Motion

One thing we talked a lot about was motion. The pendulums fascinated them, but they were making observations about how all sorts of things moved. We needed to look at all the ways things could move and what better way than some messy art? This is an activity that you can easily do at home with a few simple materials. For the activity print out, click here.

Motion painting is such a simple concept; we decided to spice things up each day this week.

Monday: We just explored how it all worked. Students selected any color paint and either a golf ball or marble (for some interesting patterns).

Tuesday: We used only the primary colors. How did this change the paintings? What colors did they see that they didn't add in the beginning and why?

Wednesday: We talked about how objects can change direction when they collide with something. In our motion painting, we use another ball to demonstrate how things can bounce off each other.

Thursday: We explored using a golf ball and a marble together, one being larger than the other. Unfortunately I forgot the pictures for that one!

Friday: We used a much larger tray; students had to work together to get the ball to roll through the paint. This proved difficult for many. We reminded them that working together can mean talking to each other about what to do.

The next problem to solve was what to do with the paper. There were two artists and only one paper. Who took it home? What if they both wanted to take it home?


See all of the pictures from the activity this week here.


This activity was so popular, we decided to extend it even farther. We will be using non-round objects; what would happen if we put a square in the box? We will paint a picture instead of just dots; how will this change what the paint does and change your picture?
Check back for more pictures!