Rorschachs and Ladders

The Owls have been letting out their creative side for the past few days (well, every day really!). We have become very interested in creating rorschach prints over the past few days. We do this by taking a piece of paper and folding it in half. Using the crease as a boundary, we squeeze paint onto one side of the paper. 

We have experimented with adding paint lines, blobs of paint, and everything in between. We have also tested whether it is more effective to add massive amounts of paint onto the paper, or just apply small amounts to create designs. This led to a conversation about "heavy" paper and "light" paper; if a lot of paint is added, the paper becomes too heavy. Although it was generally agreed that light paper, or less paint, is better, the urge to add massive amounts of paint proved too great for some friends. 

Once the paint is applied, we refold the paper and watch the paint transfer onto the other side of the paper. The close pressing of the paper forces the paint to spread across the surface, so when the paper is unfolded. a beautiful design is created. This activity is wonderful for introducing the idea of symmetry, spacial relationships, color blending, and creates amazing pieces of art. 

 

This activity segwayed into an experimentation of different types of tools and techniques to use with paint. Brushes were pulled out to help spread the colors around, and the brushes were even flipped so that the hard "stick" side could be used to create fine lines within the paint.

 Some tested their control of the paint squeezers (which can be very hard to do!) in order to create pictures.

A plastic bag was also pulled out to be used as a paint tool. When paint is put on a crumpled up bag and dabbed on a piece of paper, a wrinkled texture is the result. The mix of colors that we were using on the bag created a beautiful array of textures and hues on the paper.

Friends were excited to try these techniques out, and began to use multiple techniques on one piece. The results were colorful, exciting, experimental, creative works of art.

We also began to discuss more about what we know about board games; today's morning meeting conversation was about what board games we know.

 We also played a few rounds of Chutes and Ladders, which is a very complicated game! The fact that this game revolves around "random luck" can be frustrating and difficult for little people to understand, but our advancement to this step shows increased awareness and understanding of complex rules. Of course there are those that got overwhelmed, but it is a process. As we continue with our new study of board games, the topic of fairness, sportsmanship and competition will be reoccurring themes.

This was student-taken!

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