In Preparation for our Bird Clay Sculpture

To help bridge the gap between learning at school and learning at home, the Cardinals have taken home their first “homework” assignment. The paperwork for their Bird Research Homework was included in their Friday folders. Each Cardinal has chosen a particular species of bird that they which to learn more about.

Wyatt - Cardinal

Noel - Parrot

Young - American Robin

Evan - Blue-Footed Booby

Trace - Bald Eagle

Andrew - Mockingbird

Jayden - Cardinal

Samuel - Hummingbird

Kate - Condor

Violet - Peacock

Kaya - Cardinals

Tori - Blue Jay

Katy - Ostrich

Audrey - Purple Finch

Lilly - Eagle

Stella - Ostrich

Radha - Hummingbird

We are asking that each child research their bird of choice and share the information with the class. Along with their research facts, we are encouraging that each Cardinal creates a nest by using any materials that inspire her or him (e.g., sticks. grass, leaves, twigs, pine needles, fabric, yarn, ribbon, twine). Our idea is that each Cardinal can make their chosen bird out of clay. We will supply each child with a photograph of their bird as a guide for them to reconstruct their bird as best they can. Once completed, the bird will lay on the nest your child has created for it.

To ensure the Cardinals that we are only one part of their learning community, we collaborated with our Art teacher, Amanda. Amanda was ecstatic to hear of our idea and was eager to help us out. She suggested that “a clay exploration would definitely be a helpful introduction” and quickly adapted her plans for our scheduled Art class.

An important component when sculpting is to focus on the details of the object. To help build on this concept, the Cardinals were provided with activities that required attention to details. One example is the “Dry Erase Mirror, Mirror” activity. This activity is a follow-up of the self-portraits creation that the Cardinals produced. Using hand held mirror-shape boards made of tough plastic and laminated for easy write-on-wipe-off, each child was encouraged to draw the features on their faces. The “mirrors” have a silhouette of a face in a variety of multicultural shades that enabled each Cardinal to truly “see” themselves.   

 

Another activity that encouraged the Cardinals to focus on details was drawing a picture of their chosen bird from a photograph. A picture of each of the birds that the Cardinals will research was printed.  The Cardinals were asked to observe the photograph of their chosen bird and focus on the points of interest such as the head, beak, body and wings. What an amazing job some of the children did in drawing a replica of their bird. Truly remarkable! More opportunities to practice will be provided next week in preparation for our sculpting experience. Stay tuned!  

Our “homework” goal is to enable families to engage with their child in what he or she is learning in school. It also helps build good learning habits and shouldn’t exhaust or displease your child. If there is anything we can do to help, please come have a chat with us. We are always here to help make things fun and enjoyable for all. After all, successful education is a partnership between a child, his or her family and his or her teachers... no matter the age of the learner!