Early Childhood

The Essential Question
How do we sew a stitch?

Objective
Students will create a quilt square by combining a variety of materials.

Materials
chipboard, felt stickers (cut to squares and triangles), hole puncher(s), pipe cleaners, Stitchinʼ and Pullinʼ: A Geeʼs Bend Quilt by Patricia McKissack (Dragonfly Books, 2016)

Procedures
1. Introduce students to Gee’s Bend Quilts through the book Stitchin’ and Pullinʼ: A Gee’s Bend Quilt. Ask students to make observations about the quilts: “What colors do you see? What shapes? What materials did the artist use to create this? What is the item used for?”
2. Emphasize how a quilt is made of many pieces called blocks or quilt squares. Share, “Many of the artists who created these quilts made them to keep a loved one warm. Who would you want to give a quilt to? Who is special in your life who could use something cozy and protective?” Then explain, “Today, we will each make a quilt square for someone special in your life.”
3. Demonstrate how to make a stitch using an under-and-over pattern. Have students guide you by repeating the words “over and under, over and under” out loud while you work.
4. Distribute chipboard cut down into squares and prepped with holes punched along the edges. Then pass out pipe cleaners and allow students to experiment with making stitches using an over-under pattern.
5. Once stitches are complete, distribute felt stickers cut down to squares and triangles. Allow students to make choices about color and shape while they arrange the stickers on the chipboard.
6. Once complete, distribute colored pencils. On the back of the quilt square, students can draw a portrait or a special message to their loved one.
7. Arrange all the blocks to make a class quilt. Discuss how each studentʼs piece can be put together to make a whole.

Assessment
Students can demonstrate “a, b” pattern by creating a stitch.

Colleen Pickup is an art teacher at the Philadelphia Museum of Art in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.