Personalizing Our Cubby Bags

Watercolor Resist Cubby Bag Tags

Based on their interest in painting during our Brown Room year, we decided to offer the children both tempera and watercolor paints to start the Rainey Room year. The interest in using watercolors carried on for a bit and we decided to bring it back to make our cubby bag tags. We added an additional layer of complexity to this studio experience by asking the children to draw a design on their paper first and then to paint the page using the liquid watercolors. This two-step process is known as a watercolor resist technique because the wax of the crayon repels the watercolor. The complexity of combining two languages, painting and drawing, into one project was exciting for the children. Additionally, the children had many "noticings" and "theories" related to the resist process that were documented in their conversations as they worked. 

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After completing his design, “a sea monster eating a crab,” Rawls chose to use purple watercolor first. “Now I turned it into a different color because I added different colors.” 

​Ava joined Rawls at the table to draw her design. She chose orange water color to begin the resist process and then layered green on top.
Ava: I’m making two cubby bag tags! This one is a pig. 
Ava goes to get another piece of paper: I’m going to make three cubby bag tags! I need a big one (paint brush). I’m not going to draw first. I’m just going to paint. 

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Ford and Charlton entered the outdoor studio next. When it was Charlton’s turn at the table, he drew swirls over his paper and declared, “A tornado!”  Charlton has shown a recent interest in the weather phenomena, drawing tornadoes the previous week in the outdoor classroom. 
Charlton: I might need yellow, a yellow tornado. I did my tornado. Now I use paint. 
Ford drew his design on his cubby bag tag. When he was finished with his design, he explained, “I’m done with my mountain. I wanna use this color (purple).” Echoing an interest in weather, Ford chose to create a second cubby bag tag and described his drawing as  "a thunderstorm, this is the thunder, this is the rain." 
Charlton: I’m using orange. 
Charlton began to use the purple again and noticed the “resist” effect happening, “Wait, why is the blue (purple)  disappearing?”
Karen: Is all of the blue disappearing? 
Charlton: Hey. It’s making black. 

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Whit came to the table. 
Karen: Would you like to invite a friend?
Whit: Um, Isabelle.
Whit walked around the outdoor classroom looking for Isabelle. When he found her he offered, “Isabelle, I invite you to the studio.” Isabelle jumped up and walked to the studio with Whit.
Karen explained the two-step process of drawing a design first and then adding the watercolor. 
Whit: I would like to draw a snake.
Isabelle continued with a common subject from her earlier drawing experiences, “A rainbow.” As she drew, Isabelle observed that the light-colored crayon was difficult to see, "I can’t see my rainbow." 
Karen: Let’s finish our design and then see what happens when we add a layer of watercolor.
Isabelle added to her drawing, “I’m done with my rainbow.”
Whit: I’m done with my snake. 
Whit and Isabelle moved onto the second step of the process. 
Whit: The pink. The pink paint is disappearing (noticing the wax of the crayons “pushing” back on the paint. 
Isabelle chose to use yellow watercolor paint first. Then she added blue. She pointed to where the blue and yellow met and observed: It turns darker. It turns green after it was dark. ​

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When Fay and Ellie ventured into the studio, Fay had a suggestion: Maybe we can do it with my symbol so I know it’s mine. I do a umbrella.
Karen: Ellie, Fay is drawing her symbol. 
Ellie: My sheep.
Fay and Ellie set about drawing their symbols on their watercolor papers with their crayons. 
 Fay worked fastidiously on her drawing before describing it, "I did the rain and the umbrella." The umbrella was at the bottom of the tag and the rain was falling down from above in her drawing.
Ellie chose to use pink watercolor on her tag first. 

When she was finished she replaced her jar as we had practiced and declared, “Next color. Blue. I use this brush.” After a few strokes, she decided to add a third color, “I’m done with blue.”
Fay: Now I use another color (as she moved the red jar to her tray).
Ellie: I choose next color. This one (green)!
Fay then added yellow to her watercolor resist. 
Ellie looked over her options: I don’t know what color is next.
She thought for a moment and then picked up the green jar. She then examined her painting carefully and filled in the areas that had not yet been painted. As she worked, she narrated her process of dipping her paintbrush in the water to clean it and tapping it dry on the sponge before switching colors: I do this. I dry it. Tap, tap, tap.  She dipped her paintbrush into a jar of paint and the began painting again: Oh, no! There is a puddle. I go on the carousel. This is a carousel.
Fay: I put the pink on, but the paint is not working. 
Karen: What do you think is happening? Is the crayon part keeping the paint away?
Fay: I think so.

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Mimi decided to draw her symbol, the frog on her cubby bag tag. As she drew, she narrated her process: I’m doing the belly. The feet. A circle for the belly. When she was satisfied with her drawn design for her tag, she chose her paint: Green, because it’s my favorite color.
Bailee watched Mimi and Karen make their tags: I want to try now! She then picked up a crayon and began to draw a design: This is not going to work! I want another crayon color. 
Mimi: I’m going to try the (other) colors to see what happens. I’m going to choose…ooooh! This looks like shiny blue!
Bailee swished her brush in the jar of water to clean it before switching colors. She saw the water change color: I need fresh water. It’s light blue.
Karen: What do you think made the water blue?
Bailee: The paint. ​

Louisa visited the studio next to complete her cubby bag tag. She chose a crayon to draw her design: "A dinosaur!" which is her symbol. Once she was happy with her design, she chose to paint her tag using purple watercolor paint.
Whit watched as Louisa applied the paint to her paper and noticed aloud: You have puddles, you need to dab your water. 
Louisa cleaned her brush in the water and then dabbed it on the sponge to rid the brush of the excess water. She looked at the water: I get new water now. When Louisa’s tag was finished, she had used green on the interior of the tag and placed a border of purple along the edges of the paper. 
Seon began to draw her design. After a few minutes, she look at it and declared, “My design is not ready yet,” before getting back to work with her crayon. When she was pleased with her work, she picked up a jar of watercolor paint and announced, “I choose yellow, because I love yellow.”

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Zari and Cal joined Emma at the table to make their cubby bag tag. They shared what they were going to draw first using the wax crayon. 
Zari: I’m gonna draw a cat. 
Cal: I’m gonna draw an elephant. 
Both Cal and Zari moved onto the second step of the watercolor resist process as they began to paint over the crayon. Cal chose orange and described what he was painting: I’m making the sun. 
Zari chose yellow and described her painting: This is the morning sun. She then pointed to Cal’s painting noticing a difference: That’s the bedtime sun. Looking back at her own painting, Zari chose the blue watercolor next: Here’s blue so my cat has some blue. 
Cal picked up two paint brushes to make his design: I’m using two so I can do two paints. I’m doing multicolored.

Our Finished Cubby Bag Tags