Making the Tiles with Kids

Most of the tiles that are used in this mosaic have been hand made by the children who attend Aurora 7 schools: High Peaks Elementary and Boulder School of Integrated Studies. The clay was rolled out on a slab roller. The top was smoothed, and then the large sheets of clay cut into 6"x6" squares. Each and every child painted the tiles in a lovely range of colors. The tiles were then cut into smaller pieces, to allow for more detailed mosaic designs. Some of the tiles were cut into triangle shapes, because the round shape of the mosaic needs some tiles that are not square! Teachers came to the tile-painting classroom and painted tiles also. They were assigned a number (the hour) or a domino-like representation of the number. Though we had to lure them into the room with a promised luncheon, they had fun and worked diligently, creating the numbers that will define the sundial's times.