Room Weaving

Room Weaving is found in the book,
Making Make-Believe

Author: MaryAnn F. Kohl
ISBN: 9780876591987
Publisher: Gryphon House
Paperback, Pages: 192, © 1999, $16.95

Have you ever done ROOM WEAVING with kids (or watched them do their own)? My brother and I used to weave rooms when we were little kids, thanks to our mom being a good person who encouraged us to keep busy in whatever acceptable ways we could imagine. Try this with kids asap!! Rainy day indoors, or sunny day outdoors (in which case it would be deck weaving, patio weaving, porch weaving, yard weaving, etc.)

• String yarn, ribbon, or twine
• Scissors

1. Tie any smaller pieces of string and yarn together to make one long strand. Roll into a ball.
2. To begin the Room Weaving, tie one end of the string or yarn to a doorknob, closet rod, bedpost, or chair leg.
3. Take the string from one object to another, tying or wrapping around furniture or objects to hold it in place. String can crisscross itself and go all around the room like a web.
4. Now weave and tie strings in between the first strings. A plan is not necessary, just keep tying and weaving strings to strings.
5. When the web is done, imagine and play in the Room Weaving.

And more....Pretend the Room Weaving is an imaginary world, a spider web, a thick jungle, an underground cave
Add other materials, such as blankets or sheets, paper cutouts, strips of fabric, strips of newspaper.

Comments

[jenny @ Let the children play]

The kids at our preschool love doing this sort of thing - only they do it outside using tape, string and wool. You might like to have a look at this spiders web they made:

www.http://progressiveearlychildhoodeducation.blogspot.com/2010/01/tape-off.html

I'm enjoying your blog :)

[mes petits artistes (or: my little artist's)]

So pretty! I LOVE all the colors

[April]

I have a nephew who used to love to tie things up with string or tie string around things. He would have loved to do room weaving.

Thank you for the recent comment on my blog! My children are the same age difference as yours (2 years). One of the things that my husband and I considered when we thought of having another child so soon was that most of the siblings that we know who are close in age, do grow up to have a special bond.

"It's the process, not the product" has been my mantra when doing art with my daughter. So thank you very much for inspiring me! There are still times when I do "crafty-ish" things with her but I never tell her how to do it, I'm more likely to cut out an elephant shape and let her do as she pleases with it rather than having her "glue the trunk right here, then glue the googly eyes right here". I have received several comments on my blog that compliment me "for letting her do as she pleases" and I do believe that is how its supposed to be.

I'm not trained in art, so I know I still have lots to learn so thank you so much for your books and now your blog. You do a great job of helping people like me bring art into their children's lives! I have checked out your blog and I think it is great, but I am having a hard time figuring out how to follow or subscribe by email. I will check back often though.

Thank you,
April Cruz

[Terry Clarkson Farrell]

This is wonderful - took me back to when my kids were small they -ove the living room and I didn't have the heart to take it down for days. Funniest face ever was my new nieghbor coming over the help my husband fix something- should have seen his face as he passed the room! Never thought of doing it in school though - thanks for the inspriation and the memory
Terry NYC

[MaryAnn F. Kohl]

HI, Mary Ann. I like your name! :o) That would be really wonderful to watch the stars. I love that idea!!!!! Thank you for suggesting it. When we were kids we were always doing something like that and you never forget it when you are grown. The next idea is to repeat it when you're grown so you don't have to remember doing it...you can do it!! Thank you,
MaryAnn

[Mary Ann Dames - Reading, Writing, and Recipes]

What a wonderful mother you must have had to let you be creative. I can even see doing this outside, making a "tent" so I could watch the stars.