It's that time of year when there are so many cheery subjects to create artwork about. Kindergartners are preparing to learn about insects in their classrooms so we tried to tie art into this unit. I prepared them for this project by showing them my very own copy of Eric Carle's "The Very Hungry Caterpillar". We looked at his collaged illustrations for inspiration.
Students used a wide variety of tools (toothbrushes, rollers, sponges, mini koosh balls, a variety of paint brushes, etc.) to create colorful patterns and textures on their large papers. These papers then were chopped up into smaller pieces and became "community paper" for the following week. This way students could choose any paper for their projects. That made prep SO much simpler and the students didn't seem to mind in the least.
I really liked the way the stacked painted paper looked...sometimes it's just those simple things that look so cool. But I digress...
"Symmetry" was covered before students began their collages. They were told to fold their small papers in half to get pieces that were the same exact size and shape. Tracers were provided. Students then needed to take their four pieces of butterfly wings and create a symmetrical form that they liked. Then, they glued their wings onto their black papers (we used glue bottles for extra practice..."Just a dot-Not a lot!"). From there, students created their own details or backgrounds for their artwork. I just love these!
I meant to upload these pictures of 5th grade's 1-point perspective cityscapes a few weeks ago. Learning to draw in perspective is a great skill to have. It is the most obvious example I can give to why "STEM" should be "STEAM". These students are developing a skill and deeper understanding of an essential engineering concept. They can now draw a series of solid figure forms receding into the distance and explain why it appears that things are smaller the farther they are from them.
Below is a sneak peek at what Mrs. Dolezal's class is working on now. More papier mache fun before summer break :)
So proud of my fourth graders! Their papier mache ice cream looks awesome! The last step is to give them all a clear coat finish. I used Krylon last year (which did not give the finish we were looking for). My students will most likely use Mod Podge next week (or a Mod Podge alternative...Pinterest, don't fail me now!)
First grade learned about Vincent Van Gogh as they created two pieces of artwork with flowers as the subject. We emphasized "symmetry" and "balance" with this first project. They used sponges to add the flower petals.
This project was left as a sub plan for my first graders. It was one of those projects where I didn't want to give them back...they were so cheery that I just wanted to plaster the entire series on my classroom walls.
Kindergartners just covered an ocean themed unit in class. We incorporated this theme into art as they designed their own unique fish and painted them.
A few years ago I needed to find a sub plan for kindergarten when I came upon this on Pinterest. It seemed like the perfect sub plan for that day, but that was all. The Kindergarten teachers enjoyed seeing the shark faces so much (not to mention how much the kids love to draw these), that I have incorporated it into the kindergarten plans every year since. I also get a kick out of how these kids share with me their recent discoveries about sharks as we draw these. :)
**I want to start by saying that I do not remember where I saw this picture online years ago. I saved it for my Aboriginal Art PowerPoint to show my third grade classes. I tried to search for this image online in order to cite it, but I could not find it again!
My third graders were introduced to Aboriginal art this week. We started this lesson by creating poetic verses about the artwork shown above. (This was a new idea I picked up from the NAEA convention.) They were asked to list adjectives and nouns that came to mind when looking at this picture. Then, they worked in groups to combine these words in a poetic arrangement. Here are some of their awesome verses:
An exciting celebration with dots and swirls.
A colorful carnival of shapes and joy.
Mind-blowing colorful garden of dots.
Dark like the night and sad like the stars.
Super pretty, soft fireworks with trees in the dark.
An outrageous picture of colorful, striking flowers.
Red fireworks bursting in the sky, showing the feeling of anger.
This was such a fun way to open up dialogue about this style of art before I even gave them any information on the topic. I am excited to post their Aboriginal-inspired artwork when it is completed!
Third grade's ceramic fish go home this week. We do not use glazes on our ceramic projects at Anna McDonald, but I feel that we have found a great alternative! Most of my students opted not to use acrylic paints on this project because they wanted to see their texture details. Instead, they used watercolors (and some used acrylics for the details). The watercolor actually enhanced the textures, and the Krylon sealer gave them a glaze-like finish. Watercolors will continue to be offered as a an option for my students' ceramic projects. :)
This drawing was an exercise from Mona Brooke's "Drawing With Children". This lesson is intended to improve students' ability to draw from graphics. I explained to my first graders that artists often look at existing images to help them draw. They then use their imaginations to make changes. I encouraged students to look closely at the image of the lion we drew together, but to "make it their own" with their own imaginations.
I just LOVE construction paper crayons on black paper. Second graders recently used this media as they learned about two very different artists: Keith Haring and Pablo Picasso. I like to introduce these artists to my students because they allow me to present two usually difficult drawing concepts (figure drawing and portraits) in a very fun and non-intimidating way.
We learned about Keith Haring and had some funny discussions using this book:
Students had some fun trying out different poses with their partners.
Students focused on action pose of their choice and were told not to worry about details and proportions.
And then we looked at Picasso...one of my faves. The kids always like him, too. This is the video I used to introduce him. The kids always love how simple he makes everything look with his quick, fluid lines.
We looked closely at this Picasso portrait that shows a face from the front and in profile. The students discussed realism vs. abstraction...."How do you know this is a face?" "How is this face unrealistic?" "What are different ways that you could draw a face that looks like a face but in an abstract way?"
I am a K - 5th grade art teacher at Wilson Creek Elementary and Anna McDonald School in Manhattan, IL. I am also a mother of two little girls (who share my love of art)!