We’re Believing in Circular Weaving

 

 Our Grade 3 and 4 students based a circular weaving work on Mandalas ( the word comes from  the Sanskrit word for circle). The students made a circular loom by cutting slits at regular intervals around a plastic or paper picnic plate and winding wool around it to create the “warp” threads. The wool ends were taped onto the back of the plate or tied. They then used a variety of different “weft” threads to weave in a circular motion until the space was filled. They could still use some additional decoration. It will be interesting to see how creative our students can be in this today’s lesson.
Are there other circular looms which could be used? I once saw an old bike wheel used as a loom. Or what about a hula hoop?

Our Coat of Arms

Second Term began yesterday here in Victoria, Australia and fellow Art Teacher Glenys Vella and I took a group of 21 Grade 6 students on an excursion into the City of Melbourne. We visited  Victoria’s Parliament House where we were given an excellent guided tour of the Legislative Assembly and the Legislative Council chambers.  We then walked to the  nearby Melbourne Museum where we ate a picnic lunch and toured several exhibits including the Dinosaur Walk, the Melbourne Story and the Forest Gallery. The pictured 3D Coat of Arms was part of the Melbourne Exhibition. Although the kangaroo and emu are long dead they looked realistic and showed how they majestically guard our State emblems on one federal shield. The background floral emblem is our golden wattle. Can you find which emblem goes with which of our states?