Hello Friends,
I love making 3D crafts with my students! Creating something that has another dimension makes the learning come alive and cements itself in the brains of my kiddos. In late October or early November, we discuss nocturnal animals. As with most kindergarten curricula, we emphasize owls and bats.
Creating this 3D owl does take a little time, but it is worth the effort. I definitely count this towards our STEM learning. STEM is hands-on learning that takes on a real world approach. Adding feathers shows that owls are birds. Adding wings shows that birds have wings. Adding a beak shows that owls do not have teeth. We use natural colors to show that owls blend in with their surroundings. And the fun thing is that my students have a project that they can take home and share with their families what they learned.
(I order most of my supplies from Oriental Trading. This helps me keep the cost down because they sell in bulk at a reasonable price. The straight pins, glue, and craft sticks were purchased at our local craft store.)
Here are the supplies that you need:
9 ounce Brown paper cup for each child
3 inch white foam ball for each child
Natural colored feathers
Large sized eyes
Ball point straight pins
Orange, brown, and yellow construction paper or foam sheets
White glue
Mini craft sticks
Brown paint (We used chocolate brown acrylic paint, but plain Tempera paint works, too.)
I was given materials from Oriental Trading Learn 365 as compensation for a fair review of their products.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Insert a mini craft stick into the foam ball.
2. Paint the foam ball with brown paint and let it dry.
3. When dry, use a box cutter to slice a small cut into the bottom of the cup. Insert the craft stick with the painted ball into the cup. Add a small amount of glue to secure.
4. Cut 2 circles from yellow foam. Attach to the foam ball with straight pins.
5. Add white glue to the yellow foam. Attach the eyes.
Please note: Attaching the eyes to the yellow foam ensures that the eyes stay glued to the head. If you skip adding the foam (or paper) to the head, the eyes of your students may have difficulty staying glued.
6. Cut a beak from orange paper or foam. Attach to the head with straight pins.
7. Trace a wing shape onto brown paper or foam. (Click HERE for a wing template.) Cut out. Fold the wing in half. Unfold. Add a stripe of white glue to the fold line.
8. Attach to the back of the body.
10. Add feathers to the body and wings using white glue.
Set the cup upon the orange feet.
12. Let the owl dry........
Look at the personalities of these owls - all done the same way with the same materials, but each carries its own individual style. It's such a joy to see them become "real."
Until next time!
Blessings,
