October Art Update!

Welcome back to the blog!

This month students spent time finishing up their sketchbook cover designs! Each one is a unique work of "heart!" Most classes also started a new project, many of which are fall or Veteran's Day themed. The end of the month brought some challenges as I had to shift to teaching remotely while my daughter quarantined from an exposure at her preschool. This was the first time I attempted to balance the impossible job of working full time and being a stay at home mom simultaneously. For those of you that have had to do this for extended periods of time, you are AMAZING! 

Thankfully, (somehow) the students were engaged and continued to grow in their artistic abilities, excitement, and application of the Studio Habits of Mind. 

Check out the pictures and descriptions below to see what each grade level has been up to!

    Kindergarten artists started creating Picasso Inspired Pumpkins! They enjoyed reading the book, When Pigasso Met Mootisse" which is a fun kids book with fictional characters (a pig and a bull) based on real life artists, Pablo Picasso and Henri Matisse. 

    In addition to learning to respect and appreciate other's differences (as "Pigasso" and "Mootisse" learned to do), the students also observed the difference between the two artists' styles. The kindergarten artists then chose one of three pumpkin templates and traced all of the lines with oil pastel. They then added additional lines breaking up the pumpkin into more shapes making the pumpkin appear "cubistic" like it was being viewed from many different angles. 

 

   The next step of the project was to mix up many different versions of orange for the pumpkin and paint in the shapes with their variety of mixed colors. The students had fun seeing the new colors being created and made lots of discoveries as they enjoyed color mixing! After painting the pumpkins, the students will soon be adding a face for their pumpkins by playing a "Roll a Picasso" drawing game! We look forward to showing you the finished artworks next month!

    First grade artists completed their James Rizzi Inspired Self Portraits for their sketchbook cover designs! The students enjoyed creating a drawing of themselves surrounded by buildings with faces and fun personalities. After drawing their scene with pencil, they traced with sharpie to give the "Pop Art" style black bold outlines, and then finished their artwork by painting bright colors with tempera cakes.

    The first grade artists are now starting to make scarecrows! They are currently enjoying creating a landscape as a background for their scarecrow using oil pastel and watercolor paint! We can't wait to show you our unique scarecrows when they are added to the background! 

   Second grade artists dug in deep with their Leah Saulnier Inspired Self Portraits. They dedicated a great deal of time learning to draw themselves, as well as the objects on their hat, realistically. They enjoyed looking up images on their Chromebook so they could draw from observation as they added pictures that represented their personality. We focused on three coloring techniques when adding the colored pencil: value, blending & mixing, and texture. The students looked at examples of how to show those three, and tried to find opportunities to demonstrate them within their own artwork.

    Soon, the second graders will be starting their next project... Clay Picture Frames!

   Third grade artists spent the rest of October completing their "Design Your Own Alphabet" sheets and using them to add the letters to the cover of their sketchbook! Their cover designs now have a contour line self portrait drawing inside their symmetrical hand cut picture frame, as well as their unique letter designs spelling their name and "sketchbook." Each letter design was a miniature work of art and the students should feel proud of how they engaged and persisted in the process of completing their sketchbook cover designs!

    We are now going to begin our next project (one of my favorites) Creative Color Wheels!

   Fourth grade artists are wrapping up their Keith Haring Inspired Self Portraits for their sketchbook cover designs. They not only had fun creating their action self portrait that represented personality, but the experience of drawing figures was such a great learning experience for them! Once the figured were cut our of colored paper, the students enjoyed creating an energetic background that tied into their action. With the use of fancy scissors, hole punchers, colorful paper, glue, and sharpies, the students imagined and crafted unique designs! They are now enjoying learning the art of graffiti lettering as they add their "name" and "sketchbook" to the back cover!

   Fifth grade artists paused their papermaking unit (as I shifted to teaching remotely) and are enjoying a Veteran's Day themed artwork! They are learning how to create a realistic painting of an American Flag. The students learned some interesting facts about the American Flag (some of which were new to me also)! 

    To begin the process of making a realistic painting, the artists first sketched out the composition of their flag. We broke it down into basic shapes and played a game of connect the dots after making little markings on the paper. The students then painted the pure colors (red and blue) for the first layer. The following class we will begin to add the tints and shades (values) in order to make the flag appear realistic and three dimensional!

See you next time!

Mrs. Miller