End of the 9 Weeks

I am wrapping up the 1st 9 weeks of school (already?!?).  Here are some projects I'm doing with my students.  I find that the end of the 9 weeks is a great time to squeeze in some of those seasonal, or craftier projects that the kids love, and review some of the skills that may be a little lacking.  My students are a bit lacking in their craftsmanship- especially their cutting and gluing, so the more chances I have to review, the better.

Torn Paper Seascape- 3rd Grade

A watercolor wash for the sky, and torn paper for the sandy beaches and waves.

Owls- 1st Grade.  Combo of torn paper and cutting

Taken from the "Spectra" art series-the 1st teacher manuals MNPS ever provided. They were scripted, and came with slides.  But, there were a few projects in there that I still like to revisit.

Torn Paper Animals (And a spooky picture)

 If you follow my blog, you know I am in favor of a good Torn Paper Collage. I worked with my 1st graders on an animal unit, in collaboration with their Common Core lessons on animals.  We looked at both Realistic interpretations of animals, and unreal interpretations.   For this project, we looked at Henri Mattisse and his work "The Snail".  We talked about how it does not look like a real snail, but the animal is in the arrangement of the paper.  We had also looked at Durer and Rousseau by this point, so they had a way to compare animals in artwork.  No scissors or pencils were allowed, but I do have a nice collection of animal magazines that the librarian was getting rid of.  (ZooBooks is a wonderful series, that I highly recommend.)  They were allowed to refer to their animal magazine as they arranged their paper.  I think we had good results.  I love torn paper because it forces some problem solving, and students tend to work a little bigger.

 

I could not resist showing you my 4th grade project.  We were looking at color schemes, and how the colors used in a landscape gives a feeling to a work of art.  We steered clear of Halloween, but instead worked toward creating an eerie scene- I told the kids it was kind of like watching a scary movie- it's not the monster that's so scary, but that moment right before, when you know it's a bout to jump out.  My 4th graders are a bit low in their skills, but I was pleased with this one.  I gave each student Blue, Purple, Black and White, asking them to mix colors to create a variety of tints and shades. 

Torn Paper People Olympics



Her people are in the pool because she did not leave room for an audience.  Guess this is where direction following comes in?  Or, maybe it's a synchronised even.



I have a project that is my absolute favorite to break out.  It is the torn paper collage.  During Olympic season, I love to declare the Torn Paper People Olympics.  We really sieze the opportunity to talk about action, and detail.  I find that while the students would rely on pencils and scissors, in this instance, not allowing them forces the students to think more creatively, and we get some really fun pictures.  Due to my desire to work increasingly with the classroom teachers, I did this project with 2nd grade , and a bit earlier in the school year than I typically would because it fit in with what they are tackling in "Common Core".  The athlete performing a trick is themself, in order to work in the idea of self-portrait.  On the last day, I gave them sharpies to add any tiny details, and we used erasers to stamp the crowd.  As a writing connection, I am having my students write the commentary for their trick. This is where the classroom teachers are helping me. 

Historical Portraits...kind Of

John Sevier

Andrew Jackson

I did an extensive unit on portraiture with my 4th graders.  As a fun way to wrap it up, we made torn paper historical figures from TN.  This ties in with the people they will encounter in social studies this year, as well as gives them something concrete to work towards.  It was a one day project, with no scissors or pencils of any kind allowed.  I think they turned out well, the students learned to look for important details, and it was a fun ending to a portraiture unit. Check out our Artsonia Gallery (4th grade) to see some of the drawings as well.