Notes from the Intern

The Cook Arts Center offers a Drop In Art class on Monday-Thursday afternoons for any child that isn’t already signed up for an after school class. Children who drop in to the Arts Center are greeted with a fun activity and some TLC. I may be a little biased, since I teach the class twice a week, but we always have at least a few laughs. Plus, the kids always leave with a project in hand.

This week at the Drop In Art class, we did a variety of activities that included cooking, making bees, and painting. Mariella, a four year old who participates in the drop in class several times a week eagerly agreed to help me give a step-by-step tutorial for a fun and easy project that she and I did this past week.

YOU WILL NEED:
Plain Paper
Crayons
Watercolors
Eager Participant

Step One:
With the paints all ready for use, fold the piece of paper in half. Make sure that there is enough water in each paint color. Here Mariella demonstrates:

Step Two:
Hold paintbrush in hand, and apply color to one half of the page. This works best when there is enough liquid to spread the color throughout the page. The paint cannot be dry.


Step Three:
Once a side is covered in paint, fold the other half over onto the paint. Press down firmly. Peel back to see the other half of the page now filled. Here is Mariella’s :

FINAL STEP:
Draw with crayon the body of a butterfly in between the two sides. This creates a butterfly. This creates a great opportunity to talk to a child about butterflies and how they are made. Here is Mariella and her final project.


Hope you enjoyed last week’s project, there's always something fun and creative going on in the Cook Arts Center lobby after school!

** Shelly is a senior at Calvin College majoring in English and Studio Art. She shares her experiences interning at the Cook Arts Center on this blog once a week. **