Create YouShape photo frames
You’ll need
- Glue sticks
- Sticky tape
- Camera or phone
- Neutral craft materials, such as lollypop sticks, pom poms, buttons, ribbon, bubble wrap and so on
- Natural objects, such as acorns, pebbles, leaves, sticks and so on
- Clean and safe household objects, such as pasta, rice, nuts and bolts, plastic plant pots, and so on
- Frames (either pictures frames or you can make your own card frames)
- Cardboard
Before you begin
- Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. There's also more guidance to help you carry out your risk assessment, including examples.
- Make sure all young people and adults involved in the activity know how to take part safely.
- Make sure you’ll have enough adult helpers. You may need some parents and carers to help.
Planning and setting up this activity
- Gather lots of different items that may be useful for people to decorate their photo frames. They could be items from or that represent their favourite things or time in Scouts. You may wish to ask people to bring things from home too.
- Cover any surfaces to stop them from getting messy. You may want to run this activity outside.
- Make sure equipment and materials are age appropriate. Supervise the activity closely to make sure small objects are not put in mouths, ears and noses. Remind young people not to put anything in their mouth and wash hands regularly.
- This activity can contribute towards the ‘Central’ section of the YouShape Award, depending on the Scouts section you’re in. If this session completes the requirement for an individual or a group, you may want to give out the ‘Central’ badge out at the end of the session.
Run the activity
- Gather everyone together. Tell them that they’re going to use their imaginations to get creative and decorate a photo frame. They should be inspired by things they like or enjoy doing in Scouts. They should also try to include things they want to try or learn more about.
- Everyone can start decorating the frames. Let people get creative and see what they make. There’s no wrong or right way for young people to decorate the frames or use the materials. The main thing is just to let people see what they invent. If someone finishes quickly, encourage them to keep going. They could make something else on card. You could ask prompting questions about their design.
- When everyone has finished, get together in a circle. Ask everyone to bring their creations with them. You could ask people to share what they have created, why they chose to make that, ask questions about what people have made or let everyone look at each other’s work.
- Listen to and note down what everyone says.
- Based on how the creations inspire everyone, talk about what goal everyone might like to continue exploring or work towards for the YouShape Award.
- Remember, people can set a goal or topic as individuals, in pairs or in groups, rather than having a whole section theme. This can be useful, especially if people have similar themes or ideas.
- Take a photo of everyone’s creations, so you can refer back to them as needed.
Reflection
This activity was all about getting creative. What was it like choosing the objects? How did you decide what to use and how did you use them? What did you make? Did you think differently as to what some things could be, such as using sticks for arms and legs? What are your favourite things about it?
We tried to make things we enjoyed, that remind us of Scouts or of things we want to try. Why did you choose to make this? Is it something you like, such as your favourite thing? Did it just have a nice pattern, colour or texture? Is it based on something else, such as a book or film? Is it something you want to know more about or enjoy doing?
Looking at what you’ve made, can you think about one thing you want to learn about, get better at or know more about? What would you like to do or learn at Scouts?
Safety
All activities must be safely managed. You must complete a thorough risk assessment and take appropriate steps to reduce risk. Use the safety checklist to help you plan and risk assess your activity. Always get approval for the activity, and have suitable supervision and an InTouch process.
- Glue and solvents
Always supervise young people appropriately when they’re using glue and solvent products. Make sure there’s plenty of ventilation. Be aware of any medical conditions that could be affected by glue or solvent use and make adjustments as needed.
- Scissors
Supervise young people appropriately when they’re using scissors. Store all sharp objects securely, out of the reach of young people.
To make it easier, you could simplify the number of different objects on offer. For example, three options would be more than enough.
- Some arts and craft activities may involve touching certain textures or items or involve getting messy. People should only do this if they’re comfortable too. People could wear plastic gloves if they don’t like the feeling of a certain material on their hands, they could work in a team so someone else could do that part of the task, they could use another method of being creative, or use a different tool to help them avoid touching the material.
- An adult volunteer or young leader should offer help to anyone who needs it during the make or with specific craft items. People could also work with a partner or in a small group, so they can help each other. For example, they could help with cutting up items into shapes.
- You could use different objects for people to craft, paint, draw or print with, so there’s a range of items for people to be able to grip and hold. If anyone struggles with fine motor skills, they could use larger materials. You could swap out the items for something easier to handle.
- People who struggle with making choices could find all the options a bit overwhelming, so they might need extra support. They might want to work with a friend, young leader or volunteer to be able to help be creative. You could have a whole group discussion before letting people decide, as this might help people think of ideas or choose the best option for them. If they find it difficult, you could have a ready-made list of ideas for people to use and pick from. The list might inspire another idea!
All Scout activities should be inclusive and accessible.
You can build on what was created from into your programme to keep it youth shaped. For example, if someone created a fish tank, you could talk about what everyone knows about fish and run sessions based on their ideas. These could include how do we take care of animals, a visit to an aquarium, creating artwork using fish colours, discussing what it’d be like to live in water, exploring how fish breathe, reading a fish-based book, doing some water-based science, playing a fish themed game, or going pond dipping and seeing who lives in a pond.