Junk? No way! It’s art

October 20th, 2009 at 10:06am Jennie Pollock

My friend Kari Shimp emailed me a few weeks ago to show me that her daughter Samantha made “junk art” at her preschool. She laughed when she saw my business card glued on the base.

So I asked how that all came about and e-mailed the teacher, Mrs. Kim Zaphel at Parker Center in Machesney Park. She happened to get my card from my daughter’s former kindergarten teacher.

See my Q&A below and maybe you can try this at home with your little ones…

What inspired the “junk art” project? 

It is a project that most Rising Stars classrooms at Parker Center create often. I can’t take credit for the idea. We work together and share great ideas. I don’t know who started this idea, but I use it for many reasons.

1. It is low-cost. We just need massive blobs of glue!

2. Parents and students feel like they are contributing to the classroom (at no cost to them) when they send in toilet paper and paper towel rolls, empty water bottles, drive-thru drink holders, empty containers and lids.

3. Students see that they can make beautiful creations out of items that they normally would have thrown away.

4. It is a very open-ended project with no right or wrong answer. I have never had 2 projects look alike. They are as unique as the children who make them.

Did they come up with anything notable?

A few students named their projects. N called hers “a tunnel for hamsters.” S said hers was “skyscrapers in a big city.”  Because the structures are usually too big or fragile for backpacks, we handed them out at parent/teacher conferences.  Many parents laughed and joked about it looking perfect on their fireplace mantle.  Some parents thought they would make great gifts for the grandparents. The students were proud to show their parents their creations.

Did they enjoy the project? What did they learn or like the best? 

The students’ favorite part was in the creating. They got to use all the glue they wanted and as much junk as they could fit together.

The activity brought about all sorts of language from the 3- 5-year-olds. “This circle won’t fit here.” “It’s too big.” “I put it next to this one.” “Why does it keep falling over?”

I think the educational part of the project was to show families that children can take free recycled junk from around the house and create with it.

Entry Filed under: Schools