As summer was winding down and the transition back to school neared, I was eager to do an activity to get the creativity of language flowing. I wanted to combine art, nature, and language to make it most appealing for this particular group of children. Let's take a look at the activity!
All summer the kids were fascinated with rocks and shells, so by August we had quite a collection. This special collection was something the kids hoped to keep, but I knew we could do more than just collect these beautiful treasures from nature. We picked the smoothest, flattest, and most intriguing stones out of the collection to turn into an art activity.
We started our activity by reading If You Find a Rock by Peggy Christian. In this book all types of rock explorations are discussed and it served as a good conclusion to all our various rock collecting throughout the summer.
Each child picked a special spot to paint her rocks. I let each start with minimal prompting, then worked my way around to observe and give leads to ideas as needed. I asked them to paint each rock with a different object, color, etc. Here are some of the things they came up with...
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| "sunset" |
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| "house" |
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| "ladybug" |
The stones were lined up on the railing to dry in the sun
and a flood of activity ideas arose... story prompts, sequencing activities, writing prompts, guessing games, poem writing, descriptive verbal communication, etc.
- Writing Activity
- pick five stones that have been painted
- arrange in a sequence of your choice
- write a meaningful narrative including characters, setting, and dialogue
- (CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.3)
- Verbal Share Activity (younger children)
- share a few stones with peers by describing painting you did on each
- give detail on features and meaning of picture
- use a clear communicative voice
- (CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.K.6)
- Verbal Share Activity (older children)
- paint a stone, or stones, that inspire(s) you
- use complete sentences that include detail to describe the image you are conveying on the stone
- speak clearly
- allow peers to ask questions and answer them with detail
- (CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.6)
The box of story stones has been an attraction for children that have seen it. It immediately calls to be investigated and most children who peer in ask questions. They guess what each one is a picture of, comment on one that may be a favorite of theirs, and of course want to know who created these little treasures. In other words, they have just enough curiosity to start the next activity without even being the person who created them.
What other activity ideas would you do with a project like this? Share your ideas below!
