Thaumatropes began in the Victorian era as toys while flip books were an early form of animation around the same time. Both are fun to make nowadays. Thaumatropes can be created in a few moments. Flip books take more time and patience, but kids enjoy the results.
Materials
Get a package of 3” x 5” or 4” x 6” blank index cards. Sketch images in pencil, if desired, but draw (or copy) the finished picture in pen so the lines are dark and clear. Another option is coloring the finished pen drawings with colored pencil or marker.
Fool the Eye
This image doesn’t involve any movement, but with a few adjustments it can be turned into a thaumatrope. Before doing that, try this bit of trickery. Fold an index card in half and then unfold the card.
On each half of the card draw a picture or, more correctly draw part of the picture on each half of the paper. If the desired finished image is a boy catching a butterfly in a net, draw the boy and the empty net on one half of the card. On the other half of the card, draw the butterfly. The trick for the artist is to position the butterfly on its half of the card so it is placed where it would go if it was drawn on the other half of the card.
Next, place another card horizontally along the fold between each of the pictures. Hold the nose along the top edge of the card. The two images will appear as one. The images were placed on the card correctly if the butterfly is in the net. Try this with other images to develop the ability to judge the best placement of images – a spider in a web, a fish in a bowl, etc.
Why does this work? While each eye receives a separate image, the brain merges these two images to make one picture.
Thaumatrope
Take the index card from above. Tape a straw or round stick to the back of the card, in the center of one half. Fold the index card and tape shut along the top, the side, and the bottom on both side of the straw. Hold the straw or stick between the palms and rub the hands back and forth causing the index card to twirl. The two images should appear as one complete image. Experiment with different pictures and ideas.
Action Picture Books
Think of a simple movement – bird flying, child on a swing, person walking. On 32 index cards, draw a picture on each card, each time creating a slight difference in the movement. Keep the images on one half of the card. If 32 pages are too many to draw, try to make at least twelve.
Place the pages in order. The beginning of the image is the last page. The top card shows the final image. Punch two holes along the blank half of the card. Tie with string. Hold the book by the bound end and flick the pages from back to front with the other hand.
Flick books and thaumatropes create illusions of movement and placement. These old-fashioned toys are still fun to create because they give kids the power to create a bit of visual trickery.
 |
 |
