The Modern Art Smock

Van Gogh Inspired Coiled Sunflower Pots

2012-03-04T22:25:00.000-05:00

Love this project! Our school does not have a kiln, HOWEVER, that doesn't mean that the students don't get to experience some kind of clay!
So this year I tried to order some more Crayola Model Magic, for the younger grades.
In our Art classroom we have a "Picasso Points Chart" where they earn points for following the rules and for remembering facts about each specific project/lesson. When they reach "20" points they get to vote for a reward.. 10 minute game time, sit next to a friend, music during student time(studio time), or a clay project. If they don't vote for it, I still will try to have a least all of 2nd grade complete a project in clay or 3-D project.

So some classes did a 2-D project of Van Gogh's sunflowers in Oil Pastel.
Other classes, learned how create a coiled vessel, attach "petals" and "leaves", and then allowed them to dry.

The next class, they added tempura paint to make the coiled vessels look more like a bright sunflower.
Last step, paint on a glossy glue/modge podge/ shiny finish.

Check them out!!

Can't wait to come up with some more clay lesson ideas!

Portrait made by Young Blogger

2012-02-26T21:51:00.000-05:00

Hello all! I just wanted to share with you a great, talented blogger, Ty from http://knowandtellcrafts.blogspot.com. He asked for people to send him a picture so he could make a digital portrait, for practice,etc. so I just wanted to share the one he made of me. My husband just saw and He absolutely loves it. Now I definitely need to get sketchbook pro! so I can make some cool digital drawings.

Thank you so much Ty!

* I saw this on http://minimatisse.blogspot.com/. (amazing art lesson/idea site) So check out her image that http://knowandtellcrafts.blogspot.com made of her, too!

1st grade Self-Portraits

2012-02-20T23:18:00.000-05:00

Now this is a repeat project and probably will be for the next couple of years. I learned about this project when I student taught. My co-op would give the students a "pre-test" to draw themselves without any help. Then the next 2-3 classes the students worked on drawing proportion, facial details, hair, special details like earrings, glasses, ponytails, etc. and then worked on the background. We review horizon line, line, patterns, and colors. they used crayons and markers. And of course with all my projects we outline with Black Sharpie Markers.

Wayne Thiebaud Inspired Layered Cakes

2012-02-20T23:06:00.000-05:00

This project was created for students who finished there wayne thiebaud lollipop projects quicker then others so they would have reinforcement on who Wayne Thiebaud is and how to draw a realistic cake.

The students were allowed to add whatever details they would like on their cake. We brain stormed ideas aloud and then each student got a handout on picture references on how to draw the 3 layered cake. There is a section on the paper where students can practice drawing the cake and brainstorming decoration ideas.

They took a little long then expected, However, i think it turned out to be great and we will have to use 1/2 of the next class to complete. I don't like rushing learning and students gain confidence in completing projects, in an appropriate amount of time, and being able to reinforce learning and development of art and educational skills.

Art club mini-lessons

2012-02-20T22:57:00.000-05:00

I have two art clubs, a 3rd grade and a 4th grade. They meet once a month throughout the entire school year.

Here are some lessons that I did with them

This may look familiar to you because it has been all over pinterest.com.

We put a little spin on it by adding color and more details.

It takes about 1-2 classes to complete, depends on adding color, outlining and details.

The past few months!

2012-02-20T22:52:00.000-05:00

SO I am back... and it feels good. I didn't really go any where, but i needed a little break from the blog. I have been focusing on lesson plans, classroom management, being one of the yearbook advisors this year, and a whole bunch of other things so here are some lessons my students have worked on or are working on now!

3rd GradeWayne Thiebaud Value Lollipop/Ice creams... I have a whole write up on this lesson, just check out my 3rd grade lessons.

4th grade- Keith Haring Positive/Negative Designs- This year I decided to do this lesson a little earlier then I did last year, because at the end of the year this project got a little rushed. I wanted to give students a little more time to complete the project.

just a couple of examples

k, 1st and second examples to come tomorrow!

Let me know if you have any questions

4th grade Tissue Paper Painting Peacock Portraits

2012-01-22T19:55:00.000-05:00

We did this project before the Holiday season, it's a little late in posting this project HOWEVER this project turned out great.

We started with a background of peacocks, and then drew a basic portrait of a peacock.

We outlined with medium black sharpies and then colored in the peacocks body and the "eyes" of the feather with realistic oil pastel colors.

To add the vibrant colors of the feathers we painted with tissue paper. I cut up 1" to 2" squares of tissue paper of blues/greens/purples/browns etc.
We painted on plain water and then add tissue papers and THEN painted over with clear what to add a watercolor effect.

Check them out!!!

If you try this in your classroom, please let me know... you will love the results and your students will too and they will feel successful, well at least I hope!

Holiday Projects

2012-01-04T19:34:00.000-05:00

We're back to school! I have so many lesson ideas swirling in my head. HOWEVER, I have so many lessons to update to this blog... LOTS of winter/holiday projects..

Here you go!

Thanks for stopping by, please say hi, leave fun ideas, or use some of my ideas!!!
Happy Art Making!

:) Candice

3rd Grade Mehndi Hands Modification.

2011-12-01T22:25:00.000-05:00

I did this project last year after being inspired by www.pantherspalette.blogspot.com.

This year I decided to kick it up a Notch! I have been pretty much obsessed with decorated borders, it just adds a whole other element!

If you want to read how to do the project check out my post from last year ( under 3rd grade).

4th Woven Yarn Cup Baskets

2011-12-01T22:16:00.000-05:00

I have done this project many times before. They students love it and you can just see so much growth in their work and confidence.

You use a 9 oz or 16 oz cups ( i precut them into 7 spokes) and talk about patterns and the plain weave. Have stations around the room with yarn.

FOr the contemporary items at the top/ I put out a station with thick yarn, beads, pipe cleaners, telephone wire, straws, tissue paper, etc.

Plain weave basket

Ornament

I love these unruly curly Q's and beads.

Ornament/hanging how awesome!

Plain Weave

Basket

Mug how genius!

I am so blessed to have amazing, creative students who want to learn and try new lings.

1st grade Pattern Owls

2011-12-01T21:55:00.000-05:00

This is a great 1-2 day project.

First we drew an owl, step by step.

They we outline with sharpie markers, added patterns inside owl, then we cut and glued them to a color background.

To add another element I had the students glue their owls to a larger piece of paper, to create a border and then they add pattern designs to the border. Very graphic designer-esque.

1st grade Van Gogh Starry Night Winter Scenes

2011-12-01T21:47:00.000-05:00

This project is fabulous! I have seen many projects inspired by Vincent Van Gogh's Starry Night. I did want the students to have to "re-do" a masterpiece. SOO I talked to the students about what being "inspired or influenced" by an artist means. So we based the bottom of the composition, usually the town in Van Gogh's work into a winter scene.

We used Construction paper crayons on Black paper. Can I just say how much I LOVE USING CONSTRUCTION PAPER CRAYONS AND SO DO THE STUDENTS!

We used 11" by 17" black paper.

With pencil : Drew 3 hills.. a snowman ( on the side where the big brown "tree", "building", "vines" etc is )

I showed them 3 different kind of pine or evergreen trees.. They has to add 3 trees. We talked about how trees in the distance would be smaller, et.

They then added 1-2 "oak" trees without leaves because it is winter.

We talked about how Van Gogh uses bold, brushstrokes or dashes. They filled each object with dashes to add texture and Van Goghs style.

Once the Land portion was completed..

We added the sky. A crescent moon, 6 or more stars. They added "halos" of dashes and they added wind, swirls, or tails with orange, yellow, and white.

Last but not least they used purples, greens, and blues to complete the sky.

Check them out:

Love the trees!

1st grade-look at those detailed dashes in the sky

Love that snowman

Fabulous!

SOOO MANY LESSONS

2011-11-21T22:13:00.002-05:00

WOW.. I can't believe it has been almost a month since I have uploaded new lessons.. Thankfully Thanksgiving break is just around the corner, so I will have to to upload lots of lessons.

Be on the lookout!

Thanks for stopping by, please feel free to check out the lessons on this site, and please let me know (or link) me if you do decide to use one of them. I love seeing different kinds of outcomes..

:)

3rd/4th grade Fall Still Life

2011-10-25T22:03:00.001-04:00

This week and next week the 3rd and 4th graders, will be drawing form observation. I set up a still life in the middle of the room. We talked about sketching, looking, view finders, observing, and not second guessing yourself. So far it has been a blast. I am so impressed with our drawing skills and imagination.

I encouraged the students to pick at least 2 objects to draw (mostly more than that) and then they could create their own background, such as, a wallpaper designs, outside design, a window, etc. These photos below are works in progress, to be finished next week!

3rd grade Giraffes

2011-10-18T22:21:00.001-04:00

Okay.. So I have done this project before, last year. This year I changed it up a little to make it less timely and to give the students more time to paint.

I have seen a lot of "animal portraits" on art education blogs, even some giraffe portraits. I will link up my last year post, because I believe it has some more details.

This year I had the students use oil pastels for the spots and background objects and then used watercolor techniques for the giraffe skin, sky, and grass!

Don't you just love that tongue and character of this giraffe

Oh that nose! such character and creativity

4th grade Keith Haring Positive Negative Designs

2011-10-10T21:39:00.002-04:00

We learned about Keith Haring. There is a great Keith Haring website to check out and show your students, www.haringkids.com.

Keith Haring was so original in thought and I wanted to come up with a project that would have the students thinking about different simple people designs as well as, focusing on positive and negative.

So we started with one color sheet 6" x 16" and two 6" x 4". They drw there designs with either pencils or white color pencils to make it clearer.

I showed them how to make "little" cuts an paste it down tightly so it looks like one piece and makes the viewer wonder how they cut it out so neatly and cleanly.

Check them out!

WOW... so impressive!!

1st grade Mondrian Butterflies

2011-10-10T21:26:00.000-04:00

This project is actually from last Spring. I don't believe I posted this before.

We studied artist Piet Mondrian. Focusing on lines, shapes, and of course the primary colors.
We started out with 12" x 18" white piece of paper. Holding it horizontally we added a "skinny" oval in the middle of the paper and made wings on each side.
We used rulers to create 4 horizontal lines and 4 vertical lines (diagonals were allowed) We used black oil pastel to draw.

We then added primary colors "randomly" to different shapes. Cut them out and either paste on to another paper (blue) or just keep cut out.

*Modify: You could have the students mix the primary colors into secondary colors, to work on mixing colors and painting neatly. So it would be influenced by Mondrian but have a new twist, with the primary colors.

4th Grade St. Basil's Cathedral Inspired Towers

2011-09-18T20:37:00.001-04:00

A couple years ago I had the honor to go on a trip To Russia with my dear friend and her family.
We traveled from St. Petersburg to Moscow. In Moscow we visited the Red Square and Of course the famous St. Basil's Cathedral. I was in awe and couldn't believe how colorful and breathtaking it was!

So I always wanted to study this beautiful piece of Architecture.

We talked about the St. Basil's cathedral, terms, like onion dome, spire, arch, etc.

So the students used rulers to create straight lines for their towers, then created onion domes and spires and they were allowed to create their own "creative"towers, to show a more individual thought.

We talked about how to add textures in "clusters" to show that the towers were a texture but just a hint so it wouldn't look so cluttered.

AND of course, focused on bright and bold colors influenced by St. Basil's Cathedral!

Let's check them out.

I will update with other finished projects once completed this week! THey were allowed to experiment with a twist on the towers with more creative and modern tower designs.

3rd Grade Castles

2011-09-18T20:18:00.000-04:00

This project can be adapted to different grades.

We are studying a unit on "Architecture" for 3rd and 4th grade. I wanted to start out with something that would review using a ruler, our imagination and basic shapes.

I made a very quick power point showing different castles from around the world, had different castles terms defined, and then spoke about what we would be doing.

They used rulers to create straight lines, they were to draw their castle anyway they would like. I showed a brief demonstration on rulers, basic castle shapes, how to draw a drawbridge, etc. and then said add "your own flare/creativity". They had a texture sheet on how to add different textures such as, bricks, stones, polka dots, checkerboard, etc.

We used a 11" x 17" white constructions, drew in pencil line, outline with sharpie markers, and colored in with crayons or markers.

Check out these amazing castles! ( did see some cool castle design projects on Deepspacesparkle and ms.julie's art school)
I really wanted the students to feel like real building designers and architects!

1st Grade "Where the Wild Things Are"

2011-09-18T19:57:00.000-04:00

So I know a lot of people have done a lesson on this Book. I really wanted to start out the year with using our IMAGINATION!
We started off by defining what imagination was and what the difference between pretend and real.
I read the story aloud, stopping to ask questions, and predictions of what will happen next.

We started out with an 8 1/2" x 11" white construction paper and pencil. I showed them some ideas on how to start out with Shapes to make the basic form of the body. Then add "details" like eyes, nose, mouth, hair, horns, tail, scales, ear rings, antlers, etc.
We focused on drawing large enough to fill the page, we discussed what a HORIZON LINE is and added one to our page.
They outline with permanent Sharpie Markers, erased their pencil lines, and then used construction paper crayons to add Bright and Bold colors.

A NEW SCHOOL YEAR

2011-09-18T19:32:00.000-04:00

Hello All! It has been quite sometime since I updated. This school year is going great and I hope to update a couple times a month with new lessons, lesson ideas, classroom management tips and questions, etc. Please stop by and lend me some feed back.

If you like any of the ideas on my page, all I ask is that you link them back to here. I love how helpful all my fellow art ed. bloggers are, so I hope that I can help, inspire, and challenge all of you!!

I hope you all are starting off with a enjoying and awesome school year!
Candice

Road Trip Time

2011-07-12T23:17:00.000-04:00

Wow.. it is half way through summer already! crazy. I have been working on some fun art lessons, they will be posted very soon, I promise. Also, I have been working on some fun crochet blankets and necklaces, as well as, gardening, working out (ZUMBA IS THE BEST), and spending time working on my cooking skills (thanks to my wonderful husband, he is the best cook ever)!

Starting this friday the Mr. and I will be taking a road trip to Tennessee! We will be adventuring through Nashville, Tullahoma, Normandy, Chattanooga, and Gatlinburg. I can't wait! We will be visiting the First Center of Art Museum. http://www.fristcenter.org/site/default.aspx
I hope to get some ideas for new lesson plans, and of course, I will be sharing them will all of you, my dear blogger friends.

If you have been to these cities in TN, or live there, please send me any cool traveling places, art galleries, dining places, any thing you would like to share that would be absolutely helpful!

I hope you all are having a great summer break! I would love to hear what you all are up to.

Printmaking:Modigiliani Self-Portraits

2011-06-05T21:31:00.000-04:00

This is one of the best projects of the year, the students absolutely fell in love with the printmaking process.
What you will need:
printmaking styro foam plates (or styrofoam lunch trays, etc.)
speed ball printing ink( all different colors)
pencils
scrap paper
all different colors of construction paper cut to the size of the plate ( a little bigger then the plate)
Info on artist Amedeo Modigilani ( I made a slideshow)

First we looked at some examples of Amedeo Modigiliani's work. Then we drew a step by step self portrait on a small scrap paper. THEY LOVED DRAWING THEMSELVES IN ABSTRACT FORM, WITH LON NECKS, LONG HEAD, ETC. We taped the scrap paper to the styrofoam plate and then outline the scrap paper by pressing hard on to the styrofoam.

For printing: I made sure they pressed hard into the styrofoam with their pencils, so it would make a good print. I had them come in groups pick 3 colors of different paper and 1 color of ink. They created 3 so they could choose the best.. and then we made ghost prints at the end to see if the "faded" look turned out.

Then they made a frame for their Modiligani self-portraits and glued their favorite print in the middle of the frame.

It has been awhile...

2011-05-10T22:24:00.000-04:00

Wow.. I really need to post like 7 new lessons, but I have been very busy trying to get the art show completed. Tomorrow during Art club time (early A.M.) I am going to show the art clubbers how to set up all the 3-D projects and how to properly mount artwork. They LOVE helping.. and I really need some extra hands..

ALL the 2-D projects are in the hallway already, all the projects look fabulous!

I am going to try to post everything tomorrow and friday.

Thanks for checking out my blog and come again when there are some new lessons!

:)

1st Grade "If the Dinosaurs came Back" Dinosaur Drawings

2011-04-26T19:57:00.000-04:00

DID YOU EVER READ THIS STORY??? It's a must.. and I love the simple Illustrations.

This book is absolutely wonderful! The author puts the Dino's in really cute and clever atmospheres! So the lesson was to draw a dinosaur (I handed out a handout that I found with all different dinosaurs on it)

The students were to try their best to create a "realistic" dinosaur and put it in an unrealistic setting.

They drew the dinos, background and outlined in Sharpie markers, and colored in with Markers and Crayons.

THE VERSATILE BLOGGER AWARD

2011-04-26T19:29:00.001-04:00

Thank you so much to Lauren from Dalismoustache.blogspot.com for the versatile Blogger award! She has great lessons, I have used a couple of her ideas in my classroom, so I feel really honored.

For this blogger award we are asked to share 7 interesting facts about ourselves and select 10 other bloggers for this award.

1. This year I got married to my best friend, Brian. (he loves Mopeds) We got married on November 20, 2010. Here are a couple pictures of the day. Oh and I love mustaches and beards just as much as Lauren does so we made felt ones to give away as favors. All the flowers are made out of paper. And our cake toppers were gnomes.

2. I love gnomes. I think they are full of antiquity, history and charm. I have over 15 lawn gnomes, I have collected from auctions, yard sales, and gifts from friends/family.

3. This is my first year teaching, L.T.S. I absolutely LOVE it. I have been looking all over the counties in PA. and no one is hiring. It makes me nervous but I know their is a plan for me. I just don't want to do anything but teach art. It makes me sad to know that I might not be doing what I love next year, but there might be another door to open with other opportunities behind it.

4. My dear friend, Katie and I are running a marathon this November in Philadelphia, Pa. Major training starting in the beginning of June. 26.2 miles to go. I will shed some tears when I cross that finish line

5. We own a pet chinchilla named Moses. He is our baby. Well now Brian and him are best friends, since I moved in after we got married.

6. We live really simply, in the heart of the Lancaster city. Cities can be really unkind sometimes but there is great opportunity for community, and I must say our community is great. We are saving for a house but we aren't really sure where to look since we don't know where I will be working.

7.I love pickles/olives, I can eat a jar of them in a heart beat. Ever since I was like 10, I can't stop myself around pickles. :)

So those might not be that interesting.. but you know.

Pass the Award on to 10 recently discovered bloggers:

Mrs.Picasso's Art Room

Panther's Palette

My Artful Nest

Mrs. Knight's Smartest Artists

Adventures of an Art Teacher

Oodles of Art

Congratulation to you and thanks for all of the inspiration! Pass it on...

(now: tell 7 interesting facts about yourself, pass the award onto 10 of your newly discovered or favorite bloggers, and lastly, thank and link back to the blogger who gave you the award.)

2nd Grade Apple Blossom Branches

2011-04-19T21:00:00.000-04:00

These were so fun to create. and they are a little different from different apple/cherry blossom lessons I've seen.

We used 11" x 17" light blue construction paper. acrylic paint (brown), thick Sharpie markers, assorted tissue paper, glue, yellow paint.

We talked about symmetry vs. asymmetry; then created a asymmetrical branch. Painted it with brown acrylic paint, allowed to dry, outlined with black sharpie marker, added dashes for texture of the branch.

Then we used a pencil to create flowers and glued down on the little branches/twigs.

Then students had free choice to add butterflies, squirrels, flies, etc. to the background.

They turned out great.. During the Art Show the parents and community really enjoyed the branches.

4th Grade "American Gothic" Inspired Pairs

2011-04-13T22:44:00.001-04:00

These are fantastic! WOW.. the students gobbled up this project. It did take about 3 weeks, Especially because we had PSSA's this month. March seemed to drag by but this project helped out.

First start off with a 11" x 17" white construction paper. We used rulers (math) to frame out an 1" border. We discussed Grant Wood, where he is from, what he created, and his painting "American Gothic".
We then discussed facial and body proportion. They were to draw themselves and someone they know and admire. They could draw an animal instead of a person, if an animal was their best friend. They needed to add a background that was significant to them.

Here are some wonderful examples:

At a football game

In their backyard

At the aquarium

Hanging near the hammock with friends

"Dreaming of cheese"

Inside with his birds and mom

At the beach

Bringing his fish outside for some sunlight

Spending time with her Gerbal

Movie Time!

Out taking a walk with her cat.

Winslow Homer Sailboat Landscapes

2011-04-06T20:56:00.000-04:00

I initially found a idea for this project from this website: Incredible Art Department.

I love starting the spring with this project. Winslow Homer created so many wonderful seascapes. The way to help the students really I would say " the Wind is so SLOW i am going HOME" Because if you are in a sail boat and there is no wind, then you would probably want to go home. :)

We studied Winslow Homer's work and brief bio. We used 11" x 17" white construction paper, drew a basic sail boat, discussed foreground, middle ground, and background. The students had free choice in what they added to their background and what they named their boat.
They outlined with medium Sharpie Marker, colored in all the objects with crayola crayons, and last but not least added our sky colors and sea colors.

They turned out EXCELLENT, and very inspired by Winslow Homer!

LOOK AT ALL THESE TREASURES!

2011-03-22T22:49:00.001-04:00

NO that is not my huge recycling pile, It's future recyclable monsters! Our Art club will be starting these tomorrow. AND some of our 4th grade classes will be making either animals/monsters.

The school staff and some of the Art Club parents have donated their plastic, paper, etc. recyclable products.

I CANT NOT WAIT to see what the outcomes are for these clean plastic bottles.
I made a monster but I think I will keep you all in suspense and put them in with the student work and see if you can pick it out. All my students, including my ART CLUB students don't get enough chance to work with 3-Dimensional because we don't have a kiln for clay. So I thought we could do a eco-friendly project, as well as, 3-Dimensional one.

Kindergarten Fish Bowls

2011-03-22T22:37:00.000-04:00

We read "I'm the best artist in the Ocean" by Kevin Sherry ( I believe). We started out with a tracer of a fish bowl.
We then drew the main character of the Story, a Squid with a mustache. Then added all different types of crabs and fish, etc. We traced all pencil lines with black Sharpie marker. Then color all fish/objects with crayons. Go over the water with blue tempura water cakes.
Allow to dry. Then we cut them out and looked at them all together, a mini-class critique.

This was a 1-2 day project. The class really enjoyed the story and the slideshow, I showed, off fish and underwater images.

Take a look! They look like a fishbowl that I always dreamed of!

KIndergarten Spring Flower Collage

2011-03-22T22:13:00.001-04:00

I haven't posted many of our kindergarten projects, so for the next couple of weeks I'm going to try to update as many as I can.

This project was great to do with my full day Kinders! We reviewed how to draw circles, cut out different shapes, rip the petals, and use different materials (cotton balls, metallic paper, tissue paper, etc)

We started out with 9" x 12" light blue paper. I had previously cut stems for the flowers. THey used a glue stick and glue 3 stems on their paper, making sure to have the stem end at edge of paper.

Then we used a long green strip for the grass. I demonstrated how to use the scissors to cut little cuts all the way down the strip to create grass that "pops" off the page.

We then ripped our petals from scrap paper we have on a scrap cart in class.

We added square metallic paper to the middle. We discussed different shapes.

We then used cotton balls for the clouds in the sky. They loved this part.

This project is great for fine motor skills, student free choice, and introducing/reviewing collage/multi-media projects.
This could be easily adaptable to higher grades.

I am so excited to see our full day kinders become little Multi-Media Artists!

3rd grade Jim Dine Warm/Cool Compass Designs

2011-03-22T11:27:00.000-04:00

As you can see I did a unit about Jim Dine with my 1st, 2nd, and 3rd graders. I love Jim and all the different lessons you can create using his subject and love for color.

This was a challenging project. I have seen some projects like this, art projects for kids, think create art, and oodles of art; the one with the hand in warm colors and the background in cool. They are very eye-catching. The lady that I am subbing for (the last link) does a warm/cool hand project. I wanted the students to have the warm/cool review with a twist of compass and art history/criticism.

I wanted to have my third graders introduced into using compasses to create circles.

1. We started off with a teacher made slideshow of a brief bio of Jim Dine and LOTS! of images.
2. The students received a 9" x 12" piece of white construction paper.
3. They were asked to either draw, with black or brown oil pastel, an outline of a heart or a tool, based off of Jim Dine. Hand outs of tool shapes were provided.
4. After teacher demo, the students added a dot anywhere inside of there subject.
5. started out with the smallest circle and continued to make each circle 1" bigger, until they couldn't go any further.
6. To complete the circles until the edge of the paper, they "eyed" 1-2 circles. I thought this would be helpful because they could try to see if they could make a circle one inch away for the other line.
7. They outlined every pencil line with black or brown oil pastel.
8. Added cool colors in back ground and warm colors, with oil pastels, in subject.

This was challenging, a lot of steps, but at the end they felt so accomplished. The compass was a little tricky at first because their is only one of me and 20 some of them. I had some helpers in class, help their neighbors if they finished early. Most of my students love helping and the students that need help, love to interact with their fellow classmates.

Check them out for yourselves!! Some made mistakes as to where the warm and cool colors go, but as long as they see they made the mistake and learn from it, I think it adds to the overall composition.

Paintbrush (not completed)

Saw

Paintbrush

1st Grade Under the Sea Portholes

2011-03-08T17:15:00.000-05:00

1st Grade Under the Sea Portholes

WOW.. I love this project.
I got the idea from a 1970 craft pamphlet, twisted it to incorporate under the sea, instead of above the sea.

We start out with 11" x 17" White Construction paper.
We cap off the corners and then draw a large oval in the center of the page.
We draw mini-circles with x's in them to create screw's to "attach" the porthole frame to the submarine.
Then we add a horizon line.. to divide sea and sand.
We practice our sea creatures together on the back of the paper, and when they feel confident they turn the paper over and add a good amount of sea creatures.
We outline in Black Sharpie Marker.
Color the sea creatures, porthole frame, coral, etc. with crayons.
Then we do a type of crayon resist painting. By using tempura watercolor cakes to paint the sea and sand.
We talked about warm/cool colors.

THEY LOOK SUPERB. They are so creative and wonderful!!!

More Projects to come

2011-02-24T21:25:00.001-05:00

We are finishing up some projects in each grade.. stay tuned for more I will be uploading this weekend, since this week as been hectic but very awesome..
:)

1st grade Art Show

2011-02-24T21:10:00.000-05:00

We just had our first grade art show. It was soo great to see all the students so fancy and proud of their work. There was a concert, as well. THey did such an amazing job!

Here are some pictures:

I had a lot of helping hands to put up these beautiful pieces of art work. Our students are so talented and creative!

2nd Grade Jim Dine Studies

2011-02-13T22:15:00.000-05:00

This project is a quick way of introducing Jim Dine, Color, Pattern, and a series/study in art.

We started out with a teacher made slideshow of info and images of Jim Dine's work. Then we added 6 hearts (2 rows of 3). I emphasized for the hearts to be medium. Then we used rulers to create 2 straigh lines through each row of 3 hearts.

We reviewed/introduced warm and cool colors by discussing and looking at the color wheel. I thought the best way to make it interesting and stick in their minds was to play a little education game. Whenever I would say a warm color they would act like they were really hot (fanny themselves off, saying "whoo it is so hot in here" etc.) and for cool they would shiver, rub there arms, etc. THEY LOVED IT!!!!!

Here are some examples. These lovely hearts are created on 9" x 12" white construction paper and oil pastels. Hearts were with warm colors and background with cool colors. THey were allowed to color in solidly or with patterns.

PLUS: it is a great way to do a seasonal project for Valentines Day. 2 birds with one stone.

The last one did not stick to warm and cool colors like discussed in class, however their creativity with all the colors/patterns looks wonderful!

4th grade Fantastic Figure

2011-02-06T20:19:00.000-05:00

Ever since the 1st day of school all of the 4th graders asked me if they could draw my wooden mannequin that stands proudly on my desk.

I had pictures up on the screen of 3 different poses. We discussed how to build a figure through shapes, emphasizing not being too "controlled" or having it to look perfect. We reviewed sketching and observing the figure.

The last pose they could come up with there own "scene". I thought after they had some experience with drawing the figure, the students named him "woody", they would feel more comfortable drawing the 4th pose.

We studied complimentary colors. We used oil pastels to outline pencil lines, and then colored the color that compliments.

Here are some examples:

1st Grade Jim Dine Multi-Media Hearts

2011-02-02T13:34:00.000-05:00

Now that Valentines Day is approaching, I have seen a lot of Jim Dine "heart" projects popping up on art education blogs. I'm not one for seasonal/holiday projects, but if they can study an artist that has made a living and following creating hearts, WHY can't WE?

So I have a project planned for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd based on Jim Dine. His artwork is so beautiful. He has created many ( and i mean a lot) of artwork with the subjects of "hearts" and "tools". He uses all different types of materials, 2-D and 3-D.

For this 1st grade project, I wanted to use a couple different materials. Gratefully our Library aid had all these foam pads donated to her to be used for crafts,etc. She came to me and asked if we could use them. They look like mouse pads and I started brainstorming some ideas. I asked if she had enough for us (like 180 per grade) she said she had boxes and boxes, BOY was she right!

We started off with 8.5" x 11" white construction paper. We then drew a large heart onto the back of the foam pad ( these pads are about 7" x 6"). I showed the students how to draw a heart. They were so excited when they learned the, "draw a lower case m and then attach a v at the bottom of the m, to create the heart" and we also learned out to draw one side of the heart and attach it to another side (like a comma).
They we glued the foam pad to the middle of the white construction paper.
We then used water-tempura cakes to apply a black line around the heart to have the heart "pop" off the page, like a lot of Dine's work.
Then I showed how to apply the paint, and the students had free range to apply any colors (except black) to the foreground/heart and the background.
Last but not least the students added splashes of black to the background. The reason I waited to let them apply the black paint because a lot of the time the black starts mixing with the other colors and it doesn't look defined. I usually don't like to "restrict" students creativity, however, that little extra time with out black paint allows the other colors to dry and set what they already created.
We allowed them to dry on the drying racks and cleaned up the art room.

They really enjoyed doing a one-day project and using the foam pads. They kept saying it feels so soft like a pillow or there favorite stuffed animal.

NOw the first graders are Multi-media artists!

Last picture is to show how the foam comes off of the page or "pops" off the page. (teacher example)

New Layout

2011-02-02T13:07:00.000-05:00

Because of our crazy winter weather, here in PA, we have had about 4-5 snow days. These past two days consisting of really nasty ice storms, causing power outages, fallen trees/branches, and terrible driving conditions. Thankfully my power is not out so I have been able to update more and change the Layout a little.

Hope you are staying safe during these icy/snowy days. Also, hope you are enjoying the lessons, if you have any questions or comments please let me know.

2nd Grade "Bad Case of the Stripes" Self-Portraits

2011-02-02T12:43:00.000-05:00

This book, "The Bad Case of Stripes" by David Shannon is absolutely wonderful! When I searched online to see if there were any videos, I stumbled along a website called www.storylineonline.net.
This website has a variety of stories that are read by celebrity people.
At our school teachers use this website all the time to help introduce books, use technology, and show creativity in there lessons. Many 2nd grade teachers already introduced this story to their class, so it turned out to be a great cross curriculum lesson.

I got the idea to use this story from some 2nd grade teachers in my building and also saw some good self portrait ideas from this site self-portraits, and I saw another great lesson that mrs.jahnig did with her 2nd grade classes that was based on "A Bad Case of Stripes."
For this project we used a 11" x 17" white construction paper. We drew our self portraits by adding shapes upon shapes. They drew everything with pencil and outlined with medium Sharpie Marker. They used rulers to measure the stripes, approx. 1" apart from each line. This was a really great way to teach them how to use the ruler, make straight lines, and intergrate math in a simple and fun way. We used crayons to apply color to the hair, eyes, and t-shirt. Some added crayon color to their background. Once finished with crayons, students added color to their stripes and background with tempura cakes (like water color but darker/richer colors).
They turned out great!

Wayne Thiebaud Inspired 3-Dimensional Lollipops

2011-01-17T20:13:00.000-05:00

I wanted the 3rd graders to learn about Wayne Thiebaud and learn how to turn a circle into a sphere with chalk pastel.
Usually to educate students about spheres and 3-d shapes, teachers do a space lesson, which they turn out great but I wanted to come up with a unique way of combining two "subjects" or "ideas".

We started out with black or dark blue paper, drew 3 circles (big or little) and used rulers to create the lollipops sticks. I printed out some grey scales and how to create a sphere. I did a demo. with chalk pastel and oil pastel. I left it up to the students to pick their mediums and colors. We talked about light sources and where the "white" and "black" would be placed.

Then added color to the background (walls and tabletop) with oil pastels. We drew circles or ovals to create shadow on the table top and filled in with black OIL pastel.

When I first showed my teacher example all the kids thought they couldn't do it. When they finished their projects, one student in particular said," Mrs. Schwien you really taught us how to do this, that now MINE looks better then yours!" I know it sounds boastful, however I took it as a compliment that he was so confident in his achievement and progression in creating art.

First picture is my Teacher Example. (I allowed the students to make ice cream cones if they wanted to, they turned out great)

1st Grade Picasso faces

2011-01-12T22:48:00.000-05:00

Picasso is our Mascot in our Art classroom (both classrooms actually) He guards the Points that the students earn in class for making good behavior choices and participating.
They really wanted to learn more about Picasso, so I introduced him by showing them a brief slideshow on Picasso's work and life.

We talked about the difference of Profile and Portrait. I briely went over the definitions for abstract and cubism. I did this project in October and now the students will say "oh that project is abstract" or "it doesn't look realistic, it MUST be abstract" what GREAT minds I am teaching. I learn so much from them every day.
ANYWAYS, we then created 3 WACKY FACES. One big and the other medium sizes. We did one together, allowing free choice along the way. When we were done with the first one, the students completed the last 2, outline with medium size markers, then colored in with GLITTER crayons. They LOVE glitter/metallic crayons. In my personal opinion the metallic crayons are way more consistent and you really can see a sheen. The glitter crayons get clogged and are really light when put on paper. But all in all they looked great.

With the crayons, I emphasized not touching same/like colors next to eachother.

4th Grade Woven Yarn Baskets

2011-01-12T22:40:00.000-05:00

I know this is a common project with many art educators but I mixed it up by talking about contemporary versus traditional materials.My students learned how to do the traditional plain weave, warp/weft, shuttles, the Hopi Tribe, etc. We talked about different materials and I showed them photos of contemporary baskets made of jump ropes, phone wire (a picture of my own work), trash bags, etc.
I majored in textiles for my underground and I really love to include them in my lessons.

We did the traditional plain weave focusing on a color pattern with the yarn. When they were an 1" away from the top we started to include more contemporary/different items. I think they turned out great. We finished them right before the holidays and they said their families loved their baskets! Some of the students gave them as presents. I have one class working on them right now, to showcase them for the future spring art show!

The first picture/basket is made with pipe cleaners that spells the students brothers name, because he was making it for him for Christmas. What CREATIVITY!

3rd Grade Oil Pastels/Watercolor Giraffes

2011-01-12T22:27:00.000-05:00

We actually did this project with the 3rd graders in Sept/Oct. I finally got a camera that doesn't lose charge really quickly!

To start out I showed A Slide show on fun facts about Giraffes, their environment, size, what they eat, AND of course images of Giraffes.

We started out with step-by-step instructions on how to draw the giraffe with oil pastels. Then added whatever they thought would be suitable for the background; focusing on what we discussed in the beginning of class.
This lesson took about 2-3 classes to complete.

They look truly wonderful.

Kindergarten Van Gogh Styled Rudolphs

2011-01-04T23:06:00.000-05:00

Now, I usually don't do Holiday Projects, however, I thought this would be a great project to help students learn how to draw basic shapes, Add texture to the Reindeers with the INfluence Of Van Gogh, review and work on coloring in nice and neatly, and start understanding outlining pencil lines to make drawings "pop" and clear.
I made a Slideshow with images of Van Gogh's work, a brief life bio, and pictures of real reindeers. We sang Rudolph the red nose reindeer.
We started out with basic shapes. I emphasized making the shapes and Reindeer as large as the page.
We did a step by step drawing.
Then we outlined the pencil lines with Black Sharpie Markers. We talked about erasing our pencil lines to make the project look clean and neat. They stood up to give a little more strength to erase. Some struggled with that, however, I used this as a teachable moment for them and for myself. I partnered them up and they helped eachother hold each others paper.
Then we added a "scratchy" texture like Van Gogh did in his paintings.
Then to top it off we add a red glitter nose. I am not a fan of glitter but around the season, a little looks wonderful!

4th Grade Pennsylvania Star Barns

2011-01-04T22:53:00.000-05:00

The 4th graders studied the historic PA Star Barn, located near Harrisburg, PA. We studied the history, visited the Star Barn official website, and explored the architecture of this beautiful Barn.
We talked about how the barn is based off of a church style or Gothic Revival.
We started out with picture references and broke down the drawing into basic shapes. The students added the details they saw that would indicate the differences of a typical PA barn style compared to the Star Barn style.
We then painted over the pencil lines, to encourage and enforce hand eye coordination and review outlining. We talked about contour line and how we did not need to fill in the Star Barn with paint because it is already white. To keep it looking clean and neat.
THey used a mixture of black and white to make grey. We reviewed how to mix light and dark colors. They loved mixing it and seeing the paint swirl together.
In the background the students added different details/elements they felt would have been around the star ban in it's peak time. Now there is a highway, so they used their imagination. They chose either colored pencils or oil pastels for the color.

This project is done on 11" x 17" white construction paper, black and white tempura paint, oil pastels or colored pencils, pencils and erasers.

1st grade Glue Resist Snowmen

2011-01-01T22:08:00.000-05:00

This project was a new process for the 1st graders. They absolutely enjoyed this project.
We started out talking about asymmetry and symmetry, off the page and up close. We drew our snowmen on 6" x 18" black paper with pencil. They were worried that the pencil lines wouldn't show, but so excited when they did.
After a teacher demonstration on how to use the glue bottle as a drawing tool, they all began to apply the glue to their already drawn pencils lines. I showed them a teacher example, so they could visualize what the glue line would turn into.
Next class we filled in each section with chalk pastel. They blended the chalk pastel with their fingers and paper towels. I tried to remind them not to touch their clothing or skin because it spreads very quickly. They did such a good job and not too much mess, which makes an art teachers job a little easier with the clean-up process.
At the very end we added white chalk pastel to create snowflakes. Some added dots, others added line stars to create "snowflakes".

2nd grade Wassily Kandinsky Inspired Concentric Circles

2011-01-01T21:47:00.000-05:00

This project was done a couple of months ago, but it turned out wonderfully.
Each child had a 9" x 9" square, we folded it twice to make 4 squares and then we added rings of color with oil pastels. All different colors. We started with the biggest ring and then drew smaller ones until we couldn't anymore.
Then we filled in the "white rings" with chalk pastel all different colors.

When we were done we glued down each individual finished drawing on a large sheet of bulletin board construction paper.

2nd grade Repeated Line Candy Canes

2010-12-31T16:26:00.000-05:00

The second graders did such a great job with these beautiful candy canes. We started out talking about candy canes, varieties, history,etc. They followed verbal and visual directions to draw two (medium to large) candy canes. After teacher demo, the students learned to draw repeated lines, following the overall shape of the two candy canes.

When explaining this lesson, I described it by taking a "leap" instead of a step when creating all of the lines. With making the space a little larger, there will be plenty of space to color in a pattern of colors.

You can use 8 1/2" x 11" white construction paper or 12" x 18" white construction paper. If I do say so myself they, this project looks fabulous large. It takes more time, but it's worth the students effort.

More second work, Self-portraits inspired by the book "The Bad case of the Stripes"

Lots of Fall lessons

2010-12-05T22:02:00.000-05:00

Hello! I am back. I just recently got married, so I haven't had time to update as much. But here are a few projects I have been working on with the students.

3rd Barn Scapes

We talked about Barns that we see around our Area of PA. We focused on foreground, middle ground, background, and focal point. The students really enjoyed this and were able to use their imagination and creativity to fill in their foreground, middle grounds and back grounds.

4th Grade Observational Squash Drawings

FOr this project, I went to a local farm and got different small squash and gourds. I set one gourd on each table. The students drew to different squash by analyzing, observing, and viewing the squash. We talked about making the squash look 3-Dimensional. They had a choice between oil pastel, chalk pastel or colored pencils to fill their shape to create a colorful form.
They look marvelous. At first I wasn't sure of their response to an "observational" drawing and the feedback I got was very positive. The finish composition look very well done.

I have a lot more to update for our kindergarten, 1st and 2nd graders. More updates this week.

Right now we are working on: Kindergarten: Van Gogh Styled Reindeer, 1st grade- self-portraits/ginger bread people, 2nd- "Bad Case of the Stripes Holiday Self-Portrait/Poinsettia Echo-line, 3rd grade- Marc Chagall Dream Drawings/ Collage Holiday Wreathes, 4th grade- Star Barn Landscape Drawings/Draw Snowglobes- lesson by www.oodlesofart.blogspot.com.

4th Grade Henri Matisse Inspired Abstract Portraits

2010-10-26T23:47:00.000-04:00

I LOVE THIS PROJECT! I have done this project last year, at the end of the year, however this year I thought it would be best to start out with it. First, I really wanted to start out with an introduction (review for some) about the placements of the facial feature. The best attribute of this project is that it is abstract so the students don't put too much pressure on themselves to get it as realistic looking as a photograph. They work outside of the box, which I feel adds uniqueness and shows where their inspiration came from.
For this project I showed a powerpoint on Matisse's work, a brief bio of his life and discuss different vocabulary terms, such as, collage, "drawing with scissors", abstract, pattern, blending, proportion, etc.

We started out with a 11" x 17" white construction paper. Hold it vertically. They then drew with scissors. Have them pick a 6" x 9" piece of colored (any colors that are available) and have them cut out shapes WITHOUT drawing lines first, to have their imagination take their scissor where they are suppose to go and not to be so rigid. Have them glue them down with small dots about 1/2 inch from the border.

Once shapes are glued down. Have students follow the teacher step-by-step, drawing the head, neck, shoulders, facial features. Have them do the "trick" where the tops of your ears line up with your eyebrows/ and bottoms of ears line of with nostril, etc.

With medium or thick Sharpie Markers have them trace ALL of their pencil lines.
Then have them fill in by blending chalk pastel their heads, necks, ears and hair colors.
With oil pastel have them fill in a pattern on their shirt and a different pattern on their background.

Check them out, I'm so proud of our students!

Some are not quite finished but look so good!

1st Grade Outer Space Crayon Resist Paintingss

2010-10-24T00:37:00.000-04:00

This project was amazing to teach. A lot of the students were completely new to all of this information, we talked about different images that we would find in space; planets, stars, astronauts, rocket ships, constellations, moons, etc. We covered the planet names and then we talked about Textures. I thought this would be a good introductory lesson to add textures to the planets, etc.

We started with 11" x 17" white construction paper we added a planet coming form the corner and 2-3 middle circles, and 2 small circle shapes. These circles are the planets. THen we drew a step-by-step rocket ship.

We added textures-spiky, bumpy, craters, and rings. We colored all the planets, rocket ship, with crayons and then added small starts (more like sparkly stars not drawn, 5-point stars) with white and yellow crayons.

Then we talked about how to properly set-up for painting, painting, and cleaning up after our paintings were completed. We add black watercolor (some classes I used black tempura cakes. They colored over all the planets and the starts "magically" appeared like when the sun goes down for the day and the moon rises in the night.

The students were so intrigued with the content of the project and the outcomes of their paintings.

One student came to me while the rest of the students were working and asked me, very sincerely I must add, "So there really are other planets out there, I just thought that was something cartoons made up!" It's great to see their knowledge expand and their excitement is contagious!

1st Grade Tree Silhouette

2010-10-24T00:00:00.000-04:00

I wanted to do a project that looked like fall, but not so obvious. I really wanted to start out with a simple/basic project but introduce the idea of Silhouettes and positive/negative space to the 1st graders.
I saw this project on dali's moustache blog and tweaked it a bit to make it meet the different objectives we were going for. The students loved my example and thought it was a "spooky tree" or a "haunted" tree.

We started with 9" x 12" inch black paper. We discussed what a silhouette was and how to figure out positive/negative space.
We drew the negative space shapes.. making the outline of the positive shape (the tree). When they completed the teacher led step-by-step lesson, we marked each negative space with a small, light x. They then picked ONE color, (red, orange, yellow, or blue) of oil pastel and colored the sky in darkly. We then added yellow, orange, or white to the moon.

I really like this project and I will probably do this with my second graders sometime in the winter.. but make them larger with more detail.

2nd Grade Dancing Scarecrows

2010-10-17T22:44:00.000-04:00

These turned out so great. I saw a bunch of scarecrow lessons online and decided to do a little twist to the "normal" scarecrow. We talked about a scarecrows, talked about pretend/real, Reviewed the color wheel and talked about distance, and read a book. I asked them what it would be like if scarecrows could have a day off. So we decided to make them dancing or stretching, since it's a busy job being a scarecrow!

We reviewed primary colors, secondary colors, horizon line, how to draw a scarecrow, and size/distance.

If you have any questions how I went about teaching this lesson let me know! Have fun art making!

3rd Grade Name Color Wheel/Pattern Study Designs

2010-10-11T21:40:00.000-04:00

This project is to help students review last year materials in a fun and creative way!
We reviewed how to make Bubble letters, patterns, complimentary, secondary, primary and touched a little on tertiary colors.
We talked about Patterns in detail, then I handed out a brainstorming paper that I created called "Art pizzas" in the crust they write their ideas "fish", "polka dots" etc and then in the "pizza part" they create the pattern that they wanted to practice for their name

The students started out with 11" x 17" paper.
In Pencil:
They added their first name (nickname if really long name i.e Elizabeth to Lizzie, etc) in Big Bubble letters in center of page; trying to fill the whole page.
Then added 3 lines (one horizontal and 2 vertical lines) starting/finishing at edges of page.
IN each bubble letter at a different pattern.
In Marker:
Trace all pencil lines!
IN Crayon color each section BUBBLE LETTERS divided by lines a different color.
This was hard to describe so a demonstration helps so much BUT also adding a dot of color in each bubble letter section will help them recognize where each color goes. Have them raise their hand so you can check they are on the right page.
IN water color, have them paint the backgrounds the complimentary colors of the bubble letters (i.e. bubble letter section is blue= background orange,etc)

This was the first project of the year and really helped everyone, including me with getting more familiar with names, get back into the groove.

If you try this project or any project please let me know and send pictures!! I love photos! I hope you get much enjoyment seeing your students learning and creating!!!

4th Grade Line Design/Value "Tubes" Lesson

2010-10-03T16:14:00.000-04:00

You could title this projects make different names. When I showed my examples, I asked my students what they saw. Some answers were, tubes, tunnels, tornadoes, Dr. Suess, pipes, worms, catepillars, the list goes on and on!

For this project I got my idea from when I was in middle school. Also I saw on Mr. E's art lesson blog how to break down this project into easy steps. My middle school teacher had us make "tunnel" designs to show that we could make lines look 3-D, in a simple and easy way.

We learned about how repeating lines, especially curvy lines, can make a good skeleton to add value or shading to create 3-Dimensional optical illusion compositions.

On a 9" x 9" white construction paper we drew, with pencil, a "hilly" line in the middle of the page. We added 7-9 dots to show where our little hills will begin and end. They did one side of the hilly line until it was completed by being at the top of the page. I suggested working in one direction and continue making row of hills (making sure to spread evenly, so it will be easy to fill with shaded color.) Then they repeated the same steps the opposite side of the page until completely filled. After all pencil lines are completed, students outlined the pencil lines with a standard size Sharpie marker to make lines POP!
To add shading, we watched a brief slideshow of how to apply shading, examples of optical illusions, and how what colors would look "nice" together or compliment each other.

They chose where to add color. They were aloud to choose up to 5 colors. and they could have left some white and black if they wanted. I wanted them to be able to choose where colors would go and maybe not go to have them really LOOK at the piece and what would be best for each composition.

They really enjoyed this project and felt so proud of themselves when they completed. This project took 3 solid 45 minute class periods for the majority of the class to complete. (4 solid classes would work better if the project was larger)

Here are some examples of the 4th graders work. (finished and unfinished)

First Year Teaching

2010-10-03T15:42:00.000-04:00

Hello Everyone! This is my first year teaching. I am a Long Term Substitute Art Teacher for the year 2010-2011. I teach k-4th grade. I had this position last school year for the last 2 months of school. I am loving every minute of it! I really want to share some of the lessons we will be doing in class to show parents of students in my class, how amazingly creative our school community is and to learn from other art educators around the globe!
I have written my own and have gotten ideas from other art educators, and tweaked them to fit the needs of the students and curriculum.
I love to hear feedback! I will be posting the first lessons we have just finished throughout this next week!

Thanks for you time!