#27 Styrofoam Prints
Grade Level: 3-6
Description/Objective
Students gain an awareness of different kinds of lines while being introduced to printmaking.
Time
45 Minutes - 1 Hour
Materials
22" x 36" large piece of white paper for students to use as a group
Desert wildflowers - thistles, yarrow, etc.
8" styrofoam plates with curved rim cut off so you have a flat piece (1 per student)
Permanent non-toxic black fine tip Sharpie brand markers (1 per student)
#1 pencils (1 per student)
Water base printmaking ink (1-16 oz. jar)
Acrylic sheet or cookie sheet (3-4 per class)
Brayers - printmaking rollers (3-4 per class)
9" x 11" white construction paper (1 per student)
Spoon (1 per 2 students)
Procedure
1. On the large piece of paper have students as a group see if they can draw 25 different kinds of lines, no two alike. Some examples would be wavy, zigzag, broken, dotted, straight, curved, spiral, concentric circles, branching and parallel lines.
2. Pass out small bunches of wildflowers to students. Ask them to study them carefully and see if they can see any edges that remind them of the above lines.
3. Ask the students to draw one or a small cluster of wildflowers, using at least 5 different kinds of lines, with the marker on the styrofoam piece. Students then trace over the lines in pencil, applying enough pressure to make an indentation everywhere there is a line. They need to push hard enough to make an indentation but not too hard to puncture through the plate.
4. When drawing is complete, students are ready to print.
5. Demonstrate how a 1/2 teaspoon of ink is scooped onto a sheet of acrylic sheet or cookie tray. The ink is then rolled out with the brayer until it makes a sticky sound.
6. Students should then take the ink covered brayer and roll it over their drawing, making sure the whole piece of styrofoam is covered.
7. A piece of 9" x 11" white paper is put over the styrofoam plate. The back of the paper is rubbed with the back of the spoon to transfer the image.
Subject Matter Integration
SCIENCE: This project can be used as part of a unit on the Nevada ecosystem, studying what plants and animals are native to your area.
LANGUAGE ARTS: The parts and names of wildflowers can be used as spelling or vocabulary words.
GEOGRAPHY: Cartography unit - study a topographic map of Nevada, identifying the various line forms in the legend and locating an example of each on the map. Discuss the meaning of the distance between elevation lines (the closer together they are, the steeper the terrain). Note how they bend along waterways. If possible - go for a field trip with a map of the area and collect your desert plants to draw!
Variations/Extensions
1. Using the book, The Very Quiet Cricket as an introduction, students can create a new kind of bug using at least 5 different kinds of lines.