Procedure
Discuss with students variety of African masks and purposes for creating them. Discuss with students the qualities of African masks (i. e., repetition of shapes, lines, and color; incorporation of symbols). Remind students that they are not all African, nor are they all women from the Mende society (and therefore cannot possibly create an African Mende helmet mask) and therefore need to draw inspiration from these masks and incorporate their personal experiences in order to create a personalized mask.

Decide if you will create masks by using students faces (easy and cheap) or if you want to use plastic face forms. Each plastic face form is about $1.30, but you can reuse them and there won't be as much clean-up. You can also get an entire class finished in one- 45 minute period.

Student's face: Students will work in pairs, one day one student will help their partner, the next day that student will help the other. So this will take two-class periods to complete.

• Have student whose face is going to be plastered pull all hair away from face with headband or bandana and rub petroleum jelly generously over entire face, making sure to cover eyebrows, and lay his or her head backwards, face up in comfortable position.
• Have 1" plaster gauze strips pre-cut and cold water in container for each team.
• Run one strip of plaster gauze through cold water and place on students face working from the forehead downward to the chin.
• Cover entire face with 1"strips of plaster gauze, make sure to overlap each strip about ¼" to create a tight bond. Do NOT cover eyes, but rather go around them and place one strip vertically down the side of the face and down the nose. Do NOT cover nostrils of nose or mouth area go around them as well.
• Smooth plaster gauze with wet hands.
• Smooth over plaster gauze with one layer of mixed Plaster of Paris (should be creamy when mixed) and smooth over entire face avoiding un-gauzed areas evenly.
• Allow to dry 20 minutes. Have student who applied the mask read an African story to student during this time.
• Remove plaster mask by leaning forward and gently and carefully peal it off, it should just fall off when student leans forward and nods head down.
• Stuff newspaper behind it and allow to completely dry over night (newspaper adds support to face shape while drying, don't worry it won't stick).

Plastic face form: Each student will use one plastic face form, to make sure that these can be reused have students cover mask with a thin layer of petroleum jelly.

• Have 1" strips pre-cut and cold water in container for each team.
• Run one strip of plaster gauze through cold water and place on face working from the forehead downward to the chin.
• Cover entire face with 1"strips of plaster gauze, make sure to overlap each strip about ¼" to create a tight bond. You can cover eyes, nose and mouth.
• Smooth plaster gauze with wet hands.
• Smooth over plaster gauze with one layer of mixed Plaster of Paris (should be creamy when mixed) and smooth over entire face evenly.
• Allow to dry overnight.

After Face/Mask is created: Discuss with students how they will visually communicate their intended message or who they wish to be when they grow-up to the audience. Have them brainstorm some symbols that they will use to portray these characteristics, occupations or life goals.

Distribute embellishment materials. Students should paint background colors first, they might want to create an over all background pattern (i.e., stripes, dots or color it solidly). After paint is dry students can add details by drawing or painting them on or add cut pictures, beads, buttons, etc. Students can attach raffia or yarn by using a hole puncher to punch holes around edge of mask in desired location.

To display masks: Undo one fold of a paper clip, so it looks like the letter "S", and hot-glue half of the "S" to the top, back of mask. The other half can be pinned through.

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