MAKING A ZOETROPE!
Tuesday, March 9, 2010 at 10:46AM Have you ever put together a ZOETROPE? It is a ton of fun!
This zoetrope design comes from the folks at www.the-making-place.co.uk - one of my favorite sites for cool classroom activities!
J.H. Everett - www.jheverett.com
A zoetrope is a 19th-century toy that uses single sequentially ordered pictures to create animation on a cylindrical surface. As you turn the cylinder, the pictures merge to look like one continuiously moving animation. It is one of the earliest forms of animated cartoons!
Here is how you build one:
(you need some basic tools like scissors, a pencil, tape, a glue stick, a craft mat, and the file attached to this activity.)
First, you need to print out the Zoetrope worksheet that is attached to this activity. It is best if you use card stock that is 65 lbs or more. Remember to use paper that will work in your printer! The color can be any one that you choose.
Second, carefully cut out each of the pieces of the worksheet. Make sure that you only cut along the solid lines and not the dotted lines! The dotted lines are to show you where to score (scratch into the surface) and to fold. The pieces should look like the pictures below.
Third, with a closed ballpoint pen, score the dotted lines that create the center circle of the zoetrope. Also, poke your pencil through the centers of the zoetrope and the paper washer. Then, set the pencil and washer aside.
J.H. Everett, Studio 5, The Toymaker, zoetrope in classroom
Reader Comments (2)
WOW! I love this! I did this with our boys and they had so much fun! I might even do it with Pima class! Always exciting to do something artistic! Thanks!
Great fun with any class - whether they just make a pre-designed one or design their own image.