This Paper Plate Slouch Hat Basket is a lovely way for kids to remember Anzac Day.
Each Anzac Day is an opportunity to remember those who fought for our freedoms. From attending a dawn service to baking Anzac slice, there are various ways our kids can honour the day.
Craft activities can also provide learning opportunities where kids can re-create symbols of remembrance.
One symbol of remembrance is the Slouch Hat or KFF (khaki fur felt) hat. It was worn by Australian diggers and has become part of the military uniform.
The Slouch Hat is the standard headdress for all members of the Australian Defence Force with the ‘slouch’ name given due to the sloping brim of the hat.
Made from khaki fur felt, it’s always worn with a Puggaree, which is a cotton band around the brim. You can read about the origin of the Puggaree and it’s significance to the Slouch Hat here. For this craft, the Puggaree was not included to make it a simple construction for little hands. But you could certainly include if using larger paper plates. We used whatever plates we had left in storage and they were the small ones.
The Slouch Hat has been associated with Australian Identity and its history of origin dates back to late 1800’s.
By 1903, the Slouch Hat was standardized as uniform for Australian forces and it became a national symbol; an emblem of courage. The Rising Sun emblem on the upturned brim of the hat signifies the spirit of the Anzacs.
If you are attending an Anzac Service this year, why not get the kids to make their own Slouch Hat Basket and learn the history of this standard headdress? Add some poppies or rosemary springs and lay it at the memorial site.
Materials
- 2 Paper plates
- Green paint
- Brown paint
- Paint brush
- Craft Glue
- Scissors
- Ice cream lid
- Stapler
- Strip of brown paper
- Print out of Rising Sun Badge
- Red crepe paper
- Poppies or rosemary
Instructions
- To create the inner basket which will sit on the brim of the hat, you will need to separate your two paper plates
2. Fold two ends inward to create the basket shape.
3. Pinch the corners to create the basket and staple each corner in place. You should end up with a rectangluar box. Don’t worry about the staples as these will be painted over.
4. Fold one end of the other paper plate to create the brim of the hat.
5. Glue the folded side brim and base of basket onto the other paper plate to create the slouch hat. Use pegs or clips so the glue to can set.
6. Once your hat is made, it’s time to paint it.
7. Mix brown and green paint together to make a khaki colour. You need to have more green than brown.
8. Paint the visible sides of the hat and basket. Give two coats of paint and allow to dry.
9. When the hats are dry, cut out the Rising Sun Emblem you would have printed off Wikipedia. Cut it out and glue this to the folded up side of the hat.
10. Staple each end of the brown paper to each adjacent side of the basket. This will create the slouch hat basket handle.
11. Insert some red crepe paper in the middle of the basket and lay poppies or rosemary in the basket.
12. Your paper plate Slouch Hat Basket is ready to be laid at the dawn service.
No Comments