1.Clay 2.Canvas mat (to cover tables) 3.Clay tools (rollers, plastic Knife, cocktail sticks, dowels etc.) 4.Rubbing plates, texture stamps 5.Slip (mixture of water and clay scraps) Part 2: Acrylic paints in small quantities Reeds (pre cut) Yarn / Thread / Wire Paint brush Material List: Clay and Basket Fusion

Give each student: 1 piece of clay, Give each table : 1.(rollers, plastic Knife, cocktail sticks, dowels etc.) 2.Rubbing plates, texture stamps 3.Slip (mixture of water and clay scraps) In part 2: Paints in small quantities at each table Paint brushes Reeds, leather pieces, yarn, wire etc. Docent Setup List: Docent Clean up List: Make sure names are on back of clay Place completed in the clay drying blue trays and leave along back of room to dry. Wipe down tables, refill any items and return to bins as you found them – thanks for doing this and leading the lesson! Clay and Basket Fusion

Lesson 6 – Fifth Grade Clay and Basket Fusion

Today’s Lesson Today is a ceramics and fiber art lesson you are going to create your own clay and basket pot. In part 2, you will combine a fired clay pot with reeds to create a sculptural vessel that fuses two ancient techniques! Skill Development: An opportunity to use new materials, clay, yarn and reeds, and create a three- dimensional form using weaving techniques. To build upon the different methods of molding clay, in this case, pinch-and-pull building or organic free form sculpting with score and slip.

Forming (i.e. shaping) Firing (baking in a kiln) Glazing/decorating (coating the object with a glaze, or applying to it various decorative techniques) Refiring (rebaking) to harden the glaze. What is Ceramics? Known as an important art ‘ceramics’ (derived from Keramos, Greek for potters clay) refers to items made from clay bodies and fired in a kiln (or oven) to obtain the finished art form. It requires a 4 step creative process of:

The moisture from the slip will be absorbed by the drier scored area and will help the piece stay together. After attaching use a tool or finger to smooth the seam so that you cannot see the line where the two pieces were attached. If the seam is not smoothing away, the clay is too dry. Dip your finger in some slip and smooth again to fix. What is Slip and Score technique? Score and slip is a method of joining two pieces of clay together. First, score the clay; this means that you make scratches in the surfaces that will be sticking together. Then you slip it; that is you wet the surface with some slip, using it like glue. Next, you press the two pieces together. This will allow the rough "scored" edges to meld with each other

Pottery is our oldest handicraft. Fired clay is one of the few materials on earth that does not change with time, and clay has always been an abundant resource. The earliest function of clay was to line baskets as a way to waterproof them. Baskets were often used to carry water to crops, and the clay lining prevented leakage. Why is clay so important? Eventually, early men and women discovered that they could harden the molded pottery in hot ashes and make sturdy containers. We are going to make one today!

Examples of Ceramic vessels

Venus of Dolni Vestonice The Czech prehistoric sculpture (Vestonicka Venuse) is one of the earliest examples of fired clay sculptures in the world (c. 28,000– 24,000 BC). It is a ceramic statuette and has four holes in the head, the function of which is unknown.

Chinese Pottery Chinese Pottery belonging to the era of Neolithic Art. Ever since the Stone Age, China has led the world in ceramic art and design. Its porcelain remains the finest ever made.

Greek Red-Figure Style Pottery. Greek potters produced a wide range of ancient pottery in all shapes and sizes. They decorated it with abstract, historical and mythological designs. The most important styles included: geometric, black- figure, red-figure and white ground.

Let’s get started.. Supplies Needed for Part One: 1.Clay tools (rollers, plastic Knife, cocktail sticks, dowels etc.) 2.Rubbing plates, texture stamps 3.Slip (mixture of water and clay scraps)

1.Using clay, hand build a base about 4-5” in diameter. Make a bowl or cylinder form. Methods could include coil building, pinch pulling, or rolling out clay and free forming. 1.At the rim of the pot, use a dowel or plastic stick to punch 5 or 7 holes around the top. 2.The holes should be at least 1/2” from the top of the rim, spaced approximately an inch apart. Very Important: An odd number of holes in needed for the weaving process. 3.Students can use tools (plastic knife, straws, texture mats, rubbing plates etc.) to etch patterns. 1.Put name on bottom of vessel. Process (Part one):

Let’s get started.. Supplies Needed for Part two: Paint or glaze Reeds (precut) Yarn Leather Thread Wire

Next Steps: Let the clay completely dry before firing. If it is not dry it will crack when fired Fire Clay: Our pots will be fired in a kiln, make it so the clay will not soften up with water. Paint Clay: In order to make this a 2 part lesson we will be using paint on our pieces next lesson and then adding all our fiber art. Process (Part two):

1.Insert a piece of reed through a hole in the base. Bend the reed when it’s half-way through so that both ends point up. 1.Using a piece of waxed linen thread, tie the two sides of the reed together just above the rim of the base. Wrap the linen thread around the reed a few times, and tie. Repeat for all the pieces of reed. 1.Now, begin weaving the basket! 1.Leave the reeds untrimmed at the top, or cut them into a uniform height. This vessel is a sculptural celebration of two ancient crafts “woven” into one! Process (Part two):

LESSON PLAN ADAPTED FROM DICKBLICK.COM By Tara Button November 2015