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Colorful Textured Cards

Colorful Textured Cards

Students will create their own rubbing plates and use them to make textured cards for a holiday greeting or any occasion.

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.

  • Color Sticks Colored Pencils
  • Heavy Paper
  • Paper

Steps

  • Step 1

    Sending greeting cards became a widespread tradition in the late 19th century. As relatives and loved ones spread out geographically, sending holiday cards was a way to maintain a connection to those far away. Today, the internet makes it very easy for us to interact with loved ones, but research shows that there are great benefits to sending and receiving a physical communication. It shows intention and commitment, and most people find that receiving a card or letter in the mail lifts their spirits.

  • Step 2

    Ask students to think about someone special and a message they'd like to communicate to them, then have them plan a design for a card they will create using a textured rubbing plate.

  • Step 3

    To create the rubbing plate, have students "draw" a design with glue onto a piece of heavy paper. When it dries it will form a raised texture that can be transferred to paper that's laid above it and rubbed over.

  • Step 4

    When their rubbing plates are dry, have students fold paper into a card. Ask them to write a message if they'd like on the front of the card, then place the card over a rubbing plate and use the flat side of a crayon to rub over it. They might also use the rubbing plates on scrap paper and cut designs out to glue into a collage on the card. .

Standards

ARTS: Explore and invent art-making techniques and approaches.

SEL: Relationship Skills: Establish and maintain healthy and supportive relationships and effectively navigate settings with diverse individuals and groups.

Adaptations

Have students create cards to deliver to nursing home residents or hospital patients.

Encourage students to write a physical letter and send it to someone through the mail. They can make their own envelope by decorating a piece of paper with the rubbing plate designs.