Printmaking!

In 4th and 5th grade students learned about printmaking.  They loved the MOMA website that shows different printing techniques step by step http://www.moma.org/interactives/projects/2001/whatisaprint/flash.html. After sketching designs in their sketchbooks students "etched" with pencil onto Styrofoam printing plates. The next class students made a series of four prints and learned how to sign, title, and label a series. It's a quick lesson, but it's a great opportunity to introduce new tools and art terms.

1st grade Color Fish

 We packed many skills and techniques into these fish paintings!  We read a book about fish and learned how to draw different styles of fish.  The first day students drew six fish (3 large and 3 medium). Then they added a treasure chest and other ocean life.  The next day we played primary and secondary color games to review, then using only primary colors students painted the 3 largest fish with primary color and on the 3 medium fish they mixed the colors right on the paper to make secondary colors.

Then the next couple of classes we reviewed pattern got full paint trays to paint the other sea life, background and patterns.  On the last day students used oil pastels to create more patterns and details and they also used glitter to create their coins and jewels in their treasure chest. 

The look of LOVE

I've been on a modern art kick this year and I love to teach the kids about art that I want to learn more about too. I saw a friend of mine posing in front of Robert Indiana's love sculpture and in my research I found this great lesson from http://www.useyourcolouredpencils.blogspot.com.au/2012/02/love.html. We looked at different sculptures and prints of the Love artwork and Indiana's recent 2008 artwork Star of Hope.  We discussed other words with a positive message we could use.  I already had square paper and taught the students how to make, as they called it, "fancy" block letters.

Fall Leaves

   I had to be out recently and for my sub plans I wanted to leave something fun so I came up with these easy leaf drawings and they look beautiful! On long rectangle papers (using up my scraps!) students used white crayons to draw leaves. Then they colored these in warm colors with markers and it's okay if you go outside the lines because it is hard to see the white crayon.  Next just watercolor with plain water and push the water around. 

Fall is in the air...

                      

        I don't usually do seasonal projects but I felt inspired by the fall colors this year.  We did a monoprint of fall trees "reflected" onto water.  It only took one day and was a great introduction to our next printmaking lesson and reinforcing warm and cool colors.