Creativity, problem-solving, and nature will be celebrated as we each work to create our own nature creatures. Will you make a person, an animal, a dragon, or a new creature no one has ever heard of before?

This class will be a mixture of a creative art class and a social class. Students will be encouraged to talk and share their plans and ideas as they build. Before we start, we will each show some of our nature treasures that we brought to class. We will talk about possible uses for different items, "This bent stick could be...a waving arm, a dog's tail, crazy hair...". 

During class, we will talk about using kind and supportive language as others share their ideas. Sometimes working with nature can be unpredictable so we will problem solve together as we run into issues of breaking pieces, the best way to support heavy pieces...This will not be a step-by-step instruction type of class. Students will be encouraged to build creatively. We will talk through strategies and ideas together but each build will be unique. 

Before class, head out into nature and gather more supplies than you think you will need! During class, most of our builds will end up being about the size of our hands to the size of a plate. As you gather supplies, things to look for include: small sticks, small rocks, leaves, acorns, pinecones... You do not need to bring large branches and heavy rocks to class. Perhaps this class will inspire you to create huge nature masterpieces someday; but for this class, we will build on a smaller scale. We all live in different regions so the nature supplies that we will find during different seasons will vary and that adds to the fun. As you gather, let your imagination run wild. Does that rock suddenly look like a great shoe? Does that stick look like a jump rope? I cannot wait to see your nature treasures in class. 

When students come to class, they should have all of their nature supplies in a tub or on a tray that they can easily access. They will also need a hot glue gun and a safe place to rest it when it's not in use (please review safe use of this tool before class and/or have a grown-up nearby to assist as needed). I also suggest that students make sure they have an appropriate working surface that can get a little messy and that hot glue can drip onto without concern. Be sure you take class in a space close enough to an outlet to have your hot glue gun in reach for class as well. Scissors and a black marker are also handy supplies to have for class. 

Depending on individual creating styles, students may not complete their creature fully in class, they may complete a creature, or they may complete multiple creatures. Each artist will work at a pace that they are comfortable with as we chat together and create our nature creatures.