything in the end. This shows that the learning process and the way to get there is more important than the finished product, a behavioral pattern that we as adults often have lost! 

ART-TIP: Homemade Playdough

Here's a recipe for making saltdough at home- easy to prepare and easy to clean up!
-2 cups flour
-1/2 cup salt
-add water gradually and mix until good consistency

The child can work on the kitchen table and add more flour if too sticky.
Put out some kitchen tools like potato mashers, cookie cutters and plastic knives and the kids will be absorbed in this wonderful art project!

You can air dry the sculpture or put it in the oven to dry if you want to keep it.
Kids love to decorate so you can give them straws, shells you collected, beads ecc. (don't put it in the oven if you decorated it!)

PLAYDOUGH!