more Kente Cloth-inspired woven paintings

The rest of the pictures from this wonderful project: Kente Cloth Weavings!

Background paintings, bright bold patterns with painted with warm color tempera cakes. 

Recycled newspaper painted over with tempera cakes then cut into strips for weaving. 

Some final products!

Recycled Paper Kente Cloth

We are working on our follow up weaving lesson. 

I just had to share a few peeks because they are so pretty and cheerful. 

We have been learning about Kente Cloth, and I happened to have studied abroad in Ghana so I have a couple cloths. We made strips of Kente Cloth using paper that we first painted patterns with tempera cakes. 

Then wove both ends using newspaper we had painted with tempera paint and I cut into strips.  

We "don't do holidays" at my school so this was a great and meaningful way for me to get some hearts and pink into the mix this week. I'm going to roll them up with a string and send them home on Monday.

 

Today I tested out the TP roll-->heart stamper trick and it worked great!

More info and pictures of the steps to come later tonight and tomorrow.

 If you teach about Kente Cloth this book is my favorite

and the information, names, places, are all very accurate.

I highly recommend it and the kids love the story!

Recycling, Weaving, & TEAR BEARS- oh my!

First grade began our recycling unit with a weaving project using making use of the previously used table craft paper coverings cut into strips.

Most of my students had never done weaving before so this was our intro lesson.

This is one of my favorite books for introducing the basic concept of 'recycling' to children. 

We turned out weavings into blankets which I mounted on backing paper.

One day was devoted to "tear bears" - a pinterest inspiration I had found- and shrunk to tiny scale. 

 Lastly, we added tiny self-portraits (with the eyes closed - so cute) 

to put to bed with teddy and two pillows.

Weaving Characters

With limited time and the fact that I only have one of me and two hands I decided to change up and simplify my second grade weaving project this year.

I made a photocopy handout that had the "loom" on it for the students to cut.  Then we used 5-6  1.5" colored paper strips and glue sticks to create the weaving.  This size was more manageable since I travel around and have to hold on to them.

The second day when the students had finished their weaving they could turn their weaving into a character- most chose to do robots, some made some other people or aliens.  They are coming out really cute actually.  And to boot- my students seemed to grasp the weaving concept much stronger using the white paper and consistent size strips.

More photos of the finished products to come!!

I will most likely follow it up with the flower weaving project.

Woven Flowers

After I pre-cut paper plates with 7 cuts the second graders practiced their weaving skills with yarn. 
I stapled the weavings onto cardboard sticks to create a stem and then they could turn the weavings into flowers.  The colored the remaining space on the plate that was showing.  The students also made butterflies and insects which they are studying in science class that I stapled on so that they could stand up as 3-D from the flower.