Since I do not have a kiln, (I will get one someday!!) I purchased this Laguna brand air-dry clay from Clay Planet in San Jose. This is way better quality of clay than the Crayola brand or the brands you may find at craft stores. The only issue that I have with air-dry clay, is that sometimes pieces fall off very easily, as there really is not an efficient "slip" that one can use. So I often end up having to hot glue the fallen off pieces, which is fine for now!
We started with a biggggg ball of clay and rolled it relatively smoothly. I then demonstrated how to do a pinch pot. We made our pots, smoothed the edges, and then the children received a second bunch of clay, which was used for eye balls, beaks, wings, etc.
After the clay dried for about 1 week, the children used jazz tempura paint (dries very glossy) to pain their owls. We looked at photos of snowy and great-horned howls as inspiration. Children were, of course, allowed to get super creative and paint the pots however they wished. Enjoy!
