GIFT #3

Froebel's 3rd gift, blocks, is the simple yet elegant first in a series of lessons using blocks. This gift presents a larger cube made from a symmetrical stack of 8 smaller wooden cube blocks. With these 8 cube blocks a child is supposed to gain an understanding of part and whole and fractions, and also explore symmetric patterns. As I pondered this gift, I thought a lot about how to further convey a part of a whole. I also thought about asymmetrical patterns that I am more drawn to as an adult and about early childhood drawings. I felt that if this set of 8 blocks had one colored one, then that might focus a child in on the part of the whole concept and perhaps he could use this block to influence form of compositions created with the blocks. After making one set of the colored blocks I considered how a change in color would possibly affect a change in composition. So I created 3 more. Here is my Gift 3, "Eighth Chromes."

- Rebecca