Inspired by Tar Beach (2nd Grade)

During Black History Month, I worked in a 2nd grade classroom to create a collaborative art piece inspired by Tar Beach (“a weaving of fiction, autobiography, and African-American history and literature”) by Faith Ringgold. The goal was to create our own dream quilt together. I always love to see the ways that different kids use the same materials.

We read the book together, discussed the goal of the project, and then completed the project in six steps:

• Create a building for the city
• Write your dream on a square
• Paint the wood panel blue
• Collage the buildings (center) and dream squares (edge) onto the wood panel
• Add a star to the sky for each student
• Apply protective coat