Curriculum Plans for Teachers
Paper Mache Bowls
Perfect Partners with Social Studies
Paper mache is easy, it's fun, and kids will find that it's a handy skill to learn.
Knowing how to work with paper mache empowers kids to make all kinds of
props, both for play and for school. The same basic paper mache process can can
make a puppet head, pretend food for a playhouse, or an environment complete
with hills and roads for a matchbox car collection. School projects create the
occasions for interesting paper mache artifacts, such as an Egyptian mummy
case, a Neolithic ax, or an enormous beetle. And of course, sometimes we need
theater props - and paper mache is perfect for making a giant's club, a large
toadstool, or a monster's head.
This bowl is easy enough for younger kids, and yet a thirteen year old will be
challenged by it too. The bowls shown at the top of this page were made by a
fourth grader (left) and a third grader (right). In this project, although we use a
balloon for the nice large round shape, the bowl has a flat bottom, so it is stable.
Teachers will find many ways to tie these bowls into various Social Studies
themes - for example, depending upon how they are painted, the bowl could
represent Native American pottery or an Archaic Greek bowl.
Note: This is not a project that you'll start and complete in one day. Allow for a
few days drying time between each of three stages - the first to form the bowl, the
second to attach the base and add more layers, and the third to paint or collage
the bowl.
What you'll need...
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A work area covered with newspaper
A paper plate for each child's bowl to collect excess glue (write their
name on the plate - this will identify their bowl.)
A large yogurt or cottage cheese container for each bowl, to support it
while applying the paper.
Newspapers torn into strips that are about 2" by 5". Make two piles, one
black and white, and one color, such as Sunday comics. Then alternate
black and white layers with color layers. This makes the idea of "more
layers" less abstract, more concrete.
White glue diluted with water, so that it is the consistency of cream. Put it
out in a small cup with a paint brush for each child. Yogurt cups and 1"
sponge brushes are perfect for this.
A balloon for each bowl (small sized for younger children, so that there is
less to cover)
A plastic lid for each bowl (such as for a yogurt container)
Paints - acryllics or tempera - and brushes or collage materials
Optional - spray gloss for tempera, brush-on gloss for acryllics
Getting Started
Step 1: Start with a balloon
Give each child a blown up balloon, and then holding one up, so that the large
round end is seated in your hand and the narrow end with the knot is pointing up,
demonstrate how to draw a line around its circumference with a sharpie pen. This
will mark the top of the bowl. If you are working with young kids you may want
to draw the line for them.
The easiest way to work on these is to work on an inverted bowl, by setting the
balloon (knot side down) in a large yogurt container so it stays in one place.
Step Two: Build up paper mache layers
Rather than dip the paper into the glue, which is messy, first paint the balloon
with glue, then lay a piece of newspaper on it, and finally paint over the
newspaper piece with glue to saturate it and smooth it down. The next piece of
newspaper should overlap the first, and so on until one layer is completed. On
this curved surface you'll want to work with small strips because as you will
discover, large pieces buckle. Repeat with several more layers. Encourage kids to
keep going, telling them that the more layers they get on it, the stronger the bowl!
Demonstrate how to cover the balloon with the strips of paper, reminding the
kids that they do not need to cover the part that is above the line.
Set the bowls aside to completely dry.
Step Three: The bottom of the Bowl
The paper mache should be dry at this stage. Pop the balloon and pull it out. You
can trim the edges at this stage if you like. Turn the bowl over. Attach one of the
plastic lids to the bottom with tape. Now cover the bottom with paper mache
strips, and go on to add another layer- or better yet, several more layers - to the
rest of the bowl. Be sure to have some pieces lap over the rim of the bowl to
reinforce it. Smooth out all the strips so the surface is not too bumpy!
If you plan to collage the bowls, apply a final "skin" of white paper towels. This
provides a nice white surface, ready for collage. (If the bowls will be painted
instead, you do not need to add this last step.) Set them aside to dry.
Step Four: Decorate!
When the piece is dry, get out your paints or collage materials (or both, as in the
bowl shown above), and get creative. Be sure to let the paint dry before you give
it a coat of clear gloss. (Temperas will bleed into the gloss coat if you try to brush
it on - use a spray gloss. Also, Tempera paints seem to "soak up" the gloss, so
they usually need two coats of spray.)
A few things to keep in mind ....
Important Tip For Adults
Remember, this is the child's project. If she is having difficulty with it, she will
learn by doing it herself. Don't preempt that learning process by offering to do
things for her. Demonstrate that it's easier to brush the glue onto the balloon
instead of dipping the paper into the glue, demonstrate how to overlap the pieces,
and to use small pieces for curved surfaces. But then back off and let her try on
her own. If you have a preconceived idea of how this bowl should look (don't feel
bad, we all do this) and your child does something completely different (and they
usually will), you'll want to let go of your idea and enjoy what she's done as the
wonderful, imaginative child's art that it is.