Autumn Leaves

I think the technical term is mixed media... real Autumn leaves and paint in this case.

It must have been nearly 10 years ago. I was doing a uni prac at Gunning Primary School in the Southern Highlands. It was a breath of fresh air to be out of Sydney where I was living at the time. I was with a great K-2 class and was lucky enough to have some art time with them. Autumn was in full swing so it seemed natural to get out and play in the deciduous leaves before collecting some and taking them back to class.

We tore the leaves up into small pieces and stuck them down in a single tree shape. The next day we added paint and then some oil pastels the day after. It was great fun and really effective. I've always been meaning to repeat the lesson but haven't had a chance till this more recent episode.

The Autumn scenes here are the result of a collaboration between a kindergarten class and their 5/6 "buddy" class who I was with earlier this term.

Time was tight so I brought the leaves in myself, also there weren't any deciduous trees on the school grounds. The first 40 minute lesson was spent gluing down the leaves. It was helpful having the older children here as this can be a bit fiddly and frustrating. During the second lesson the kindergarteners painted in the rest with some guidance from their buddy if necessary.

I think the kindergarten children were happy with their results, I know the 5/6 students certainly enjoyed it — in fact I'm pretty sure they were a little disappointed they didn't get their own ones... If I have the opportunity again next year I'll repeat this one for sure.