This activity began with a picture book, Nurit Karlin's "Fat Cat On a Mat" (HarperCollins; 1998). The author and her students started their project with a 5-inch circular template for the head of their cats. They reviewed shapes as they drew the head and then added the ears and nose, which were triangles. Details to the face were added when students drew the eyes, bridge of the nose, mouth, and whiskers. The children also learn painting basics, folding and cutting paper, and creating a unique border consisting of a pattern of shapes and lines.