Kids’ Corner
Sandy Stubbings, Education Committee, American Orchid Society
I
n this second article I will provide instructions for making/setting up an activity that can become part of a Kids’
Corner at your local orchid show. The Houston Orchid
Society and SWROGA have successfully pioneered such
a table in 2012 and 2013 shows so all activities are tested and
proven successful. We hope affiliated clubs will copy these activities, creating their own “Kids’ Corner”. Please feel free to use
these ideas in your own planning.
Our goals included promoting youthful interest in orchids,
involving children in the show more directly, providing educational opportunities and rewarding children in a meaningful
way that encourages interest. We wanted to avoid meaningless
busywork.
The Houston Orchid Society created a “Photo Panel” to stand
at the Corner and catch people’s attention. The Kid’s Corner
consisted of a table of activities and a hanging vinyl photo (4’
x 6’) of an orchid. The vinyl poster hung from a photographers
frame and had the center cut out of one of the flowers for children’s (or adult’s) faces. Parents or friends can take photos of
their children’s/friends faces in the flowers. In this Phalaenopsis
issue, I will include detailed instructions so your club can create
this very successful activity.
“PHOTO WALL”
Requirements: Supervision, a photograph, a step stool and a
standing frame.
Preparation:
• Select a photo with good resolution at least a 16mp digital
photo (about 68 dpi or more). Portrait orientation works best
for the participants. It allows adults behind the photo not to
have to crouch too low and hides the body of the person. The
chosen flower in the photo must face the camera directly. The
flower should be full enough so that it completely surrounds the
oval cut out (with no background showing on the oval). When
printed the flower needs to be big enough so the face sized cut
out only takes out the very center. Most of the flower should still
be visible.
• Have the flower photo blown up to 4’ x 6’ and then have it
printed on vinyl (It can then be rolled up for storage and travel).
A pocket across the top and the bottom will allow for hanging
from a frame and weighting down the base. We used a “photographers’ frame” that a club member no longer needed for his
exhibit backdrops. If necessary, a frame can be constructed economically using PVC pipes.
• Cut the oval hole using a craft knife from the center of the
flower big enough for a face to fit in (approximately 5”x 7” inches.) ideally it should be in the top half of the photo.
• A sign asking “Please Do Not Touch the
Photo” is a big help as kids will try to grab
onto the sides of the hole.
• We also supplied a step stool so young
children could reach the face opening.
The stepstool should have handles children can grab onto for safety. (Not foreseeing this, we placed a sturdy chair on
either side of the stepstool which seemed
adequate.)
• Place the “Photo Wall” near a staffed
table and have the volunteers watch to
see that the “Wall” is treated gently (Your
club table or AOS table staff may be able
to double as supervisors).
• Cost:
• A 4’ x 6’ vinyl banner with top and bottom pockets: $191.52 (purchased March
2012).
... continued on page 12
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Phalaenopsis | First Quarter | Volume 24 | 2014