December Art Update!

Hello and happy new year! I hope you had an enjoyable winter break!

As I mentioned in the email sent out to Westlawn families, I am continuing to have issues with Blogger, so unfortunately I was not able to post an update under each of the grade levels this month. I am currently looking into transitioning to a new blog (hopefully one that is more suited for the many pictures I add each month). So... in the meantime, I will be posting a brief summary of each grade level on the MAIN PAGE of my blog until I get a new one up and running! Thank you for your patience as I make the switch!


The following took place in art class during the month of December...

5th grade is in the process of studying the elements and principles of art! There are 7 elements and 7 principles the students are learning and beginning to memorize. The elements include: line, shape, color, value, texture, space, and form. The principles include: balance, contrast, emphasis, pattern, unity, movement, and rhythm. We began the unit by taking a pre-test to see what the students currently know about the elements and principles. We then studied the definitions and discussed each word individually. The 5th graders are now working on preparations for their art project, entitled "Elements and Principles Accordion" in which they will illustrate all 14 words using a symbol of their choice. After completing their thumbnail sketches on the E&P planning sheet, the students will begin each "mini" project on the accordion. The most exciting part of the project is that students will be able to make their own choice of which art mediums to use for their accordions. The art room is being opened up to them so they can explore and use any art media that they wish!

Taking the E&P pre-test

E&P planning sheet with thumbnail sketches. Chosen theme: music notes.

E&P planning sheet with thumbnail sketches. Chosen theme: Google logo.

4th grade is in the midst of their self-portrait unit! The students have spent multiple classes learning how to draw a realistic self-portrait. We began the art unit by drawing a practice self-portrait with ZERO help from me! That activity served as a pre-test to see what the students knew about portrait drawing. Following the "pre-test" the 4th graders practiced drawing each individual facial feature in their sketchbooks by using "how to draw sheets" as well as a mirror. During this time, they showed a great deal of growth, which was both exciting and encouraging! The students are now in the process of learning the proportions of the face by utilizing grid lines and other techniques to help learn proper placement of the features. Soon, the students will put all of their new knowledge together by creating a final self-portrait drawing, using chalk pastels!

Facial feature sketches

Practice self-portrait ("pre-test")

Self-Portrait #1 (practicing facial proportions with gridlines)

3rd grade is learning all about COLOR! The students completed a color theory art sheet that taught the students what primary, secondary and tertiary colors are. They also learned about complementary colors, analogous colors, neutral colors, and warm vs. cool colors. The students then painted a BIG color grid made up of primary, secondary, and tertiary colors that they are soon going to use for a color wheel art project. The students had a blast mixing the tertiary colors, which are made up of primary and secondary colors mixed together. Like cooking, mixing colors requires finding the right balance until you get it just right. The students did a great job with accuracy and craftsmanship (which were the two criteria for the color grid painting). 

 

2nd grade is continuing a paper mache project that was started with Ms. Schread! The students are creating 3-D sea creatures! During the month of December, the students finished their sculpture (made up of newspaper and masking tape) before beginning the paper mache. Eventually, we got to the messy and exciting task of paper macheing our sea creatures using strips of phone book paper (I explained what a phone book was... the kids got a kick out of it) along with watered down glue. We are now nearly ready to paint our creatures, after we put a final finishing coat of paper mache on the sculptures. I look forward to seeing the finish projects as the students have been working so hard to create their 3-D sea creatures!

1st grade spent the month of December making clay snowmen! We read the book "Snowmen at Night", by Caralyn Buehner, and pictures by Mark Buehner. The silly and fun book was a great way to start the art project by stirring up the students' imaginations. After reading the book, the students were asked to think about what they wanted their snowman to look like. Once the students created the three pinch pots, they used the four S's (score, slip, stick, and smooth) to get the pieces of clay to stick together. They then began adding features such as the face, head gear, and neck gear. They were also encouraged to add textures and designs to part of their clay snowman. The students did a great job of following directions and using originality in their designs! I love how each snowman is unique and has a personality of its own! Soon, the students will be painting their clay after it has been fired in the kiln!

  

 

Kindergarten started the month of December by reading the book, Snowflakes Fall, by Patricia MacLachlan. We talked about what we enjoy about winter. There were comments such as, "sledding, building snowmen and snow forts, celebrating Christmas, ice skating," and so much more! The book we read talked about how each snowflake is unique, just like us. I had the students reach out their hands and look up, pretending they were catching snowflakes with their tongues. The art projects the students are creating will show just that, each student catching snowflakes with their tongues!

The students first designed mittens with oil pastels and tempera paints. They were asked to make their mittens symmetrical by making the designs the same on both sides. They also created a hat to match their mittens. The background of the artwork was painted with black and blue paint to resemble a dark night sky. Soon, the students will be printing snowflakes using found objects! They are doing a fantastic job with this project and seem to be enjoying each new step!