Craft - Paper Plate Fish

My group taught this lesson to our 1st grade class. We introduced the concept of crafts which are hand-made out of various materials, such as cloth, jewelry, yarn, or metal. We also introduced the artist Don Sallenbach as he makes fish out of steel. The 1st graders made fish out of paper plates which became the fish they caught while fishing. They had their picture taken with their "catch of the day."

The procedure included:

• students make their pattern using 3 geometric shapes on scratch paper
• choose 1 marker color for each shape and color them
• transfer the geometric pattern from the scratch paper to the checkerboard on the paper plate
• if square is one of the shapes in the pattern, then color the whole square - for the other shapes, make sure to draw them using as much of the square as possible
• color a solid border around the outside of the checkerboard - you can use more than one color on the border
• write your name in black marker over the color on the border
• cut a triangle for the mouth
• glue that triangle on in the middle of the checkerboard for the side fin - glue the point side down and bend the other side slightly so that the fin sticks out
• draw 3 curved lines between the mouth and the side fin for the gills
• glue on the eye right above the gills
• color the tail fin any color and glue it across from the mouth on the underside of the plate
• fishing line is stapled onto the mouth
• take a picture with the lake backdrop

 

my "Catch"

I enjoyed working on this craft project because I enjoy coloring. I like the bright colors that the markers made and the geometric patterns were both an element of art and practice for math class. Using a paper plate gave the fish some texture. When we timed ourselves coloring the fish, we took about 10 minutes. When the 1st graders colored their fish during our lesson, they almost doubled the time needed to finish. It was hard to prepare for that part not knowing exactly how much time to allot, but we were able to roll with it and get the fish finished.

An extension activity in science would be to identify the structures of fish and how color affects fish in its habitat. In social studies, the students would study how fish are used as food and where most of the fishing in order feed people takes place in cities around the world.

 Our bulletin board is in the design of a dock with the fish stringers from the fishing trip hanging off of the side into the water. The theme is "Catch of the Day" and includes the students' pictures with their awesome "Catch!"

 

A close up of the bulletin board