not so lonely fireflies - Eric Carle style

We love Eric Carle's stories.

And we love his art.

It is impossible NOT to get the paints out and create after enjoying reading one of our many Eric Carle books. 



The Very Lonely Firefly is a lovely read-aloud - worth pulling of the shelf, borrowing from the local library or purchasing from your local bookstore. 


The Very Lonely Firefly
written and illustrated by Eric Carle
published by Philomel Books, 1995

When a very lonely firefly goes out into the night searching for other fireflies, it sees a lantern, a candle, and the eyes of a dog, cat, and owl all glowing in the darkness. It even sees a surprise celebration of light. But it is not until it discovers other fireflies that it finds exactly what it's looking for--a surprise sure to bring smiles to anyone who turn the final page! Goodreads

First step in an Eric Carle inspired collage project is to create painted papers. 


We used a variety of coloured tempura paints, and sponges or pot scrubbers with handles. The kids loved the effect they created with the pot scrubbers. I have to agree - it was pretty cool.


I cut the papers into
2 1/2 x 2 1/2" heads
2 1/2 x 6  1/2" bodies
2 x 5 1/2' wings



The kids chose the papers that they wanted and cut them into the desired shape.

 


Last step was the eyes. The kids chose between yellow and orange eye circles, and glued googley eyes on top.


We chatted about how to make the firefly's tail glow.  A glitter design was the solution.

Each firefly had its own personality.

This one seems a little overwhelmed by the world he finds himself in. 

This firefly's artist said that he is blinking. 

Our fireflies congregated in our recycled cardboard classroom tree - where they were not so lonely any more. Lots of friends - essentially alike, but each one unique. Kinda like us!



Looking for specifically Very Lonely Firefly crafts?


            

2 comments

  1. Very beautiful! I'll be sure to try pot scrubbers next year:)
    Enjoy the last day.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was happily delighted with the effect using pot scrubbers had with the paint. We will have to use them with other projects.

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