2nd grade fish

Years ago, I began doing a project with my second graders that involved drawing and painting fish. One year, we added seashells and pipe cleaner seaweed, and wiggle eyes for a 3D effect. This year, after seeing this project at There's a Dragon in my Art Room (can you tell that I love this blog?), I decided to have the kiddos cut out the fish and work with perspective a little bit.

We started with a drawing period. I wouldn't call it directed drawing, though I did suggest an egg or oval shape for the body, followed by a few key pieces: a mouth, a fin, gills, an eye or eyes (depending on the perspective, which we discussed).

Students added patterns--first with pencil, then with construction paper crayons.

After the fish were cut, out came the watercolors! My youngsters love watercolor resist.

To add some flair and to FINish (har har) the fish, tissue paper was added for fins and tails.

Just keep swimming, just keep swimming...

They're colorful and playful and really brighten up the hallways. While they aren't seasonal or holiday themed, at this time of year, I'm all about bright projects for cold, dull, wintery halls... and quickie projects to keep the kids learnin'.

Also, I enjoy projects that give me an excuse to re-visit my childhood.,,

An art ed contest and more

Good Monday morning, friends! Not gonna lie--this morning has kinda kicked my tush. This is the first full week we've had in awhile and I've had to re-check my attitude multiple times already. We can do this!

I'm hoping to get a fourth grade metal tooling post up later tonight. Till then, I have other things to say (type). Shocking! I know!

First, go nominate your fave blog(s) at The Art of Ed! I follow the blogs of some amazing ladies and gents and really hope they get a nod this year!

Go nominate your favorite art ed blog! Go! Go now!

Second, there are few things I've loved as long as I've loved art. Other than the obvious exceptions--my family and sweet Baby Jesus, which aren't really things at all, if we're being technical--probably the only thing I've been lovin' for close to three decades is reading. Anyone with me?

When you find time to read, do you escape into fiction, biographies, or perhaps something more attune to your craft, a la art ed theory? (Yes, I'm serious about that last one.)

Currently, I'm staying up way too late reading book six of Harry Potter (!!!!!!!!), working my way through Steal Like an Artist (an easy and humorous perusal that I definitely recommend), obsessing over Young House Love (there's a blog by the same name), and keepin' it real with various Joyce Meyer staples.

And to keep myself somewhat well-rounded in my literacy choices, most days I also read several blogs, including those dedicated to art ed, home improvement, and food. I love me some DIY and homemade donuts.

Today, I wanted to send a shout-out and link to Andrea over at Dream.Pray.Create., whose post about social media and its ties to creativity really has me thinking this morning (when I should probably be thinking about pouring paint for my next class). I think it's a really interesting topic and I encourage everyone to head over to Andrea's blog to join in on the discussion!

Make it a great Monday!

Cityscapes

Since I don't see kindergarteners, a lot of my first graders' art time is spent on the basics. Currently, we're working our way through types of art: portraits, landscapes, et cetera. This quickie cityscape project was a HUGE hit with the little stinkers. Thanks for the idea, Mr. E!

If I rushed the kids, I think I could fit the whole shebang into one 45-minute class. This time around, however, I did split the class into an intro/drawing/watercolor day, then a tempera day (with time leftover for something else).

To keep track of the different classes, I varied the paper sizes. My favorite was the long and low 6x12" size. The idea to make the paper this size and orientation totally came from one of the first graders--beaten at my own game, I am.

First, we looked at a few photos of cityscapes (thanks, Google), focusing on those with sunsets in the background and the city set in silhouette. Everyone drew their own interesting city line.

 Watercolors made the skies look lovely. Some sweeties did have some trouble with blending colors, so some of the skies resemble Fruit Stripe gum, but there's nothing wrong with a good food-related throwback.

On the second day, the kids watched in awe as I used a small flat brush to outline my city in black before filling in the white spaces. And I was pretty impressed with the way they maneuvered their own flat brushes!

 

 

My husband didn't believe me when I said that these were the work of first graders. I count that as a win!

I am thankful to be back with the kids (at least that's what I tell 'em)

I hope everyone had a very happy Thanksgiving and a wonderfully relaxing break! My family sojourned to our family cabin, which was built by my grandfather, and where my mom and her five siblings learned to fish, swim, and row a boat.

There was food, family (my husband's family joined us, which was so great), food, ooo-ing and ahh-ing over wedding and baby photos, more food, hiking, four-wheeling, and lots of food, too. Mostly carbs. Amen baby.

This was our first Thanksgiving as a married couple and it was fabulous. My husband's older sister, who has Down Syndrome, is the most popular person wherever she goes, and Thanksgiving was no exception. She wrote a poem (as she does for every special occasion), which she read for all of us as we sat in our pumpkin pie comas.

 

My aunt, mother-in-law, and sister-in-law blazin' a trail!

Today is our first day back and it is snowing for the first time this year in our part of Pennsylvania. It's quite beautiful--though an early dismissal would make it much more so!

28 years ago, an art teacher was born (hehe)

Earlier this week, I celebrated my 28th birthday. I know that some people don't like working on their birthday, but I really enjoy it. Hanging out with a few hundred kiddos on one's special day is pretty special in itself.

Last weekend, as a little pre-bday getaway, my husband took me to Inner Harbor in Baltimore, Maryland, about 1.5 hours away. We stayed in a nice hotel where we ordered some great Chinese food, vegged out, and slept in--no puppy wake-up call at 6:30 (!!!), 'cause he stayed with a friend.

Starbucks and cold Chinese--breakfast of champions!

The day was spent wandering and shopping the Harbor, and enjoying a great seafood meal by the water. Then we went to IKEA! 'Twas a good day!

One of the highlights of my actual birthday came when I first arrived at school, where two of my fifth graders (twin girls) presented me with a painting that one of them had done and framed:

I don't think I can put into words how touched I was. The little sweetie said, "I used the watercolor techniques that you taught us." LOVE

Later, my best friend, who teaches second grade, brought some coffee and a pumpkin muffin for me for breakfast--super yum! And it just so happened that the PTO had organized a thank-you luncheon for teachers on that very day--excellent timing! That evening, my husband and I joined our best friends and their precious infant son to go out to a really nice dinner. It was a wonderful meal (I had lobster, mmmm), and thanks to a restaurant contest I won last year, we had enough gift card credit to pay for everything! Nothing says happy birthday like a day of free meals!

The next day I was at my other building, where a fourth grader had left me a stuffed dachshund puppy and a homemade card. A fourth grade boy. Precious.

Twenty-seven was a good year. I married my best bud, adopted a sweet puppy, and bought a house. And of course, I started this blog. ;-)

Any good birthday memories to share?

Value painting: finishing up

One of the third grade classes just finished their value paintings and I wanted to share the results!

As a refresher, this project began when I saw a Pinterest pin that led nowhere.

I decided to have the kiddos do their pencil and glue lines on black paper instead of white. Then, we painted each leaf a different color, including various tints and shades within each color.

When the paint was dry, we cut around the contour of the leaves. And then I was stuck! I flat-out told the kids that I wasn't sure how I intended to have them finish their projects. Together we looked at some options and decided to mount the leaves onto a colored sheet of paper. Even with the bright fadeless color options, something was missing. Finally, we went with the following: a 10x16" piece of colored paper mounted onto a 12x18" black piece, with the leaves on top.

(Disclaimer: My iPhone and art room lighting don't do the bright colors justice, and I intentionally over-cropped the bottoms to cut off student names.)

This is a light blue background--silly phone.

What a difference a little black frame can make! The kids were so pleased with their paintings, and for winging it, I was, too. From start to finish, this took us four 45-minute class periods, with a little time leftover on the last day.

I really like the black lines between the leaves, though I know that the black paper did affect the way the tints went on. Thoughts?

Displaying Dubuffet sculptures

Just a little update on the Jean Dubuffet project that I first showed you here on Monday. When I had a chance to display these sculptures, my brain said, "oh, these are sculptures, so they should sit on a table or other such flat surface." So I thought about getting an extra table or two from the custodian. Then I came to my senses and thought, "silly brain! Sculptures don't have to sit on a table or a pedestal! You are a ridiculous little brain." And then I hung 'em on the wall!

I loooove the way the sculptures pop off of the wall, giving our hallways some oomph! I did hang them on the hallway closest to my room, so I can keep an eye on kiddos as they pass by them, as they are fairly delicate, being made of paper.

I don't know if anyone else at school or in blogworld cares for this project, but I do a happy little dance when I see these hanging on the wall. More importantly, the kids loved it and the kids learned, so I'm a happy woman.