Get Ready for a Colourful Year!!

THE ROMANS

Did you know that....

Romans were ahead of their time?

That happened long long time ago.

Romans had a way to make pictures.

They used tiles.

(A tiny version of the tiles you have in the bathroom or kitchen).

The tiles were made of stone, brick, marble, glass or gold!!!

The Roman name for mosaic tiles is 'tesserae' in Latin. Let's say: 'tessellas' for friends.

The tessera has the shape of a cube.

The tesserae could be blue, black, red, white or yellow.

A Roman mosaic might have half a million tiles in total.

Romans created colourful mosaics on floors and walls.

By the way, do you know how to make a domestic mosaic?

We need:

• Piece of stiff paper or card

• Ruler

• Scissors

• Pencil

• Glue

• Coloured ‘tiles’ (made from card or paper)

• Cups to hold the tiles

• A bit of patience!

Let's do it!

Making our own domestic mosaic!

• Make the base:

(A4 size works well):

1. Use a piece of card or thick paper
2. Use a ruler and pencil
3. Divide the page into a grid of 1cm squares

Believe it or not, but you get a grid of 630 squares on a A4 sheet!

• Create your design:

(You can take a Roman theme....Or you could even make a mosaic of abstract painting Portraits):

1. Draw your design onto your gridded base
2. Decide which colours. Choose around four to six colours
3. Use felt-tip pens or coloured pencils to colour the gridded card

• Make the mosaic tiles:

1. Choose the coloured cardboards as the gridded base
2. Look for a ruler and a pencil
3. Draw a grid of 1cm squares on the cardboards
4. Use your scissors to cut out the tiles carefully
5. Collect each set of coloured tiles in different pots

• Make your marvellous mosaic:

1. Use a glue stick to assemble your mosaic
2. Apply glue to a small area of the base sheet
3. Select all the tiles you think you need
4. Press on a few tiles at a time before moving on to the next section
5. Leave your masterpiece of your design to dry before displaying it on your wall

What do you think about, now it is done?