It's Raining Origami Cats and Dogs Again!

I love introducing Kindergarten and first grade students to the art of origami. It not only exposes them to many folds, such as side to side and corner to corner, but introduces the class to a diverse culture and country and a great discussion on shape characteristics, such as a square having four corners and four sides while a triangle only has three corners and three sides. As tradition holds in my building, kindergarten students learn step by step how to fold a simple origami cat, which is also the exact same steps for the origami dog. The first day of class we discuss that the art of origami originates in Japan and locate Japan on the map in our classroom. I show the students the steps at the demonstration table. I then hand one square origami paper to each child and we walk through the steps together as a class. I walk around and check progress through each step. Lastly, I let each child pick their own color of origami paper and try it on their own. If they need help, they only need to raise their hands. Next class, students will choose which cat or dog head is the best and take the other one home. The origami cat or dog head kept in the classroom will be glued to a 12" x 18" drawing paper and students will add the body, legs, tail and any other details necessary for their cat or dog with pencil first, then oil pastel contour lines, and finally tempera paint cakes (similar to a watercolor resist) to fill. Here are the directions below for the origami cat and dog, if you would like to try it at home.  Look to Artsonia to see gallery examples from 2013. To see the step by step directions for the origami cat and dog, check out this previous link here.

First Grade Neighborhoods

First graders collaborated on a neighborhood project. After brainstorming a list of several items we might find in a neighborhood, each table section worked together to create a neighborhood within a city using pencils, crayons, colored pencils and permanent markers on 12" x 18" paper. Each paper within a table section (four papers together) is connected to the next with streets, so access can be gained to every home within the neighborhood.

Homes were made from origami paper squares. The step by step directions can be found in a previous post. Students added details to their homes such as windows, doors, and shingles and then glued to their 12" x18" paper.

After their neighborhoods were complete, table sections collaborated on a sign that would display the name of their neighborhood for all to see.

First Grade Origami Neighborhoods

After working on their collaborative three dimensional neighborhoods made from milk cartons and scrap papers, first graders are now creating their own individual neighborhoods to take home using origami houses.

To make origami houses, fold an origami square paper in half to make a small card or book. Make sure to crease the fold really well using fingernails and applying pressure to the fold line.

Fold paper in half again to make a smaller card or book. Open fold to previous step. You will now have a rectangle with a vertical fold line in the middle.

Next, fold left and right ends of paper to middle fold line made in previous step. Make sure that the ends DO NOT overlap, but instead lay side by side in the middle.

Place index finger inside side flap to open flap.

Place pincher fingers inside the crease (at top of paper on left flap) and pull the corner down until flap opens and corner touches the middle line of flap on left side. Flatten to make the triangle shape for peak of roof.

Repeat with right side.

Add extras to the house both on the inside and outside, such as windows, doors, shingles, bricks, rocks, plants, etc. using pencil and colored pencils.

Students will glue their origami houses to a large 12 inch x 18 inch sheet of drawing paper and add additional details such as streets, sidewalks, mailboxes, etc.

It's Raining Origami Cats and Dogs!

I love introducing Kindergarten and first grade students to the art of origami. It not only exposes them to many folds, such as side to side and corner to corner, but introduces the class to a diverse culture and country and a great discussion on shape characteristics, such as a square having four corners and four sides while a triangle only has three corners and three sides. As tradition holds in my building, kindergarten students learn step by step how to fold a simple origami cat, which is also the exact same steps for the origami dog. The first day of class we discuss that the art of origami originates in Japan and locate Japan on the map in our classroom. I show the students the steps at the demonstration table. I then hand one square origami paper to each child and we walk through the steps together as a class. I walk around and check progress through each step. Lastly, I let each child pick their own color of origami paper and try it on their own. If they need help, they only need to raise their hands. Next class, students will choose which cat or dog head is the best and take the other one home. The origami cat or dog head kept in the classroom will be glued to a 12" x 18" drawing paper and students will add the body, legs, tail and any other details necessary for their cat or dog with pencil first, then oil pastel contour lines, and finally tempera paint cakes (similar to a watercolor resist) to fill. Here are the directions below for the origami cat and dog, if you would like to try it at home.  Look to Artsonia to see gallery examples from 2013.

Start with a square paper.

Fold diagonally from corner to corner and crease.

Sometimes this fold is difficult, so I tell students to pinch the corner with one
hand and use the other hand to flatten the fold from the corner down.

Fold in half again from corner to corner and crease.

Open last fold and notice line dividing triangle in half.
Turn the paper so that it acts as an arrow and points to the belly.

To prevent over folding, I tell students to place one finger
at the top of the line and use the other to grab the top right corner.

Pull the top right corner down to the belly
leaving a nice triangle shape the ear and cheek.

Repeat on the other side. I tell students to notice that
they should now have three arrows pointing towards their belly.

I tell students that dogs or cats do not normally have pointy chins
so we need to fold the bottom point up to leave a flat chin instead.
This is the dog.

To make the cat, simply flip the paper over and upside down.

I found this great video from Ted 2008 by Robert Lang entitled "The Math and Magic of Origami". Although a little advanced for my kindergarten and first grade students, I certainly enjoyed how he uses math and engineering principles to fold mind-blowingly intricate designs that are beautiful and, sometimes, very useful. Check out the video below.