Art Project: Sandpaper & Chalk Pastels

I have another project to share with you that we did this week in our after-school club, "Expedition in the Desert!": chalk pastel drawings on sandpaper. This extraordinarily easy project is also a tactile delight for kids. Many thanks to DLTK - Growing Together for the idea. 

I recommend using a coarser grain of sandpaper and good-quality chalk pastels. Before they began drawing, I gave the children the following tips:

1. Lightly sketch the main parts of the picture with a pencil before using the chalk pastels.

2. Draw the things in front first and then work on the background. This is an important step when starting out with chalk pastels. Because you can't color over things with chalk pastels without them showing through, you draw what is in front first and then work on the background last. This is the exact opposite of what a child would do in painting and it is worth pointing out to them. 

Here is my sample painting that I showed the children:

And here is some student work:

The picture that I drew is of the burning bush from the Moses story that we heard this week. I did not intend for the children to use this theme, but most of them did anyway. In an art class, that would be fine, but in Godly Play, it is not. I realized then that my sample had been too direct and that it would have been better to have simply told them what to do rather than show them. Oh well, we learn from our mistakes. : )

Reader Art Project: Holy Trinity

It is a beautiful thing to me when someone is able to use one of my art projects as a tool for reflection and worship. One of my most frequently read posts is an art project based on Andrei Rublev's icon, "The Holy Trinity", in which artists of all ages are challenged to imagine and reflect upon the nature of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. 

Recently Katie Munnik of the Presbyterian Record and the author of a blog called "The Messy Table" contacted me to let me know that her church in Scotland had found this project to be both meaningful and fun during Lent.

Katie writes, "We were also thinking about Christ and the questioning call in Matthew 16: 'Who do you say the Son of Man is?' We used an idea from Explore and Express, using Rublev's icon of the Holy Trinity, and wondering together about why we talk about God as three and as one. It is a complicated and simple idea - that we know God differently, but that God is one."

You can read the rest of Katie's lovely article about their Lenten Art and Talk workshops here.

Interspersed in this post are the results of the wondering from both child and adult artists. Thank you, Katie, for sharing!

Art Project inspired by Rublev's "Holy Trinity"

Andrei Rublev's icon, "The Holy Trinity"

While living in Russia in the early 90's, I fell in love with Andrei Rublev's famous icon, "The Holy Trinity".  This icon dating from around 1410 depicts the three visitors that appeared to Abraham near Mamre in Genesis 18.  While there is debate among theologians as to whether the three visitors were actually the Trinity, the story provides the basis for a beautiful symbolic portrait of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Each of the three members of the Trinity are seated in a circle representing their unity and perfect love and respect for one other. And each one is either holding something or has a something symbolic behind him that points to his divine character. Even the choice of  colors for their clothing stands for their divine attributes.

During the Pentecost season last year, we did a lesson on the Trinity.  Explaining the Trinity to anyone, let alone a child, is an almost impossible task! (It is, of course, a mystery of faith that both baffles and irresistably intrigues us.)  We used classic illustrations such as water in its three forms and an egg (shell, yolk, white) to give the children a visual idea of how something can be the same, but take different forms.  We then showed the children Rublev's icon using this wonderful page from Wellspring.  Wellspring offers a virtual tour of the icon by allowing one to click on each member of the Trinity for an explanation of the colors, attire and imagery used for each figure. As a general rule, I never use computers or media in children's worship, but this was too good to pass up. : )

As an opportunity to creatively respond to what they had heard about the Trinity, I created this watercolor project for the children:

Step 1:  Use a pattern to trace the basic outline of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit with their halos. You may download my pattern here. Please note that my pattern gives the basic outline of the three figures with their halos, but not angelic wings so that the children can draw these themselves if they wish. 

Step 2:  Have the children pencil in any facial features that they want to add to the three figures of the Trinity as well as the angelic wings. They can also draw bread and wine on the table in the middle of the three figures. I left my faces blank, but the children last year chose to draw facial pictures and they were marvelous!

Step 3: Have the children brainstorm different images that remind them of each member of the Trinity and pencil these in behind each figure just as Rublev did in the original icon.  For my sample, I chose the sun to represent the Father, a tree for the Son, and a waterfall for the Holy Spirit.  But the children could choose anything they want. 

Step 4:  Paint each area with watercolor.  Adding salt to the wet watercolor in the halos produces a nice effect.  

A close-up of the halos after salt was sprinkled on the wet paint.

Step 5:  This is optional, but tracing the completed figures with black marker or black pastel can give the painting a more completed look.  

The children who participated in this project were ages 3-5. While this may seem like a project for older children (and well it could be), the goal with younger children is not technical excellence. Rather the goal is to give the children an opportunity to think about and explore what each member of the Trinity is like. 

I so wish that I had picture of my children's paintings from last year to show you!  They were made before I started blogging and the kids' finished paintings were so good that their grandmother took them to the States with her.: )

Linked to The Wiegands' and The Magic Onions and Catholic Icing.

Sunday in the Park

The weather in Berlin has warmed up enough that our bi-weekly Family Brunch can meet in the park again.  How wonderful it is to meet with God right in the middle of his wonderful creation!  This week I combined two Young Children and Worship stories, "Jesus Commissions the Disciples" and "Ascension".  Das Wetter in Berlin ist endlich schön geworden und wir dürften den Familien Brunch (ein Angebot von Haus Berlin e.V..) draußen im Park veranstalten. Es war wunderschön Gott mittendrin in seiner Schöpfung zu begegnen! Diese Woche habe ich zwei Geschichten von Young Children in Worship, "Jesus gibt seinen Jüngern einen Auftrag" und "Himmelfahrt", kombiniert. 

The story time was actually a bit rough this week, because the children were so distracted by having church outside for the first time in a long time. But that was okay.  It was exciting to be outside and who wouldn't be distracted by the adorable squirrels and cool bugs?  Das Erzählen von der Geschichte ging ein bisschen schief diese Woche, da die Kinder so  aufgeregt waren den Kindergottesdienst zum ersten Mal draußen nach dem langen Winter zu haben.  Aber das war in Ordnung. Es war einfach toll im Park zu sein und wer hätte sich von den niedlichen Eichhörchen und faszinierenden Insekten nicht ablenken können?

One of the activities that the children could choose from in the Creative Phase was the Ascension Art Project that I wrote about in my last post.  In addition to the artistic aspect, this project involved counting (the children had to make 11 dots for the 11 disciples and 2 white dots for the two angels) and recognition of emotions (I asked the children to imagine how Jesus' friends felt when he left them and if they were happy, sad, surprised, angry, etc.). Während der Kreativphase gab es mehrere Möglichkeiten.  Eins davon war das Kunstprojekt zu Himmelfahrt, die ich im letzen Post gezeigt habe. Zusätzlich zu dem kreativen Aspekt, konnten die Kinder die Zahlen üben, indem sie 11 Püntkchen für die Jünger und 2 für die Engel malen mussten.  Auch habe ich die Kinder gefragt, wie die Jünger sich gefühlt haben als Jesus plötzlich weg war.  Das war eine gute Gelegenheit für die Kinder unterschiedliche Emotionen und Ausdrücke zu überlegen. 

Painting the mountaintop.
Ein Kind malt den Hintergrund.

Drawing the disciple's reactions to
Jesus' ascension with a felt-tipped pen.
Dieses Kind malt die Reaktionen 
der Jünger mit einem Filzstift.

The finished paintings made me smile! Die fertige Bilder haben mich total gefreut!

I set up two Montessori Practical Life activities for the children to choose from as well.  The first one, pictured below, involved stringing buttons in the shape of ladybugs, butterflies, and other insects onto pipe cleaners.  Es gab auch zwei Montessori Angebote vom Bereich, "Praktisches Leben".  Bei der ersten unten sollten die Kinder Knöpfe in der Form von Marienkäfern, Schmetterlingen, und andern Insekten auffädeln.

In the second activity the children used tongs to find and transfer acorn shells from a bowl of sand into the compartments of an ice cube tray. Bei der zweiten Aufgabe sollten die Kinder einen Pinzette benutzen um Eichlen vom Sand in eine Eiswürfelform zu übertragen

The older children who could read had the opportunity to put together the words of the Great Commission.  The control card is in the bottom right hand corner. Die älteren Kinder konnten die letzen Worter, den Auftrag, von Jesus puzzeln. Die Kontrollekarte ist unten rechts.

This was the first time that I have set up a focus table outside.  It looked so beautiful surrounded by the plants in the park.   Ich habe zum ersten Mal einen Fokustisch im Park aufgestellt.  Mit den ganzen Pflanzen herum sah es hübsch aus. 

Have a wonderful Ascension! We get the day off here in Berlin, so we are especially excited! Bis zum nächsten Mal!




Linked to The Magic Onions

Epiphany

Last Sunday we celebrated Ephiphany with the children in our church plant.  (The official feast day is on January 6 in Germany, but we didn’t have services on this day.)  The children have, of course, heard the story of the Three Wise Men many times during Advent. The Godly Play story for Epiphany stresses that Jesus was a king like no other and allows the children to ponder the meanings of the gifts. Although gold was a fitting gift for a king, frankincense and myrrh were unusual gifts because Jesus was an unusual king. 

I also added some “wondering questions” for the children at the end to help them explore the Three Kings’ spiritual journey and revelation.  How do you think the Three Wise Men felt when they finally reached the stable where Baby Jesus lay?  Do you think they found what they had expected to find?  Which of the three gifts do you like the best and why?

For the creative phase, the children could either choose to pick out their own art materials and work freely or they could work on an “angeleitet” (instructional) art project.  Below is the project that I presented.  It is a simple piece that came to me when I was out jogging and ran past an art gallery in our neighborhood with negative space paintings.  I chose the star as a symbol of God’s revelation that often comes after a long spiritual journey.  I left it white as a metaphor for revelation being an empty or blank place in us that God fills. 

 

A 3-year-old working on her project.

To paint this project:

1. Give the children a star pattern to trace or allow them to draw their own in the center of the page. 
2. Using a ruler, have them draw straight lines wherever they choose from the outside of the star to the edge of the paper, dividing the paper into quadrants.
3. Ask the children to choose 2 “cool” colors and 2 “warm” colors (after explaining what this means) and paint the quadrants.
4. The children may then fill the quadrants however they choose either with designs or pictures.

This is from a child who chose to work freely.

A normal Godly Play worship service does not usually include Montessori motor skill exercises, but because we have 3 and 4-year-olds in our services, I like to include some to help them further think about what they have heard and to help them in a practical way. Because the Godly Play story deals with the gifts that the Wise Men brought, I had the children practice wrapping gifts. I had planned to do this before Christmas, but couldn’t come up with enough small boxes to do it.  Then I saw on Leptir that Nataša had used wooden blocks and I thought this was an excellent idea! 

The tray with the materials. 

 

Maybe these ideas will help someone next year!