For the past two weeks we were doing a unit study on Symmetry for Little Kids. I found that I could talk all I want about symmetry, but until kids got a chance to do a hands-on project there wasn’t a fire of understanding in their eyes. This project was super fun for all ages (including me). It was easy to setup, kids got a chance to create symmetrical patterns and you end up with a pretty piece of art to frame and hang on the wall. Mention to your kids that very few things in nature are perfectly symmetrical. Human beings are symmetrical, but not perfectly symmetrical. Even though it might not be obvious to a naked eye, but one leg is usually a tiny bit shorter than the other and one ear might be a tiny bit bigger. The smaller the creature (ie. ladybugs), the more perfectly symmetrical it will be.
Simple Symmetry Art
What you need
Paper
Paints
Paint Brushes
Printer, if you are printing our images
Instructions
1.Print out our images here or draw your own shapes on a piece of paper.
2.Fold a piece of paper in half making sure that half of the drawing is on one side and the other half on the other.
3.Open the paper and point attention to the line running down the middle. This line divides the picture into two equal halves and it’s called the line of symmetry.
4. Apply paint on one side of the picture.
5.Fold the page and press it down.
6. Start opening… Go slow. It’s all very exciting!
7. Ta-da! Can you see a complete picture?
Some of the colors that were applied first had a chance to dry up a bit and didn’t transfer well. So, paint your picture fast and use paints very generously.
Alternatively, you can skip the pictures and simply fold the paper in half and open it, ask the kids to apply paints randomly on a page, fold, press it down and open the page. Children can observe how paints spread to create a pattern that is similar on both halves of the page.
The shapes I prepared for my kids were a great success. I picked a few butterflies and bugs for my daughter, a car and an airplane for my older son and some very simple shapes like circle and square for my younger son. You can print them HERE.
this is pretty neat
I am interested in these print outs
Hey, there is a link in the post. It says “You can print them HERE.” Just click it. Good luck!
Thank you for sharing!!!