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The Art of Origami

The art of paper folding known as origami has been enjoyed for centuries. Students will explore the origins of this craft and decorate paper to use in an origami creation.

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

Gather all the supplies needed to bring your craft ideas to life! From paints and markers to glue and scissors, our crafts section has everything to spark creativity and make every project truly special.

  • Paper
  • Textured Materials

Steps

  • Step 1

    Though the art of paper folding (known in Chinese as "zhezhi") originated in China shortly after the invention of paper in 105 CE, origami has come to be associated with Japan since the 6th century, when paper was introduced to Japan. "Origami" is derived from the Japanese words "ori" meaning folding and "kami" meaning paper. Have students investigate its origins and the differences between origata, which is origami used in ceremonies and rituals, and recreational origami. What were and are some of the shapes used in ceremonial origami? When did its informal use emerge? When was it introduced into early childhood education in Japan?

  • Step 2

    Ask students to create texture patterns on sheets of thin paper by rubbing unwrapped crayons lengthwise over the paper's surface which is laid on top of textured materials such as corrugated cardboard, coins, bubble wrap, sandpaper, pieces of netting, etc.

  • Step 3

    When their paper is decorated, ask students to cut them into six-inch squares, which will be folded to form their origami creations. There are many online videos that show how to make simple creations. Have students choose a simple design to begin with, and when they are ready to progress, they can find a video that explains how to create a design that has special meaning to them.

  • Step 4

    When their origami is complete have students present their art and discuss why they chose the design they created. Then display the works in the classroom.

Standards

LA: Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers.

LA: Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text.

LA: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

LA: Participate in shared research and writing projects.

MATH: Draw points, lines, line segments, rays, angles (right, acute, obtuse), and perpendicular and parallel lines. Identify these in two-dimensional figures.

SS: Describe ways in which language, stories, folktales, music, and artistic creations serve as expressions of culture and influence behavior of people living in a particular culture.

SS: Use appropriate resources, data sources, and geographic tools to generate, manipulate, and interpret information.

VA: Use different media, techniques, and processes to communicate ideas, experiences, and stories.

VA: Use visual structures of art to communicate ideas.

Adaptations

Have students explore the works of modern origami artists such as Akira Yoshizawa (1911-2005) who was considered to be the grandmaster of origami, Hoang Tien Quyet (b. 1988), Sipho Mabona (a Swiss and South African artist who was the first non-Japanese artist to have his artwork grace the cover of the official magazine of the Japan Origami Academic Society), and others.

If students are developmentally ready to learn about the bombing of Hiroshima in 1945, have them research Sadako, the Japanese girl who was diagnosed with leukemia after WW II. She set out to create 1,000 folded paper cranes, which is explained in the book "Sadako" by Eleanor Coerr and Ed Young, and "Sadako and the Thousand Paper Cranes" by Eleanor Coerr and Ronald Himler. Younger students might not review the WWII bombing and instead research how paper cranes are now used to offer hope and strength for cancer patients. This oragmi is often folded and displayed in cancer treatment centers.