The Art of Ikebana

 First grade ikebana watercolor paintings. 

  I was so pleased to see the students taking in the art form of ikebana so thoughtfully.  Ikebana is the Japanese art of flower arranging but the word literally means  the arrangement of plant materials. The history  goes back about 500 years.   One basic premise of ikebana is the idea that the arrangement symbolizes heaven, mankind, and earth, each of which is represented by different elements in the arrangement.  The heaven element is placed highest, earth towards the center, and mankind at the bottom.

This morning I gathered materials from our playground to make an ikebana to show the kids.
There is a great source for making an ikebana here.