Esther loves an activity

And I know when an activity has been a success

Because weeks or months later

When I think she has forgotten

She will ask for the activity again

Or set up a version of it herself

At Christmas we did some lovely play

With mirrors and markers

This week this activity has been reprised

This time with an Easter focus

We have been busy playing with mirrors, markers and pretty things

The idea of this activity is to create a sensory art process

Drawing on mirrors is different from pencil on paper

There is a novelty factor

Which means even reluctant artists like William want to grab a pen

And make their mark

With this activity I encourage children to draw something

A shape, a picture, a letter, a number, a pattern

Then I invite them to decorate their drawing

With pretty things

Buttons and beads

Counters, pom poms and bells

At Christmas we drew stars and trees

Baubles and presents

With Easter in mind we have been decorating crosses and eggs

Glass beads are wonderful to play with

The colours dance in natural light

Using them on mirrors add interest

Reflections make interesting shapes and patterns

Accentuating shadow and light

Sleigh bells add sound to the sensory experience

Esther loves to play with sleigh bells

Listening to their jingle

Watching their shining colour bounce off the mirror glass

Pom poms are soft and gentle between the fingers

They feel good against the skin

Adding another sensory dimension

To our process

To our play

As part of this process art

We worked on creating and extending patterns

I would make a pattern and ask Esther to carry it on

What comes next in this pattern?

What is missing from this pattern?

Problem solving and prediction skills

Were developed through our play

But mostly we made pictures

Pretty seasonal pictures

Mostly we had fun

With mirrors and markers and pretty things

With pretty things, markers and mirrors