Fence Weaving

Our outdoor classroom experience always includes an art component.  This week with the possibility of some rainy days and focusing on continued fine motor development, we turned a section of our wire fence into a giant loom.

I purchased five plastic table cloths of various colors from the dollar store and cut them up into long strips.  I tied the strips to the top of the fence along a fifteen foot section.  Then I wove a few pieces into the fence in front of a few children.  The activity caught on.

The children noticed so much as they weaved.  "Hey, mine is getting shorter!"  "My (ribbon) is longer than yours!"  "Look how long this is, it reaches way out here."  "Why isn't mine that long?"  "I'm sewing down."  "I am bringing this across, way over here."

The comparisons and use of spatial terms was incredible.

It was also a good fit for a playground as it had the children moving up and down, in and out with both fine and gross motor muscles being used.  They were able to weave, go run around, come back to add more, go get a friend, add a few more strips and move on to something else.  Because the strips were plastic, we did not need to worry about what the rain would do and we left the project out for other classes to add to.

The effect gives the feeling of a terrific, happy New Year's Eve party.

I think getting it off will be another engaging experience all together!