March 21: Turn an ordinary object into a cartoon character

Intro:

Lots of video and board games have main characters that we recognize right away. These characters usually have:

  • A clear personality

  • Unique movements or abilities

  • Something that makes them memorable

Some examples you might know:

  • Super Mario – always jumping, adventurous, cheerful

  • Sonic the Hedgehog – super fast, confident, a little mischievous

  • Link (from Zelda) – brave, determined, resourceful

  • Pikachu (from Pokémon) – small, cute, energetic, and loyal

  • Lara Croft (Tomb Raider) – smart, strong, curious

  • Today we are going to use a style called ‘paper mache’ to turn household objects into a cartoon character like this!

Intro Game: Character walk

  1. Print or write these onto chits and put it into a bowl

  2. Chits:

    1. Walk like someone very old

      වයසක කෙනෙක් වගේ ඇවිදින්න

      மிக வயதான ஒருவரைப் போல நடக்கவும்

      2

      Walk like someone very young

      පොඩි ළමයෙක් වගේ ඇවිදින්න

      சிறிய குழந்தை போல நடக்கவும்

      3

      Walk like someone grumpy

      කෝපයෙන් ඉන්න කෙනෙක් වගේ ඇවිදින්න

      கோபமாக இருக்கும் ஒருவரைப் போல நடக்கவும்

      4

      Walk like someone really happy

      සතුටින් ඉන්න කෙනෙක් වගේ ඇවිදින්න

      மிக சந்தோஷமாக இருக்கும் ஒருவரைப் போல நடக்கவும்

      6

      Walk like someone sneaky

      හොරෙන් යන කෙනෙක් වගේ ඇවිදින්න

      மறைந்து நடப்பவரைப் போல நடக்கவும்

      7

      Walk like someone in strong wind

      තද සුළඟේ යනවා වගේ ඇවිදින්න

      பலமான காற்றில் நடப்பது போல நடக்கவும்

      8

      Walk like your shoes are too big

      ලොකු සපත්තු දාගෙන වගේ ඇවිදින්න

      பெரிய செருப்பு போட்டது போல நடக்கவும்

      9

      Walk like you are made of jelly

      ජෙලි වගේ ඇවිදින්න

      ஜெல்லி போல நடக்கவும்

      10

      Walk like someone curious about everything

      සෑම දෙයකටම උනන්දුවෙන් බලන කෙනෙක් වගේ ඇවිදින්න

      எல்லாவற்றிலும் ஆர்வமுள்ள ஒருவரைப் போல நடக்கவும்

  • Line up the children and teachers at the front of the class and each child picks a chit and walks across the room as the character they chose. then they sit back in their spot in the class. Do this until all the children are sitting down!

Main Activity: turn an object into a character!

You will need:

  • assorted discarded household objects:

  • newspaper

  • Glue

  • Water

  • Paint

  • Googly eyes

  • Paintbrushes

  • Scissors

  • String

Steps

  1. Pick a household object that you do not need. Example: Yoghurt cup, spray bottle, old plastic fork or egg carton.

  2. Draw it as a cartoon character. Think about its personality.

    • Is it happy, grumpy, sneaky, or adventurous?

    • How would it move or react in different situations?

  3. Go back to your object and change it into a character

    • Give it eyes, a nose, a mouth, hair, or other details.

    • Use newspaper and glue to change or build onto the object.

  4. While students are making: Help them

  5. Paint your character and let it dry.

Conclusion: Show and tell

  • Hold up your character

  • Move it like it is alive

  • Make a sound or voice for it