Clay Seahorses

All of the 5th grade classes have been working with clay, each class Mrs. Snead was doing a different sea creature to keep things interesting and to help keep the classes separated.

I took over all the classes this week and had to step up to the plate in working with clay. I thought doing a seahorse would be a neat idea so both Mrs. Snead and I got to work in trying to figure out the best way to make a seahorse out of clay.

I knew it would be challenging and I am glad the class I got to work with was small so I was able to get around to everyone quicker that needed help. As challenging as making the seahorse was, the 5th grade class really stepped up to the plate and their pieces turned out great! I was really impressed with how most of them turned out.

It was difficult because we created the body using a slab technique, and we had to continue to work with the clay in our hands so it wouldn't become flat. The body of a seahorse also is covered with a spine like texture that required a lot of skill to mimic in clay. We also created bases to hold up the seahorses, which was also a more challenging style base because the seahorse is kind of thin, but tall. Luckily through the whole process Mrs. Snead was right there to help both me and the students out if we needed it. We did perform a few "surgeries" on seahorses that broke, but its very easy to reattach clay while its still wet by simply scoring and slipping the pieces together.

I am really pleased with how the seahorses turned out and very proud of the students and myself!