September Art Update!

Hello Westlawn and Thorson families!

Welcome to the art blog "Mrs. Miller's Makers" (previously titled "Westlawn Art Blog"). After taking a year off from my art blog in order to focus on the essentials as we all navigated our way through life with Covid and craziness, I am happy to be back! 

This year I have the privilege and unique opportunity of teaching at Westlawn and Thorson Elementary, so for any families who have a child in my art class, this blog is intended for you to stay in the know with all of the happenings in art class!

Amidst the long list of to-do's as an art teacher, I consider parent communication to be among top priorities. I desire that you not only know how your child is learning and growing as an artist, but also that you can come along side them in your shared excitement of the arts! 

At the start of each month, I will plan to post pictures and descriptions of what took place the month prior. That way you won't have to wonder when I will post, and I will even send you an email as a reminder! :)

This first month of school, we have of course packed a lot in, including necessary things like seating charts and reviewing classroom procedures, but the big topics this month included: making sketchbooks and learning the eight "Studio Habits of Mind."

This summer the other two elementary art teachers and I did a book study on "Studio Thinking from the Start" by: Jillian Hogan, Lois Hetland, Diane Jaquith & Ellen Winner, Illustrations by Nicole Gsell. Link HERE 

Here's a little summary...

STUDIO  THINKING: "We believe the arts are vitally important for educating students to be good thinkers. More than 10 years ago, the authors of Studio Thinking: The Real Benefits of Visual Art Education (2007) set out to systematically investigate what it is that visual arts teachers in arts-based high schools teach in their classes, and how these classes are organized. From there, the Studio Thinking framework was born and is now used in classrooms at all grade levels, all over the globe."

STUDIO  HABITS: "The framework shines a light on those broad thinking dispositions, or habits of mind, that visual arts teachers teach in their classes. These eight Studio Habits of Mind, which emerged from the original research study, include the following."

Develop Craft (Technique & Studio Practice)

Engage & Persist (Finding Passion & Sticking with It)

Envision (Imagining & Planning)

Express (Finding & Showing Meaning)

Observe (Looking Closely)

Reflect (Question & Explain and Evaluate)

Stretch & Explore (Play, Use Mistakes & Discover)

Understand Art Worlds (Domain & Communities)

My students (as well as their community) are beginning to realize that art is SO much more than making a nice looking artwork to put on display. There is a great deal of thinking and learning that takes place in art class, along with the opportunity for students to create a piece of artwork that they can connect to and feel proud of. I am excited to see how our young artists grow (even more) as we focus on these habits of mind and apply them to all areas of our life. These traits will help them to become more independent, confident, and curious learners, which is ultimately what we want to see from future members of our society. One of the GREATEST benefits of focusing on these habits of mind is that students are encouraged to find JOY in the making, and learn that mistakes are part of the PROCESS, which is just as important as the product! 

Let's take a look at the students during their first month in art class!

As a fun and engaging way to review important features of art class, we played Art Bingo! If the students made a "W" for Westlawn or a "T" for Thorson, they got to either make me wear a prop or they got to wear it themselves. That added a fun flair and some laughs to our first day back!

All students (kindergarten-5th grade) were given sketchbook pages with each Studio Habit printed at the top inside of a KEY. We tied in this years school theme, and in art class the students learned "The KEYS to Unlocking My Success as an Artist" (as printed on their cover page). For each studio habit we did an art activity that demonstrated how that skill is important for us as artists.

Observe: Students chose an object in the art room and drew it from observation.

Reflect: Students reflected on 3 questions (My favorite thing about art is... This year I am hoping to grow as an artist by being able to... Something others should know (or find interesting) about me is...).

Understand Art Worlds: Students looked at artwork by the artist and art style that would be their inspiration for their sketchbook cover designs. Each grade learned about a different artist and style.

Stretch and Explore: Students played around with art making processes that imitated the style of the artist they were studying.

Envision: Students brainstormed a list of ideas that would make their artist inspired self portrait unique and representative of their personality.

Express: Students created a sketch of their ideas so that their artwork would express their individual personality and have personal meaning to them.

Develop Craft: Student began to create their final artist inspired artwork after having time to explore the tools and artist techniques.

Engage and Persist: Students identify areas of making that give them trouble and frustration and reflect on ways to problem solve and push forward, while being inspired by other artists and individuals that have persevered through hardships. 

Check out some pictures from each grade level!

Kindergarten...

Kindergarten artists engaging in art activities on their "Studio Habits of Mind" sketchbook pages.

Students practice printing in the style of Piet Mondrian on their "Stretch and Explore" page.

Kindergarten artists making their sketchbooks from paper grocery bags! They also created a pocket and glued on a "Sketchbook Inspiration Checklist" (the "Golden checklist)"!

Students "developing craft" with their grid printing in the style of artist Piet Mondrian. The students first partnered up to draw horizontal and vertical lines using a ruler!

First Grade...

First grade artists learning to draw like Pop Artist James Rizzi on their "Stretch and Explore" pages!

Students learning about "Developing Craft" as they create their final James Rizzi inspired self portrait for their sketchbook covers.

After adding in the "Sketchbook Inspiration Checklist" (or "Golden" checklist) into our sketchbooks, we drew one together! We decided on #2: Design Your Own Birthday Cake!

Second Grade...

Second grade students learning to create a self portrait like Surrealist artist, Leah Saulnier! In the self portraits the students are wearing fantasy hats that represent their personalities. 

Second grade artists enjoying making a sketchbook entry from their "Sketchbook Inspiration Checklist." Here they are turning their drawings (Something that Starts with "G") into a game where another student has to guess what they drew!

Third Grade...

Third grade artists practicing the studio habit "Stretch and Explore" as they learn about contour line drawing and attempt to create a self portrait using that drawing technique.

Third grade artists creating their sketchbooks from a paper grocery bag, as well as additional features including: a pocket, a criteria cheat sheet, and the "Sketchbook Inspiration Checklist" which they all had a part in making!

Third grade students "Developing Craft" as they draw their final contour line self portraits (either blind or modified). The style of art was unusual for many students, Some loved the unique look and expressive style, but others were bothered that it didn't end up looking just like them. 

Fourth Grade...

Fourth graders taking part in the "Observe" and "Reflect" art activities in order to understand the two Studio Habits of Mind. Students could also decorate and design their pages and keys however they wished.

Fourth grade artists practiced the studio habit "Stretch and Explore" by learning figure drawing in order to draw their own action self portrait inspired by artist Keith Haring.

Once the students put their sketchbooks together and glued on their "Sketchbook Inspiration Checklist" (also referred to as the "Golden Checklist"), we enjoyed drawing a sketchbook entry together. The two drawing prompts represented above included "Draw an abstract piece of art" and "Draw a still life."

Fourth grade students demonstrate the studio habit "Develop Craft" as they refine their action figure self portraits inspired by artist Keith Haring. Students chose an action that represented their personality and learned drawing techniques to properly portray a figure.

Fifth Grade...

Fifth grade artists taking part in the "Observe" and "Reflect" art activities as they learn the first two Studio Habits of Mind.

The fifth graders were introduced to the world of caricature art, and played around with the art style on their "Stretch and Explore" page of their sketchbooks.

The students brainstormed ideas of topics they would want to see on the "Sketchbook Inspiration Checklist" in order to maximize excitement for drawing in their sketchbooks.

Fifth grade artists continuing to practice the art of caricature drawing, while trying to capture their likeness in their self portrait.

Students at work on their caricature self portraits. A variety of resources were used in the learning process including: a demonstration video recorded by a friend of mine who is a professional caricature artist, caricature help sheets from a caricature drawing book, and mirrors so the students could study their features. 

Well that's it for now! See you for our next art update at the start of November!

February Art Update

Hello and thank you for stopping by the Westlawn Art Blog!

February has been a busy month in the art room, and March is about to get even busier! During the month of March, we look forward to another student art show (our biggest art show, taking place at the Cedarburg Cultural Center from March 13th - April 19th). I will also be very busy starting to pack up the art room for the big move AND making plans for my long term substitute Kris Sapinski when my maternity leave is estimated to begin the Monday after Easter. Mrs. Sapinski recently graduated from Cardinal Stritch with an elementary education degree, and has an art background as a graphic designer. She is not only a talented artist, but also loves working with kids and is really excited for the opportunity to work with our Westlawn students. I am grateful to have someone as hard working and dedicated as Mrs. Sapinski, and hope she feels welcomed by our Westlawn students and families.

Now for a look into art room happenings from this past month. Please scroll through to see pictures and descriptions from each grade level.

Kindergarten artists are in the midst of finishing their Clay Cupcakes by adding lots of color with paint! The students were shown how to mix colors and paint neatly by using the proper size brush to carefully filling in all of the deeper areas. They are having so much fun painting their cupcakes, but perhaps the biggest challenge is being gentle with them! We've already had a few breaks, which is of course the downside to making adorable little ceramic creations. Hot glue to the rescue!
After completing the clay cupcakes, the students will be revisiting their Shape Robots! They have already begun the background of their artwork which is made up of gears. The students traced circles of all sizes and then designed the inside and outside of the circles to resemble gears. Soon, they will be tracing the gears with oil pastels and then painting over them with watercolor. Following the background will be the creation of the robots... my FAVORITE part!

First grade artists spent the month of February creating Kimono Portraits, which are nearly complete! They had previously made backgrounds made up of a cherry blossom tree and a moon. The artists are now putting together their Kimono which they "hand dyed" with liquid watercolors. The students learned that real Kimonos are made of either woven fabric or dyed fabric, so it was fun for the students to come up with their own color scheme when dyeing the coffee filters.
The art project involves many steps and a variety of art making skills. Since there are so many parts to the project, there are lots of opportunities for problem solving AND making their artwork uniquely theirs. Once the Kimono portraits have been glued onto the background we will add finishing touches including: a fan, Japanese symbols, and other finishing details.

Second grade artists have been enjoying making their mixed media Pop Art Popsicle projects! After completing the colorful backgrounds to their artwork using the relief printing process, the students began focusing on making the popsicles made from recycled toilet paper rolls! The students learned the art technique of paper mache and as I predicted, students either loved it or hated it... there wasn't a whole lot of in between. The slimy paper mache paste allowed the paper towel strips to take shape around the stapled cardboard tube, causing it to resemble a popsicle. After the popsicles dried, the students painted them with four different colors to create contrast against their background colors. Soon, the students will be gluing down the popsicles and sticks to complete their Pop Art inspired masterpiece!

Third grade artists recently completed all 3 of their collagraph prints! The warm and cool prints will be transformed into an "Agamograph" which is a type of kinetic art, in which the image changes depending on what angle you look at it. The bonus print the students created was mounted onto white paper and Ms. Reilly's class was put up on display! The artists especially enjoyed making the bonus prints since less rules applied... they could come up with their own color scheme as long as they used the same process of printing their collagraph plate 4 times. 

In addition to completing the Collagraph prints, the 3rd grade artists also demonstrated their creative and technical art abilities in the form of two art assessments, each taking one class period. The creative assessment had the students design a logo around the word "school" like the Doodle for Google contest. It was fun to see the students come up with such unique ideas to transform each letter of the word school. The technical art assessment asked the students to draw two still life objects as accurately as possible. They were asked to think about such things as the composition of their drawing, craftsmanship, proportions, and details. 

Fourth grade artists enjoyed finishing their Clay Coil Creations during the month of February! After the projects were bisque fired in the kiln, the students then glazed them with between 1 and 3 colors of their choice. The students were so excited to see them once they were fired in the kiln a second time, since the glazes turned into a glossy and smooth coating. To complete the art unit, they filled out a personal reflection and scored themselves according to criteria that had been discussed throughout the making of the ceramic projects. The opposite side of the self reflection was a vocab quiz made up of ceramic terms. The students blew me away with how well they knew the vocab words! They sure know how to make an art teacher feel good with showing how well they were listening and learning!

Like the 3rd grade students, the 4th graders also completed two art assessments including a creative and technical drawing. The creative assessment was the same as third grade, "Doodle for School." The technical assessment was an observational drawing of 3 objects (a ceramic bear, a plastic white wiffle ball, and an ornate ceramic shoe). The students did a nice job with this and many impressed themselves with what they could accomplish when they focus and put forth their best work!

Soon, the students will be starting a NEW unit of portrait drawing (one of the most challenging, yet rewarding art units they will experience)!

Fifth grade artists are in the midst of finishing their one of a kind, Clay Cake Slices! After being bisque fired in the kiln, the students were invited to paint their clay cakes with tempera and acrylic paints. They were encouraged to not only paint neatly, but to also use painting techniques they have learned over time, such as color mixing, adding texture, value changes, etc. Thankfully, I don't have to do much demonstrating or motivating prior to the painting process. The students naturally come up with fantastic ideas and put forth their best efforts in making their clay cakes AWESOME!

After finishing the clay projects, the 5th graders will return to their Elements and Principles Accordion Books! Pictured below are the assembled books (waiting to be designed on the inside) and the Elements and Principles planning sheets and vocab sheets. The students were given the task of planning out their E&P Accordion Book by making thumbnail sketches to represent the 14 elements and principles. The students have all chosen their theme, they now need to figure out how to use their chosen theme to illustrate the elements and principles of art. This will require the students to KNOW the art words, be CREATIVE in their designs and ideas, AND demonstrate their understanding of different art media (as they will be asked to use 5 different mediums). 

See you at the beginning of April for the next art update! That is if I don't have baby Miller before that time!

-Mrs. Miller

January Art Update

Thanks for stopping by the Westlawn Art Blog!

Take a look at the pictures and descriptions below to see what each grade level has been working on in art class!

Kindergarten artists have been creating a mixed media art project entitled, Catching Snowflakes! We began the project by reading the book "Snowflakes Fall" written by Patricia MacLachlan and illustrated by Seven Kellogg. The art project involves a variety of art making processes and skills. The students first made a night sky by using black and blue paint. They then designed a pair of mittens by creating a variety of line designs with oil pastels. We talked about how to make the mittens symmetrical by showing the same designs on each mitten. The students had fun using the oil pastels and paint to create the mittens, hat, and sleeves. They then did a great deal of cutting and gluing when adding the additional pieces of the face, tongue, and puff ball. The students are now in the process of printing snowflakes onto their artwork with cardboard and other found objects. We brought a little science into the art room by watching a short video about snowflakes and how they are made. The students (and I) were amazed about all there was to learn about such a tiny, yet incredible, pieces of nature!

First grade artists worked on two art projects during the month of January. They began their Kimono Portrait project and paused that to complete their Clay Snowmen! As seen in the pictures below, the students had a blast doing some blow painting when creating cherry blossom trees for their Kimono Portrait backgrounds. Soon, the students will be painting on the cherry blossoms and then creating a Kimono person using a variety of art making techniques.
Once the Clay Snowmen were bisque fired in the kiln, the students enjoyed painting them, but quickly realized it was a bit of a challenge! A steady hand, patience, and problem solving, was required for painting the fragile little snow people that were to remain mostly white. The students did a great job of mixing colors and giving their snow people unique personalities!

Second grade artists began a new project following their Kente Cloth Inspired Weavings! The students are being introduced to the style of art known as "Pop Art." The students learned that the term "Pop Art" comes from "popular culture" and certain characteristics like bright bold colors make the art style easily recognizable. For their artwork, students will be making Pop Art Popsicles made from recycled toilet paper rolls! Before getting to the step of paper macheing the cardboard tubes to make popsicles, the students are creating fun and colorful backgrounds inspired by Pop Artist Romero Britto! The students studied his style of art and imitated his use of lines and shapes when creating their own designs, They first drew the designs on paper and then transferred them to foam to make a print! It is so fun to watch the students enjoy every step of the multi-layered project which includes: art history, design, printmaking, paper-macheing, and more!

Third grade artists are in the midst of creating Warm and Cool Collagraph Prints for their latest art project! The project ties in nicely with our year long theme of studying color. To begin the project, the students were required to design and assemble a Collagraph plate. The artists learned that the term Collagraph comes from the word "collage" since making a collagraph plate is essentially making a collage of items on a surface to be printed. The students had fun choosing a variety of items that were made of different textures (bubble wrap, yarn, foam, burlap, etc.). We talked about how the designs should create a nice composition with a balance of positive and negative space and should be non-representational. After the objects were glued on to the cardboard bases and were coated with mod podge, the students painted two background papers (one warm and one cool) and are now enjoying the process of printing! They are required to paint and print the plate 4 times to complete each print. They are doing a fantastic job with this!

Fourth grade artists are thoroughly enjoying creating their Clay Coil Pottery in art class! The students began the project by sketching out a couple of designs in their sketchbooks that started with the basic shape of a cylinder. They then practiced making coils and designs using play-dough. It was very interesting to see how the students adjusted to working with actual clay and approached the clay making process with their original sketches in mind. Many of the students realized that it is one thing to draw a coil vessel and another thing to make it! A lot of skills are developed in clay making, including: rolling even coils, not letting the clay dry out, properly attaching the clay together using what I call the "4 S's" (score, slip, stick, smooth), and so on. The students were asked to think about the following as they make their projects: a quality/unique design, craftsmanship, strength, a height of between 4 and 7 inches, and whether they would like a handle or a project that holds liquid. Once the students are done constructing the clay, the projects will be bisque fired, and then the students will have a chance to glaze them!

Fifth grade artists have begun working on the infamous Clay Cake Slices, which is a student favorite from year to year. The students were asked to brainstorm what type of cake they want to make and then looked up a variety of images that would inspire and guide them in the art making process. The Chromebooks have been incredibly helpful with their project since the students not only use them to refer to their cake images, but they also watch demonstration videos that I recorded for them. The "flipped videos" are SO very helpful because they allow the students to watch demonstrations at their own pace and they can pick and choose ones that apply to them.
The first class of clay making involved rolling out clay slabs and cutting pieces for the cake from paper templates. The students then designed the side pieces to show the inside of the cake, They needed to consider how many layers they wanted their cake to have AND what types of textures the inside would show. The students are now working on the favorite part which is a 3-D topper. I challenged the students to pull out all of the clay making skills they have learned over the years and put those into their design. The students were up for the challenge and I continue to be impressed with what the students come up with. So fun to watch!