Yesterday I was actually quite happy to be out in the rain with my partner in crime, Kathy Mason, installing the results of a very lovely project. We were surreptitiously fixing and hiding a complete set of miniature doors and windows recently completed by the year 6 pupils from my weekly art class, into the early years garden area of their school. The idea being that the youngest members of the school might then stumble across these ‘Borrowers’ styled dwellings and they can be incorporated in imaginative play and also used for storytelling and outdoor lessons.
The project was a joy to work on, both for the enthusiasm of the older children to create the pieces and the anticipation of their being able to display them in such a delightful way. As these children will be leaving the school this year, they have also left a little legacy behind for their younger friends.
The process involved a session of discussion and design, considering the characters who would live behind each door. The doors were then cut out of clay according to the initial designs and embellishments added, before first firing. 
The children finally coloured their pieces and they were whisked away by Kathy to be fired ready for installation. The final part of the project for the older participants of this project will be some map drawing sessions of the ’secret’ locations of all the pieces now that they are in situ.
