Extending Interactions with Clay: Using Flowers to Create Beautiful Imprints
At Nurtured Nest, we encourage children to explore nature and natural materials. We decided to extend our children's clay interactions by using flowers to create beautiful imprints. By incorporating natural materials like flowers, we allowed our students to connect with their environment and learn about the world around them in a hands-on, sensory way. As Malaguzzi emphasized, "The wider the range of possibilities we offer children, the more intense will be their motivations and the richer their experiences." By giving our children the space and materials to explore and experiment, we are helping to foster their creativity, curiosity, and love of learning.
The process of creating flower imprints on clay was simple yet engaging. The children began by sniffing flowers and selecting their preferred flowers, buds, stems, and leaves. They then carefully placed them on the clay surface to create beautiful designs, exploring the various textures and shapes of the natural materials. Some of the children were very purposeful in their designs, while others were more spontaneous, simply sticking the flowers into the clay and creating a Flower Forest.
“The wider the range of possibilities we offer children, the more intense will be their motivations and the richer their experiences.”
Each child in the class was given a block of clay, along with flowers, clay tools, rolling pins, and cookie cutters, by Ms. Pooja. She encouraged them to experiment with the clay and other materials to gain an idea of flower and block impressions.
The children worked together to come up with a plan to roll the clay and flatten it a little before placing the flowers on top. Ezra and Meher decided to create a 3D forest with the flowers before taking impressions, but they soon realized that sticking the stem of the flower into the clay only left a hole and not a flower print when pulled out.
Jasper was the first to create a natural composition on his clay, using the flower as well as the leaves on the stem. Qi Ran was extra careful while placing the cookie cutter to make sure he had the entire impression of the flower, not leaving any part behind.
Jasper and Meher discovered that one side of the cutter was sharp and the other not so much. They realized that the sharp side should face the clay, while the blunt side should stay up, so their hands were not hurt while pressing the cutter down. Oziah discovered that after pressing the flower against the clay, it was not easy to pull out. They had to use their gentle hands to pull every petal out.
The children also tried using the carved-out blocks, originally used for block printing, to see what those impressions looked like. They discovered new ways of utilizing natural materials to express their creativity and build their knowledge.
