4.10.2012

won't you be my neighbor



These sweet little houses were created by the kindergarten artists. We are still busy working in our "Building a Better World" theme!



You've probably heard of this before: all I really need to know I learned in kindergarten. This BBC story, Crossing a St. Louis street that divides communities, has really stayed with me since I saw it last month. In fact our school is very near to the Delmar divide. I feel dismayed and hopeful at the same time.


(this image is a still from the BBC video news story)

8 comments:

Marcia Beckett said...

very cool! What were the steps you used to make these?

Shannah said...

Hello Marcia:)
I gave them a block of clay and they used pieces of wood to paddle the shape of the roof. Added texture, windows, doors, etc (I think there are some secret passage ways in some of these). We used Jazz gloss acrylic paint and then sponged off the extra to help make the texture pop.

Joelle said...

I love those little green houses! Really cute!

Chesterbrook Academy Elementary said...

A really beautiful project.
These houses are adorable.
I love the textures.

Magpie mom said...

these are amazing! Your students are very lucky. How large are the houses and what kind of clay do you use?

Shannah said...

Thank you for the kind words:)

I give them a block of clay that will fit in their little hand. We used white clay but I have also used red clay for this project in the past.

Unknown said...

These are beautiful! the color is so vibrant. I bought Jazz metallic paint before and the smell was awful. Maybe I just got an old batch? Did you have to hollow out the inside so the houses wouldn't explode or were they not that thick where you just left them solid?

Shannah said...

Hello Poppy, Thanks for stopping by:)

The Jazz paints do have a strong smell- I am not a fan but some of my students love the smell:) The smell goes away after it dries. I've also used acrylic and tempera before but I like the Jazz best.

These are solid houses but they are so small (fits in their hand) that I don't worry about the thickness. I've never had one explode:) Just make sure to let them dry completely.