Clay Leaves

I search and search for clay projects that look cool. Oh, the troubles I have. So, this year I decided to start, "Blogsurfing" (not sure its a common term, just one I find fun) for fun lessons. I'm not afraid to admit that this lesson was one I borrowed from another art teacher while Blogsurfing. I love the fall __________ (fill in the blank with leaves, weather, smells, colors, activities, etc. and all pertain to me). So, when I saw this idea of having the kids make clay leaves I was really excited but a little worried that it was too easy.....then I decided to add my own levels of difficulty.

We start all clay projects with a vocabulary test that all of the kids must pass. Next, I sent the kids out in search of the largest leaves they could find. They came in with several really cool leaves! The kids then had to roll out a slab of clay that was 1/8 of an inch thick, press their leaf into it, and trace around the leaf. We then smoothed out the leaf and pressed it into a bowl. For the bisque fire (the first firing of the clay), I left the leaves in the clay.

For the first day of glazing, I brought in a plethera of fall leaves and the kids chose one as their, "inspiration" for their glaze. We started by glazing the veins of the leaves and then moved on from there. I was really pleased with the outcomes!