Winter through my window

Made by Silke, 10 years old

You need:

1. brown paper strips from 2 cm wide
2. light blue drawing paper
3. oil pastel
4. tempera paint
5. brushes
6. glue

Draw a winter tree and a fence that gets smaller in the distance. Colour tree and fence with oilpastels. Paint snow on the ground, the tree and the fence using white tempera paint. Paste the brown strips on the drawing as if it's a window frame.

Birdhouse of paper mache

I've got this great paper mache lesson from Ghislaine Aarts.

You need:

1. box from boots
2. scissors
3. masking tape
4. saw
5. 2 wooden paint stirrers (DIY store)
6. wallpaper paste
7. newspaper strips
8. toilet paper or paper towels
9. brushes
10. acrylic paint or tempera paint
11. brushes
12. varnish
13. artificial snow
14. small decoration items like pineapples, peanuts or berries
15. glue gun
16. wood for frame

Make a rectangle from the lid of the boots box by cutting the sides. Cut three rectangles from the box and glue them up with masking tape. See the photograph.

Saw one of the sirrers in two halves. Lay the halves of the stirrers and the complete one on the board. Lay the cardboard roof above. See photograph 2.

Paste everything together with newspaper strips and wallpaper paste (paper mache). Your latest layer has to be toiletpaper or paper towel. Leave the work to dry.

Paint the bird house with acrylic paint or tempera. Paint one or more birds upon it. Let your work dry carefully and then finish it with colourless varnish. Scatter some artificial snow on the roof if you like it. You may glue some berries, pineappels or peanuts around the bird house for decoration. Frame your work.

Winter scene

I got this lesson from Anneriek Adema. Her students (11-12 years old) made this wonderful winter scenes! You need:

1. wc role
2. coloured paper
3. glue
4. scissors
5. polystyrene
6. wire, sticks etc.

The wc role is the basis for a snowman, skiing person, ice skater or something. Use coloured paper to make a person, and place him on a piece of polystyrene. Use different materials to make an environment.

This lesson can also be used to make a group work. Give every group a larger piece of polystyrene and let them discuss about what they are going to make.

Printed penguins and polar bears

Made by Brittany, 11 years old

You need:

1. piece of linoleum from 12 x 12 cm
2. photograph form polar bear or penguin
3. carbon paper
4. lino knive
5. mat
6. black block printing ink
7. flat piece of glass
8. linoleum roller
9. white drawing paper A4 size
10. lino press
11. scissors and glue

Children take a picture from a penguin of polar bear. The animal must be complete, not only a part of it. Because of the fact the animals must be printed, contour lines are important. Each child gets a piece of linoleum from 12 by 12 cm. Use carbon paper to draw the contours of the animal on the linoleum. Use lino knives to cut the background away; the animal has to remain. From the penguins the white belly has to be cut away too. But: remember the contour line has to remain. Details such as eyes, lines that indicate legs etc. have to be cut away with a small lino knive. Shake the bottle of blockprint carefully to be sure oil will mix with the rest. Drip the paint on the glass and roll it out with the lino roller. Make several prints of your work. Choose the two best ones and paste them on a black background. By tearing the paper instead of cutting, you'll accentuate the effect of the winter. The torn paper suggests an ice floe. See the example above.

Made by children from 11-12 years old

Chilly penguin

You need:

1. grey construction paper A4 size
2. black shiny paper
3. white wallpaper
4. glue
5. white tempera
6. q-tips
7. leftovers of coloured paper
8. fleece fabric

Children cut a penguin body and wings out of black shiny paper. The belly has to be cut out of white textured wallpaper. The earmuffs and scarf are cut out of fleece fabric. Eyes and noses are cut out of coloured paper. Snowflakes are stamped with a q-tips and white tempera paint.

Made by children of grade 1.

This lesson is done by Lilia Bezemer and based on examples found on Artsonia.

Snowflakes

Made by Marije, 10 years

You need:

1. white drawing paper A3 size
2. oil pastels or crayons
3. watercolour paint
4. brushes
5. glitter
6. glue

Show photographs from enlarged snowflakes or (even better): let students see snowflakes with a magnifying glass or microscope. Discuss the hexagonal structure. The children draw a few snowflakes on their sheet with oil pastel crayons. The flakes don't have to be complete, parts of the flakes can be drawn along the edges.

After this, the sheet has to be painted with diluted watercolour paint in winter colours. The oil pastels will resist the paint. When the work is dry, sprinkle a little glitter in in small dots of glue.

Snowglobes

You need:

1. tempera paint
2. light blue and white drawing paper
3. ribbed cardboard
4. black fine marker
5. brushes
6. glitter
7. glue

A snow globe is a glass sphere containing a small scene. If you shake the globe, it will snow in it. In this lesson the snow globe will be drawn. Give the children a sheet of light blue drawing paper. Let them draw a circle by outlining a saucer. In this circle they have to draw a winter (or Christmas) scene. After this it has to be coloured with undiluted tempera paint. When the paint is dry, outline the drawing with a fine black marker.

Cut the circle out and lay it on a white sheet of paper. Outline the circle then cut the white circle with one centimeter extra all around from the paper. Paste the drawing on the white circle. Cut a standard out of ribbed cardboard and paste both parts on another sheet of coloured paper of your choice. Sprinkle a little glitter in small dots of glue in and around the drawing.

Made by students of 10-11 years old

Trees in the snow

Made by Kiki, 11 years old

You need:

1. blue cardboard
2. oil pastels
3. glitter
4. glue

Look what trees look like in winter: no leaves, just the trunk and branches. The trunk is wide and runs smaller to the top. Branches are getting smaller to the top also. Children sketch with pencil one or two trees. The trees have to be coloured with oil pastels. Use more colours then just brown: with black, green or blue you can suggest texture in the trunk. Colour snow on the branches with white oil pastels. Of course there will be no snow hanging below the branches, it would fall down!

Use glitter to light up the snow.

Skaters in Dutch landschape

Made by Brittany, 11 years old

You need:

1. light blue construction paper
2. dark transperant glossy paper
3. glue
4. flour
5. colour pencils
6. scissors

Beautiful photographs of Dutch landscapes and skaters on frozen water, are the inspiration for this lesson. There are many of these pictures on the internet (search for 'hollands landschap schaatsen'). Show some of these pictures and discuss them. Take a light blue sheet (or paint one) and paste and paste in the middle transparent dark, glossy paper on it; this is the ice. Cut a circle from a white sheet and paste in on the light blue sheet. Make the white streaks on the ice by drawing lines with a glue stick and sprinkling flour over it; shake the rest of. Draw a windmill or a landscape. Draw some skating people on another sheet and colour them with bright colours. Cut those skaters and paste them on the ice.

Made by students from 10-11 years old

Winter scene

Made by Veerle, 10 years old

You need:

1. black paper A4 size
2. chalk pastels
3. hairspray
4. scissors
5. glitter
6. glue

Students draw a winter forest with snowy pine trees on a black background. The trees on the foreground must be lighter than those on the background.

When ready, put a flower pot on the drawing and draw a circle. Cut this circle. Fix your artwork with hairspray and let it dry for a few seconds. Then lay the circle face down on the table. Colour along the outer edge of the back of the circle a circle of about one centimeter. Put the circle in the middle of a new sheet of black paper. Smudge the chalk with your fingers on the new sheet, taking care the work won't move. Finally turn the circle and paste it in the black circle of your latest sheet. Sprinkle a little glitter in small dots of glue.

Snowman close ups

Made by Charmaine, 11 years old

You need:

1. grey drawing paper cut in pieces from 15 by 15 cm
2. oil pastels
3. glue
4. scissors
5. coloured cardboard

Children get three pieces of grey drawing paper. They have to draw the same snowmen face or part of the face from different points of view: frontal, of the side, from above, from the bottom, upside down etc. The snowmen must be coloured with oil pastels. Of course the colours of all drawings have to be the same. Outline everything with black oil pastel.
Glue the three snowmen close ups on a matching coloured cardboard.

Snowman close ups, by children of 11-12 years old

Polish folkart Christmas tree

You need:

1. white, red and green sheet A4 size
2. scissors
3. glue

Put the red and white sheet together and fold them. Draw half a Christmas tree against the fold and cut it out. Take the white tree and fold it again. Cut some of the edges and cut patterns from the fold towards the edges (just like snowflakes). Glue the white tree on the red one and glue the complete tree on a green sheet.

Winter coat

You need:

1. pattern winter coat
2. fabrics
3. buttons, straps
4. needles
5. sewing thread
6. textile glue
7. cardboard

Pattern winter coat

Make a copy of the pattern, enlarge it if you want to and print it. Cut the coat out of paper. Fold the fabric and pin the pattern on the fabric with the middle of the pattern against the fold. Cut the coat out of the fabric. Avoid fraying and use a lock or sewing machine.

Time to decorate the coat by sewing pockets, sewing buttons, embroidery, etc. When finished, paste the coat on cardboard.

Dutch December skyline

The Dutch website juf Lisette has a lesson we do every year: the December skyline! 5 December is the day Sinterklaas visits all Dutch children to give them presents. You can read more about Sinterklaas and his Black Petes in the category Dutch folklore.

You need:

1. construction paper A4 size in dark blue, yellow and black
2. paperclips
3. scissors
4. knives
5. cutting blade
6. glue

Draw the skyline of a street on the black paper. Add a tree if you want to, or draw a black pete near the chimney.

Put the black sheet on the yellow one and attach them to each other with four paperclips. Cut out the skyline; you'll cut two sheets at the same time. When ready, remove the paperclips and cut some windows out of the black sheet.

Cut a moon out of the rest of the yellow sheet. Stick the black and yellow skyline together and shift the black sheet one millimeter to emerge the yellow one. Look carefully to the position of the moon: you'll see the yellow edges there were the moon shines. Glue the moon on the blue sheet and glue the skyline below. Your December skyline is finished!

Owl in moonlight

You need:

1. white drawing paper A4 size
2. oil pastel
3. blue ink
4. brush
5. dish with water
6. scouring pad

See the moon shining through the trees... and in the moonlight everything looks blue.

Children scetch a winter tree, so there will be no leaves. Show them that the branches at the end always be thinner. Scetch a moon between the branches. Draw a cat or an owl on one of those branches.

The tree has to be coloured with blue oil pastel. Color difference can be made by pressing harder or softer, or by using a little black or white through that blue for the feathers. Colour the owl or cat blue too. Use black to draw eyes, ears and beak. The moon is white-yellow and becomes darker yellow to the outside.

When colouring is ready, everything has to be outlined with white oil pastel; even the smallest branches have to be outlined. This is a difficult chore, because you barely see the white and you run the risk that the white crayon will get blue (scrape it then!).

The background will be painted with ink, water and a scouring pad (watch your clothes!). The white lines will resist the ink. Put undiluted blue ink on a dish and dip the soft side of the scouring pad in it. Stamp with the pad along the outer edges of the drawing. Add water to the ink when you're nearer at the moon. The blue will be lighter then. Make a great light blue circle around the moon.