Happy Art Happenings

Thursday January 29, 2015 

Another gift today. I admit, I was all ready to head out with the kids to an early morning chapel and was looking forward to sharing my lessons with the 4th graders and 2nd graders today.  I missed seeing you! What a surprise when my husband came back with my oldest and announce the roads were ice rinks and he slid to the mailbox!  

So, I have ice on my mind.  If you are looking for a fun idea today that's unusual you can make ice ornaments and when the temperatures drop again, and they should, here you go.  I created some last year with 4 year olds but even my middle school kids were impressed. With the frigid temperatures they lasted for about a month.  I also found these ice balloons, if you dare, using your freezers.  

I also thought you might like to get an update what has been going on in the art room. Maybe you can browse it with your child and the images will trigger conversation about their art experiences. Looking forward to tomorrow.  

Mrs. Luce 

Here's the link for the Balloons with colored ice:

http://cre8ive-home-decoration.com/2012/06/frozen-balloon-decorations/

http://iceblueberries.com/blog/2014/02/winter-water-balloons/

And here's the one for the ornaments:http://www.redtedart.com/2010/12/29/kids-get-crafty-ice-ornaments/

Kindergarten 

In kindergarten we have been learning about warm and cool colors.  We do little things like sort our crayons into two groups.  You would be amazed at how seriously they take this assignment! This is a great exercise since it brings up questions such as "What about pink and gray?" We then have an opportunity to think about this and discuss why those colors are not on the color wheel and if they fit better with warm or cool colors. I hope you had a chance to see our warm and cool colors "Names of God" project hanging in the hallway.  Next week we will be displaying their most recent work dealing with Joan Miró, a Spanish artist who worked with line and shape. 

1st Grade

In first grade we continue to play catch up with each other.  I feel a bit like the horses at the White Caps stadium.  Just when these classes are on the same page, we have Monday off. As a result they have had some different experiences. Often when one class meets more than another I have them work on a drawing project. 

 Here you can see they both worked on the Gustav Klimt project creating pattern on a quilt that surrounds baby Jesus.  We worked primarily in watercolor paints but some chose to add details with markers as well. The most important skill we were working on was checking to see that one area was dry before moving to another area or adding a glaze on top of the original color.  A tough skill but one they passed with flying colors!  

 Another project that one of the groups worked on was dressing up and drawing each other in ink.  Chalk was added to their drawings to add detail and color. 

2nd Grade 

This class is working on nature based art right now.  Just before break we started a piece that explored the colors in the Northern Lights. We also talked about shadow and how colors of the snow appear to change based on the color of the sky. I shared my awe of this when we watched a video and one little one asked, "If it is so beautiful, why wouldn't we get to see it out our windows in Michigan?" Great questions!  

More recently we have been using tape to resist our watercolor paint to preserve the whites of the paper.   We have been thinking about winter skies and the colors God uses in the cold weather.  We tried salt to create crystals but were disappointed that our student grade paper was not successful here. We continue to work with shadow. This time we also thought about the direction of the shadow in our work. 

3rd Grade

In third grade we did some inquiry based art after break. Inspired by the cover of the December issue of the Banner they explored the journey Mary and Joseph traveled when they fled Bethlehem and traveled to Egypt.  They used IPADS to follow the route, check the terrain, and distance. It was a lot harder and further than we had imagined!  Students shared what it was like to move and thought about how Mary and Joseph traveled. No bus, car, truck, or airplanes! They created a seven minute impressionistic landscape, added silhouettes of Mary, Joseph, Jesus, trees, and landscape features in Egypt.  

We have now moved on to another country in Africa, Ghana.  Students learned about Kente cloth. We read a legend about how it was created.  We are using paper weavings, printmaking, and pattern to create this complex design. Ask your child if they like weaving! 

4th Grade

After our beautiful poinsettia plants that explored complementary colors we have been working on several printmaking projects.  We learned about Snowflake Bentley and his fascination with ice crystals and how a snowflake is formed.  We learned how to create a six sided fold on a circle to create the six sided snowflake.  We used this lesson to explore the ink making process and how to create a successful print.  Students used their IPADS to view a variety of types of snowflakes and use them as references as they worked on their drawings.  We were reminded that art can take many attempts to be successful and that it takes determination and hard work!  Thank you for modeling determination Bentley!