Clay modelling for kids: Clay projects for kids including clay sculpture ideas and how to make clay beads

Clay art with modelling clay

There are many benefits to clay modeling and making clay art projects for children. There are three basic types of clay that are for the most part given to children for clay crafts and clay play. The first one is the very well known and popular play-Doh .  I discuss the different types of clay in another post along with how to make clay at home or in the classroom, the different clays and their benefits.
Another popular but, not as soft type of clay is plasticine . The clay that I am going to concentrate on here is the one that allows the best clay modelling for kids as it is soft, pliable and allows you to make many air dry clay projects like clay sculptures and clay beads. I happen to love this type of clay for kids for many reason firstly being that it really gives the kids playing with it so many benefits.

The benefits of clay modeling for kids

Even though there are many clay projects for kids that are done when looking for clay art projects or clay crafts none of them give the same developmental benefits kids get from playing and working with the air drying type of clay.

Working with clay is a multi sensory experience. The children love the feel of the mushy clay and it allows them to be dirty and messy in an accepted way. I have  a friend who was teaching preschool and had a little girl who refused to use the bathroom.The teacher discovered that the little girl mom was a clean fanatic since her mother was a bit obsessive  and this little girl was scared to make herself dirty.

My friend started giving this child lots of clay to play with and after a few weeks this little girl was able to use the bathroom. This is like real therapy in action with just a bit of clay.Playing with the clay gave the little girl an outlet and allowed her to free herself up to be able to use her natural functions normally.

Pounding and squeezing the clay also allows the children to release many aggressive feelings they may have in a socially acceptable manner. They can pound and press, pinch and knead and even dramatize scenarios. This is almost like play therapy

Playing with the clay is great for children’s large muscle and fine motor coordination as well. The large muscles are used as the clay is solid and gives a lot of resistance. The kids have to use all of their muscles to get it to do what they want. Their fine motor control is exercised as well as they pinch and roll and maneuver the clay to do what they want.

Different types of air drying clay and how to manage it

It comes either in 2 lb packs like AMACO Marblex Self-Hardening Clay, 2-Pound, Grey or in a AMACO Stonex Self-Hardening Clay, 5-Pound, White and for large groups of children comes in 25 lbs. They also come in a few different colors.School Smart Air Dry Clay – 25 pound, Red and the Amaco Marblex Clay 25lb which is gray.

This clay can be very messy so you may want to use it outdoors if you have the space and the right weather. I used it many times in my classroom when I was a kindergarten and preschool teacher and it just works fine in the classroom. I also used it with my own children in my home. You can have the children use it on the table but, it needs to be sponged down very well with lots of water when you are done. You also need to take care not to put the leftover pieces in the toilet or the sink as they will harden at some point and clog the drains.

If you want to make the clean up a bit easier you can use clay boards if you can find them (we used to use them years ago and I haven’t seen them in a while) , pieces of canvas or pieces of linoleum. Anything that is large enough, heavy enough and doesn’t stick to the clay will work.

How to cut it

If you look at the picture at the top of this post you will see me cutting it. We use a piece of string to cut it

How to store it

After the children finish playing with the clay have them roll into a  ball the size of an orange or a grapefruit.Then using their thumbs as shown above, make a small indentation in the ball. You then take a small bit of water and pour it slowly into the hole.

This needs to be  supervised closely as the children can drown it with water and it only needs a very little bit. Once the water is in, you gently smush some of the clay with your fingers over the hole.

The children can then lay the balls of clay in a  plastic container.

Originally I had learned that when storing the clay you need to first put it into a plastic bag, then put a damp rag over it and cover it tightly in the plastic container. I did however, discover that you don’t need the plastic bag. A wet rag  will often also make it moldy.

 Stages in clay projects for kids

If you have been to any of the other posts on this site you will already know that we believe in giving kids projects that are only developmentally appropriate. Clay crafts is no exception. Therefore, we don’t expect children to make projects that are copies of adult models or expect them to do clay modelling like children much older then them are capable of.  There are basically 4 stages of development that children go through in their clay play that closely mirrors their development in other areas of art.

1. Their first exposure to clay is usually an exploration of what it is. They may taste it, smell it, push it, throw it and interact with it without really knowing what to do with it.
2. The next stage is where they are learning what they can do with the clay. They can  roll, squeeze, pinch, pound, poke, tear, stretch and any other number of things.
3. They will start making things and labeling. I made a snake, a snowman or food is common at this stage.
4. This is when they come to their clay activities with an idea in mind. They know what they are going to make and accessories are a good thing to add at this stage. You might want to try the SE Pottery Tool

 Clay crafts that are developmentally appropriate

There are three types of activities that I would introduce to children in stage 4 if you really want to give the children a bit more direction. Clay pots, clay sculpture ideas and clay beads.

Clay pots

There are 2 kinds of clay pots you can make with children. The first one are pinch pots and the second are coil pots.

The way to make the pinch pots is as follows:

1. Take a piece of clay about the size of a grapefruit or an orange.
2. Roll it into a round ball
3. Put it into your left hand (if you are a righty)
4. Put the thumb of you right hand in the middle of the middle and start pushing.
5. As you push keep turning the ball around
6. Eventually a pot will develop as you keep pushing and turning

Interestingly enough everyone’s pots come out looking different even though the technique is the same.

The second way to make a pinch pot is to keep making rolled pieces of clay (or snakes as the kids call it) and then keep stacking them on top of each other. To keep them together you may have to rub bits of clay between the rolls to act as a sort of glue.

Clay sculptures

Before beginning sculpting with clay, meaning creating  figures like people or animals with children, you should have them make some sort  of bowl, cup or pot. I always start my kids off with pinch pots that I explain above.

Making pots first gives children the feel of how to shape the clay with a vision of what they are going to get from their shaping. In order to teach children how to make an animal or person from a lump of clay, which is very daunting, you need to break it down into parts and get them to see shapes inside the clay.

Children first need to wedge the clay. First they have to roll it into a big lump, then roll it, tap one end, then the other end. Basically roll, roll, roll and then tap, tap, tap. This will make it a dense cylinder which is the first step in sculpting. children need to learn how to pull pieces from their clay rather than making a bunch of small pieces and sticking them together.

Of  course, there will be times they will have to attach small pieces and in order to to that they will have to use slip. Slip is very soft pieces of clay that works as a glue. Its’ s like a mush of clay and water, sort of like a goo. If you keep this slip in a tightly sealed container you can use it over and over again.

Another way to keep the pieces together is to make your finger a little bit wet and rub the pieces together once they are attached. In order to make sure  pieces don’t fall off of each other is to help the children start their sculpting project with the cylinder. If they decide to do it the other way then they must make sure that their pieces are thick. No thin arms and legs as they will snap off when dry.

When adding pieces of clay to their pieces they will also need to score the clay. This just means making the texture of the clay more bumpy so that there is something to stick the slip onto. You can do this around the area you need to add the pieces by using a clay tool or a plastic fork or anything else you have handy. so score the clay, add some slip and then press the pieces together then add a bit more slip.

Children can learn to see what they want to make before they make it and pull away the pieces they don’t need to show ears, a head and other pieces. It will certainly take a lot of practice.

Clay beads

Clay beads are one of the easiest of the clay crafts kids can make. All they have to do is make many little balls of clay. Poke a hole in each one.

Paint when dry and then string.

Clay modelling tools and accessories

Clay tools and accessories should not be given to children at the outset. They need to get really used to the medium and have had lots of experience with it before you introduce them to accessories. When you do, you do not only have to give them ones you buy in clay tool kits. You can give them scissors, toothpicks, plastic forks, plastic knives, cookies cutters, pizza cutters and any other kitchen utensils that you think they can use.

To summarize some of the points of clay crafts with air drying clay:

1. It is bought it blocks.  5 lb. blocks and up to to 20lb or 25lb.
2. It needs to be cut with a wire or string. (see picture )
3. It must always be stored in a closed plastic container.
4. You can keep it in it’s plastic and then put into the container
5. Children should be covered with smocks as it can get very dirty
6. Try not to give the children utensils to work with at first. They should first get used to seeing what they can do with the clay with their hands and fingers.
7. The children should spend a few days playing with the clay before they attempt to make things and let them dry. The more time they spend just using it, the more they learn its properties and what they can and can’t do with it.

There are many art stores you can buy the gray clay and you will probably want to use the 5lb box if you are doing this at home.  For teachers you will want to purchase the largest amount.

To clean up after a session with clay, you will need large sponges and a lot of water.

Sometimes the children themselves enjoy the cleanup process more than the clay playing itself.

Enjoy the clay and if you want to find out about more great art for kids, then check out my 2 ebooks for the price of one right here.

Related posts:

1. How do you make clay at home or in the kindergarten or preschool classroom