Voice Projection

If the students need to speak or sing in their masks, it's better if the masks are cut away from the mouth [half-masks] in order to project the voice better. Alternatively, the open or gaping mouth (as per the mask above) would do the trick. Wearing a full face mask on stage tends to muffle the voice.

Happy Yellow Sneetches

One clever teacher organised a band of enthusiastic parent-helpers to help make this collection of Dr. Seuss "Sneetches", then the children wore them in the Stars on Stage performance. First she sorted making a demo mask (this was done in an earlier mask making session) which was then copied by the parents. This way the masks all end up looking alike, a necessity for stage performance, and the children get to have a great time without losing any ordinary lesson time. It just makes us happy looking at this image (photo supplied by Rotary Park School, Dunedin NZ).

Mask Making is Tough Fun

Mask work in the classroom is not lollipop time. The Arts Team at Maskworx recommend that mask making sessions are not scheduled for last thing on Friday "when you can't get anything out of them [students] anyway". Mask work is "tough fun" - and it's been said that the best learning happens during "tough fun" - it requires certain Creative Behaviours and extreme concentration:

During mask making teachers should look for these creative behaviours; original and imaginative ideas, clever construction and technically savvy extensions, novel uses for materials found in the immediate vicinity, commitment and courage (sticking with it when the project doesn't work), seeing where the 'happy accidents' take them, stretching the boundaries of the brief (within limits), and articulate symbolic language (speaking in pictures).

We recommend teachers notice and celebrate the student's creative behaviours along the journey of mask making rather than give awards for outcomes.

Awards for Good Mask Work?

There's always the temptation in a competitive culture such as ours to give out awards for students good work. Sounds reasonable enough, but is it a good idea to appraise children's maskworks from the classroom with an adult eye? Recently a nearby country school made masks to celebrate midwinter. Many of the students were juniors. The organiser of the mask project put aside ten small trinklets as prizes. One of the parent-helpers then selected ten favourite masks by popping a red dot on the noses of the masks thought to be the best. "It was a mistake" the organiser later told us..."we then had lots of crying children".

Children aren't seeing the same thing as grownups do. To them it's not a piece of moulded cardboard with glitter on it; they're seeing a star cluster or a winter queen!! The (artistic) child sees with his/her whole mind, whilst most adults have forgotten about the wonky eye view of childhood and can only see surface details. If the child has been allowed to make the mask all by themselves, they will simply adore their own creation. They will believe their character is really real and not to receive an award can be heartbreaking. [For a happy solution see above post]

The Wheel of Creating

This "Turtle Mask" (made recently at Victoria Avenue School Auckland) started off so plainly, just a dark green mass. But then she gave it another "go", repainting the background colour a lighter (and better) shade of green, and then she began to explore how to show the idea of scaley skin...Our Design Director Melanie remembers flicking thru photos with her on the Internet. She always wanted to add the jewels too (even though Mel thought they weren't necessary) and they look just right! How wonderfully complete she looks...that green hair and costume so perfect, her eyes reflecting her joy in that perfection!!

Oftentimes masks struggle to be born...but try not to walk away from a mess-up. Try to turn a disaster into a something wonderful by seeing where the mess leads you. Continue because the last step on the Wheel of Creating (after nearly "losing it")...is LOVING IT!

Inside the Skin of their Characters

This is the 'Holy Grail' of mask making - kids inside the skin of their characters. These two young students who made their wise old men masks (fashioned simply from a roll of toilet tissue) have absolutely "nailed" their characterisations. You can see the kids are 'in' their masks. They are 'in' their characters. They are 'in' their stories. These kids have successfully "become the visual text". BRAVO!!

Multimasks as Makeup Design Tools 4 Drama

At a recent Victoria Avenue School production the Makeup Team was responsible for ensuring 150 children were appropriately made up for the Drama Performance - three nights in a row!

The special FX makeup was a particular challenge; achieving the same cohesive 'look', three nights running, using teams of novice makeup 'artists' (parents!!), while allowing for the fact that the parents on these teams could be different each night!

Mel's Solution: Use Multimasks as the base on which to create face designs, to provide a lifelike template for all to copy!

• Apply makeup, including face paint, lipstick, eye shadow, blusher and even glitter, directly on to the Multimask face base.


• Add handwritten notes to the Made-up Multimasks, to provide extra clarification for the special FX teams eg. "heavy brows", "blusher under glitter", etc.


• Put together the sets of makeup required for each team...the actual coloured facepaint, the specific blusher to be used, the right lipstick and eye shadow materials, referring to the Made-up Multimask as a guide.


• Include in these packets (Snaplock bags) the items necessary for applying the makeup: sponges, blusher brushes, eye shadow sponge-applicators, those vital lip liners and eyebrow pencils and the cotton buds and "Wet wipes" for removing mistakes!


• Clearly label the completed packets...the team name, how many characters to be completed and to which room they are allocated.


• Brief your teams and send them off with their complete template and tools to do the job!


• At the end of each evening check the packet contents and replace any items, sharpen pencils, clean sponges - ready for reuse the next night!

Made-up Multimask + Complete Make-up Pack + Enthusiastic Parent Volunteers = Special FX Makeup Success!!