Benefits of origami in education and/or as a physical and mental health therapy. Activities to use origami in the classroom
Origami hearts are fun to make and can be used for many purposes: to express love on Valentine’s day; to give as a gift on mother’s day, or father’s day, or for a sweetheart, or to make amends at whatever time of the year. Remarkably, a paper origami heart can even help us stay healthy! An … Read more
“To send light into the darkness of human beings~ such is the duty of the artist.” Schumann The therapeutic gift that origami can bring to people who are mentally ill is something that Rosemary Browne has seen first hand. Rosemary is a passionate origami teacher who has been helping people overcome their mental challenges by … Read more
Uruguay may seem like a remote country, but soon it will be close to the hearts of those who love paper folding. In September 2016, an origami museum will open its doors in the Uruguayan town of Colonia del Sacramento: OrigamiHouse Colonia, Museo del Plegado del Papel y Talleres. The project, developed by Laura Rozenberg, seeks … Read more
Are you a teacher or a home-schooling parent? Did you know that origami can be used in the classroom as a teaching tool? The art of paper folding is excellent to teach and improve math and vocabulary, and to introduce children to different cultures and to concepts of art, science and social studies. In addition, it can help … Read more
When people become interested in origami they often ask what kind of paper is best to use. The short answer is that we can use any kind of paper including inexpensive recycled papers, and more expensive and unique handmade artistic papers. The longer answer is that choosing a paper for origami depends on the kind … Read more
A square is one of the most frequent paper shapes used to make origami figures, but rectangles, triangles, pentagons, hexagons, and circles can be used to make many beautiful origami models as well. The hexagon is a great shape to make origami flowers and origami snowflakes. When all sides of a hexagon are of equal … Read more
In addition to keeping a written journal, I periodically take pictures of the worktable in my studio, the place where I do most of my paper folding. This is my visual journal. The video below shows this table as it appeared at different times throughout 2013. Click to see videos of my visual journals in 2012 … Read more
One of the most frequent paper shapes used to make origami is a square. But many beautiful figures can be made with other shapes as well. Rectangles, triangles hexagons, pentagons and circles can be used to fold paper. The pentagon in particular is a magical shape to make stars and flowers. This is an example … Read more
Do you ever feel resistant to make an origami model because you need to fold paper into thirds? The video above shows a very easy technique to fold a square piece of paper for any origami figure that requires folding into thirds. This technique can be applied to folding any rectangular piece of paper into thirds. … Read more