By Carol Felixson
Special to The Times

August 21, 2005

IF you are a fan of Dr. Seuss books or "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles" cartoons, you may be familiar with Yertle the Turtle, or Michelangelo, Leonardo, Raphael and Donatello.

But you probably don't know about Blue Storm, Orangie or Kangy. These are some of the names given to the turtle soap carvings made by Christopher 11, and his siblings Christal, 9, and Christaun, 7.

The artists first learned as much as they could about the western pond turtle. They found out that this 4- to 7-inch reptile was once common to the Santa Monica Mountains. But it has become increasingly rare and is now listed as a threatened or endangered species.

They also learned that like a house, a turtle's bony shell protects it from the environment and predators. The top of the shell is called a "carapace" and the bottom of shell is called a "plastron."

"Kid turtles have tails as long as their shells," said Christaun.

"Western pond turtles live around rocky areas and rivers and streams," added Christal.

And "males have lighter necks and longer tails than females," explained Christopher.

To make their turtle carvings, the siblings first soaked bars of soap in water. When the bars were softened, they outlined their designs with toothpicks. Under their parents' supervision, they used plastic knives to cut pieces out one at a time. Then they used their hands and fingers to mold the soap into turtle shapes.

Before the soap dried and hardened, they used the toothpicks to make details like eyes, tails and lines in the shell. Christaun even used a toothpick as a tail when the soap tail fell off of his turtle.

After the turtles dried, the artists placed them together as a family in a habitat made out of leaves, rocks, and flowers.

Good job, kids!

 

Carol Felixson introduces children to a subject from nature and an art technique. She is director of education and community outreach for UCLA's Stunt Ranch Reserve and Mathias Botanical Garden. Next lesson: ticks and papier mâché. Previous projects can be seen at nrs.ucop.edu/Reserves/stunt/newsforkids.html.
 

Carol Felixson
Director of Education/Community Outreach
UCLA Stunt Ranch Reserve &  Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden
310 206-3887, nrs.ucop.edu/Reserves/stunt.html, www.botgard.ucla.edu
LA Times Science/Art Lessons for Kids: http://nrs.ucop.edu/Reserves/stunt/newsforkids.html

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