Batik

Batik

Materials Needed:

100% cotton material

Tempura Paint

Elmer's Liquid Glue

The hardest part in creating my Batik was putting enough glue onto the fabric that the paint would not soak through but not too much glue so that it all ran together into one giant blob.

When I first started all of my glue ran together so I had to wash it off and start all over. The second time around I traced my pattern on first and then started squeezing the glue on, very lightly. Once the glue was dry I painted over everything with blues and greens, following the sea theme. When the paint dried I washed the cloth in the washing machine on gentle and hung dry.

If I were to teach this lesson, I would only do it with about fourth graders and up. Younger grades tend not to have the fine motor skills needed to squeeze the glue into a pattern. With a project like this, too much glue would ruin the final product and cause the younger students to become upset.

One possible way to teach this lesson to younger grades would be to pour the glue into cups or bowls and have the students paint the glue on with paintbrushes.

I would also suggest they lightly draw their pattern on with pencil before beginning.