Hi there! I'll have to manage origami corner at a cultural fair at my daughters' school. Any ideas on which models I could use for engaging the kids? The models shouldn't be too complicated. Thanks!
What is the age of the kids?
Go for something traditional and well-known, like crane. It is easiy recognisable and is associated with origami and Japan! Also pretty easy to make.
7-11 y.o. I also though of crane, but isn't it too predictable?
I am sure crane should be one of the models. Try frog and rabbit. I think animals will work the best for kids. Let me know if you need diagrams for them.
Last year had an origami workshop with 8 year-olds (my son's friends mostly). The boys preferred to focus on animals, although I would love to include a flower in the workshop as well. They found making cranes and whales pretty easy. Their hand-eye coordination is not yet well developed, but origami, actually, can help them to make a huge leap in that sphere. I've noticed that fold-by-fold intruction works well for them: you make a fold, and they attemt to repeat it (instead of showing them the whole process at once).
Nicky6, aw, thank you so much! I don't think finding diagrams will be a problem. Thank you for the idea! I've just remembered that those jumping frogs used to be my favourite things to make when I was a kid.
Bobsmom, Thank you! I'll check on the whales too!
PaperWoman, make sure they use double sided coloured paper and the size isn't too small. I used 6 inch sheets for cranes and whales.
I used to teach art at school and made origami with kids. If you don't mind, I will share a couple of my recommendations here. First of all, it is great that your school teaches children about different cultures offering them hand-on experience. I am sure some of them (if not all of them) will be amazed with the magic you can make just by folding paper. From my experience I know that children really love beautiful paper, so try to provide them colourful sheets of good quality. Trust me, they will treat the process with way more respect. They will make wrong folds and get stuck, but try not to rush to help them straightaway. Both learning and teaching origami requires patience. The bigger and clearer the patterns are, the better. I would recommend animals and flowers but the ones that can be completed in six or seven folds. Even with the simplest schemes make sure you know each step and can show kids how to fix their mistakes, in case they ask you for help. Traditional animals, birds and fish work best for children. Hope this will help! Good luck with the fair!
Oh wow! HelenaT, many thanks for the recommendations! I'll do my best to stick to them.
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