Galimotoes

These are pictures of galimotoes my students made after we read a book about a boy in Malawi who made one. Galimotoes are push toys made with found objects. Children use a long stick or other similar object to push the toy along on the ground while walking behind it. The boy in the book used different kinds of wires that he found all around the village where he lived.. My students started with a bag of leftover twist ties, pipecleaners, and balloons we found in our classroom. They drew a design of a galimoto they thought they woul like to make. Then they took their bag of found objects and went home to see what else they could find to add to their project. The creations they brought back were amazing! I had asked them to try to use only things they found or were getting ready to recycle and to check with parents to be sure it was ok. Some of the students did all of the work on their own and told stories about the fun they had collecting and creating. Some of the students had help from parents and told stories about the fun they had working on the project together. We enjoyed listening to all of their stories and seeing the inventive finished projects. The book we read was Galimoto by Karen Lynn Williams.