Popping Up Bluebonnets!

K - 2 Activity - Teacher Directions

Summary

Using popcorn and powder paint, students make 3-d bluebonnets.

Background:

The bluebonnet is the state flower. Each bloom on the main stock resembles a small “bonnet” or hat worn by women in the nineteenth century.

Materials:

• light blue construction paper or card stock
• crayons or markers
• glue
• popcorn, popcorn popper
• dry, blue tempura paint powder

Procedure:

1. Use attached outline of bluebonnet to copy by Xerox machine or trace by hand onto construction paper or card stock.
2. Pop 2 cups of popcorn kernels. While still warm from popping, shake into a big brown paper grocery market bag and add one-fourth cup of dry blue tempera paint powder into bag.
3. Close top of brown paper bag tightly and shake. The dry tempera paint will stick to popcorn kernels and stain them various shades of blue.
4. Have students color leaves and stem of the bluebonnet outline with a green crayon or marker.
5. Fill in sections of the bloom area with glue then glue each blue popped kernel one at a time to fill in the entire area. The blue popped kernels resemble bluebonnet blooms.
6. Hint: Pop some extra popcorn (with no dry tempera paint!) and allow students to eat a small amount of popcorn before or after make these popcorn bluebonnets.

Additional Activity:

Have students create a field of bluebonnets on a bulletin board or wall space with their hand-made bluebonnets.