Grade 5: Red Clay Spoons

Discussing functional art and texture, my 5th graders made these cool looking spoons today using red clay.

I love hand-building in clay because it serves as a reminder of just how powerful our hands are as a tool. 

I began the demo by showing the students how to create the bowl of the spoon and techniques for shaping/smoothing the inside. This was the most challenging part and I was interested to see how each student made this part their own. Next was creating and properly securing the handle which had to have a texture on it. It was neat seeing how my students created such unique spoon handles and added some really awesome characteristics to the handle and positioning of it. We poked a hole at the top of the spoon handle so that we can add a pretty ribbon to them when complete. 

Next week we will explore some beautiful glazes that I've been waiting to pull of the shelf.

Fun Day!