The fish are on display at Tropical World in
Leeds. Three fish appear to be swimming
along the top of one of the walls and as you turn the corner you are greeted by
ten more.
During their topic on Japan, the children first looked at Koinobori flags (carp kites) which are flown on Children’s Day which is a festival and public holiday in Japan which falls on the fifth day of the fifth month. This provided some background knowledge around the concept of Children’s Day.
This is a festival which celebrates the future success
and health of Japan’s children. Carp
kites symbolize success and are believed to represent strength and
determination of spirit in the same way as the koi carp swims against the
current. As the koi carp has a long life
span it is considered a symbol of success whilst the bright colours are
believed to drive away evil spirits.
Beautiful Koi carp swim in the pools in the butterfly
enclosure at Tropical World which is why I thought of Tropical World as the
obvious place to display the children’s artwork.
Each pupil brought in a pillowcase and working in
pairs, they cut it open and drew around the koi carp template. They then stuck
down the edges and let it dry for the next session.
During the next session they looked at some examples
of koinobori flags and concentrated on painting the intricate pattern using
fabric paint.
