Wood Sculptures

I have a bin where I keep little scraps of wood, interesting pieces of cardboard, toothpicks, popsicle sticks, dowels, etc. I pulled it out the other day, along with some Elmer's glue and let Hollin go to town building.  She was completely set on making a dog. The black pieces, which were ripped off the back of a picture frame, were going to be the ears. But as she played around with the various pieces a rocket was born! It is always exciting when something just begs to be made and I am so glad she had that experience. This was 100% kid generated--the idea, the construction and the painting.

I love the way she used toothpicks to represent the fire coming out of the bottom.

When it dried she made the decision to add another layer of paint. I love the sense of ownership and pride that comes from creating something completely on one's own. No one told her what to do, nor was there a model to try to emulate. As a result there was no frustration or disinterest-only pure creative enjoyment. Kids are capable of such brilliantly creative ideas.