Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Snail Trails

On the weekend I had coffee with a friend that is in her last practicum
for becoming a teacher.
Lots of discussion about what is happening in our classrooms and sharing ideas back and forth.

I told her about our Snail Garden
 and that I was trying to think of a craft that we could do 
that involved snails.
From that came Snail Trails.
 I cut pieces of sponge and glued that into shells that I found at a dollar store.
We dipped them into white glue that glided the snail
across the paper.
I moved our Snail Garden close to the art table
so we could watch how they moved.
And we noticed the shiny slime trails they have left on the screen
that covers their garden.
We handled the snails more to see how they feel.
Did they leave a sticky trail on our hands?
Then went back to our art work and added coloured sand sprinkled 
with gold glitter.
Then shook the paper to remove any excess.
Some of the children added to their art work by drawing
and making stories.
 Each snail has it's own trail.
Are they having a race?
"This is a tree (on the left) and this is me (on the right)",
she said.
"The snail is coming to me."
A couple of little girls really enjoyed playing with the snails.
I look over and see all the snails gathered on their garden couch.
Then I saw this wonderful picture.
Beautiful!

I love collaborating and I find it through blogging, peers and the parents
that participate in my program.
Thanks Sharon for brainstorming this idea with me.