This sign has made a surprisingly big difference in my teaching career. While it wouldn't have been appropriate to hold it in the faces of the offending elementary students, it works quite nicely for that purpose in a high school setting. Now if only I could find one that says, "Throw clay and your grubby little fingers get chopped off. P.S. I don't care if you think it's funny".

Speaking of school, here's our shiny new raku kiln. Before I actually tried this process, I thought it was only for the renaissance festival folks, and that I'd either need to be into men wearing tights or braiding baby's breath into my hair. Not so. It's fun, pretty, and all about the anticipation. Oh, and you get to be outside. I'd like to document our day, so bear with me. First, put your raku in the kiln. Heat it up to 1800 degrees and heat up the next batch on the top of the kiln.

Next, open up the kiln and notice how boring the glazes look at this point.

The fun really begins when you throw these hot pots into a trash can full of leaves and newspaper. The change in temperature makes the glaze crack a little bit, and then the cracks get filled with smoke.

Finished!