Skip to main content

Activity 1: Leaf Art


If you have a couple of potted plants at home, or if you are lucky enough to have a proper garden, you have something that the kids can play with, and learn from, at the same time: leaves.
Here is a simple activity you can undertake with no mess and no preparation.

Age: 3 – 6 years

Materials required:

1. 2 or 3 thin sheets of paper
2. colour pencils / wax crayons
3. leaves of different sizes and shapes (select ones that have visible veins, like hibiscus leaves)
4. a thick sheet (to make a greeting card with)
5. a pair of scissors
6. a glue stick

What to do?







1. Place the leaf face down on a flat surface, like a table or a book.
2. Put a thin sheet of paper over the leaf and lightly colour the area above the leaf.
3. Notice that the outline of the veins of the leaf appear on the sheet of paper. The outline of the leaf itself will also appear if your leaf is thick enough.
4. Now, ask the child to make several such impressions on the thin sheets of paper on their own. Tell them they can use different colours and different leaves, as they like. You can suggest using autumn colours like orange, red, yellow and brown. Leave them to it and get to your work. You should get about ten to fifteen minutes of free time, if you are lucky, before they say they have finished what you asked them to do.
5. Cut out the leaf patterns.
6. Fold the thick sheet of paper by half to form a greeting card.
7. Stick the leaf patterns onto the greeting card.
8. Write a message on the card and gift it to grandparents. They seem to dig this sort of thing.

Extra:
You can explain the parts of the leaf to the child, during this task. Some of the words you can use have been given below.

midrib: the central rib of the leaf
veins: the little lines that run from the midrib to the margins of the leaf
margin: the edges of the leaf
petiole [ pet-ee-ohl ] (or leafstalk): the tender stalk by which the leaf is attached to the plant





Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Activity 3: Object Squares

When a child manages to draw an object on her own, she feels a sense of accomplishment. Her ability to create something on her own, makes her confident, creating an aura of positivity. Think of a simple object like a cup. It is just a combination of straight and curved lines. Anyone can draw it. Therefore, it is the best subject for an art class conducted by a non-artist (that’s us). Age: 3 – 6 years Materials required: 1. a sheet of paper 2. a square object to trace squares (example: building blocks) 3. pencil Steps: 1. Draw squares on the sheet of paper, three in a row. 2. In the first square of each row, draw an object of your choice.  Here are some ideas for objects you can draw:       ·          everyday objects, like a fork, a pencil, a window       ·          objects from our surroundings, like a boat, a car, a hut     ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Activity 5: Nose Knows

There are entire professions that require a keen sense of smell, like aromatherapy and perfumery. But even for the rest of us, a good sense of smell is helpful. Not just because we can detect a gas leak faster, but because smells are also connected to memory and vocabulary. So here is an activity that I call ‘Nose Knows’ to help children learn to use their sense of smell. Materials required: 1. Select four or five spices that can be sniffed closely without running the risk of irritating the respiratory system. I selected these four spices: dry bay leaf, cinnamon, cardamom and cloves. Choose the whole spice rather than the powdered form. 2. You can use a blindfold if your child is comfortable wearing one. Alternatively, you can just ask the child to close their eyes for the second half of the activity. Steps: 1. Place the spices on a tray or plate and allow the child to explore them. This includes touching, smelling and licking the spices. Ensure that they do not ...
Post a Comment
Read more