Art Installation
In our fast-paced days, it is easy to overlook expressing love and gratitude for those closest to us: our family. This art project creates a visual reminder of what we love about each other and can be incorporated into a regular practice of appreciating each other.
1. Collect your Materials
-
A clothesline and clothes pins. Consider using colorful yarn for the line.
-
Construction paper in a variety of colors
-
Colored markers
-
Stickers, sequins, glue, and other decorations
2. Cut construction paper into 6x8-inch pieces.
3. If you're making this as an interactive art installation, hang the clothesline in a place where all can see and reach it.
4. For pre-readers, lightly sketch the word "love" on some pieces of construction paper, and encourage them to trace the letters.
5. Together, help everyone write "love" and their names on as many pieces of construction paper as they wish and then decorate the notes with stickers. Help children hang the love notes along the clothesline with clothes pins.
6. Together, think about people they see in their daily lives who need love. Try to think and talk about this as they make love notes. Help children see both people they know and people they do not know as possible recipients of love.
7. Invite children to look for people who need a little love both inside their family and outside. Is there anyone they are thinking of from church who might feel joyful with a little note? If you want to mail them, let me know and I can help with addresses. After children give out a love note, encourage them to think about how they felt. Ask if participants received love notes, and how that felt. Talk about the good feelings brought about by both sending and receiving written messages of love.
Alternative: Invite everyone to use sticky notes to write notes of love to other family members. Put the notes on the refrigerator, the bathroom mirror, or a door. Find creative places to leave unsigned love notes for others every day.
Create!
Once you have an idea what this principle means to you, find a way to express yourself. Maybe you want to write about it, build a sculpture, act it out, or paint, draw, color your thoughts! I'm hoping for interpretative dance or puppet shows!
Share!
If you can capture your ideas in paint, in crayon, on film, or in another way, we would love to see what you've made! Post on the Share Ur Stuff (blog).