Look what 1st and 2nd grade are doing in Art this quarter

My 1st and 2nd graders have been introduced to observational drawing this quarter.  They were asked to draw their shoes from a close up detailed perspective.  The practiced and practiced until they became comfortable with the subject matter.  We then looked at the book "The Ant Bully" and brainstormed what it would look like to be an ant or bug with our shoe in the picture.  Everything had to be magnified to a larger than life scale.  Steps: draw their shoe onto a 12x18 [piece of watercolor paper, draw magnified background, outline with sharpie pen, color with pan watercolor, add detail with colored pencils.  I think they are doing a great job!!!! still in progress.

 

I'll post more as they are finished.

I JUST LOVE MY STUDENTS

I know that it may sound cheesy but I just love my students.  I have been catching them in those teacher "aw, ha" moments where I can reasure myself that they were actually listening to me teach.  Its the cutest thing to see a 1st grader look aver at their neighbor and talk to them about the project using the vocabulary that I taught them.  Even seeing a junior high students refer to their notes before coming up to me to ask "what do I do next?"  This is initiative in the making!  Finally, it's sinking in.

Learning Targets...a way to display.

With the implementation of Common Core and Learning Targets I was looking for an easier, more organized way to show students and administration what is happening in the artroom.  I found so many great things on the topic through Pinterest.  The above idea I got from another art teachers blog, http://artwithmrsseitz.blogspot.com/  Since I teach Kindergarten through 8tht grade, this is a way to display all the grades I teach and using the pictures makes it clear to students what we are doing visually and what materials they will be needing.  I think the only thing I need to improve on is make the targets a little more visable.  What I do have though has been pretty successful, students are already refering to the board when they first walk into class and when getting their supplies.

Clown of Shapes

Update: (December 2, 1010)

Finished 1st and 2nd grade "Clown of Shapes"  painted with a black tempera wash over clown to create the resist.

                  

In this lesson 1st and 2nd graders drew a clown that they will finish by using a tempera/crayon resist.  In the beginning students drew their own clown by following step by step directions while I modeled the steps myself.  Once they finsihed the drawing of the clown in pencil they then outlined with Sharpie marker and erasered any stray pencils marks.

Next, we reviewed the 5 Basic Shapes and practiced overlapping and erasing to create depth.
Students drew geometric shapes in the body suit, hat and boots of their clowns and then outlined as well.  Once they finished their outlining they got to use different types of crayons (glitter, metallic and construction paper crayons) to color their shapes and other clown details.  I stressed to each of them to use pressure when coloring to create a bolder visual effect.

We will be painting this week with a black tempera wash to create the resist.  More to come, can't wait!

Vote on November 2nd

This is NOT A NEW TAX

What's happening in Kindergarten?

Kindergarteners are working a yearlong project called "My Kindergarten Art Book".
In this book each student completes a variety lessons that introduce them to art concepts such as LINE, SHAPE, COLOR SCHEMES, PATTERN, TEXTURE, and MIXING COLORS.  So far Kindergarten has finished the front cover of their books where they drew their house, school and a road in between. 

They also finshed their LINE assignment.  We read the book "Straight is a LINE".  I gave them each a construction paper Tee-Pee that they were to decorate with different kinds of LINES.  They then glued it to piece of paper and then drew a landscape background.  Then they colored their backgrounds with crayons.

We aslo just finished PRIMARY COLORS with them.
In this project they had their hands traced on their papers and then they outlined their hands with a sharpie marker.  Next they were introduced to Primary colors.  We talked about what the primary colors did and then they colored in their hands with them.  One hand one color, the other hand another primary color and the background was the last primary color.

 

Their Art book will be one that parents will want keep for sure.

1st and 2nd grade "Line Land"

Every year I introduce 1st and 2nd graders to line patterns as their first lesson of the year.  The were introduced to Landscapes  and how an artist would draw a landscape if they wanted to create depth and distance in their drawing.....this lead to horizon line, foreground, middleground and background. They then out lined their drawing with a sharpie marker and filled the empty spaces with line patterns outlining those as well.  I threw in a little challenge by asking them to create emphasis or focal point that wold draw a viewer attention somewhere on their drawing.  They did this by creating a black and white bold pattern.  Check out a sample by a 1st grade students.