Projects 2008-2009

Just a small sampling of past projects. These pictures are not the best, but you get the idea :)

Lower elementary students made pinch pots from model magic clay. Some of the student decided to make either a pot, bowl, or cup. Then they painted the pot any way they chose.

One second grade class made life-size portraits in art class and then
put "themselves" in their desks for Open House! This was an awesome project, but required lots and lots of help from parents. Our parent volunteers are the best!

3-D Spiders at Fall Time. Third Grade students created a web from black yarn and then made a spider from black construction paper. When you glue the tips of the accordion-folded legs down to the paper, it pops off the page. So cool!

My Crazy Self: Kindergarten and First Grade. This is a tissue paper collage. They painted themselves using black paint but had to make their head a triangle! :)

Fourth graders created a collage project from space! Their favorite part was splatter painting white paint to make stars. At the same time they worked on this project, they also were studying about space and astronomy in their fourth grade classroom. I love it when I am able to collaborate with other teachers.

The Art Room

I am always so very curious how other art rooms look and are run. So, I am posting pictures of my room if you have the same curiosity that I do. Please take note that these pictures were taken before art projects began and before students returned to school. I keep it pretty neat and orderly, but not necessarily this neat. :)

1st pic is: Side View of Room. 1st door is Project Storage, 2nd door is Teacher Planning Area.

2nd pic is: back of room where we clean up and materials for the day are stored, Art Patio is straight back through the glass door.

3rd pic is: Student work area. 1st door is Materials Storage, 2nd door is Kiln Room. We love, love, love our windows! Lots of natural light!

View from the Window

Students viewed the painting, "The Red Kerchief: Portrait of Camille Monet" by Claude Monet. We then discussed what we see when we look through the window Monet created. We talked about the muted colors, but the bright vivid scarf she is wearing. I then asked them to draw their own "view from a window". Some created a window, some created glass doors, but the interesting part was seeing what each student likes to see when they look out a window.

Statue of Me

Another self portrait project, the student created a statue of themselves after studying famous statues in the United States. They sketched a design first. Colored it in with using crayons, colored pencils, or markers and then painted a background for their statue. Personalities really came out in this one. Many different activities were presented in this project... from sports themes to shopping themes, to technology. Our students love to text on their cells! :)

Pysanka Egg Suncatchers

Third through Fifth grade classes made suncatchers using the traditional designs of Ukranian pysanka eggs. We learned the history behind egg decorating at Easter time and found out it didn't start as an Easter tradition but became a tradition in April at a later date. I had a few designs for the students to pick from. If they wanted a challenge, I gave them this one! After they decorated the suncatcher (made from transparency film!), I cut it out, hole punched it, and strung yarn at the top for them to hang in their windows at home. It was a fabulous decoration in the art room.

My Own Print

Printmaking is an ancient art form that began many years ago. We viewed different types of printmaking, from ancient to modern. The focus of our study was on the ancient form. We discussed that printmaking is alot like woodcut designs (Hokusai). I passed out styrofoam cut outs to each student and then instructed to make their own design. I let them figure out for themselves that they must write backwards in order for the print to come out right. This was a neat discovery! Some students traced their hands others drew a landscape just like the Chinese and Japanese would have years ago. After they were done "engraving" they painted their plates and printed their designs onto colored construction paper.

Mr. Picasso Heads

Students in the third, fourth, and fifth grade learned about the life and art of Pablo Picasso. I read a book by author Mike Venezia about the different periods of his career. We took some time to analyze his abstract portraits. Students created their own portraits based on his technique of lateral view/frontal view. Some of the students named their portraits after another person (friend, parent, teacher, etc.)

Instrument Art

In music class, students were learning about the instruments of the orchestra and also working on a music concert based on these instruments. So, in art, we learned to draw instruments using the picture cards from music. Some students drew instruments alone, others decided to draw people playing instruments. We lined the artwork up in the hallways and it was a wonderful visual effect for the music concert, "Music is a Blast"!

Birds on a Branch

I lead the students in drawing a bird found in the tropical region of the world. We began by naming different types of birds in this category. The most popular were the macaw and the toucan. Their task was to create their own exotic bird and paint it accordingly. They then outlined their bird with a black sharpie marker for visual effect.

"Snow" Scenes

We began class on "Snow" day by coming up with different symbols for winter. Oh, the symbols we came up with... too many to type! I then introduced the lesson of "Snow" Scenes. Their assignment was to create many different pieces of artwork instead of just one! We folded our papers so that we came up with 16 squares on it. I then had them write the word "snow" diagonally in the squares. It was their task to create a symbol in each square that represented the winter season.

Pencil & Ink Shoes

An art project using only a pencil and a pen? Yes! This project was actually a project I left for my substitute to do with my fifth grade classes. I was so delighted to see the results! The students were instructed to sketch a shoe that they owned with a pencil. Then, they traced over the drawing with a pen. Impressive results!

One-Point Perspective

Using a dot, a pencil, and a ruler fourth grade students created one-point perspective drawings. They also experimented with shading on the road. They figured out the shading gives depth to a piece of artwork!

Lighthouses

We discussed where lighthouses were located and what their purpose is. Then, we looked at a few pictures of lighthouses. I led them in drawing a basic outline of a lighthouse but let them a night sky or a day sky. They learned to draw rock formations and some even ventured into house drawings to scale of the height of a lighthouse. We had really nice results!

Hot Air Balloons

This project began as a drawing lesson and ended up being a great overview of foreground, middle ground, and background. Students drew hot air balloons using traditional hot air balloon designs. They had to draw 3: one up close, one in the middle, and one far away. They also created clouds in front of and behind their balloons. I encouraged them not to draw "circle clouds" but realistic looking ones. The most difficult part of this painting project was drawing the baskets underneath the balloon!

Glue Pastel Flowers

Hmmm... how many different ways can we create flowers in a vase? Let me count the ways! This project was another study on Vincent Van Gogh. I read the book, "Camille and the Sunflowers" by Laurence Anholt. We discussed the technique of impasto and how to recreate it as an art project. We began on black construction paper. They drew a sketch of flowers in a vase on a table. They added glue to the sketches and let it dry. Then, using the glue marks as barriers, they added color using oil pastels. The results were colorful and creative!

Crazy Hair Self-Portraits

Art teachers are always on a quest to find new and creative ways for students to create self-portraits. It is not an original idea, however, I borrowed this wacky & awesome idea from another art teacher... First, students created a bust of themselves. They drew a t-shirt on themselves that they owned. The only thing I told them they HAD to do was make themselves have crazy and wacky looking hair! The results were as different as the students who created them! The "Crazy Hair" display has been a favorite of those who walk the hallways of the schools. The student received many compliments on their creativity.

Flowers ala O'Keefe

I began class by reading "Getting to Know the World's Greatest Artists: Georgia O'Keefe". We then looked at different pieces of art that she did. The most memorable paintings of hers to 2nd graders are her flowers. We also discussed how the flowers just seem to pop with color and appear to extend off the edges of the page! The students then drew their own flower using using the same extension technique. They painted their flower and I encouraged them to mix colors. After the paint dried, they used an oil pastel to outline their flower and make it "pop".

Pointillism Butterflies

Students viewed artwork by Georges Seurat. They discovered the pointillism technique he used in his art. We discussed how the dots of colors together make something. They also discovered there were no brush strokes or "coloring in" in his artwork. I challenged them to create their own art based on dots of color just like Seurat. I started by giving them a plain piece of art paper. Using a template (I hardly ever do this, by the way) they traced the butterfly form onto their paper. Then each student created areas of color for their butterfly. BUT they had to use mirror symmetry to do it! The hardest part was the next step: adding color to their butterfly without coloring anything in! Such a difficult concept for most, mostly because creating dots is time consuming and requires patience and planning!

Cartoon Lions

Students learned to draw cartoon lions in a joint effort project with the character trait for the month. The animal for the character trait they learned is the lion. Students learned how to simulate the look of fur by using stipling and hatching techniques with their crayons.

Evergreen Trees

Students learned to draw all kinds of trees on the day we began this project. We then decided to make it appropriate for the winter season. They agreed an evergreen tree is seen the most in the winter time. Some students made them into Christmas trees, others decided not to. We began first by drawing the trees with pencil. Then, they took a white crayon and added "snow" to their tree and in the sky. It took a little convincing for them to add white marks to white paper! They colored their trees. Then, during the next session they painted their skies. The lightbulb came on, so to speak! We took a little time to discuss what a Crayon Resist Project is and why the paint resists the crayon. I love it when science and art integrate!

Glue Pastel Clowns

Students identified the artwork, "Seated Harlequin" by Pablo Picasso. We discussed what clowns/harlequins do and what they look like. We discussed how to draw a face shape (using imaginary fingers!) and they did the rest! This project began on black construction paper. They drew their clown bust with a white crayon. Then, added glue on top of the white markings. The next day in art, they added details with oil pastels or construction paper crayons.

Cats

I led students in drawing a cat and they added all the other details. They colored the cat with crayons and then painted the rest. Some of the paintings looked like folk art, which is really neat!

I'm an Angel

Students drew angels with crayons and then painted their pictures. Some of the angels floated in the sky, some of them on were earth-bound, and some of them ended up in outer space! The interesting thing about this project was that we started out just learning to draw angels, but somewhere along the way they turned out to be self-portraits! I love it when the project turns out to be bigger than my own imagination!

My Own Wild Thing

I read the book, "Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak to the first graders. We took an in depth look at all the creatures and discussed ways we could create our own creature. They drew their own creatures based on their own observations and imaginations. Then, they colored it with oil pastel and added paint as a detail. Some students created a resist project, others did not. I gave them full control over they wanted their "wild thing" to look.

Concentric Rings

First Grade Students created a collage based on the famous artwork, "Squares with Concentric Rings" by Wassily Kandinsky. Kandinsky is one of my favorite abstract artists and the students really caught on to my energy about abstract art. First we folded paper into thirds and then in half and unfolded the paper. This made six squares. Then, they painted each square a different color. They cut out large, medium, and small circles of construction paper and glued them in each square according to size. Then, once the squares were completely dry, they drew circles over the collaged circles with different colors of oil pastel crayons.

Clay Snakes

First graders learned to manipulate clay into a coiled snake. They learned they must work quickly and continue to work the clay or it will dry out. We used air-dry clay for this project. The next time they came to art, we painted the snakes, discussing patterns they have seen on snakes. This was probably their favorite project this year. :)

Butterflies

Students drew a butterfly with a crayon in the middle of their paper then added simple designs on each side of their butterfly. We discussed mirror symmetry and how what you do on one side of the butterfly you have to do on the other. This really stumped some of my "think outside the box" students! I gave them paint and told them to be creative with their backgrounds. Some students wanted their butterflies to "pop" and some wanted to use every color of the pallette. I love seeing their personalities come out on paper!

Leprechauns & Shamrocks

I led the students in drawing leprechauns. Some drew their whole bodies. Other just wanted his face and hat (the funnest part to draw, evidentally!) We talked about symmetry in our drawings. We also discussed the legend of St. Patrick's Day and symbols associatied with the holiday.

Flowers Painting

Students identified a Vincent Van Gogh painting as a "masterpiece". Using only crayons and paint, they created their vase of flowers on a table. Student love learning how to draw flowers. These paintings were awesome! Pictures coming soon!

Painting Frogs

Students drew frogs in their environment. Some chose to put him on a lily pad, others wanted him on a log. One student even drew cat tails in the background. She didn't know what they were called, but knew they belonged in her picture. Love it when that happens! The funny moment in this lesson were when they wanted to know how to draw a fly. "Frogs eat flies, you know," one kindergartener said...

How to Draw a House

In this drawing lesson, student learned how to draw a house to scale. They learned the difference between a horizontal and vertical line. And also used their creativity to add a background (white backgrounds are "no-no's"!) and a landscape to their picture. Impressive!

Oil Pastel Resist Fish

After looking at The Goldfish by Paul Klee, students created their own fish scene underwater. With only a blue oil pastel crayon, they drew a fish - adding fins, eyes, mouth, and scales. They drew lines for water and plant life they would see in the ocean. They colored their fish yellow. Then using only black paint, they painted over the markings. You should have seen their eyes when the paint didn't cover up the markings! It was priceless!