Year 4 Scarab Beetles

This term for Year 4 Art lessons the children have been studying the scarab beetle, to link to their current topic of Ancient Egypt. The children have studied and drawn the beetle before using clay to create a sculpture. The children had one piece of clay that they used to create the main shape. They then used their thumbs to carve and define the shape further. Using the excess clay that they had removed, some of the children added legs using a ‘slip, score, smooth’ method to ensure the legs stayed secure once their sculpture had dried. The children then used clay tools to add patterns and detail to the outside of their scarab beetle. Once dried, they trialled a new top tip of using PVA to seal the clay before painting. I am sure you will agree, as the children did, this definitely helped to make the colours pop. The children couldn’t wait to take their precious sculptures home and many have even named their scarab beetles too!