Stamped/Painted Patterns

I gave the K's each a small piece of cardboard which they dipped in black paint, and we talked about finding the side with the bumps (the corrugation).  They were to fill their entire paper with patterns. (The previous day, we had drawn patterns both on the smartboard and on their papers, in order to check for understanding).  After stamping their patterns, and letting them dry, they used tempera cakes to fill in the spaces.  We did talk about color as a pattern, but they were so excited to paint, that they didn't all remember, or have the control to do that.  I think the results were great. And, the kiddos got some really rich colors out of the cakes.

Art Show

4th Grade- Cat Paintings and Clay Facades

3rd Grade- Word Art

Kindergarten-Birds on a Wire

2nd Grade- Bird Houses

1st Grade- Heart Weaving

Sign in, Summer Art Program brochures, and Artsonia Updates.

Cookies and punch- I brought in my nice plate and punch bowl-if I'm throwing a party, I try to do it right.

The music teacher and I decided to take back Youth Art Month this year.  He did his 1st and 2nd grade program, and I did the school art show.  We planned the event as one big "Arts" night.  Mixed feelings- We had a good turn out, but many parents did not bring their older kids, because they did not have a child in the program.  I did get a chance to talk to a lot of parents, and get some updated emails for my Artsonia page.  I like the idea of the arts night, but will have to think about how to entice parents in all grade levels to come, and not just because they are killing time waiting for the program.  Good thing I have a year to puzzle this out.

Recycling

Don't know why it took me until this year to come to this idea, but here it is.  I just completed 3 different printmaking projects, 2 of which were incised (drawn into Styrofoam trays).  So, once the kiddos ink away, I'm left with 120 or so styrofoam trays which can either be sent home (why?) or tossed (sad).  So, I kept em.  I knew that I had some glazing and painting coming up, and thought I could just used the trays one more time before they meet the trash can.  It works well, but the advice I'll give is that you may want to tell the kids not to scrape their paintbrush around on the tray (picking up residue from the ink).

I use Mayco Wonderglazes-they have the clear coat in them, and the colors really turn out well.

Angry Birds Finale

The Showcase- The video game background was a group activity as people finished.

Blue Bird on the left is NOT of the Angry Bird variety- she was very clear, it's just a bird.

Those with time and left over clay made "piggies". But, I told them they were responsible for marking their pigs, I was not putting names on all those PLUS the birds.

Today was finally the big day- the day my 1st graders got to paint their "Angry Birds".  They have been not so patiently waiting for this day.  And, hoping for a good paint day.  I have been doing my clay painting in the following manner; I don't know when I started this,  but it works well.  I dip.  Yep, just like Easter eggs, I mix up a few buckets of "base" colors.  Water+Acrylic paint.  Then, the kids line up in front of the color they want with their clay sculpture and a paper towel to put it on, and they dip, drip, and put on the towel to dry.  They carry it back to their seat, and wash their hands.  10 minutes, all done.  Now, with K, that's about all I do, but with 1st, after we cleared the buckets and everyone was back in their seats, I gave them tiny paintbrushes and small tubs of acrylic.  We discussed painting the parts rather than painting the "whole'. And, in one day, we have adorable sculptures, with good paint jobs.  It works very well for clay animals as well.  As the kids get older, we dip less and paint more, but this method gives everyone a small level of success, along with the ability to personalize with details. 

Self Portraits with Expression

I am in the middle of a unit on Facial Expression/Emotion with my 1st graders.  We modeled and drew facial expressions, we made "Angry Bird" pinch pots, and we just finished up our Self Portraits.  I gave them a full paper (12x18) and instructed them on a head and shoulders portrait.  It was of course to look like them, since it was a self-portrait, and they had to use their facial expression to show one of the feelings we'd been talking about.  I let them paint with tempera cakes, and we outlined with marker after, which gave them a clearer, more finished look. 

American Symbols

The Kindergarten students have been looking at American Symbols- this is a classroom standard that I agreed to work into my plans over the next few weeks.  So, we drew one of 4 symbols (Flag, Eagle, Statue of Liberty or Liberty Bell).  I provided both color and outline images for students to see, to help in this process. We traced our drawings with sharpies-I think tracing the lines helps cement them in the students' heads, as lines to stay inside/around. I have no proof, but have just noticed that when the littles trace, they tend to paint a bit more carefully. After painting those using appropriate color schemes, we drew a mini-self portrait, which was cut out and attached into the picture.  I taught them how to draw stars, and after some practice, they used silver sharpies to draw stars around their painting, as a picture frame.  Our focus artist was Romare Bearden, and his work "Roots".  While we did not delve into the deeper issues within his work, we did discuss Freedom, and symbols which stand for it.  I think it was a great attempt by my students to paint in a more realistic way. 

Kindergarten Pumpkins

If you've been teaching for any amount of time, you know that the pumpkin lends itself so well to the art room at this time of year.  It's easy enough to draw, the kids have likely visited the farm or pumpkin patch, and it translates to Halloween or Fall- whichever way  you prefer to go.  I had my kiddos use black paint only to trace a pumpkin that they had drawn on the 1st day.  On the 2nd, I gave them other colors, and we filled in.  I used tempera cakes, as my kids are still learning the painting routine.  They are so bright and cheerful- I'll have to post a few more, but here's a couple.  On a side note, I read them "Spookley, the Square Pumpkin" which I understand is a cartoon movie now, but the book is so sweet.

Abstract Surprises

I was supposed to teach my 3rd graders about abstract art this 9 weeks.  It was supposed to involve paint.  And, I don't know- maybe it was their behavior (not very motivated, sassy a lot of the time, and  downright mean sometimes) or, the end of the year crazies- I just couldn't focus in on a project that I wanted to go the distance with.  I gave each student a piece of sturdy paper, and the cheap masking tape that doesn't stick to anything.  I instructed them to create a flower, or growth out of tape on their paper.  Then, we sponged watercolors over it, and removed the tape (after talking about resist).  Of course, when the tape was removed, the shape left behind was not exactly what they intended (positive/negative space discussion).  I gave markers out, and had them fill in the white space with designs and patterns.  I think they turned out pretty cool, and I am wondering if maybe this project has a place in my future plans-

Art Show is Getting Ever Closer...

Here are a couple finished art show pieces.  They will not however be hanging in our school art show- they will be entered into the Mayor's Art Show hosted by the Frist Center for the Visual Arts.  It is a great opportunity for our students to show off their hard work, and for us art teachers to gather new ideas.  I try very hard not to send the same projects, or the same students' work each year.

Spring/Stamping-Kindergarten

I am starting a lot of sentences with "I saw this thing on Pinterest" lately.  Well, in this case, I remembered I saw it, and I'm pretty sure it was on Pinterest, but I did not pin it (I was sure I had).  The center of the flower is stamped with a cheapo net bath "Pouf" which can be found at Wal-Mart 2/$1.00.  Then, we used Tempera Cakes to paint the rest of the details- the flower/stem, etc.  I had plates set up with some yellow and some orange, that naturally mixed when the kids stamped.  I am trying out the Tempera Cakes this year- other art teachers rave.  I am not so sure- they seem like watercolors.  Any thoughts on helping the kids achieve brighter colors?  That aside- I think these are pretty springy, and a nice attempt by my kids at a project that none of us had ever tried before.  Some may even make their way into the art show.

Penguins

So, the kindergarteners and I have been looking at penguins.  We've read stories, and then we went to "pebblego.com" an amazing site that my school subscribes to, that has animal info and videos in a very user friendly format.  We compared real life penguins to the ones in the books, discussing similarities and differences.  Then, we created our penguin paintings.  I didn't have them draw first, rather I gave a demonstration, then turned turned them loose.  I think they did pretty well, and I love how even though they all kind of started with my format, they have delightful personalities all of their own.