Recommended Age: 3 to 6 years
Level of Parent Involvement: Medium to trace around the child’s upper body then low, mostly supervision whilst the child decorates
Prerequisites
- None
Materials
- Large sheet of butcher’s paper or A2 paper (if you don’t have A2 paper, you can tape pieces of A3 or A4 paper together, large enough to fit the upper half of the child’s body)
- Masking tape
- Wool
- PVA glue in a paint pot with a glue spreader or paintbrush
- Pencils, textas or crayons to decorate
- Paint to decorate, 3-4 colours in paint pots
- Paint brushes
- A smock
- Scissors
- Large postage envelope
- 2 Stamps
Preparation
- Ensure you have the A2 paper, if you don’t have A2 paper, tape the A3 or A4 paper together with masking tape
- Place the paint into the pots with their paint brushes and set out the other decorating items (pencils, textas or crayons and wool)
- Allocate a space where the child can paint their ‘hug’, you might like to attach their ‘hug’ to an easel or if weather permits, tape the paper up outdoors for the child to paint to minimise mess indoors
Steps
- Invite the child, taking them to a comfortable space, to have a discussion. For example, the couch, a book/reading area, a peaceful place outdoors, etc.
- Have a conversation with the child about the current Covid-19 pandemic in a calm and factual way by saying, “you know things are a little bit different at the moment because of the virus, and we have to stay home a lot and not see our friends and family?”
- Gauge the child’s response providing calm and reassuring facts, you may like to read the social story from the resource library (see link)
- Let the child know that even though we can’t see our friends and family at the moment we can still let them know that we are thinking about them by sending them a ‘hug’
- Explain to the child that we can’t really send a ‘hug’, but they can make one
- Take the child to a space where there is enough room for them to lay down, explaining to them that you are going to trace around their head and arms on the paper to make a ‘hug’ outline for them to decorate and send to a friend or family member
- Lay the paper down on the floor, invite the child to lay down
- Using a marker or crayon trace around the child’s head and outstretched arms to their mid body
- The child may get up, notice with the child the shape of the outline of their body, pointing out their head, arms, hands, etc.
- Remove the paper from the floor and take to the allocated space for the child to decorate
- Show the child the materials, the paints, the wool for the hair, the paste, the crayons, etc.
- Invite the child to decorate their ‘hug’
- Leave the child to work independently
- Come back when the child is finished, explaining that they need to let their ‘hug’ dry if they have used paint/glue
- Come back with the child when the ‘hug’ is dry
- Ask the child who they would like to send their ‘hug’ to
- Fold up the ‘hug’ so that it fits into the postage envelope, show the child how to write the address on the front of the envelope
- Write the child’s address on the back
- The child may attach the stamps in the top right corner of the envelope
- Go for a walk with the child to the closest post box, the child may put the envelope in the post box
Variations
- On another day you may trace around the child’s whole body and invite them to decorate, focusing on the details of their faces, clothes, hands, feet, etc.
- Older children who are writing may copy the address of the recipient onto the envelope and write their address on the back
- Invite the child to trace around a sibling or family member
