The 7 & 8 year olds came for their art time. One whole hour we got them.
We gave them the biggest task. Connect the tiles in some way that tells a story.
A color story.

We set them up with a skyline made from their own drawn and cut stencils on recycled cereal boxes.

And had a little chat about where the tiles liked to live and how they could be masters of the universe and create a place where'd the creature would be happy.

The landscape erupted without hesitation. Blues and greens and hot desert orange appeared as if by magic.

Hi Morgan.

A river flowed from a faraway waterfall in the montane making a freeway for turtles, fossils and fish.

And suddenly what was floating in isolation became at home in its world.
to be continued...

We've finished the mural. 4 days. 100+ kids. A handful of adults.

Phew!

This project relies on child involvement, design and installment. Nothing could be more fun than destroying the school with permission! The other side of this wall is the library. We got in trouble for making too much noise. Doesn't my boy Roscoe look great in pink?!

After the children grouped the tiles into environmental "families" they began to install them, mixing mortar and using trowels like real builders. The story started to unfold.

They were quite sure where everything went. No second guessing. No wondering if it made sense.

After painting the mortar to match the wall we all stood back and wondered...what's next?
That would be revealed the next day.
Enter 7 year olds...to be continured.