Art and Design · Year 2

Active learning ideas

Tactile Collage

Active learning immerses children in tactile exploration, which builds neural connections between touch and visual understanding. For tactile collage, movement, discussion, and hands-on assembly solidify concepts that flat images cannot convey alone.

• National Curriculum Attainment Targets
• KS1: Art and Design - Textiles and Collage

• 20–45 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Stations Rotation
• 25 min · Pairs

Texture Scavenger Hunt: Classroom Finds

Pairs search the classroom for five items with distinct textures, such as ribbon or bark. They rub each item, describe the feel to their partner, and glue selections onto sketchbook pages. End with a share-out where pairs display and compare.

How does the texture of a material , rough, smooth, or fluffy , change the way it looks in your collage?

Facilitation Tip

During Texture Scavenger Hunt, circulate with a tray of reference materials to help students match classroom finds to known textures like fluffy, bumpy, or ridged.

What to look for

Hold up two different materials (e.g., sandpaper and cotton wool). Ask students to point to the material that feels rough and the material that feels smooth, then explain why they chose each one.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 02

• Stations Rotation
• 35 min · Individual

Layered Animal Portrait: Texture Choices

Individuals draw a simple animal outline, then select three materials to represent features like fur or scales. They layer and adhere textures, adding labels for feel. Circulate to prompt justifications based on key questions.

Can you find three materials that feel different and use them all in one artwork?

Facilitation Tip

Set up Layered Animal Portrait stations with pre-sorted material baskets labeled by texture type to focus student choices before assembly.

What to look for

Present students with a finished tactile collage. Ask: 'Which part of this artwork feels the softest? How did the artist show that it is soft using materials?' Encourage them to use descriptive words for texture.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 03

• Stations Rotation
• 45 min · Small Groups

Collaborative Texture Quilt: Group Patchwork

Small groups design a large quilt square on fabric, each member contributing a textured patch for a shared theme like 'seaside'. They overlap materials, stitch or glue, then present how textures change the scene.

What would you choose to show a cat's soft fur , something rough or something smooth? Why?

Facilitation Tip

For the Collaborative Texture Quilt, model how to attach pieces securely with glue dots or double-sided tape, demonstrating safe material handling.

What to look for

Students share their work in small groups. Prompt them: 'Point to one part of your partner's collage that has an interesting texture. Tell them what material you think they used and why you like it.'

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

Activity 04

• Stations Rotation
• 20 min · Whole Class

Sensory Texture Relay: Blindfold Match

Whole class divides into teams. One student per team, blindfolded, feels a hidden textured sample and describes it to teammates who fetch matches. Rotate roles; discuss surprises in feels versus looks.

How does the texture of a material , rough, smooth, or fluffy , change the way it looks in your collage?

Facilitation Tip

In Sensory Texture Relay, pair students with one partner describing while the other matches, then switch roles to ensure full participation.

What to look for

Hold up two different materials (e.g., sandpaper and cotton wool). Ask students to point to the material that feels rough and the material that feels smooth, then explain why they chose each one.

• Remember
• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teach tactile collage by emphasizing contrast and purposeful selection rather than random gluing. Research shows explicit vocabulary use, such as rough, grainy, or velvety, strengthens sensory memory and descriptive language. Avoid rushing the planning stage—students benefit from sketching ideas and testing material swatches before committing to the final piece.

Successful learning shows students confidently selecting materials by texture, describing contrasts, and explaining their choices with evidence. They collaborate to layer textures intentionally, not randomly, and articulate why certain textures represent subjects like soft fur or rough bark.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Texture Scavenger Hunt, watch for students who collect materials without comparing how they feel to each other.

  Ask each pair to present two found items, describing one as smoother and one as rougher, then switch objects with another pair to verify differences.

• During Layered Animal Portrait, watch for students who assume rough materials automatically represent rough textures on their animal.

  Prompt students to test a smooth fabric against corrugated cardboard for fur, asking which better matches their animal's description and why.

• During Collaborative Texture Quilt, watch for students who treat the quilt as flat decoration rather than a tactile surface.

  Have groups feel each patch before attaching it, then discuss how raised textures change the artwork’s expressiveness compared to paper-only work.

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Methods used in this brief

• Stations Rotation