It's beginning to look like Christmas
Steve decorated the living and dining rooms with white lights, a creche and snowy village scene. It's lovely and makes the house feel like we're really in the midst of the Christmas season, or at least Advent.
This afternoon I taught 15 boys at Juvenile Hall how to do iris folding. I used the traditional method - papers from the backs of bill paying envelopes (which my friends save for me and drop off by the front door). At first the kids found it extraordinarily difficult and then suddenly it all clicked into place and they finished quickly - and proudly. All 15 boys were able to display their projects, bringing a bare wall to life. Next week we will use the same technique with nicer papers and finishing touches to make Christmas cards they can mail home. I'll be making some prototypes in the coming week.
I used to avoid bringing in ideas that had been used recently. But later I learned that repetition brings confidence and confidence builds self esteem. So now I teach a technique and then quickly, before they have time to forget it, I find ways they can use the new skill in more colorful ways.
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