RIC-20938 Early years Fairytales - Ugly Duckling

The ugly duckling – 3
Visual arts
• Use grey or brown paint handprints to create an ugly
duckling (with the thumb forming
the neck and the spread fingers
forming the body and feathers).
Print a head shape by using a
round cork or similar circular
shape. When dry, use coloured
markers to draw the beak, eye and
wing details.
• Use a similar technique and white paint to
make a handprint of a swan. Use extra-white paint and
a brush to extend the neck into a curve and head. Add a
beak and eyes using coloured markers when dry.
• Use this activity to demonstrate how something that
appears ugly can actually be beautiful. Ask the children
to use wax crayons to completely colour sections of
a sheet of art paper or card. Ensure that they press
heavily and leave no white gaps. When completed, ask
them to apply a thick layer of black paint over the top.
Allow to dry. Give each child a craft stick to scratch out
a drawing or pattern. The resulting artwork will be bright
and highlighted by the black sections. Discuss how the
artwork shows that we cannot always judge others by
what they look like.
• Provide inexpensive yellow rubber ducks (one for each
child) and thick paint. Paint the yellow rubber ducks
grey or brown to create an ‘ugly duckling’ and add
features such as feathers to make them cygnets.
• Have each child trace around their foot on grey or brown
coloured paper and cut it out. Glue small triangular
pieces torn from tissue paper to the body for feathers.
Trace around five or six hand shapes in similar or
contrasting colours and cut out. Glue to the back in
a fan shape for duck feathers. Attach googly eyes, a
triangular beak and feet.
• Look at pictures of duck’s nests. Discuss the
shape, materials used and how the eggs
are positioned. Use natural materials such
as grass, twigs, sticks, mud and feathers to
make a duck’s nest in a grassy area near the
classroom. Fill with playdough or clay eggs.
• Use a template to show a duckling emerging from an
egg. Refer to page 73.
• Use a template to cut out two flying swan shapes
from white felt. Refer to for ideas. Ask the
children to sew around the edges. Leave a gap to stuff
the toy with wadding or scrap material. Stuff, then sew
up the gap. Glue on a button eye and draw wings by
using a black marker. Hang the toy by using wool to
make a display of swans flying across the room.
• Practise folding skills to create a simple swan shape
from a single sheet of white A4 paper. Fold a large
square in half from one end to form a triangular body.
Cut off excess paper. Fold a small square in half to form
a triangular head. Fold the remaining rectangle in half
to form a long neck. Glue or staple the edges of each
piece and then glue or staple all three pieces together.
Add features as desired.
fold
fold
cut
cut
• Provide soft brown clay for the children to make 3-D
models of the ugly duckling and white clay to mould a
swan. Display on a mirror to simulate water. If desired,
the children could create rushes and grass from green
playdough to stand around the edges.
• Add ‘snow’ and ‘ice’ by using packing beads or torn or
crumpled white crepe paper, to a painted winter scene
from the story.
• Create simple stick or finger puppets to dramatise the
story of ‘The ugly duckling’. Ask the children to draw or
paint the characters onto cardboard, then cut them out.
Add a craft stick handle and a label.
• Using blue and green paint one crumpled paper, paint
a window pane to make it look like a pond. (Add a
small amount of dishwashing liquid to the paint to
make removing easier.) Paint or attach duck and swan
outlines to complete the scene.
R.I.C. Publications ® – www.ricpublications.com.au Early years themes—Fairytales—The ugly duckling 67