Ready for another culture? Introducing...
Zambia, Africa
The Zambians craft a cloth made from the bark of mulberry and other varieties of trees. This tapa cloth is then designed with geometric patterns and ink. It is used as clothing or decorations in their homes.
Supplies:
brown paper grocery bag or craft paper
pencil
ruler
tempera paint (or markers)
Approximate cost: $.10 (or free if you already have a paper grocery bag)
Directions:
Cut your bag or craft paper to measure about 9 x 10 inches.
Wad up into a ball.
Wet with water; squeeze out excess. Gently open paper so that it does not tear and set on a counter overnight to dry. This will give it a nice texture.
When dried completely, draw several vertical lines with a pencil. I drew mine with a sharpie so you could see it better, but pencil is the way to go! They should be slanted in different directions!
Draw several slanted horizontal lines through the vertical ones.
Using black tempera paint, paint your design like a checkerboard. The result is a very authentic looking tapa cloth design.
Another design option is to draw alternating half circles on the horizontal lines.
A different result entirely!
Options:
Younger children- Draw the designs on the paper beforehand, and have them paint it.
Older children- Give them a blank sheet of paper, some examples, and have them draw and paint their own design.
Quicker Option- Don't have time for the paint to dry? Color the design with markers instead!
Extra Activity:
Color a map of Zambia!
Stay tuned for Zambia tasting!
