Adelaide Hoodless
with Janice Kovar
What...
In the aftercare program at Adelaide Hoodless, we explored various creative
activities with kids aged 5-12, like making stuffies and sewing, working with clay to
create bowls and pots, crafting mobiles, and experimenting with watercolour
paintings using spray bottles. These activities were well received – they really
loved getting hands-on with textures, colours, and making things that they could
use or display. I remember one child who created their stuffy with such care and
precision with their sewing skills that it was going to be a gift for their mom. In
fact, many of the children always asked if they could take their work home, and the
answer was alway, absolutely!. Moreover, I would often give away materials for
the kids to work on at home if I had any extra materials at the end of class.
So What...
These activities tapped into the kids’ desire to create, make and have fun!
Working with clay, sewing, and painting helped them develop fine motor skills,
problem solving, and creativity. It was awesome to see kids experimenting with
colour mixing and using the spray bottles with watercolour paint to create unique
textures and abstract designs. This kind of creative play really helped to support
their own self-expression, confidence and their ability to think outside the box.
Now What...
To build on this, I would incorporate more project-based activities where kids can
explore themes or materials in-depth. Having preset kits or materials that are
interesting and different to use seemed to grab and hold their attention. They
took pride in creating art works that gave meaning to their ideas. They really liked
to share and talk about their process and the creation of what they were doing and
they also liked to share that with their peers. Many of the kids spoke about
additional classes that they were taking at Dundas Valley School of Art, or the
Hamilton Conservatory for the Arts. I could see the confidence in their work and
the connections that they were making with their peers. They were always very
excited to see me and looked forward to seeing what I had in my goody bag of art
materials to play with!
The room was full of laughter, movement, and joyful experimentation as children explored together.