Make the most of children's love of jewellery by providing resources for them to create their own. Designing and making pieces of jewellery will develop children's creativity and fine motor skills and they can use their finished designs in their imaginative play.
ADULT-LED ACTIVITIES
Bead work
Make necklaces and medallions.
Key learning intention
*To handle tools, objects and malleable materials safely and with increasing control
Adult:child ratio 1:4
Resources
*Pictures *posters *examples of costume jewellery *dough *blunt knives *knitting needle *baking tray *paint *glue *string *shoe laces *cotton *wool, ribbon *darning needles *items to decorate such as buttons, sequins, glitter and shiny paper
Preparation
* Explain to the children that the activity will have to take place over three days: day one - making and baking dough beads and leaving them to cool; day two -painting or decorating the beads and leaving them to dry; and day three -threading the beads.
* Make up a large batch of dough.
* Provide pictures, posters and examples of costume, including necklaces, for the children to explore, and discuss with them how and from what the necklaces are made.
Activity content
* Give each child a ball of dough and model how to roll it into a sausage shape and cut it into suitable sizes to make large beads.
* Pierce each bead through the centre using a knitting needle and then place them upright on a baking tray to harden in the oven on a low temperature.
* Ensure the holes are big enough for threading as the hole will shrink a little when baked.
* When cool, paint the beads with bright colours and 'varnish' them with diluted PVC glue.
* Thread the beads using a material that is suitable for each child's fine motor skills. (Young children find it easy to handle darning needles but take care when using them.)
* To make medallions, roll out the dough, cut out shapes and pierce a hole in the top of the shape.
* Encourage the children to create different textures on the dough shapes with, for example, the point of a pencil or Lego, Duplo or sticklebricks.
* Bake, then paint and decorate.
* Children could also make medallions in the shape of the initial letter of their name.
* Alternatively, create a collection of smiley face medallions to present to children for special achievements.
Key vocabulary
Necklace, medallion, beads, dough, thread, hole, through Extension ideas
* Encourage the children to create necklaces from coloured penne pasta.
Half fill a bowl with dry pasta, add a tablespoon of food colouring and an equal amount of water and stir to ensure all the pasta is coloured, then lay the pasta out on a large tray to dry before threading. Older children might enjoy creating repeat patterns, for example, alternating red and yellow pasta.
* Encourage the children to thread lots of small tissue paper shapes and small pieces of brightly coloured fabric using a needle and thread to create garlands.
* Encourage the children to create their own designs by providing a range of materials for them to thread, including pasta shapes, dough beads, small pieces of shiny paper, tissue paper and fabric, and lengths of plastic straws.
GRAND DESIGNS
Design bracelets together.
Key learning intention
To engage in activities requiring hand-eye co-ordination Adult:child ratio 1:4
Resources
*Circles of card *wool *ribbon *twine *glue or Sellotape
Preparation
* Ensure there are plenty of materials available for children to explore and experiment with.
Activity content
* Provide each child with a thick circle of sturdy card in the shape of a bangle and demonstrate how to create a bracelet by choosing items from coloured wool, ribbon or twine to wrap round the card until it is completely covered. Then glue down the ends.
* Provide a range of materials so that children can explore using different colours, widths and textures.
* Using a similar technique, make pompoms to attach to bracelets and other pieces of jewellery. Use two pieces of card, with a hole in the centre and wrap wool or other material round and through the central hole. The more material used to wrap in this way the fuller the pompom will be. Cut through the outer edge of the two cards and tie the centre firmly with wool leaving enough wool to create a loop for attaching to other jewellery items.
Key vocabulary
Bracelet, pompom, wind, through, over, under, twine, wool, ribbon Extension ideas
* Make friendship bracelets by plaiting together lengths of thick wool or ribbon. Discuss the meaning of friendship bracelets and encourage the children to give the bracelets that they have made to others (while being sensitive that younger children might find this difficult).
* Create bracelets using dough beads in a similar way to necklaces or explore making bracelets by rolling out two thin strands of dough, twisting them together and joining the ends before baking them in the oven. Using dough of different colours (made by adding food colouring to the mix) creates a pretty effect. Alternatively, children can paint their bracelets or create a lucky charm bracelet by attaching small items with thin cotton or wool.
* Make simple bracelets by cutting large cardboard cylinders into spirals.
These can be painted or decorated with small items and worn by wrapping them round the arm.
CHILD-INITIATED PLAY
Encourage the children to develop their own ideas and interests across the curriculum by adding topic resources to your basic provision.
Creative area
Additional resources
*Dough *rolling pins *cutters *silver paper *pipe cleaners *paint *glue *Sellotape *glitter *beads and buttons *tissue paper *shells *small junk model boxes with lids *sugar paper *card *paper doilies
Possible learning experiences
* Exploring how to make rings from short lengths of pipe cleaners or twisting lengths of silver foil and folding the ends to join at the back of the finger.
* Making brooches and badges from dough or card shapes and choosing materials to decorate them. These can be worn by attaching a safety pin to the back using a sticking plaster.
* Making headbands from lengths of sugar paper or tiaras by adding half circles of paper doilies.
* Making earrings by threading items on thin ribbon and looping them over the top of the ear.
* Creating jewellery boxes in which to keep their jewels. These can be decorated by painting and sticking on small materials such as shells or buttons.
The practitioner role
* Engage in activities alongside children exploring resources and role model skills.
* Ensure children use the resources safely.
* Support children's ideas and encourage them to explore different designs and techniques.
* Ensure there are sufficient resources to allow children to make independent choices.
* Encourage children to discuss their designs and talk about what they have made and how they made it.
* Ensure children have enough time to explore and research their own ideas.
