Wednesday, February 5, 2020

A Collage Challenge

Yesterday and today we read books that used collage to illustrate the story.   The children are familiar with making collages  that create interesting and beautiful compositions.  Today we asked them to try to represent something with their collages.  One of the books featured collages done of houses and children were drawn to this idea.   Some children found pleasure in cutting pieces before using them in the collage.  Others started with a specific idea and searched for the colors and shapes to form images.   Children also explored texture as the materials included balsa wood, corrugated cardboard, and various papers. Here's some of the things they talked about as they worked:
     Joslin - (Cutting a "background" piece)  This is going to be the under layer.  It's made of cardboard.
    Grace D. - This is my house and this (the shape next to it) is the work place.  This (orange folded paper) is the computer.  This ( a piece of corrugated cardboard) is the piano, for practicing.
     Grace M. - This is my house.  I did a little hummingbird.  This  (yellow paper) is a sunrise.  
    Gigi - I'm making.... I'm cutting it out first.  (She explains that she doesn't know what each piece is until she finishes her cutting.)
     Lou Lou- It's a neighborhood.  My house and the neighbors.   

NOTE: You can hover over each image to see which child made each collage.

Building Houses

In addition to collage houses, children worked on building houses and other structures.  Some children added to the interesting structures that had been built in the Tucker Room during the morning. Grace M. was thinking about her new house as she and her friends built, saying, "This is my new house, but it's a little different."

Outdoor Fun

Collaboration and cooperation were big themes outside today.  In the construction area, a group of children worked on setting up increasingly challenging balance opportunities.   Leigh and Lou Lou enjoyed swinging together as Joslin pushed them.