Beautiful Pandas

This is a lesson based on some pandas I saw on Artsonia.

We start by watching a Youtube video that just shows some pandas playing in a playpen. Very cute. The children love watching them. I ask them to pay special attention to which part of the panda is black and which part is white. After the video we discuss the panda's coloring.

Next we do a very simple drawing of a panda. The one distinction we make is to draw the fur around the eyes like tilted ovals.

Now its time to sponge paint. We use small round sponges and liquid tempera paint. It's best if the sponges are damp. The children start with the white parts of the panda and then move on to the black. The following week we glue on some plastic eyes and draw some bamboo in the background.

The fun part about this lesson is viewing the live cameras at the Washington Zoo while waiting for the paint to dry.. You can find a link on their website. The kids love watching the pandas walk around, and I do as well!

First grade work: