Prepare your clay:
This type of clay is sold in a plastic bag to keep it from drying out. Check whether it is too wet or too dry before you begin modeling objects with it.

If the clay is too dry and cracks easily: Make a ball of clay. Make an indentation in the middle. Fill the hole with water. Put the clay in a plastic bag for a day or two. The clay will soften up!

If the clay is too wet and sticky: Roll it into a thick snake. Bend it like an arch. Let it dry for several hours. Knead your clay like bread dough to get rid of air bubbles which can expand and shatter your object when it is fired in a kiln.

Make a Pinch Pot:
1. Roll a ball about the size of a peach in the palm of your hands.
2. Hold the ball in one hand and press the thumb on your hand into the middle of the ball.
3. Pinch the wall of the pot thinner and thinner between your thumb and index finger.

Make a Coil Pot:
1. Roll a piece of clay out about 1/4 of an inch thick with a rolling pin.
2. Cut around a jar lid to make a circular base for your pot.
3. Roll out several snakes of clay which are all the same thickness.
4. Wind the snake around the top and outside of the base. Break off extra coil when you get all the way around the base.
5. On the inside of the pot, blend the snake into the base.
6. Add the next snake and blend it into the snake below on the inside
of the pot. On the outside, you can smooth the coils or leave them showing.

Make a Figure:
1. Sculpt a figure.
2. Hollow out areas that are more than 3/4 of an inch thick. Do not trap air in your clay; it will explode when fired.
3. Let your clay dry thoroughly before firing.
4. Contact a local ceramic supplier to fire your red rock clay pots.

Back to the Activity Center