To review fractions, the second graders worked on a shibori project. Shibori is a Japanese technique of dyeing fabric, resisting color in patterns through compression. Students worked with a sheet of tissue paper, and we all folded it up in half, in half, in half, in half, in half, and in half again doing mental math as we went along to figure out how many rectangles we'd end up with on our paper (64!). After folding their paper, students placed a paper clip on it to keep it squeezed tight. Then, they each had a turn to dip their paper into 2 primary colors. Some students dipped a little, some a lot, so different proportions of color and color mixing occurred across their papers for very different effects.
After allowing their papers to dry out over the week, in our final class we opened them up to reveal the beautiful patterns created. We also tried to figure out what fraction of our papers were which colors. With our fancy paper, we designed a puffy fish. Papers were folded in half, cut into a fish shape, and glued together around the edge with the scrap paper crumpled and stuffed inside.
Finally, we reviewed the projects done over our year together, and the students wrote about their favorite one. The most popular projects were the Life Cycles painting and the money collage.
For next year I'd recommend doing more "short and sweet" kinds of projects. The 2nd graders have shorter memory spans and have a harder time sustaining ideas week to week. This year's 2nd grade had lower fine motor skills than I expected. Our most successful projects involved drawing and painting. They really love to paint!! While collaborative projects are fun, this age group seems to do be more engaged with individual work they can claim as their own. They are really great at looking and discussing art, and talking together on topic is good- they're better at sharing ideas than sharing materials or artwork.
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