After watching the Wednesday group engage in the clay with the wire and natural materials, I was excited to see how the Friday group would respond to these materials as well. This session was the longest that Kaia, Sebastien, and Hannah spent exploring the clay. Bryce didn't quite make it to the clay (the picture above is the one glance he took at the clay) as his time at group was not as long as usual and he didn't get through all his favorite activities before he eventually noticed the experience set out. Using the wire, sticks, and tools with the clay equally held the attention of the children. Sebastien explored the wire separate from the clay while Kaia poked the wire into the clay. Hannah figured out very quickly that if you held the wire near the end and place it in the clay it would stay stuck in the clay (you have to watch carefully and beyond Sebastien to she her try this).
Both with the wire and the clay Kaia is very selective in her choice of which piece to use while Sebastien is more action oriented.
The tools I provided with the clay are the tools that a sculptor would use to manipulate his work of art. I think it is important that young children be exposed to the actual tools that artists use and not "dumbed" down versions of the real thing. As time goes on and they begin to move into more sophisticated ways of using the clay, they can be shown what they are used for. However, Kaia and Sebastien figure out that the wooden scraper can slice, poke, and smooth the clay without any instruction.
Hannah was the first to begin to mold the clay in her hands. The little pieces of clay that she would dig out of the clay slabs were then used to move back and fourth in her hands. This is an exciting step in development: with the ability to mold and shape the clay comes the ability to use it as a mode of expression, not just exploration.
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