It’s hard not to be inspired by pebbles. You pick them up, you look at them and they speak silently to you in ways that words can’t describe. They are inexplicably powerful. Sometimes you pick one up, hold it and carry it with you for a while on your walk. Other times they get dropped and moved around by our actions as well as that of the waves, rivers and other geomorphological processes.
Some pebbles have white lines – bands of quartz – within them. Jessica’s Nature Blog has some fine examples. In the above photo, you can see that I have cheated and added a white line with an acrylic marker pen. A more gentle and natural alternative would have been to scratch the line with another stone. Likewise white chalk can be used for temporary work and experiments.
To spend time on the beach in warm summer sunshine, picking up pebbles and playing with them is special. It can be a calming and almost meditative experience. The ideas in this post came from seeing photos such as this one by Andy Goldsworthy.
In the photo below, I had to measure the length of each white line comparatively. The spiral is created from putting the the stones in a rough order from largest on the outside to smallest in the centre. This required some thinking as the lines are painted horizontally as well as vertically on the stones. So it was a bit like doing a jigsaw and fitting the pieces together.
It’s perfectly enjoyable simply playing around with pictures and possibilities of one straight line on each pebble. However, think about the fun which can be had when right angles are introduced…
Suddenly the shape-making properties of the simple line are increased. So what happens when T-Bars or two right angles are added into a shape…
Or how about some Y-angles – the value of acute and obtuse angles. There is no need to stick to regular shapes. You can just enjoy laying out the stones and seeing what happens. This helps little children learn a lot about how a change of angle, changes direction and thus the shape of any given piece of work.
Naturally the teacher-within-me surfaced and I just had to make a letter from the alphabet…
Of course, when you look at straight lines, you have to consider the opposite possibilities and see how curved lines work. Perhaps my curves are too squiggly…
When investigating lines and patterns the world of art and maths delightfully merge and dance together. What do you think? One thing I’ve found is that white seems to be the most powerful colour. Coloured lines do not seem to feel right. I’ve no idea why this is the situation. Have a go and find out for yourself this summer, should you be at the beach…
This post was originally published in July 2014.
Juliet, this is the loveliest of ideas. Simple brilliance. Will be sharing far and wide. xx
Lovely idea, very jealous that you are so near a beach with ready access to pebbles!
Thanks – it is such a little gem of an idea…!
Kierna… agreed – I do like living within a stone’s throw of the sea 🙂
You just dont know how much idea has this post sparked! I almost want to go to the beach now to get some stones but I will calm myself and do it later or tomorrow. This is an amazing idea. Best ever. #CountryKids
Thanks Merlinda – That what I was hoping for when I posted that it would give others seeds of ideas…
What a great, simple but educational and fun idea! We were just at a wedding at the weekend where they used pebbles painted with white paint for place settings – I’m guessing the bride and groom found them as inspiring as you! Not seen this idea before though – love it! #countrykids
Thanks Kate – I hadn’t seen this idea anywhere else either, so I’d love to be able to claim this as a first. I did a Pinterest search too checking lots of pebble, stone and rock photos 🙂 … perhaps someone will tell me otherwise.
It’s so simple and easy to do that we’ll definitely be recommending it.
Show My Homework / @ShowMyHomework
Stunning idea!! So beautiful and suitable for children’s exploration and open-ended learning. The possibilities seem endless. Thank you so much for posting, Juliet.
Hi! I made these with paint markers and chalk markers and both seem to chip off. I put modge podge on the stones to try and protect them and it didn’t work. The modge podge didn’t dry completely clear and it started to peel off anyway. Any suggestions? Thanks!
I used acrylic deco marker pens. These do fade over time and need topped up every few months to a year depending on usage. If you are using some-polished stones the paint will not stay on as well. Hope this helps.