CLAY BIRDS NESTS

This lesson was inspired by the ever-helpful Pinterest. I saw a post with a similar lesson and I decided to do my own spin on it.

My Inspiration:
http://bowelementaryschoolart.blogspot.com/2013/06/clay-birds-in-nest.html

Materials:
Air Dry Clay (or regular clay if you have access to a kiln)
Paints
Simple clay tools (Forks and paintbrushes will do in a pinch)
Water
Lots of newspaper to minimize cleanup!

Visual Arts Standards: 
26.B.3d

Objectives:
Students will be able to create a pinch pot with the help of a short demonstration
Students will be able to expand their mind with new ways to use clay to create
Students will be able to understand how to create a piece from start to finish with thoughtful work



In my classroom, I would line the tables or desks with newspaper and then at the end of the day simply pick up the newspaper and the surfaces should be relatively clean.

Step 1: Start with a demonstration of how to make a pinch pot. These are fairly simple to make. You start with a ball of clay and slowly open up the middle with your thumbs and fore-fingers until you have a bowl shape.

Step 2: After everyone has successfully completed their pinch pots, they can take turns squeezing clay through a garlic press to create the twigs and other materials that nests are made of.

Step 3: A demonstration of score and slip will most likely be required here to show the students how to adhere the strips of clay to the pinch pot. Make sure to press down all of these pieces or they will break off in the drying process.

Step 4: Once the strips are all adhered, they will create between 2 and 4 eggs for their nest. Students will use the same score and slip method to attach these to the inside of the nest.

Step 5: The Bird! They will start off with a cone shape and then stretch out the head shape and the beak. The tale will be the tip of the cone. The bird will also need to be scored and slipped to adhere it to the inside of the nest next to or on top of the eggs.

These will take a few days to completely dry, but after that the students can paint these birds with a reference image they found on the internet with the help of a teacher.