Recently at Tzu Chi, the students were led into a discussion on the significance of light and the uses of Chinese lanterns in celebrations around the world. The children were eager to talk about the uses of illumination in their own lives. It was interesting to watch the students play with the concepts of light and dark. Shortly after our discussion, the class was encouraged to draw representations of light on pieces of construction paper. These drawings would eventually become the decorations for their very own Chinese lanterns.
After a quick volunteer demo, the children began to cut and assemble their crafts. Each student watched in amazement as their flat pieces of paper quickly turned into beautiful, 3D Chinese lanterns. String was added to the tops of the lanterns so that they could easily be hung in a special place.
This simple craft is now one of our most favored activities at Tzu Chi. Paper, a pair of scissors and a little bit of tape is all you need in order to make art come alive