So here's the roundup on my paper transformation camp week with 8-10 year olds last week. We had the theme "Fiesta" and we spent the week preparing everything needed for a fabulous fiesta on the last day. We made sculptural flower window boxes to create the "Garden" for our fiesta.
We made papier mache maracas (in progress above- they were way more colorful in the end) as well as a pinata. The kids drew pinata designs and we voted on the best one- they decided to have their pinata look like a giant piece of candy.
We made paste paper and then folded them into origami boxes with lids. For decorations we cut papel picado banners and strung them on yarn for hanging. But the major endeavor that seemed to consume the kids' interest was when we made paper chain decorations! 
They were determined to make it long enough to reach all the way down the stairs. So there was much preliminary measuring until we were ready to lower it down the stairwell (that's an orange ruler in the boy's hand as he crawled along the length of the chain around the room). To their great delight the paper chain made it all the way from the 3rd floor landing to the basement floor!!!!
It also conveniently stretched most of the perimeter of the children's garden to create a festive atmosphere.
With some latin music playing and plenty of snacks brought by the parents, it was a proper fiesta party! The rope holding the pinata snapped before the pinata broke so I ended up tearing it open to spill out the goodies. 
I hope the kids got a feeling for how versatile paper can be plus a taste for some of the arts and culture of Mexico (we read Mexican storybooks at snacktime to complement our art activities).Tomorrow I start a week focused on softie-making!
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