One day while drawing a pig in our lessons, my sweet four year old became quite frustrated that her drawing didn’t look like what she had envisioned. A scribbling, screaming, crying fit ensued, a fit that you would have to know my daughter Jasmine to fully comprehend. An obstacle or an opportunity? I chose opportunity.
I created a whimsical art project where we created our own bird creatures out of basic lines and shapes, which could be neither right nor wrong in nature. I also very cleverly included a variety of subjects and it was quite an enjoyable way to began our study on birds (and a useful way to use up the bag of feathers I had bought for a science experiment that week)
Materials Needed:
For each student:
One 5 ½ x 8 ½ sheet of card paper (half a sheet)
At least one 5 x 8 sheet of white paper (for the drawing itself)
Black Marker
A list simple drawings to choose beaks and feet from (see mine, or use your own)
Glue
Feathers-the kind you buy in a bag and never know what to do with.
Goggly Eyes
Optional Materials:
A book about different kinds of birds
1. Look over the book of birds together with your children, remarking on the different beaks and feet each bird has and what they use them for (examples: birds of prey have hooked bills, seed eating birds have shorter bills, ducks have webbed feet to help them swim, and flamingos have long long legs to help them wade through water)
2. Show students the simple beak and feet drawings and have them pick out what their Funny Bird People will have. Help them draw the beaks, then a simple body (short, long, skinny, fat) and legs. (they can add wings if they want-they will mostly be covered with feathers) I did not even have them draw a head, as even this would complicate things-they are supposed to be goofy looking
3. Use a good bit of glue to put silly goggly eyes above the beaks and colored feathers on the wings.
4. Have the student make up a name for their Funny Bird People and a short story about them. Have them write the story inside the folded card. Some questions to get them going: What does your bird like to eat? Where does your bird live? What does your bird like to do? My children are younger so I wrote their stories out while they told them, and they were very very goofy.
5. When finished writing, glue the picture they made to the front of the card, and now they have a Funny Bird Person book which they will proudly display on their wall and make you read over and over and over again… Enjoy!
I have a feeling this craft, in different forms, will be made over and over again-it really is that fun!
