5th grader Abstract Me

 You know those projects you think are going to be really quick and easy? And then they're not. Well, it's partly my own fault because I've been trying to build sketchbook work and extra skills into my 5th grade lessons. Only problem with that is then projects take forever. This looks pretty simple, but students did measuring and compass use practice before drawing their compositions.

 They did a written brainstorm to develop text to put into their artwork and practiced some different letter styles.

 They did a color wheel exercise and chose analogous color harmonies for their paintings.

 And of course, there was the drawing, sharpie outlining, and painting.

 Kids were very invested, despite the lengthy process, because these explored their favorite subject matter- themselves! It was also low-risk art skills-wise as using ruler and compass helped them make bold abstract compositions, and using analogous colors minimized muddy painting.

 I highly recommend this kind of art project for middle school and up. Most of my 5th grade curriculum centers on self-expression in some form or other. As pre-teens, they are trying to figure themselves out and developing their personalities. Art can be a great catalyst for helping them emerge as adolescents, and it is crucial that their fragile egos are supported.

 This kind of project also reveals a great deal about students. They discover they have things in common, and it gives insight into their interests. These can then be mined for future projects.

 I find it curious how some went more curvilinear and other more geometric. Some are bold, others are quiet.

Now if I can only get them to stop being so chatty and get some work done!

2nd grade Oaxacan-inspired sculptures

At the beginning of the school year as I unpacked all the goodies in my new art room I could not BELIEVE how many boxes of wood shapes I found, both left over from the previous year and on my hand-me-down supply list from the previous art teacher. I couldn't imagine how so much wood could possibly be used in one year. I put a dent in the boxes with a mobile project I did with 2nd grade early in the year, but now we've nearly demolished the wood supply with our latest project: Oaxacan-inspired wood animal sculptures.

 It's so hard to choose photos to share, because their sculptures all have so much character. We started off by examining examples of Oaxacan wood sculptures- especially how the forms, colors, and markings of the animals were exaggerated from real life. We considered adaptations an animal needs to live in an environment and selected features from known animals to create an imaginary animal. Students drew a sketch of what animal they would like to create to finish off the first art-looking and art-planning day.

 On the second day, we pulled out the wooden shapes and noticed their forms- most of which were in the cylindrical or rectangular prism category. I asked students to pull out pieces and play with the arrangement of forms a bit before deciding how to construct their animal. They were also asked to pay attention to how their pieces connected- the more surface area touching between 2 pieces, the stronger the attachment would be. We used tacky glue for this step because I shouldn't find where I hid the wood glue!

 On the third day I asked students to choose 1-2 colors to paint a base coat on their sculpture. After 3 classes of messily painted sculptures, I limited the 4th class to ONE base color! On the fourth day we looked at the Oaxacan sculptures one more time to remember how they were decorated. This time we used skinny brushes and added pattern details like stripes and polka dots. We thought about how some animals try to blend in to their environments with camouflage colors and some animals have warning colors to show they are poisonous.

On our final work day, students had an opportunity to add some final details with feathers, beads, googly eyes, and sequins. They were asked to be RESTRAINED in their choices and not go overboard with the doodads. They also created a written description and a drawing of their animal in its environment to serve as a label for their sculpture when they go on display. Their written description had to include what animals they combined, three things their sculpture had, and explain how their sculpture was or was not like Oaxacan sculptures
This project is a real winner- students got to work in 3 dimensions and use a lot of creative problem-solving as well as connect to concepts in science.  The process and product are nicely balanced, and the final pieces are amazing!
 PS. For good photos of sculptures, hang a piece of black construction paper so it is half on the wall, half on the table and place the sculpture on top.

3rd grade Pop-up Landscapes

3rd grade has just completed their landscape genre project which focused on background, middleground, and foreground. To make understanding of the different spaces very literal, I thought it would be fun to physically separate them and make a pop-up landscape. We started with a map to cover a foundation piece of chipboard, and used the roads and boundaries within the map to inspire a horizon line for the background of a landscape. Students then created a middleground layer from construction paper, and then foreground elements. To emphasize a sense of space, students were encouraged to draw things tiny in the background and large in the foreground. They were also challenged to make something happen in their landscapes like Grant Wood did in "The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere", one of the paintings we looked at for inspiration.

 We had a paper spring folding contest before assembling the layers. Photos don't really do justice to these pieces, because it flattens them out. In reality, these images really pop-out, and the small foreground pieces even quiver in the air currents or when jostled. Students had a choice of what kind of landscape to create. My original example showed a mountainscape, and so it was a popular choice. Although the range of animals included bears, rabbits, wolves, squirrels, and even monkeys.

 Seascapes were another very popular choice- probably because many of my students enjoy going down to the Jersey shore in the summer, and it's familiar. I can just imagine Ocean City in the boardwalk scene below, which includes a ferris wheel and cotton candy vendor. 

Another favorite landscape was the EXPLODING VOLCANO. About half my boys did a version like this, many of which included screaming villagers fleeing from the lava. (Could it be that they remember my Pompeii story from when we did mosaics? Dream on Art teacher)

At the end of the lesson I gave students a sheet of lined paper and some sentence starters on the board so that they could write a description. They had to give a big idea sentence: "My picture is about...." . Then supporting detail sentences: "In the background,....", "In the middleground,...", and "In the foreground,..." Finally they could conclude with an opinion about the project: "I thought this project....."

After writing, they glued the papers to the back of the project. I really like having them write about their work. It gives them extra writing practice and an opportunity to express themselves in multiple ways. Although they groan and protest ("But this is ART class!"), I tell them artists have to write ALL THE TIME and to get used to it. It was also one more way for me to assess their understanding of the key concepts of space and landscape. This lesson is definitely a keeper- all the other classes in higher and lower grades kept asking when they would get to do it!