Toddler Art Class: Masking Tape Mummies

Tape + a die cut machine = lots of artistic options!

Art Project: Masking Tape "Mummies"
Supplies:
masking tape (the off-white kind)
black construction paper
die-cut machine (optional: you could use scissors and just cut out shapes instead)
crayons (optional)

Book: 
  Mommy? / Sendak, Maurice
*note:  like many Sendak titles, this one is decidedly... odd. It's a pop-up book, so it held the kids' attention and I don't often get an excuse to read it to a group, but I wouldn't recommend going out of your way to get this book if you don't already own it.



 Where I found inspiration: No time for flashcards's Masking Tape Mummy


What Kids Do: get a loooooooong piece of tape

stick it to the paper:

or the table, or both:

take the paper to the die-cut machine, choose a die and cut it out (I didn't have a gingerbread man-type silhouette, so we made things like "mummy foot!" "mummy giraffe!")

 This giraffe was especially exciting because they realized they could make it stand up like the pop-up book we'd just read! (then, this artist drew some grass for the giraffe to eat):

You could also... put tape on the shape after it's cut out:

make a puzzle to put back together:

color on the tape (last week was a reprise of this project as I was out of town and a different librarian was teaching the class, so this week, some of the kids still wanted to continue that activity again.  hooray!):

the tape also makes a great pet:

and although I think this was actually a mom's idea (not a self-directed kid-discovery), I love the idea of using the die-cut hole as a stencil!

Hindsight Tip:  During the first class, I didn't really clarify that they were supposed to cut shapes from the taped-up papers, so everyone was just cutting from plain pieces of construction paper and were likely quite confused about why I was calling them "mummies."  Reminder to take your time when explaining and demonstrating even if the room is quite chaotic.

 Variations to try: 

This could be a completely different project with washi tape and brightly colored paper (maybe around Easter time? or with a birthday book?)