Beyond be-leaf

In spite of the fact that I am a Brit, I feel that fall is a perfect name for that time of year; after all, it is a time when above all, things – fall.  Things like leaves.  You cannot venture outside the classroom at the moment without a swirl of leaves curling round your head and buffeting your legs on their tortuous paths to the ground.

Leaves of different shapes and sizes.  Leaves in greens and reds and yellows and browns.  Leaves there for the gathering.  And gather we did. 

We wanted leaves in a range of shapes and sizes.  Colour, this time, didn’t much matter; we would be using the leaves to print with, using our own colours.

First we needed to do a ‘feely’ test…..

(we would use the rough underside of the leaf to print from).

Next, paints in ‘autumnal’ (or should I say 'fall?) colours were chosen…..

with which to paint the underneath of the leaves.

When we had painted our chosen leaves, we would arrange them on the desk-top…..

‘wrong’ side up, before carefully pressing down a piece of paper on the top.

Alternatively, individual leaves might be pressed down onto the paper, and then carefully peeled off…..

to reveal the pattern…..

left behind.

Leaves of course would not be pressed down onto the table and then carefully peeled off to reveal the pattern left behind; no no no!

In no time at all it was time to clear up for lunch; autumnal newspaper (yes, we used newspaper!) to be thrown away…..

tables to be wiped…..

and hands to be washed – some of them very thoroughly indeed!