Date: May 11, 1997

Grade Level(s): 4

Subject(s):

• Arts/Visual Arts
• Arts/Process Skills

Outcomes:

Students will demonstrate the ability to use paper folding by understanding the Japanese culture, and some of the reasons why it is believed that Origami was started.

Materials:

1. Origami paper
2. Book on folding Origami
3. Regular typing paper

While teaching a unit on Japan, explain to the students how different cultures have different forms of art. One of the many forms of art used in Japan is called Origami. Show the students examples of different styles of Origami.

Procedure:

Tell the students that the Japanese consider the crane lucky because it is said to live for about one thousand years. It is Japan's most popular Origami figure. Tell them that most Origami figures have some kind of story behind them.

Explain to the students that the beginning folds are very important in creating most Origami birds and animals.

Let the students practice on typing paper before using the origami paper.

Demonstrate each of the following steps to the students, have them follow your example, and ask questions. (Have the diagram set up to illustrate easier. 

1. The square basic form.
2. Fold the bottom half where the opening is up to the top, do this on each side.
3. Crease the paper along the dotted line to make the next step.
4. Open the top layer and gently pull Point A out and up. Turning the outside edges of the paper to the middle at the same time.
5. Make a solid crease along the edges.
6. Make sure the edges are very close to touching each other.
7. Fold the outer edges in on both sides.
8. Fold the lower two points upward.
9. Turning the layers outside in at the same time.
10. Fold the front point down, turning it outside in to make the head, and pull the two flaps outward to make the wings.
11. Blow air into the hole at the bottom, to inflate the crane.

* Remind the students that practice will help to make the figures and folds look better.

Useful Internet Resources:

CLN Origami Theme Page
http://www.cln.org/themes/origami.html

Origami WWW Pages
http://www.contra.org/fun/origami_www.html

Eric's Origami Page
http://www.paperfolding.com

Jim Plank's Origami Page (Modular)
http://www.cs.utk.edu/~plank/plank/origami/origami.html

How to Fold a Crane
http://www.cs.cmu.edu/afs/cs.cmu.edu/user/sprite/www/Origami/origami.html

Joseph Wu's Origami Page
http://www.origami.vancouver.bc.ca/

Let's Try Origami
http://www.jinjapan.org/kidsweb/virtual/origami/origami.html

Origami USA
http://www.origami-usa.org/

Origamido - The Way of Origami
http://www.origamido.com/

The Geometry Junk Yard - Origami
http://www.ics.uci.edu/~eppstein/junkyard/origami.html

A Paper Folding Project
http://www.sgi.com/grafica/fold/page001.html

Ken Blackburn's Paper Planes & More
http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/1817/

Simple Flying Machines Theme Page
http://www.cln.org/themes/flying.html