The School Lunch

      The school lunch is the problem. It is a subject over which mothers are waxing warm in the mothers' clubs, over which doctors are theorizing, over which teachers are fretting. It is the question of the hour in hygienic circles; and all the while the innocent little tummy accepts what is offered it, never realizing that the school lunch is disturbing grown-up heads.

      What shall young America carry in the school lunch basket?

      In the first place, doctors have firmly agreed that it shall not carry the lunch basket at all if it is a possible thing to reach home in time for a warm lunch. The cold lunch is an indigestible affair at best compared with a bowl of hot soup or a plate of steaming stew or rare steak. But what can't be made of a bad thing is worth while.

      There seems to be a vast difference between the cold lunch that is and the cold lunch that ought to be.

      Pickles and ice cream make a popular combination. You can get 5 cents' worth of pickles, chemically vinegared. You can get 5 cents' worth of ice cream at the little store next door, where they sell candy and prize packages and chewing gum and striped lead pencils. You can buy all of these if your money holds out.

      Miss Casey, principal of the Lafayette Primary School, says that she has seen this sort of thing happen many a time, sometimes in her own school and more often she has known of it in other schools when the bakeries and the candy shops were nearer. Children are started off to school without a lunch. It is too far to go home. So paper or mamma hands out a little money and says, "Buy your lunch."

Twelve o'clock has come at Redding Primary,
by Stanford

      Perhaps the amount is only a nickel or perhaps it is much larger. The more the worse in many cases. As soon as the bell has rung and the lines have passed out the proud possessor of the cost races down the street to the nearest attractive shop.

      Maybe there is a beautiful pink cake in the window with little shells of frosting all around the edge and jelly in the cracks. Maybe the loaf costs two bits and maybe the luncher has just that amount. It takes less then two minutes to own the cake and not much longer to shove it down. Here endeth the lunch and likewise here beginneth the dyspepsia.

      Or maybe it is a pie that tempts, a lemon pie, brave with billows of meringue. Heaven help young American when this is the sum total of its lunch.

      Miss Casey says that she has seen a little tot that possessed just one nickel spend it for candy and make an entire meal on the purchase. It is like the things that little girls and boys wish for in day dreams, but it is not hygienic.

      Mrs. Walker, principal of the Marshall Primary School, says: "I wish we could see the school lunch basket containing bread and jelly and good, sensible sandwiches made of lamb, roast beef or corned beef. It ought to have a bottle of milk instead of coffee. Plenty of fruit should be in it. And no cakes--none whatever. This matter of the school lunch is worth thinking about."

      All the principals and the doctors seem to say the same thing about coffee and milk. Off with the former, on with the latter. Although Miss Deane of the Redding Primary finds that her flock is inclined to the milk tipple for the most part. "On the whole they seem to bring sensible things," she says. "Sandwiches, milk and fruit are the chief articles."

      Mrs. M. M. Murphy of the Irving Scott Primary School says: "It isn't so much what is put up for the children as how it is put up that I want to find fault with. For instance, they have meat sandwiches, which sounds well enough, but some of them are enough to frighten any appetite just to look at them. Great chunks of bread on each side of an ungainly chunk of meat. Ugh! I don't see how the poor little things eat them. I know I couldn't touch a crumb of them."

      Dr. Mary Page Campbell was asked to discuss the ideal school lunch from the physician's standpoint and this is what she said:

      "It's hard to talk about the ideal basket lunch when there is nothing ideal about such a meal. Every child should go home to lunch. This is the sort of thing, however, that is a waste of breath to talk about and I am practical enough to realize that. Many children live so far from home that they cannot possibly get home, eat and return in the time allowed. Or if they do they will have to bolt the meal so rapidly that it is worse than a cold lunch.

     "In Boston the problem has been solved, or partially so, by the little lunch stations near the school buildings where soup is sold to the children for so small a sum that it is possible to all. It is good, wholesome, steaming hot soup that does the little bodies good from top to toe. This furnishes the heat which nature craves in a meal, and cold adjuncts can be carried in a basket.

      "Some day I hope to see a kettle of good soup raising a hearty steam within sight of every San Francisco school. But until that comes about we must face the problem as it stands. Hundreds of our children carry a cold lunch to school.

      "What shall the basket contain?

      "In the first place, there should be something to drink with the meal, and this something should be milk. A bottle of fresh milk can easily be put up in the morning. It is far less trouble than coffee because there is no cooking about it. Let the bottle of cold coffee be tabooed. It is absolutely unwholesome. If the child has acquired a liking for it, then the taste is unwholesome and should be overcome.

       "Let the basis of the lunch be bread and butter and sandwiches. Cut the bread thin and spread it thinly. There is a great deal in putting up a lunch daintily. Perhaps it does seem as if children are willing to eat anything, they are so much more the gourmand and less the gourmet than their parents. But nevertheless they are affected by the way their food is prepared. Their appetite will be keener and the benefit from the food greater if it is tempting instead of mussy.

      "The sandwiches may be made of good, tender meat; of cheese, or of nuts. Cheese and nuts contain an immense amount of condensed nourishment. If the little folks care for it there is not the least harm in letting them have a pickle, but it must be a good pickle; not one of the ordinary grocery store kind, put up in some kind of chemical vinegar, but one that you know is to be seasoned with pure spices and pure vinegar.

      "Now for the lunch basket cup. This cup (or, better yet a jelly glass with a tightly fitted cover) may be made the charm of the basket, for it may reveal a delightful surprise every day to tempt the young appetite. Don't say that it is too much bother to think up new dainties. Set your wits to work. The result will pay.

      "Different forms of sage, rice and tapioca can be put into the little glass jar. These may be the simplest and wholesomest puddings, slightly sweetened. They are full of nourishment and palatable as well.

      "Macaroni is another idea for your cup. It may be cooked with either tomatoes or cheese.

      A little meat pie, with a light, flaky crust, is delicious and wholesome, too. When the youngster carries this he won't need meat sandwiches. Bread and butter is enough. Try to make the parts of the lunch harmonize in this way, just as much as if you were preparing a menu for guests.
      "Mayonnaise is an article that I sometimes hear people speaking of as too rich for children. It is nothing of the kind. What could be more valuable than eggs and olive oil? Don't be so afraid of foods of this kind-- the children are not inclined to eat any great amount of them if left to their own devices. Mayonnaise is good on many kinds of sandwiches, but it is better to let the child carry it in a little cup and spread it when noon arrives, as it soaks into the bread if it stands long, becoming unpalatable.
      "Children need sweets for fuel. Remember that every morning when you pack the basket. The sweets should be furnished in very moderate quantities, but they should not be forgotten or condemned. A slice of light sponge cake or a few simple cookies are best. With the cake should be plenty of fruit, and so you have a good dessert.
      Bear in mind the value of a varied bill of fare. This involves much thought, but it is entirely possible. A cold lunch is at best, less cheerful than a meal at a table. Do your best to brighten the basket by frequent novelties. And wrap each article separately so that flavors won't mix and make an unappetizing mess of the whole." San Francisco Call, April 19, 1903

• Eating Should Be a Healthy and Happy Experience in School
• 3 Fun School Lunch Ideas
• Recess Before Lunch Can Mean Happier, Healthier Kids

Historic Paper Buildings at Greenfield Village

I found these paper scale model buildings
at a flee market.

      The Henry Ford (also known as the Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village, and more formally as the Edison Institute) is a large indoor and outdoor history museum complex and a National Historic Landmark in the Metro Detroit suburb of Dearborn, Michigan, USA. Named for its founder, the noted automobile industrialist Henry Ford, and based on his desire to preserve items of historical significance and portray the Industrial Revolution, the property houses a vast array of famous homes, machinery, exhibits, and Americana. The collection contains many rare exhibits including John F. Kennedy's presidential limousine, Abraham Lincoln's chair from Ford's Theatre, Thomas Edison's laboratory, the Wright Brothers' bicycle shop, and the Rosa Parks bus.

      Henry Ford said of his museum:

"I am collecting the history of our people as written into things their hands made and used.... When we are through, we shall have reproduced American life as lived, and that, I think, is the best way of preserving at least a part of our history and tradition...^"

      The Henry Ford is the largest indoor-outdoor museum complex in America. Patrons enter at the gate, passing by the Josephine Ford Memorial Fountain and Benson Ford Research Center. Nearly one hundred historical buildings were moved to the property from their original locations and arranged in a "village" setting. The museum's intent is to show how Americans lived and worked since the founding of the country. The Village includes buildings from the 17th century to the present, many of which are staffed by costumed interpreters who conduct period tasks like farming, sewing and cooking. A collection of craft buildings such as pottery, glass-blowing, and tin shops provide demonstrations while producing materials used in the Village and for sale. Greenfield Village has 240 acres (970,000 m²) of land of which only 90 acres (360,000 m²) are used for the attraction, the rest being forest, river and extra pasture for the sheep and horses.

• Noah Webster's Connecticut home
• the Wright brothers' bicycle shop and home from Dayton, Ohio
• A replica of Thomas Edison's Menlo Park laboratory complex from New Jersey
• Henry Ford's birthplace
• Henry Ford's prototype garage where he built the Ford Quadricycle
• Harvey Firestone family farm from Columbiana, Ohio
• the Logan County, Illinois courthouse where Abraham Lincoln practiced law
• William Holmes McGuffey's birthplace
• Luther Burbank's office

Paint The Wheels on Your Bus

       These school buses were painted by my kindergarten students during my student teaching. The project actually included two parts. First the children were taught to draw "balloon people" before cutting them out to paste onto their school bus paintings. I'll include a link to that exercise when I have posted here. For now, enjoy all of the sweet little orange school bus paintings.

More Related Content:

• Wheels on the bus craft from Sunshine Preschool
• Wheels on the bus mural
• School Bus Safety Craft for Kids!
• The Wheels on the Bus Go Back To School
• Yellow School Bus Assessments

"Sam's Snack" by David Pelham

 Devid Pelham designs fun pop-up books for children.

 This little lunch box by Pelham is a cherished artifact from my eldest child's book collection.

       The pages are all intact and in excellent condition considering how much she enjoyed the book as a child. I plan to develop a couple of art lesson plans inspired by the lunch box in the near future. This book will be a real treat to share with my students.
      I've also included below another book by David Pelham called, "The Senstional SamBurger"

More Related Content:

• You can read more about illustrator David Pelham here.

 More in: http://librospopup.blogspot.com/
Book in the Form of a Hamburger
The Sensational SamBurger
Incredible and unusual POP-UP Book in the Form of a Hamburger
By David Pelham
Dutton Children's books 1995
Printed and hand-assembled in Colombia
Increíble e inusual libro pop-up en forma de hamburguesa

Drawing Dragons

      The boys at my work place love to draw mythical creatures. I've included a video here for them to watch at home if they should dare to keep pursuing these animated beasts. Below are some of their recent drawings.

15 Best Tutorials On How To Draw A Dragon

Sandy's Circus

I purchased this book, "Sandy's Circus" as an introductory artifact for future classroom art projects about circus life.
It is the story of Alexander Calder's early life. The book is authored by Tanya Lee Stone and is illustrated
 by Boris Kulikov.

      Alexander Calder (July 22, 1898 – November 11, 1976) was an American sculptor best known as the originator of the mobile, a type of kinetic sculpture the delicately balanced or suspended components of which move in response to motor power or air currents; by contrast, Calder’s stationary sculptures are called stabiles. He also produced numerous wire figures, notably for a vast miniature circus.

      Alexander "Sandy" Calder was born in Lawnton, Pennsylvania on July 22, 1898. His father, Stirling Calder, was a well-known sculptor who created many public installations, a majority of them in nearby Philadelphia.

      Sandy Calder's grandfather, sculptor Alexander Milne Calder, was born in Scotland, immigrated to Philadelphia in 1868, and is best known for the colossal statue of William Penn on top of Philadelphia City Hall's tower. Sandy Calder's mother, Nanette (née Lederer), was a professional portrait artist, who had studied at the Académie Julian and the Sorbonne in Paris from around 1888 until 1893. She moved to Philadelphia where she met Stirling Calder while studying at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Sandy Calder's parents married on February 22, 1895; his sister, Mrs. Margaret Calder Hayes, is considered instrumental in the development of the UC Berkeley Art Museum.

      In 1902, Sandy Calder completed his earliest sculpture, a clay elephant. Three years later, Stirling Calder contracted tuberculosis, and Calder's parents moved to a ranch in Oracle, Arizona, leaving the children in the care of family friends for a year. The children were reunited with their parents in late March 1906 and stayed at the ranch in Arizona until fall of the same year.

      After Arizona, the Calder family moved to Pasadena, California. The windowed cellar of the family home became Calder's first studio and he received his first set of tools. He used scraps of copper wire that he found in the streets to make jewelry and beads for his sister's dolls. On January 1, 1907, Nanette Calder took her son to the Tournament of Roses Parade in Pasadena, where he observed a four-horse-chariot race. This style of event later became the finale of Calder's wire circus shows. In 1909, when Calder was in the fourth grade, he sculpted a dog and a duck out of sheet brass as Christmas gifts for his parents. The sculptures were three dimensional and the duck was kinetic because it rocked when gently tapped.

      In 1910, the Calder family moved back to Philadelphia, where Sandy briefly attended Germantown Academy, then moved to Croton-on-Hudson, New York. In Croton, during his early high school years, Calder was befriended by painter Everett Shinn with whom he built a gravity powered system of mechanical trains. Calder described it, "We ran the train on wooden rails held by spikes; a chunk of iron racing down the incline speeded the cars. We even lit up some cars with candle lights". After Croton, the Calders moved to Spuyten Duyvil to be closer to the Tenth Street Studio Building in New York City, where Stirling Calder rented a studio. While living in Spuyten Duyvil, Sandy Calder attended high school in nearby Yonkers. In 1912, Stirling Calder was appointed acting chief of the Department of Sculpture of the Panama–Pacific International Exposition in San Francisco, California.

      He began work on sculptures for the exposition that was held in 1915. During Sandy Calder's high school years (1912–1915), the family moved back and forth between New York and California. In each new location, Calder's parents reserved cellar space as a studio for their son. Toward the end of this period, Calder stayed with friends in California while his parents moved back to New York, so that he could graduate from Lowell High School in San Francisco. Calder graduated with the class of 1915.

      In 1926, at the suggestion of a Serbian toy merchant in Paris, Calder began to make toys. At the urging of fellow sculptor Jose de Creeft, he submitted them to the Salon des Humoristes. Later that fall, Calder began to create his Cirque Calder, a miniature circus fashioned from wire, string, rubber, cloth, and other found objects. Designed to fit into suitcases (it eventually grew to fill five), the circus was portable, and allowed Calder to hold performances on both sides of the Atlantic. He gave improvised shows, recreating the performance of a real circus. Soon, his Cirque Calder (usually on view at the Whitney Museum of American Art at present) became popular with the Parisian avant-garde.

      In 1927, Calder returned to the United States. He designed several kinetic wooden push and pull toys for children, which were mass-produced by the Gould Manufacturing Company, in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. His originals, as well as playable replicas, are on display in the Berkshire Museum in Pittsfield, Massachusetts. Throughout the 1930s, Calder continued to give Cirque Calder performances, but he also worked with choreographer Martha Graham, designing stage sets for her ballets and created a moving stage construction to accompany Eric Satie's Socrate in 1936.

"Kids made this incredible art after hearing author Tanya Lee Stone read her picture book about Alexander Calder's circus made of found materials. The artist's Cirque de Calder is on exhibit at the Whitney Museum. Stone's picture book about Calder and his circus is called Sandy's Circus: A Story About Alexander Calder. Illustrations in the book by Boris Kulikov. Published by Viking Children's Books. (c) 2008" by goldendoodlerule

More Related Content:

• Cirque Calder
• Circus art projects by Lincoln Community School children
• L e petit cirque de Calder
• Spectacle de cirque en fil de fer et en bois

Learning to Draw Birds

In drawing, all objects should be studied under the general heads of:

• The Copy, or Imitation.
• The Object, or Observation.
• The Memory and Imagination.

       In general, these three divisions should go hand in hand, each helping to explain and make clear the others. But if an order is followed in the study of birds, the best one for young pupils is as follows: (1) The copy; (2) memory and imagination; (3) the object.
       This order, however, is not intended to be arbitrary. If the object is something that can be leisurely studied, like a leaf, or a flower, then an order similar to this should be followed: (1) The object; (2) the copy; (3) memory and imagination.
       The principle of the construction of all birds is, in general, the same ; the difference is in the proportion and minor details. By learning the proportions and general features from pictures and drawings, much time will be saved, and the work made more effective and less discouraging than if the study is attempted from the living bird alone. This does not mean to blindly copy the drawings of others, but to study them intelligently, to study them with a view of learning their form and proportion and the general principle of bird construction. To learn such points  the following: The size of the head as compared with the body; the movement of the tail, head and body; how the feet are placed under the body to give perfect balance; how the wings rest on the body, and their movements when flying. All of these can be studied from drawings coupled with observation, and then verified on the real bird, much better than from the real bird alone. It is doubtful if one untrained in drawing can make very much headway learning to draw from such a restless bit of animation as a live bird, with its multiplicity of markings and numberless details. One must have both knowledge of the bird and skill in drawing to do this.

• Balance
• Character
• Divisions of Study
• General Directions
• Drill Exercises

       Here is a simple sketch of how to draw a bird. Memorize how to draw birds from these instructions and soon little birds will be dancing across your notebook in no time.

More Related Content:

• Steps for Drawing: A Pelican
• Drawing birds from John Muir Laws
• How to draw a bird from easy-drawings-and-sketches.com

Draw a Circus Strongman

A vintage circus print of a circus strongman.

        The circus strongman is one of many acts found in a modern circus. The strongman demonstrates great strength, power and agility to the audience. The strongman and strongwomen were very popular attractions in the circus in the 19th century. Early strongmen would usually exhibit their awesome strength by lifting or moving objects which the audience would believe impossible to move. They would lift anvils, have anvils placed on their chest, bend metal bars and some were even reported to hold cannons on their shoulders while an assistant lit and fired the cannon. What do you suppose your circus strongman or strongwoman could lift? Perhaps an elephant or two maybe? 

Click to see what these strongmen are lifting:

• Vintage Circus Strong Man 

Circus Related Lesson Plans:

• Circus Resources for Schools
• Ideas for Circus Unit in Your Classroom
• Circus Themes for Educators
• Circus Crafts and Carnival Themed Projects
• Circus of The Kids

Draw your very own flea circus!

       First, either draw a circus tent boarder for your bugs to perform inside or print out our blog's free version below.

Here is a circus tent border for you to use.

       Second, select the bugs you like best. Give them names and jobs in your doodle circus, then design the astounding acts your bugs will perform. I've linked to some creative cartoonists on the web who doodle bugs:

• How to draw and color bugs by CoconanaTV
• Drawing easy ladybug, dragonfly, honey bee, beetle by Dream and Draw Arts

       Below is a film of a real flee circus! Before television people would do almost anything for entertainment. Your circus is an imaginary one, however, so no bug will be harmed in order to maintain the performances!

 

       The first records of flea performances were from watch makers who were demonstrating their metal working skills. Mark Scaliot in 1578 produced a lock and chain which were attached to a flea. Flea performances were first advertised as early as 1833 in England, and were a main carnival attraction until 1930. Some flea circuses persisted in very small venues in the United States as late as the 1960s. The flea circus at Belle Vue amusement park, Manchester, England, was still operating in 1970. At least one genuine flea circus still performs (at the annual Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany) but most flea circuses are a sideline of magicians and clowns, they use electrical or mechanical effects instead of real fleas.

      Fleas typically live only for a few months and are not trained. They are also observed to see if they have a predisposition for jumping or walking. Once sorted, they are harnessed by carefully wrapping a thin gold wire around the neck of the flea. Once in the harness the fleas usually stay in it for life. The harnesses are attached to the props and the strong legs of the flea allows them to move objects significantly larger than themselves. Jumping fleas are used for kicking small lightweight balls. They are carefully given a ball; when they try to jump away (which is not possible because of the harness) they shoot the ball instead. Running fleas are used to pull small carts and vehicles or to rotate a Ferris wheel. There are historical reports of fleas glued to the base of the flea circus enclosure, instruments were then glued to the flea performers and the enclosure was heated. The fleas fought to escape giving the impression of fleas playing musical instruments.

      Some flea circuses may appear to use real fleas, but don't. A variety of electrical, magnetic, and mechanical devices have been used to augment exhibits. In some cases these mechanisms are responsible for all of the "acts," with loose fleas in the exhibit maintaining the illusion. Other "flea circuses" do not contain any fleas at all and the experience and skill of the performer convince the audience of their existence. In much the same way that viewers know that a woman won't really be cut in half, the magician's showmanship allows viewers to suspend disbelief in order to enjoy the show.

* * * * * *

No "big top" for the Flea Circus! This is the way spectators watch the star actors of Prof. William Heckler's Trained Flea Circus in 1930.

Star Actors of the Flea Circus

by ALFRED ALBELLI

      Professor William Heckler’s Trained Flea Circus at Hubert’s Museum on West 42nd St., New York City, proves a great spectacle for the skeptical to marvel at, and at the same time the professor shows that he has bridged one of the gaps between science and practical mechanics.
       Recently, in the throes of irresistible curiosity, I stood before the emblazoned billboards of Hubert’s Museum, which proclaimed the astounding feats of the flea, better known for its annoying qualities.

Flea pulls a merry-go-round.

      A ballyhoo gentleman roared through a megaphone that there was a flea hotel inside. That fleas would engage in a chariot race. That they could be seen playing football. Prince Henry, a blueblood among fleas, would juggle a ball. Flea Rudolph woujd operate a merry-go-round. Paddy, carrying a flag, would jump through a hoop.
      The program ended with the Dance of the Fleas, in costume. Greatest show on earth! Well, from one observer’s point of view Prof, Heckler can do anything with a flea he trains, and the chances are he could even send one down to the corner for a newspaper, if he had a mind to. At any rate, he has done almost as much.
      For over eighteen years Prof. Heckler has been making capital of the recent discoveries made by J. J. Ward, the famous English entomologist. The British scholar announced the other day that the earwig, a Samson among insects, is able to pull a toy railway car 530 times its own weight or to drag a load of pins twenty-seven times its weight.
      Scientists went further. They made computations and adduced that the average man, proportionately as strong as the earwig, would be able to haul two freight cars along the street, these weighing nearly twenty tons apiece.
      Prof. Heckler has studied all of the flea’s habits until he has been able to recruit a troupe for a circus, as it is called. This creation of his goes back to the days when he ran away from home, from his native Switzerland, to follow the adventures of the sea.
      “My first meeting with the fleas,” he related to me, “was while I was traveling on the Mediterranean. Many of the boats on which I shipped were infested with these tiny demons. To the amusement of the crew, I captured some of these fleas and had them doing stunts for them. As I had much leisure time in those days, I thought up various freak performances for the fleas. In time I gave up the life of the sailor for the flea as a career and opened my first Flea Circus at the St. Louis World’s Fair. Since then my company of trained flea artists has toured the globe, playing fairs and expositions everywhere.”
      He explained that of the 134 or more species, only the human flea, the so-called pulex irritans, getting its sustenance from human blood, is intellieent enough to be trained. He takes the insect at a very tender age and it is put through a rigid training for its life work.

Captive flea being trained.

      The performing flea is found in Europe. But those which have been imported by Prof. Heckler and bred become easily acclimated. They make their home in chambers inlaid in mother-of-pearl, with white downy cot-ton as their sleeping quarters. Everything quite cozy!
      Training fleas is very difficult and Prof. Heckler guards his secret conscientiously. For the first lesson the neophyte flea is put into a bottle which is almost airtight. This is quite possible as he requires little oxygen.
      In this small vessel, the flea, true to his nature, gets rambunctious and hits off to a jumping spree. And every time he jumps he bumps his head. Soon he learns that by ceasing to jump he avoids the bumps, and thereby he passes his first test.
      Next in his training course the flea is attached to an instrument which looks very much like a gibbet. Here he can hop or do any form of motion, but he is under restraint, of course. The shackles keep him in tow. It is in this section that the professor selects the dancers from the strong men, and classifies them. In turn they are garbed in miniature costumes, befitting their particular bit.

The fleas in this photo have been enlarged 700 times as

 compared with the human figure. They are shown in action

 posses from several of the stunts they perform in the circus.

More About Flea Circus:

• List of Historical Flea Circus Performers ShowHistory.Com
• www.trainedfleas.com The Acme Miniature Flea Circus
• A Flea Sized F.A.Q.
• Professor B's Flea Circus
• Svensons World Famous Flea Circus

The Grasshopper and The Ant

The Grasshopper, singing
All summer long,
Now found winter stinging,
And ceased in his song.
Not a morsel or crumb in his cupboard--
So he shivered, and ceased in his song.

Miss Ant was his neighbor;
To her he went:
"O, you're rich from labor,
And I've not a cent.
Lend me food, and I vow I'll return it,
Though at present I have not a cent."

The Ant's not a lender,
I must confess.
Her heart's far from tender
To one in distress.
So she said: "Pray, how passed you the summer,
That in winter you come to distress?"

"I sang through the summer,"
Grasshopper said.
"But now I am glummer
Because I've no bread."
"So you sang!" sneered the Ant. "That relieves me.
Now it's winter--go dance for your bread!"

Fables in Rhyme for Little Folks

Adapted from the French of La Fontaine.

Written by,
W. T. Larned
Illustrated by,
John Rae.

When History Becomes Legend: Catapults and Dragons

Some of my little charges are very talented. These second
graders spent nearly two hours occupying themselves with
this art project after school.

It seems as though a very unfriendly dragon had wandered
into Medieval Christendom and decided to vent his anger
on a few unsuspecting knights.

However, the knights were not totally unprepared! They had
amassed, over time, an abundance of catapults, spears and goodly
armor for occasions such as these. After all, one can't just let
dragons go wandering about burning down perfectly
good churches and castles!

Oops. Somebody dropped a house on it's side.

If you breath fire you of course eventually become the color of it.

      During our discussions about their incredible piece of drawing, I spoke to the boys about another similar artwork depicting historically accurate battles (cough). This one in particular was created by women. A fact, mind you, that these small boys found difficult to swallow.

      The Bayeux Tapestry (French: Tapisserie de Bayeux, IPA: [tapisʁi də bajø], Norman : La telle du conquest) is an embroidered cloth—not an actual tapestry—nearly 70 metres (230 ft) long, which depicts the events leading up to the Norman conquest of England concerning William, Duke of Normandy and Harold, Earl of Wessex, later King of England, and culminating in the Battle of Hastings.

      According to Sylvette Lemagnen, conservator of the tapestry,

The Bayeux tapestry is one of the supreme achievements of the Norman Romanesque, ... Its survival almost intact over nine centuries is little short of miraculous, ... Its exceptional length, the harmony and freshness of its colors, its exquisite workmanship, and the genius of its guiding spirit combine to make it endlessly fascinating.

      The tapestry consists of some fifty scenes with Latin tituli (captions), embroidered on linen with coloured woollen yarns. It is likely that it was commissioned by Bishop Odo, William's half-brother, and made in England—not Bayeux—in the 1070s. In 1729 the hanging was rediscovered by scholars at a time when it was being displayed annually in Bayeux Cathedral. The tapestry is now exhibited at Musée de la Tapisserie de Bayeux in Bayeux, Normandy, France. Read and see more . . . 

• Bayeux Tapestry Museum
• Latin-English translation
• The Bayeux Tapestry - collection of videos, articles and bibliography
• Bayeux Tapestry – Propaganda on cloth, "A World History of Art".
• The Bayeux Tapestry Story
• High quality panoramic image of Bayeux Tapestry (Bibliotheca Augustana)
• Composition Musicality in the Bayeux Tapestry

Weave a Paper Dress

      Art teachers are always looking for new ideas for teaching this standard paper weave project. This is because many states require a weave technique be taught to young students several times before they graduate from elementary school. Paper weaving is, of course, very inexpensive for teachers to teach. Above you can see my teacher's sample of the process.

       This year, I viewed these examples of paper weaving in a local elementary art exhibit and thought them to be unique interpretations of an old paper weaving requirement. A child's perspective on life is both charming and refreshing when given just a bit of liberty. I particularly love the teddy bear version below.

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A child's interpretation of a little girl wearing a woven paper dress.

        

This woven paper dress is worn by a teddy bear!

"St. Patrick's Day In The Morning"

St. Patrick's day in the morning,
An' I donned a sprig av green,
An' away for the day, wid laughter gay,
Wid me own dear, swate colleen;
Wid Nellie, me blue-eyed darlint;
Wid Nellie, me own colleen!
An' it's gree, I ween, on our brists Is seen
St. Patrick's day in the morning.

Ah! St. Patrick's day at midday--
It is thin the bands are seen,
An' the way they play all the bilased day
At the "Wearing ay the Green!"
Yis, chunes like "God Save Ireland"
An' "The Wearing av the Green,"
An the rhyme an' chime av that chune subline,
"St. Patrick's Day in the Morning!"

St. Patrick's day in the avening,
Whin the sun has gone to rist,
Thin I'll tell me Nell what she knows so well-
Who it is I love the bist.
An' sure it's this I'm thinkin',
Whin I say, "Jist name the day,"
She will say, so gay: "Arrah, now, the day?
St. Patrick's day in the morning!"

by Arthur J. Burdick

Molas Characterized by Kuna Legends, Real Animals, Politics or Geometric Shapes

In this craft project, students make their own molas from paper instead of fabric. The methods of designing used in reverse applique are the same when using paper. However, the use of paper instead of fabric is much easier to do.

Both the crab and the turtle pictured here
are my teaching samples of paper molas.

      Traditional molas are made with fabric and a reverse applique technique. Several layers (usually two to seven) of different-colored cloth (usually cotton) are sewn together; the design is then formed by cutting away parts of each layer. The edges of the layers are then turned under and sewn down. Often, the stitches are nearly invisible. This is achieved by using a thread the same color as the layer being sewn, sewing blind stitches, and sewing tiny stitches. The finest molas have extremely fine stitching, made using tiny needles.

      The largest pattern is typically cut from the top layer, and progressively smaller patterns from each subsequent layer, thus revealing the colors beneath in successive layers. This basic scheme can be varied by cutting through multiple layers at once, hence varying the sequence of colors; some molas also incorporate patches of contrasting colors, included in the design at certain points to introduce additional variations of color.

      Molas vary greatly in quality, and the pricing to buyers varies accordingly. A greater number of layers is generally a sign of higher quality; two-layer molas are common, but examples with four or more layers will demand a better price. The quality of stitching is also a factor, with the stitching on the best molas being close to invisible. Although some molas rely on embroidery to some degree to enhance the design, those which are made using only the pure reverse-appliqué technique (or nearly so) are considered better.

      Molas will often be found for sale with signs of use, such as stitch marks around the edges; such imperfections indicate that the mola was made for use, and not simply for sale to tourists. A mola can take from two weeks to six months to make, depending on the complexity of the design.

Kuna woman selling Molas in Panama City

      The mola forms part of the traditional costume of a Kuna woman, two mola panels being incorporated as front and back panels in a blouse. The full costume traditionally includes a patterned wrapped skirt (saburet), a red and yellow headscarf (musue), arm and leg beads (wini), a gold nose ring (olasu) and earrings in addition to the mola blouse (dulemor).

      In Dulegaya, the Kuna's native language, "mola" means "shirt" or "clothing". The mola originated with the tradition of Kuna women painting their bodies with geometrical designs, using available natural colours; in later years these same designs were woven in cotton, and later still, sewn using cloth bought from the European settlers of Panamá.

^{More Related Content}

• The Art of Being Guna, from The San Diego Museum of Man. Retrieved February 19, 2006.
• Molas: the Textile Art of Panama, from The University of Missouri. Retrieved February 19, 2006.
• Rainforest Art. Retrieved February 19, 2006.
• "About Molas"March 26, 2008.
• " Mola HistoryJune 16, 2006
• Making a Paper Mola Lesson Plan
• Kuna and Their Molas
• Collage Mola: Free Lesson Plan Download
• Folk Art: From Mexico - Mexican handcrafts and folk art is a complex collection of items made with various materials and intended for utilitarian, decorative or other purposes. Some of the items produced by hand in this country include ceramics, wall hangings, vases, furniture, textiles and much more.

"Tom, Tom the Piper's Son" by Goodridge

A Modern Version of this rhyme:

Tom, Tom, the piper's son,

Stole a pig, and away did run;

The pig was eat

And Tom was beat,

And Tom went crying [or "roaring", or "howling", in some versions]

Down the street.

       The 'pig' mentioned in the song is almost certainly not a live animal but rather a kind of pastry, often made with an apple filling, smaller than a pie.

      Another version of the rhyme is: Tom, Tom, the piper's son, Stole a pig, and away he run. Tom run here, Tom run there, Tom run through the village square.

      This rhyme is often conflated with a separate and longer rhyme:

Tom, he was a piper's son,

He learnt to play when he was young,

And all the tune that he could play

Was 'over the hills and far away';

Over the hills and a great way off,

The wind shall blow my top-knot off.

Tom with his pipe made such a noise,

That he pleased both the girls and boys,

They all stopped to hear him play,

'Over the hills and far away'.

Tom with his pipe did play with such skill

That those who heard him could never keep still;

As soon as he played they began for to dance,

Even the pigs on their hind legs would after him prance.

As Dolly was milking her cow one day,

Tom took his pipe and began to play;

So Dolly and the cow danced 'The Cheshire Round',

Till the pail was broken and the milk ran on the ground.

He met old Dame Trot with a basket of eggs,

He used his pipe and she used her legs;

She danced about till the eggs were all broke,

She began for to fret, but he laughed at the joke.

Tom saw a cross fellow was beating an ass,

Heavy laden with pots, pans, dishes, and glass;

He took out his pipe and he played them a tune,

And the poor donkey's load was lightened full soon.

      Both rhymes were first printed separately in a Tom the Piper's Son, a chapbook produced around 1795 in London. The origins of the shorter and better known rhyme are unknown. The second longer rhyme was an adaptation of an existing verse which was current in England around the end of the seventeenth and beginning of the eighteenth centuries. The following verse, known as "The distracted Jockey's Lamentations" may have been written (but not included) in Thomas D'Urfey's play The Campaigners (1698):

Jockey was a Piper's Son,

And fell in love when he was young;

But all the Tunes that he could play,

Was, o'er the Hills, and far away,

And 'Tis o'er the Hills, and far away,

'Tis o'er the Hills, and far away,

'Tis o'er the Hills, and far away,

The Wind has blown my Plad away.

      This verse seems to have been adapted for a recruiting song designed to gain volunteers for the Duke of Marlborough's campaigns about 1705, with the title "The Recruiting Officer; or The Merry Volunteers", better today known as "Over the Hills and Far Away", in which the hero is called Tom.

"Hey Diddle Diddle" by Goodridge

One of the most commonly used modern versions of the rhyme is:

Hey diddle diddle,
The Cat and the fiddle,
The Cow jumped over the moon,
The little Dog laughed to see such sport,
And the Dish ran away with the Spoon.

Older versions of the nursery rhyme use "craft" instead of "sport" to maintain the rhyming scheme of AABCCB. In more recent versions the archaic 'sport' is replaced with 'fun' or 'a sight'.

Hey diddle diddle,
The Cat and the fiddle,
The Cow jumped over the moon,
The little Dog laughed
To see such craft,
And the Dish ran away with the Spoon.

      The book comments:"It must be a little dog that laugh'd, for a great dog would be ashamed to laugh at such nonsense." There is a reference in Thomas Preston's A lamentable tragedy mixed ful of pleasant mirth, conteyning the life of Cambises King of Percia, printed in 1569 that may refer to the rhyme:

They be at hand Sir with stick and fidle;
They can play a new dance called hey-didle-didle.

      There are numerous theories about the origin of the rhyme, these include: James Orchard Halliwell's suggestion that it was a corruption of ancient Greek, probably advanced as a result of a deliberate hoax; that it was connected with Hathor worship; that it refers to various constellations (Taurus, Canis minor, the Big Dipper etc.); that it describes the Flight from Egypt; that it depicts Elizabeth, Lady Katherine Grey, and her relationships with the earls of Hertford and Leicester; that it deals with anti-clerical feeling over injunctions by Catholic priests for harder work; that it describes Katherine of Aragon (Katherine la Fidèle); Catherine, the wife of Peter the Great; Canton de Fidèle, a supposed governor of Calais and the game of cat (trap-ball). This profusion of unsupported explanations was satirised by J.R.R. Tolkien in his fictional explanations of 'The Man in the Moon Stayed Up Too Late'. Most scholarly commentators consider these unproven and that the verse is probably meant to be simply nonsense. The melody commonly associated with the rhyme was first recorded by the composer and nursery rhyme collector James William Elliott in his National Nursery Rhymes and Nursery Songs (1870).

Paper Circus Toys for Young Students to Color

Color the following paper seals and their trainer for a child's circus toy collection.

Color this paper chariot rider for a child's circus toy collection.

Color this paper elephant and clown for a child's circus toy collection.

Color this paper giraffe with musical clowns for a child's circus toy collection.

Color this paper rhinoceros for a child's circus toy collection.

A seal balances a ball on his nose.

More Paper Circus Collections:

• Paper Circus from the Little Paper Dog
• Circus Roundabout
• Paper Circus Set 1 from DaWanda
• All About Old Toys