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What's Happening

Page history last edited by anne courie-meulink 6 years, 10 months ago

oakview owls

 

This is the place where one can find out what each grade level is currently learning:

 

 

 

May 2017

 

My my my has this year flown by!

Everyone is on their final projects of the year.

Kindergartners are learning about Henri Matisse, and painting a still life vase of flowers.

First Graders are creating dream houses and learning how to print using a foam plate.

Second graders are creating a diorama of Unlikely friends, two animals that are of different species, yet have love and friendship for one another.

Third graders are printing bugs on a leaf using a foam printing plate.

Fourth graders are finishing up totem poles, then will create a picture to print using a foam printing plate.

Fifth graders are creating their Clay sculpture Magical creatures.  They are shaping up nicely!

 

March-April: Spring is in the air!!

All students completed the art by me owl drawing for the inaugural Tile wall we will be creating in the front hall of our school, commemorating our first year at Oakview!

We have moved on to study Kandinsky in K, Read Swirl by Swirl and created clay swirly snails, Clay Turtles in First, Monet clay Frogs on a lily pad in second, Fraction fish collage in third, totem poles using upcycled cardboard and tempera paint in fourth and travel posters in the Pop Art style for the 50 states in 5th.

 

February:  Art by Me! Donation Tiles and family Keepsakes

We will be creating owls in each grade level, Pre-K trough 5th grade, to commemorate our inaugural year at Oakview!

All students have a different style or type of owl to create so we will have a wide variety of owls on the wall.

 

 

January 2017

 

Fall was a quick whirlwind of activity and surprises.  Going to California for 5 weeks was not planned, but necessary.  I sure learned a lot.  And so did our owlets.

 

Kindergarten students had made color discoveries using tempera cakes, landscape pictures using all different kinds of lines, and created fall leaves.

Then we created patterned clay pieces with our hand prints traced on them.  We will be working on the concepts of near and far in our snowmen drawings, and paint the clay pieces once they are fired to bisque.

 

First grade is studying the artwork of Henri Rousseau.  They are creating pictures with hidden animals in them.

 

Second:  We finished our root vegetable pictures based on the story Gigantic Turnip, then studied the color wheel and created our color wheel umbrella pictures.  Now we are beginning to learn about Claude Monet.

 

Third:  We finished our Day of the Dead pictures which look fabulous hanging in the main hall.

Next we explored outer space with drawings that captivated our imaginations and creativity.

Now we are going to weave warm and cool colored paper together to create beautiful art.

 

 Fourth graders finished their pirate ship collages and treasure maps.  They look fabulous hanging in the main and bus halls!  Next we will be creating pottery, using traditional native american techniques

 

Fifth Graders are working on the plant drawings, adding pattern to the background.  Next they will do the travel posters for the collaboration on the fifty nifty states song and research project.

 

 

 

September: Getting to know you!

We are all in the getting to know you phase and so happy to be opening a brand new school!

Since we are the Oakview Owls we are working on a giant tree where all of our owl friends will perch.

 

November and December:

Pre-K:  We created a fall tree by using our arms and hands as a trunk, and adding colorful leaves with our fingertips.  We read some poems about trees and fall and talked about what changes are in the air.  We also talked about texture and made leaf rubbings.

Next we read The Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett and created gingerbread people in clay using cookie cutters.  Then we read The legend of the Poinsettia and did our first printmaking project.

 

Kindergarten:

We looked at the alphabet artwork of artist Jasper Johns then created a John's inspired name art using crayons and paint.

Then we traced our hands and painted using only the primary colors, red, yellow and blue.  We made color discoveries!

Next we read the Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett and created gingerbread people out of clay using cookie cutters.  Now we are reading Time to Sleep by Denise Fleming.  We are creating tear bears out of torn paper.  Tearing is a skill that helps develop fine motor skills.

We will decorate our gingerbread people once they are fired and send them home in time for winter break.

 

First Grade:  We are making our own renditions of the Tooth Fairy!  We talked about what the tooth fairy might look like, then painted a picture of him/her.  Next we added the face using crayons and of course no fairy is complete without glitter!

Now we are reading the Gingerbread Baby by Jan Brett.  We are illustrating our favorite part of the story using our imaginations and the major illustration themes Jan Brett uses.

 

Second Grade:  We finished the root vegetable pictures and they are hanging in the fine arts building outside the LS art room!  Now we are creating lenticular pictures with the theme of Unlikely Friends.  We watched a video from Animal Planet on animals that are of different species who have become best buddies.  We will draw two pictures, paint them with watercolor, and then comes the scary part; cutting them up and pasting them onto another sheet of folded paper.  All of the other grades are in awe of this project and begging to do it as well!

 

Third Graders are finished with the outerspace pictures and have painted two sheets of paper, one warm colors and the other cool.  They will use these papers to make a beautiful weaving!

 

Fourth grade has finished their mountain pictures and are now learning about Cherokee Indians.  We are doing a weaving inspired by the Cherokee's using wisteria vines as our frame.  These tree weavings are coming out beautifully!

 

Fifth grade has started the plant extravaganza pictures.  This lesson is all about stick-to-it-ness and perseverance.  they stained watercolor papeer, drew a plant using sharpie, no erasing!  And now are adding pattern to the background.  Stunning results!   

 

 

 

October:

 

Pre-K:  We headed to the farm by reading Chicken Little then created chickens by using our handprints.  Next we created pumpkin patches by drawing the outline of pumpkins, then tearing and pasting construction paper to fill in our shapes.

 

Kindergarten:  After our line drawings we cut different types of lines, then pasted them onto a sheet of paper to create an abstract design.  Next we read Leaf Man and created beautiful fall leaves.  Students made colorful paper by pasting colored tissue to white paper.  After it dried they traced a leaf shape and cut them out.  They finished by pasting to a background paper.  They turned out really beautifully!  Now we are creating Fair rides by taking strips of paper and making them curve, zig zag, loopty loop and overlap.

 

First:  We finally finished our self portraits and are now exploring the artistic style of Eric Carle.  We watched video's on the ericcarle.org website to see just how he creates his pictures for his picture books.  Next we created colorful paper using the same techniques that Mr. Carle uses.  Now we are creating pumpkin patches using our colorful paper and lastly we will add small details such as stems and veins of leaves using gold paint.

 

Second:  We read the Gigantic Turnip, discussed what vegetables are root vegetables, and are creating a root vegetable garden with a perspective of both above and below ground.  We will draw, color and paint on this mixed media picture.

 

Third:  We finished our Day of the Dead pictures which look fabulous and are hanging along with the Hispanic Heritage Month display in the Lower School building.  We are now soaring into outer space with a drawing that can include objects both real and imaginary.  Think planets, stars, moons, black holes, asteroids, astronauts,and more mashed up with Star Trek, Avatar and Star Wars.

 

Fourth:  We are finishing our NC coastal adventure with a shell watercolor painting.  Students are doing observational drawing of shells I have collected over the years, they will color them with watercolor pencils and using a dab of water bring depth and dimension to their drawings.

 

Fifth:  Our gorgeous self portraits are hanging in the Lower School hall that leads to the music area.  Now we are creating books.  The origami book is challenging and sometimes frustrating but gives a huge sense of accomplishment when the students "get it!"

 

September 2015:

All our students have either finished or are finishing their self portraits.  With an 8 day rotation it will take a while for all projects to be completed.  Please be patient!

Pre-K students are creating collaborative underwater scenes as they study under the sea.  We made shoe fish and are adding details with a variety of materials including shells, tensile, foam shapes and sequins to name a few.

K have finished and are beginning line drawings. They will learn about all kinds of lines, then we will talk about shape and color.  We will discover the shapes we made when our lines crossed or met, and make color discoveries as we add paint to our pictures.

First graders are learning about spicers in science, so I thought we should make some in art!  We will create webs and spiders just in time for Halloween.

Second graders will read The Gigantic Turnip and create root vegetable resist paintings.  They will draw, color with pastels and then paint.

Third graders will make sugar skulls in celebration of day of the dead.

Fourth grade have finished both their pirate wanted posters, a treasure map, and will now do a collage of a pirate ship.  Sept. 19 is talk like a pirate day.  Aargh.

Fifth graders are making books.  We will make a sketchbook to take with us as we travel from school to home and beyond, and we will make an origami book that is so much fun to open and close like an accordion.

 

 

August 2015

 

Welcome back to another year of exploration, experimentation and Ah-Ha! moments!  

We are going to begin the year with one of my favorite projects, self portraits.  Everyone will be making a self portrait, but each grade will have a different spin.  This is one of the hardest things to do as an artist but one that every artist on the planet undertakes at one point or another in their lifetime.  There are so many different ways to express self, and at this gentle young age I always begin with drawing.  Each grade will focus on learning about self in ways that push their boundaries.  The youngest will begin to develop line and shape.  As children grow we work on what makes me unique and an individual.  The older students study artists, time periods, history and explore a variety of media as they create their self portraits.  

 

End of May-June

 

So here we are at the end of another fabulous year!  We are having fun finishing up printmaking and wrapping up unfinished projects, including a collaborative mural and mosaic.  We will be creating fun items using art materials that need to be cleaned up before the summer begins such as:

My LIFT reading group had a Jackson Pollack fun Friday and we went outside to splatter and splash tempera paint on large drawing paper.   This was a good use of the paint that was exposed to air and would not last.

Many grades are creating different voila! type projects using the recyclable "gifts" left for us from various packaging materials.  The Moe's drink containers made really cool angel fish!

So many magazines, so little storage space...so we are creating paper bowls that look quite difficult to make but are super easy.  The hardest part is being patient while the glue dries and not over gluing...otherwise you end up with a cool looking coaster.

Some of the boxes we saved are getting upcycled with the tissue from our staining projects.

As we clean and organize and get the room ready for summer look forward to seeing the students creations making their way home to be put on display then Ooh-ed and Aah-ed over!

 

May

Kindergarten finished their Matisse paintings just in time for their performance.  The halls looked brilliant with all the bold colors and patterns.  They are printmaking beautiful flower gardens filled with insects.

 

First graders are now learning about printmaking by creating a dream house.  We talked about all the different kinds of places people could live and what our dream house might look like.  Next we drew our houses and are in the process of transferring the designs to foam and creating prints. 

 

Second graders were introduced to the interesting world of unlikely animal friends.  We talked about how for some reason animals that are not friendly in nature become best friends and fall in love.  We will create a linticular drawings with watercolors showing one of our animals facing right and the other facing left.  Interesting to look at as we are walking down the halls!

 

Third graders are creating Taco fish.  They roll, fold and form the clay to create funny and interesting fish sculptures and the process of using the kiln to fire our clay.  We are going to learn about and try Gyotaku, the art of fish printing.

 

Fourth graders are finishing some beautiful radial symmetrical designs using pastels on construction paper.  They will get to choose their own designs for printmaking.  I am interested to see what they come up with!

 

Fifth graders are in the process of creating clay rattles, finishing their cup weavings and beginning a screen printing project.  They will also be finishing the mural about the NC coast.

 

March/April

The snow days really put a damper on our ability to finish the Art by Me project and it took 3 weeks longer than expected.  Orders will be taken at school through Mid April and online for several months.

 

Now that our Art by Me is FINALLY finished we are moving into messier projects!  Please remember to send your child in old clothes on art days.

 

Kindergarten students as well as Third grade students are learning about the artist Henry Matisse.  We are going to paint a still life in the style of Matisse using lots of color and pattern.  It will be fun comparing and contrasting the designs from two different age groups!

 

First grade students learned about the Eastern Box Turtle and created handmade clay turtles.  They took their knowledge of turtles to the land down under and learned about the Aboriginal people and their dot paintings.  We are now creating Aboriginal style dot turtles.

 

Second Grade completed their unit on Claude Monet by creating frogs on a lily pad.  They are now working on drawing a root vegetable garden.\

 

Fourth grade students learned about the artist Dale Chihuily and created "art glass" sculptures using laminating film.  These were hung together in grouping and placed all around the school.  Now they are working on Mandalas and learning about the impermanence of life.

 

Fifth grade students are creating cup weavings and clay rattles.  

 

 

 

January 

Everyone is Beginning a drawing for the Art By Me! Fundraising project.  The drawings will be sent to Art By Me! And returned to us with an order form and two free postcards featuring the students artwork.  Items such as calendars, mouse pads, key rings, iPad cases, thirst and much more can be purchases featuring the students artwork.  The funds raised will help provide materials and supplies for our art room.

Themes:

Kindergarten, Butterflies

First grade, Dogs and Cats

Second grade, Flower Gardens

Third grade, Birds

Fourth grade, Blue Ridge Mountains

Fifth grade, Oceans and Tropical Rainforests

 

December 10, 2014

Kindergarten: We made clay pinch pots and while they dry and go into the kiln for the first firing we are reading The Mitten, adapted and illustrated by Jan Brett.  We will create our own mittens and decorate them using lines, shapes and colors. 

 

First Grade:  After completing our pumpkin patches we read The Gingerbread Baby, adapted and illustrated by Jan Brett.  We created our own illustrations to go with the story.

 

Second Grade:  We finished our big city scenes and are now creating wild west landscapes.  We will stain the paper with tissue to create the sky, tear construction paper to create the land and cut and past the animals and foliage.

 

Third Grade:  After completing our outer space pictures we will learn about how people use masks all over the world, then create our own giant masks.

 

Fourth Grade:  We finished beautiful watercolor shell paintings and are creating coil pots.  While they dry and are baking in the kiln we will begin painting value and create blue ridge mountain paintings.

 

Fifth grade:  We are finishing up our plant pictures and will begin drawing animal pictures.  This lesson was inspired by a workshop I took with artist and author Jerry Pinkney at the NCAEA conference in New Bern.

 

November 4, 2014

 

Kindergarten:  Next we created colorful paper by pasting torn tissue onto white paper.  We next traced and cut out fall leaves, and read the book Leaf Man by Lois Ehlert, furthering our curiosity of just where do those loose leaves travel when off on their journey?

 

First grade:  After completing our Tooth Fairy pictures, complete with fairy dust, of course!!  We began our unit of Eric Carle and are creating pumpkin patches in the style of said artist.  After watching a video of just how the artist works to create his books we have finished painting out paper in the manner of which he paints, and next we will design and create our pumpkin patches just as the author and illustrator does.

 

Second grade:  We are still creating our Big City scenes, and are about to begin painting the large shapes, after coloring the small ones with pastels.

 

Third Grade:  Weaving's are completed and hanging on a cool wall that was constructed out of smart board packing cardboard!  Now we are off on an adventure into outer space!  We blasted off in the science room and are careening through parts unknown into the outer limits.  We will be creating drawings from both real and imaginary images.

 

Fourth grade:  We are continuing with our shell painting project and will head towards the mountains shortly  The shell drawings are beautiful and we are about ready to add the watercolors.  Many students have created wonderful drawings from the shells in the classroom and I am so excited to see how they decide to paint them. 

 

Fifth grade:  Students have stained their paper, drawn the plants, and are now practicing creating patterns before adding them to the background of their drawings.  This is the final and most crucial step int eh multi-step process.  Perseverance is the main ingredient in this project!

 

October 4, 2014

 

Kindergarten:  After completing a drawing about ourselves and our families we began working with lines and learning the different kinds of lines all around us.  The primary colors were introduced in a lesson involving the ancient cave art in Spain.  We made hand prints in the primary colors then introduced secondary colors when painting the background.  Next we will explore lines by cutting, arranging and gluing into our own compositions.

 

First Grade:  We finished our self portraits as artists and are beginning tooth fairy paintings.  We read Dear Tooth Fairy by Alan Durant and Vanessa Cabbon before beginning our watercolor paintings.

 

Second Grade:  After finishing our self portraits as artists we learned all about sky scrapers while we took a tour of three big US cities; New York, Chicago and San Francisco while learning about communities.  We are drawing our big city pictures and will add pastels and watercolor.

 

Third grade:  We finished our self portraits, that included pictures that relayed our favorite things, and added a reflection on the changes we would make if we created this picture again.  Now we are learning about weaving around the world as we exploring warm and cool colors in creating our own brilliant weavings.

 

Fourth grade:  Our self portraits were Wanted posters with ourselves as dread pirates.  We followed that up in creating treasure maps inspired by the book Pirate Pete by Kim Kennedy.  Now we are continuing our coastal theme by creating watercolors of sea shells.  We will complete the ocean mural we began last year.

 

Fifth Graders:  We have just finished our unit on Andy Warhol and completed our self portraits using the inspiration of his many portraits.  We are staining our paper and practicing contour drawing as we begin the fabulous Plant Extravaganza project.

 

 

Sept 1, 2014

 

Getting to know you!

We are all starting out getting to know more about each other.  We will set the classroom expectations together and share something about ourselves.   I have been learning a lot about the kinds of fun our students have outside of school.  We have enough soccer players to start our own league!  Many students share my interest in nature and creepy crawlie things.  We have many future gaming programmers, graphic artists and video producers.  What a fun year we have ahead.  Some of our projects will touch on one or more of the subjects that our students have interest in.  We are going to try new things, take chances and get messy.  Please remember to wear old clothes on art days!

 

May 7, 2014

 

Kindergarten students are in rehersals for their Showcase May 9.  Next week we will be working on patterns in nature.

 

First graders are continuing to refine their Eric carle style artworks.  They are on the second day of cutting and pasting.  Next week we hope to finish cutting and pasting, adding small details with pastels then write a story to go with our artwork.

 

Second graders have begun work on a community mural.  They are each making objects out of clay to add to our mural.  While we wait for the clay to dry and be fired we are beginning our Big City pictures.  We spent time comparing and contrasting New York City and San Francisco.  Students will draw a big city scene using crayons and we will paint using watercolors.

 

Third graders are finishing up the Miro project and we will be weaving with paper next.

 

Fourth graders are continuing to make Gyotaku prints as well as make paper.  We are tearing up used construction paper and recycling into beautiful handmade sheets.

 

Fifth graders are continuing to weave, however I promised them another clay project so we will have two days of creating and glazing.  Hopefully we will also have time to make an origami book before the school year ends!

April 28

Kindergarten students have finished their Rainbow fish paintings and are beginning flower gardens that will be on display during their spring show MAy 10!

 

First graders are continuing their collage work in the style of Eric Carle.  They have painted their papers, designed their collages and are at the cutting and pasting phase.

 

Second graders have just finished their Unlikely Friends linticular designs and are beginning thier clay project about communities.  They will discuss what makes up a community then make some part of the community out of clay.  We will combine all our parts into a class mural.

 

Third grade are creating an artwork based on the artist Miro.  They studied Miro and his surrealist style and are now

creating pictures using black oil pastels and tempera paint.

 

Fourth graders are printmaking...Gyotaku fish prints!  We watch a video of real Gyotaku fish printing but will be printing using rubber fish.

 

Fifth grade are well into their weaving.  We will be creating origami books and playing with clay before the year ends!

 

April 7, 2014

Kindergerten students are working on a rianbow fish project that includes drawing with crayons and painting with tempera cakes.  Next we will draw a still life and paint with liquid tempera paint.  Fun spring activities that gfet us very messy!  PLEASE WEAR OLD CLOTHES!!

 

First graders are finishing their pictures on wind and weather and will begin an eric Carle style collage project.  We will be painting large paper with the techniques Eric Carle uses, and then we will make animal collages.  ALSO WEAR OLD CLOTHES!!!

 

Second graders are working on their unlikely friends pictures.  This week we will begin cutting and pasting to turn them into linticular designs.

 

Third graders are finishing their action figures in the style of artist Paul Klee.  They will begin a Project based on the artist Miro next, using black pastels and liquid tempera paint.  OLD CLOTHES A MUST!!!

 

Fourth graders are completing their ugly bowls while completing the Koru spiral plant designs based on the artwork of Raewyn Harris.

 

Fifth graders ahve begun weaving.

 

March 13, 2014

FINALLY we have all of our Art by Me complete!!  Due to the weather and closing of school so often this wacky winter we are way off course in my planning projects but picking up nicely now.

 

Kindergarten students are playing in the mud and creating pinch pots.

 

First graders finished a dream house clay project and are now on to learning about landscapes.  We are pairing the lesson with their unit on weather.  I am teaching students to create horizon lines where the sky meets the ground and show some sort of weather in the landscape.   As we brainstormed ideas some students wanted to know how to draw a tornado and how to depict the wind.   

 

Second graders are beginning a project on Unlikely Friends.  They are creating a linticular picture depicting two animals that otherwise would not be friendly but due to circumstance are the best of friends.

 

Third graders are creating action figures based on the fabulous winter Olympians and the artwork of Paul Klee.  They just completed a unit on the human body and how the skeletal system functions so this is the perfect time to draw pictures of figures in motion.

 

Fourth graders are creating ugly bowls based on the tradition of ugly jugs.  They will create a pinch pot then embellish it with a somewhat not so attractive face.

 

Fifth graders are brainstorming ideas for the Doodle 4 Google contest and creating really innovative ideas following the theme:  If I could invent one thing to make the world a better place... After we submit our entries we will begin yarn weaving.

 

Happy New Year!! 

January 25, 2014

 

Many grade levels are finishing up projects begun before the winter break.  As classes finish thier earlier work we will all jump into the Art By Me! projects.

We are creating art that will be sent to Art by Me and made into postcards. The original work and postcards will be sent to us along with order information.

 

From the Art by Me website:


http://www.artbyme.com/Parents/tabid/94/Default.aspx

 

"We are offering a very exciting and fun art program at your school! Your student has created a special work of art in his/her art class. A variety of products are available for you and your family to purchase featuring this artwork. These products are custom-made, and make not only cherished keepsakes for you and your student , but great gifts for grandparents, aunts,uncles and friends! This program is an effective way to boost the self-esteem of our students,provide you with the opportunity to encourage their creative expression,and support the school's visual arts program!"

 

Kindergarten students learned about the migration of the Monarch Butterflies and are creating butterfly pictures.

First graders are creating either a cat or a dog picture to enhance their understanding of living things.

Second graders are creating flower gardens, getting ready for our unit on the artist Monet.

Third graders are creating pictures of birds from around the world to enhance their understanding of living things.

Fourth graders chose a lighthouse from North Carolina to illustrate to enhance their understanding of the history on North Carolina.

Fifth graders are learning about Biomes in Science so they chose a Biome to illustrate.

 

November 15, 2013 

 

Kindergarten students just read Time to Sleep, a story by Denise Fleming about hibernation.  We created soft teddy bears by tearing paper, and drew clothes and details about our bears.  We have ballerina Bears, Police bears, soccer playing bears and cooking bears, just to name a few.

Next we will be creating vehicles out of recyled objects.  Bring in your empty cracker and cereal boxes, yogurt containers, paper towl and toilet paper rolls!

 

First grade students jsut finished the tooth fairy paintings.  We are adding glitter while they begin their Rousseau style hidden tigers in the jungle.

 

Second graders are finished with the root vegetable pictures and are beginning a wild west scene.  They have created a sunrise/sunset by staining the paper with bleeding tissue.  We will add a desert scene including desert animals.

 

Third graders are continuing to work on the mural while drawing an uderwater scene using color sticks.

 

Fourth graders are working on creating treasure maps.  Aargh!

 

Fifth graders are making coil pots.  While they dry and before we glaze them we will begin a study of glass blowing and working with glass.  There is a wonderful video that I just discovered, Atrageous with Nate.  Thanks Nate!!!

http://vimeo.com/57538828

 

October 15, 2013

 

Kindergarten have finished their flower gardens and will begin a fall leaf collage.  They read Leaf Man by Lois Elhart and will create their own leaf men out of colorful paper.

 

First graders are beginning a tooth fairy picture.  They will be using tempera cakes to draw and color thier own interpretation of what a tooth fairy look like.

 

Second graders have begun drawing root vegetables.  They read The Gigantic Turnip by Alexi Tolstoy and will draw, color with pastels and paint over with tempera.

 

Third graders are beginning an exciting project.  We are entering the Wyland Foundation Water is Life contest.  We are drawing undersea scenes and will use our drawings as we design a 5' x 10' canvas mural. 

 

Fourth graders are creating colorful giant insects.  They will be using warm or cool colors for the insect, and the opposite for the backgraounds. 

 

Fifth graders are still working on their plant projects.  The multi-step project is coming along nicely!  hopefully they will be finished soon so we can move on to our next project.

 

October 3, 2013

 

Kindergarten students are creating a flower garden using the skills they learned cutting and pasting lines.  They discussed the artwork of Romare Bearden titled In the Garden, picking out lines and shapes.   They will tear and or cut colored paper to create a flower garden collage. 

 

First graders are beginning a fall guord collage.  They will be painting paper for the gourds and leaves then draw, cut, arrange and paste the gourds onto a background.  As a final touch they will add the vines.

 

September 26, 2013

 

Kindergarten students are learning about and creating lines.  We started by cutting different kinds of lines, straight, zigzag, curvy and dashed, then gluing them onto another color of paper.  Next we drew lines using crayons, creating even more kinds of lines, loopy, thick, diagonal and horizontal.  Then we used the Primary colors, red, yellow and blue, to paint the shapes created when the lines intersect.

 

First graders read several illustrated alphabet books then created their own alphabet coloring book.  They chose a letter to illustrate after we brainstormed about what words began with each letter. 

Our next project will be creating a color wheel.  We will talk about ROY G BV and how the colors relate to one another.  They will use rulers to create a "pie" with 6 pieces, draw a fish that has a part of its body in every "slice" of pie, then color the fish using the ROY G BV guidelines.  The background will be the complimentary color of the color on the fish in the same pie slice.

 

Second graders are working on a collage that tells a story about themselves.  We discussed using the basic story telling guidelines and including who, what, when, where and why or how in their pictures.  Theya re using construction paper as well as scrap paper from old projects. 

 

Third graders just played in clay and created giant eyed fish.  While the fish are drying and getting fired we began our next project, outer space.  Students listed all of the things they could think of that could be in ourterspace, then began their outerspace drawings.  We listened to music from the movie Planets to get us in the mood.  They will color the pictures with pastels and paint over them iwth black watercolor to learn about resist.

 

Fourth graders are going to Stone Mountain at the end of October, so we are learning VALUE by creating a value scale then putting it into practice by creating a Blue Ridge Mountain scene.  We will paint a sunrise or sunset, and add sillouettes using cut paper.

 

Fifth graders are beginning the plant extravaganza project.  They will stain paper using bleeding tissue, draw a giant plant, create patterns in the backgraund taping into previous knowledge about warm, cool and complimentary colors.

 

 

 

 

August 26, 2013

 

We are beginning our new school year today! 

In keeping with out theme, To Boldly Go, staff and students are creating an outer space mural on the wall outside of the art room.  Come by and watch it evolve!

All students will start the year off with a mini self portrait that we will put together to create a fabulous display in the hall in front of the artroom. 

 

May 2 2013

 

Wow has this year zipped by~!

 

Kindergarten created seasonal trees and are now learning about collage and the art of Eric Carle and Lois Ehlert.  They are painting paper in warm and cool colors then will create their own animal collage.

 

First grade students finished the tooth fairy project and are now learning about aboriginal people of Australia.  They will create traditional dot paintings while enjoying Aboriginal music on the didgeridoo.

 

Second grade students are learning about landscape of the American west.  We are creating pictures using many tools and techniques.  Staining paper, applying tissue, painting and drawing.

 

Third grade students are weaving warm and cool color paper that they made using liquid watercolors.  These vibrant weavings make excellent placemats when laminated!

 

Fourth grade students finished the totem poles and are learning about the art of New Zealand artist Raewyn Harris.  They will create their own pictures based on the art and culture of New Zealand.

 

Fifth grade students are multitasking.  They are beginning a watercolor painting of a giant flower after learning about the artist Georgia O'Keeffe, finishing their weavings AND working on a mural based on their Biome pictures.  The mural will remain at the school as a legacy of the class of 2013.

 

 

March 21, 2013

 

Kindergarten students just finished creating pinch pots.  We are going to paint them with crystalline glazes for a happy surprise!  Next we will experiment with colors and patterns while we explore nature.

 

First grade students are finishing up paper weavings.   Our next project will be watercolor paintings of the tooth fairy.

 

Second grade students are learning about the artist Claude Monet.  We are creating watercolor gardens in the impressionist style.

 

Third grade students are creating giant symmetrical masks.  We are using finger paint paper and markers, then watercolors.  They are bright, bold and beautiful!

 

Fourth grade students are creating undersea pictures using glue and chalk on black construction paper.  Cool results!  Next we will learn about totem poles and their symbolic meaning to the tribes of northwest America and create our own totem poles.

 

Fifth grade students are weaving on cardboard looms.  We are experimenting with color, texture to create small wall hangings.  Next we will be creating coil pots using traditional clay building methods.

 

 

 

February 22, 2012

 

All grades have been working really hard on their small detailed artwork for the Art By Me! fundraiser.  We are creating art that will be sent to Art by Me and made into postcards.  The original work and postcards will be sent to us along with order information. 

 

From the Art by Me website:


http://www.artbyme.com/Parents/tabid/94/Default.aspx

 

"We are offering a very exciting and fun art program at your school! Your student has created a special work of art in his/her art class. A variety of products are available for you and your family to purchase featuring this artwork. These products are custom-made, and make not only cherished keepsakes for you and your student , but great gifts for grandparents, aunts,uncles and friends! This program is an effective way to boost the self-esteem of our students,provide you with the opportunity to encourage their creative expression,and support the school's visual arts program!"

 

Kindergarten students learned about the migration of the Monarch Butterflies and created butterfly pictures.

First graders created either a cat or a dog picture to enhance their understanding of living things.

Second graders created flower gardens, getting ready for our unit on the artist Monet.

Third graders created pictures of birds from around the world to enhance their understanding of living things.

Fourth graders chose a lighthouse from North Carolina to illustrate to enhance their understanding of the history on North Carolina.

Fifth graders are learning about Biomes in Science so they chose a Biome to illustrate.

 

 

 

January 8, 2013

 

Kindergarten students have just played in the mud!!  We learned about texture and created textured tiles, including our hand prints.  These tiles are not only lovely but are a keepsake that will forever immortalize our small size when we were beginning school. 

 

First graders have learned about the artist Eric Carle, painted wonderful warm or cool colored paper and are now creating scenes for a story by tracing and cutting all kinds of animals and things out of the wonderful paper.

 

Second graders are finishing up the unlikely friends project by writing a story about their friends.  We will take a trip to France next and learn about the artist Claude Monet.

 

Third graders are working on a collaborative project that involves many disciplines.  They are researching famous Americans and creating a biography report.  We are working on creating a message in a bottle...adding colorful tissue to bottles, adding a portrait that students have drawn, and fats about our person.  The reports will be placed in the bottle mouth.  This lesson was featured in Arts and Activities magazine and seemed like a perfect fit for our third grade showcase!

 

Fourth graders are learning about the artist and architect M.C. Escher.  They used liquid watercolors to paint lizards that will be pieced together to create a large class piece that we will auction off to each classroom as a fund raiser for their beach trip.  Last year it was such a success that we decided to make a 6th piece that anyone in the school could bid on as we had so many inquire about buying the beautiful pieces. 

 

Fifth graders are beginning their unit on Biomes.  Each student chose a biome to illustrate, and must include all of the elements that make up a Biome; Plants, Animals, and other living things that are adapted to the climate and other conditions.

 

November 16, 2012

  

Kindergarten students are learning about recycling and upcycling trash into vehicles.   They are looking at two pictures from the Nasher museum permanent collection; Triumph Trumpet, by Thomas Leo Blackwell and Green Volkswagen, Don Eddy.  We have cars, trains and trucks and motorcycles made out of many shapes of boxes, plastic caps and all kinds of plastic containers, toilet and paper towel rolls, and oatmea boxes. 

 

  First graders are continuing to work on their tiger pictures.  Because they are on a 6 day rotation it takes them a bit longer to complete assignments than other grades.

   

Second graders are learning about friendships.  They looked at the picture Man's Best Friend by Richard Linder which is part of the permanent collection of the Nasher museum.  They also looked at pictures of animals who formed friendships with different species in the book Unlikely Friendships by Jennifer Holland.  Next we are drawing pictures of animals friends but with a twist.  We are making two different pictures and will cut and paste them together to create a linticular design.  Quite ambitious project that hopefully will have wonderful results!

 

Third graders are finishing up their outerspace pictures.  They are also painting their clay fish using watercolors. 

 

Fourth Graders are finishing up their mountain pictures. 

 

Fifth graders are continuing to refine their plant extravaganza projects. 

 

 October 26, 2012

  

Kindergarten students read Leaf Man by Lois Elhert.  We talked about how Fall is a season when leaves change colors and blow away.  We are creating colored paper by gluing colorful tissue to white paper.  After they dry we will trace a leaf shape and cut them out, building on our cutting skills.

 

First graders took a field trip to the Tiger Rescue in Chatham County.  After they returned we talked about the big cats that they saw and where they came from.  Next I showed them the artwork of Henri Rousseau and talked about how Rousseau hid the animals in the jungle foliage.  We then began to draw tigers.  Next we will make foliage to cover and overlap our big cats.

 

Second Grade students are talking about community and what makes up a community.  We made a list of all of the elements of a community, then created a giant vessel out of clay.  All the students were given a hunk of clay and they were instructed to create something for our community.  We took all of their people, houses, trees, flowers, buildings, pets, boats and more and attatched them all to a big vessel outside and in.  We are going to let them dry for at least 3-4 weeks before firing.  They are really interesting and creative!  I am hoping for the best and crossing my fingers that we do not have an explosion in the kiln!!

 

Third graders are learnning about outer space, so we looked at books with different themes on outerspace, both fiction and non-fiction.  We then created a list of all of the things one might find in outerspace.  Now students are creating their own drawings of outerspace.  they will color these with oil pastels and paint them with black watercolor.  They will learn about resist, where the oil and water do not mix.

 

Fourth graders have just taken a field trip to Stone Mountain state park.  We talked about atmosphere and how when they stood on the top of the mountain they could see a value scale, with the furthest mountains being lighter and fuzzy with more color and clarity in the mountains close by.  They will create a blue ridge mountain scene using tempera paint, watercolor for a sunrise or sunset, and sillouettes for the foreground using cut black construction paper.

 

Fifth graders are beginning the plant extravaganza project.  This is one of the most interesting projects as there are many steps to follow and many different types of skills used.  Day 1 is staining paper with warm or cool colored tissue.  Day 2 is a contour drawing of a plant in sharpie...no do-overs, mess-up fix-up!!  Day 3 is practicing creating patterns and day 4-whenever finishede is used to create patterns in the negative space of the drawing.  Labor intensive but gorgeous results!!

 

 

October 12, 2012

 

Kindergarteners are developing their cutting skills by creating all different kinds of lines.  They will be looking at the artwork of artist Odili Odita and creating their own masterpieces inspired by his work.

 

First graders are creating flower gardens out of cut paper.  They have visited the childrens garden in our courtyard and discussed the different kinds of things that can be found in or visiting a flower garden.  We are working on creating a picture filling up the entire page and overlapping.

 

Second graders are looking at the collage In the Garden by Romare Bearden and talked about the who, what, when, where and how of creating a picture.  Next they are creating a self portrait collage  using construction paper that tells a story.

 

Third graders are working in clay to create fun fish sculptures.

 

Fourth graders are beginning a mountain scene.  They are learning about value, tints and shades.  They will be painting mountain ranges, a sunrise or sunset then add sillouettes to the foreground using black construction paper.They will be going on a field trip to Stone Mountain NC in November to experience the mountains first hand.

 

Fifth graders are staining paper in preparation for a still life drawing using contour lines and patterns.  This is a multi step project with spectacular results!

 

Sept. 15...Celebrating International Dot Day!  We are all reading The Dot by Peter Reynolds and creating a large Dot made out of drink caps.  Everyone in our school will place a cap onto a piece of primed plywood.  We will have over 750ish caps when the gigantic dot is complete! 

 

Sept. 4, 2012

 

We are all working on getting to know each other!  Every grade level is working on a self portrait with a twist...

 

Kindergarten has just begun so we are going to do a warm up with line drawing before plunging head first into a torn paper self portrait...they will be looking at a picture by artist Romare Bearden to learn about line and the art of collage.

 

First graders are creating a self portrait in which they are drawing or painting a picture and will write a sentence stating why they love art.

 

Second graders are drawing a self portrait and telling the viewer what they enjoy by adding objects to their drawings.

 

Third graders are learning about the artist Gustav Klimt and creating a collage using pattered papers and a self portrait drawing.

 

Fourth graders are learning about the artist Romare Bearden and proportion then creating a collage self portrait using drawing and pictures from magazines.

 

Fifth graders are learning about the art of mosaic and creating an abstract self portrait in paper mosaic tiles.

 

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June:  The Big Wrap Up!! 

 

All grade levels are finishing up their final projects and they are coming home!

 

Kindergarten had one more clay project squeezed in and they created fish that will make great fathers day gifts.  We glazed them so they will be useful items in the kitchen or bathroom.  They finished their kindergarten art experience with a colorful chameleon drawing that captured the elements of art and design that they learned about this year. 

 

First Graders created flower mosaics with the leftover paper from the Eric Carle lesson. 

 

Second Graders are wrapping up their Big City pictures and tying up loose ends.

 

Third Graders finished their clay fish and are creating name aliens.  Many students did not have skills in writing cursive so this project gave them the opportunity to learn.

 

Fourth Graders are beginning my favorite project...Learning about the Koru Spiral plant and the iconic symbol of New Zealand.  They looked at the art work of Raewyn Harris and will create pictures using oil pastel.   Unfortunately we started this project so late in the year that we are running out of time!!  Hopefully any unfinished work will be completed at the students leisure over the summer holiday!

 

Fifth Graders completed their flower pictures just in time for their showcase and are now creating origami books that they can have as keepsakes where they can collect their classmates and teachers signatures.

 

 

April 24, 2012:

 

Kindergarten:  We are now learning about the art of Kandinsky and recreating his Concentric Rings using cut colorful construction paper.  We are tracing, cutting and pasting.  Such a beautiful result!

 

First graders are finishing up our unit on Eric Carle.  Lovely pictures now grace our halls as our student shave created their own collages using the techniques learned such as creating their own colorful paper, tracing and cutting shapes, and creating unique pictures int he stylings of the artist Eric Carle.  Each artist wrote about their work, reflecting on the aspects of the process.

 

Second graders are learning about big cities such as New York and San Francisco and what one might find when visiting these cities.  Now they are creating their own big city scenes adding details learned from the discussion.

 

Third graders are playing in the mud and creating taco fish.  These are created by folding clay around a scrunched up paper towel and mashing (southern word!!) the clay together at the top and back to create the dorsal fin and tail.  The mouth is left wide open, googly big eyes are added as well as pectoral or pelvic fins and elaborate details making each fish unique to its builder!

 

Fourth graders are creating giant insect paintings.  They are recounting the aspects of an insect...head, thorax and abdomen, 6 legs, antennae and all.  Then they will draw a giant insect as seen under the microscope.  They will paint them with the liquid watercolors using either warm or cool colors.  The background will be the opposite.

 

Fifth graders are beginning their unit on Georgia O'Keefe.  They will choose from one of the 50 state flowers and create a large watercolor flower using watercolor pencils and cake watercolors.

 

 

 

 

March 27, 2012:

 

Kindergarten:  We tried the mono print with one class, and it was fun...but did not result in the product that I wanted for the spring showcase...so try try again!!  The Kindergarten students painted some truly wonderful flowers, it was in the transfer where the process became muddled.  So, in subsequent classes we just painted the flowers on paper and did not try for the mono print effect.  Voila...success!!  Next class they cut out the flowers and pasted them into the flower boxes along with the song Spring has Sprung which they will sing next week for their parents.

 

First Graders  have finished their turtles and they have all gone home safely...We are busy creating our Eric Carle style collages.  We have a lot of tracing, cutting and pasting ahead of us!! 

 

Second Graders are finishing up their Monet Garden style pictures. Next week we will move into clay and create frogs on a lily pad.

 

Third Graders are finishing their mask projects.  They will begin working on Fraction Fish next week.

 

Fourth Graders are well into the Blue Ridge Mountain project.  Some classes have painted the mountain scape and added either a sunrise or sunset.  Next they are going to add cut paper silhouettes.  These are looking gorgeous~!

 

Fifth Graders have begun the clay project.  Boy are they turning out wonderfully!!  I am really giving them a time constraint of one class period...that is less than 45 minutes including demonstration...really about 30 minutes hands on.  Perhaps I should put them under the time pressure more often!!  :)

 

March 1, 2012:

 

Kindergarten students read Rainbow Fish and are now creating a scene to go along with the story.  They first made the background using blue construction paper and construction paper crayons, then created the fish by tracing, coloring, cutting and pasting, and for finishing touches we painted on the shinny scale and added a third layer of seaweed (green saran wrap cut/torn into strips) 

Next we will begin a flower box mono-print collage.

 

First graders are doing two things at once!  They are learning about the Eastern Box Turtle then creating turtles in clay while overlapping with a study of the artist Eric Carle and how he created his marvelous books and illustrations.  Students are creating paper following some of the techniques Mr. Carle uses.  They are using tempera paint on drawing paper, as tissue paper is just too thin and persnickety for our taste.  Next they will trace shapes of spring such as turtles, flowers, butterflies and birds to create their own collage and write a story based on their creations.

 

Second graders are well into the Monet style art.  They are turning out fantastic!  As soon as this is finished we will work in clay to create frogs on a lily pad.

 

Third graders are creating giant masks while learning about symmetry, balance, unity and complementary colors!  They studied masks from all over the world and discussed the why and how people use masks.  These giant masks are for show, not wear!

 

Fourth graders have learned about the art of MC Escher, and tessellations.  We are using this opportunity to tie in the North Carolina Skink when creating a tessellation of our own.  We will use liquid watercolors to paint our "skinks, then tessellate them to create a class masterpiece.  We will be raffling off the class piece as a fund raiser for the beach trip that is just around the corner!! 

Next we will be learning about atmosphere and the visual effects it has on distance.  We will be looking to the blue ridge mountains for inspiration when we create our own mountain scene with the art element value as our primary focus.

 

Fifth graders are still working on their weavings.  Soon they will finish and we will turn our attention to the art of pottery and the native american traditions of coil building.  Each student will create their own coil built pot using red clay.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

February 2012:

 

Students are finishing up their Original Works projects and are beginning something new!

 

Kindergarten is playing with CLAY!  They are experimenting with different objects to create texture in clay tiles.  They will trace their hands to memorialize this time in their lives.

 

First graders are learning about printmaking.  We have 6 different classes who rotate through the classroom, so we are juggling projects and each class works at their own pace.  All classes are going forward with the dog and cat theme and creating scenes to be either carved into foam and printed or are using paints to create a mono print.

 

Second graders are learning about the artist Monet and are getting ready to create their own impressionist paintings.

 

Third graders are learning about how cultures around the world use masks in their ceremonies and festivities.  They will be creating large symmetrical masks using a variety of materials.

 

Fourth graders are continuing with the ocean theme and delving into lighthouse scenes.  We are discussing the lighthouses of North Carolina and then creating either a print or a scratch paper design of our our imagination.  As a continuation of their printmaking lesson they are going to be learning about the artist MC Escher, a highly acclaimed Dutch artist for his astonishing prints, and creating class tessellations that will be raffled off in a fund raiser for the trip to the NC coast this spring!

 

Fifth graders are leaning the art of weaving.  They are creating small weaving that they are using to experiment on different techniques, and contributing to a school weaving on the friendly loom to be a left as a legacy for their graduating class.

 

 

 

 

January 2012:

 

All art students are participating in the Original Works fundraiser.  We need a new drying rack for the art room, so the proceeds from the sale will be used to purchase the drying rack. 

We are all creating original drawings on 8 1/2 x 11 paper.  Each grade level has a theme.  When the drawings are finished they will be sent home with an order form.  Families who do not wish to order anything may keep their artwork.  Families who wish to have their students artwork transferred to a keepsake item may fill out to order form and send the artwork, order form and payment back to Mrs. Meulink.

 

The Themes:

Kindergarten: Butterflies

First Grade: Dogs/Cats

Second Grade: Flower Gardens

Third Grade: Birds

Fourth Grade: Under the Sea

Fifth Grade: Biomes

 

December 2011:

 

Kindergarten classes have read another great story by illustrator and author Jan Brett.  We discussed the similarities between the illustration of The Mitten and The Gingerbread Baby.  Students then created their own illustrations of gingerbread figures in the stylings of Jan Brett using construction paper crayons.  They do not know it yet but we are going to embellish the pictures using "sparkles, twinkles and magic."

 

First Graders are continuing to work on their Tooth Fairy pictures.  They are coming along nicely!

 

Second Graders are getting ready to begin their Original Works project!  This is the project that we partner with Original Works to put our students creations onto functional items such as mouse pads, coffee mugs, t-shirts, sketch pads, calendars and such!  These items are keepsakes that I as a parent have sure enjoyed seeing each and every day.  My children's artwork is memorialized in magnets on my refrigerator, coffee mugs, hot plates and mouse pads scattered throughout our house.  I treasure these memories and look upon them fondly each day as my children grow closer to adulthood.

 

Third graders are finishing up the Paul Klee projects and are beginning their keepsake artwork.  The Third grade theme is Birds.  They many choose any kind of bird they wish to illustrate.  We will be using markers and these wonderful tools called color sticks, which are really colored pencils without the wood.  Thanks Crayola!!

 

Fourth Grade is currently painting their ugly jugs.  They will begin the Original Art project when they return from winter break.  The theme for fourth grade is under the sea~

 

Fifth grade is finishing the amazing Still Life project and planning their Original Art project, the theme is Biomes.  They may choose which Biome they would like to illustrate, and are practicing sketching the plants and animals.

 

 

 

November 2011:

 

Fall art show at Bull City Crafts!!  Come to our reception on November 18 from 5-8 to see the work and celebrate the arts at Hope Valley.

http://bullcitycraft.com/

 

 

November 16, 2011

 

Kindergarten students are going to read The Mitten, then create mittens of their own using crayons to trace and create patterns.   They will recall the lesson on lines and the different types of lines learned earlier in the year.

 

First graders are studying Fables and Fairy Tales.  We will brainstorm on the characteristics of Tooth Fairies and then create tooth fairies using watercolor and finishing with "fairy dust"...one of my favorite craft items, glitter!

 

Second graders are learning about positive and negative space as well as complimentary colors.  We will use complimentary colors to create abstract pictures.

 

Third graders are learning about the skeleton and muscles in their classroom, so to go along with the body and movement we are learning about the artist Paul Klee and looking at his painting The Park at Lucerne.    WE are posing manikins in various positions and drawing them in the style of Paul Klee.

 

Fourth graders are finishing their very wonderful portraits and getting ready to begin a unit in clay.  They will be learning about the tradition of the ugly jugs and then create their own ugly mugs.

 

Fifth graders are halfway through the still life project.  They are coming along very nicely!!

 

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Students in Kindergarten are talking about the Fall and winter seasons. as they seem to occur simultaneously around here.  We are creating fall leaves which include the processes of creating colorful paper,  tracing leaf shapes, cutting them out, and gluing them onto a background. 

 

First through Fourth graders are getting ready for a visit from Robin Preiss Glasser, the illustrator of not only over 40 Fancy Nancy books, but many countless others!  Students have decided on names for themselves that they will illustrate, and then write about the character that has emerged from their creativity!  

 

Fifth graders are working on elaborate drawings using a multitude of steps.  They chose to work wither in warm or cool colors, stain white paper using colored tissue paper, create a contour drawing of a large plant, and add pattern to the background using colored markers.  

 

 

October 2011:

 

Kindergarten students are learning about the primary colors.  They are tracing their hands, then painting with red yellow and blue watercolors.   A lot of discoveries are happening when the colors become mixed!!

 

First Grade are finishing their weaving's by adding patterns of colorful shapes. 

 

Second graders are finishing their root vegetable pictures.  Most are now coloring their objects using pastels, then they will paint above and below the ground line using tempera paint.

 

Third graders are finishing the outer space pictures.  They are using pastels to color their objects, then will paint the entire picture with black watercolor.

 

Fourth graders are finishing their treasure maps.  The next project will be to learn about the lighthouses of North Carolina, and create scratch art drawings of the Carolina coast.

 

Fifth graders are finishing the Dot paintings.  Next they will tackle a multi-media piece incorperating many skills such as creating colorful paper, contour drawing, design and pattern making.

 

September 2011:

 

The self portraits are almost all finished and hanging in the hall.  The students did a fantastic job, and we are getting loads of compliments from parents and staff! 

Photos @:

https://picasaweb.google.com/111198901286257420201/HopeValleySelfPortraits2011?authkey=Gv1sRgCPe7hrLt6umKxwE

 

We are all going to step into the wonderful world of mixed media, including painting, so please remember to wear old clothes on art days!!

 

Kindergarten:   A line is a dot that went for a walk!  The students created pictures using oil pastels by talking their dots for walks across the paper.  They learned about all different types of lines.  Next they colored in the shapes they made when the lines crossed paths.  Next we will paint over the pastels to find out what happens when oil meets water!

 

First Grade:  Students are going to weave paper.  We will review the different types of lines before beginning to weave through straight lines, zigzag lines and curvy lines.

 

Second Grade:  Root Vegetables.  Students are creating a picture that shows both above and under ground.  They will create a vegetable garden that has only root vegetables.  They are using many different types of media; pencil, sharpie, oil pastels and finally watercolor paint.

 

Third Grade:   Students are beginning creating outer space pictures using oil pastels and tempera paint. We brainstormed the many different objects that might be found in space, both real and fantasy, and wrote them on the board.   Next we will let our imaginations take over and begin our pictures.    

 

Fourth Grade:  Students have just learned about map making and created maps of North Carolina, so we will build on their new knowledge of map making and will be creating treasure maps.  Aargh!!  We will add an element of fantasy to our maps, so the students are adding elements such as mermaids, dragons, sea monsters, candy island and much more!

 

Fifth grade:  Students read The Dot  by Peter Reynolds.  They then began an abstract drawing beginning with a dot.  They will work in sharpie then use tempera paint to give their artwork pizazz.

 

 

 

August 2011:

 

All students are beginning the year with a self portrait.   When complete we will have them all on display outside the art room.  Everyone has begun the year studying their face and features in a mirror, drawing themselves, then adding objects in the background that tell the viewer about the artist.  These pictures are coming along very nicely!

 

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http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/stories/animalsnature/dolphin-language/

 

 

May...one of my most favorite months!  My peonies are finally blooming, the trees have finally stopped blowing green pollen everywhere and the temperatures are not so consistently hot yet.

We have only a handful of art classes left, and so much we still want to do!  

 

Kindergarten classes are painting flower gardens using cake tempera paints.

 

First graders have made clay turtles and are working on finishing their printmaking project.

 

Second graders are painting their clay frogs on a lily pad and beginning an animal printing project.

 

Third graders finally finished thier beautiful masks and have made Clay fish.

 

Fourth graders have build their clay lighthouses and are working on blue ridge mountain paintings.

 

Fifth graders have finished their clay bowls and will begin tessellations next.

 

April is here and with that we get our crazy North Carolina temperatures.  Cold today, hot tomorrow!  Please remember to bring layers as walking between buildings in the early am is chilly, even on days with highs in the 70's!!

Kindergarten classes are working on their dexterity while creating beautiful cut paper pictures in the style of Kandinsky.  They are tracing, cutting and gluing using bright colored construction paper.

First Graders are creating Clay Turtles.  They are learning about the different kinds of turtles in North Carolina and will create one of their own.

Second Graders are finishing up the wonderful Monet inspired pictures.  Next they will create a frog on a lily pad, notice a theme?, out of clay.

Third Graders are finishing up their wonderful masks.  They have done an outstanding job persevering through this long project.

Fourth Graders are learning about the Koru plant of New Zealand, and are creating their own Koru inspired spiral watercolor pictures.

Fifth Graders are learning about one point perspective while creating street scenes.   It is not as easy as it first seems to be!!

 

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March is here, and spring is near!! 


We have our usual art room needs: Tissues and art wipes.
New Needs:  Colorful light weight
cardboard boxes such as cereal, breakfast bars, crackers, etc.

Kindergarten is currently learning to print.  They are creating dream houses in foam and transferring their design to colored printing paper.

First are finishing their tooth fairy paintings and will be making animal masks to wear in their spring performance.  My students are all elephants, one of my favorite creatures!

Second Graders are creating a garden/park scene using the technique of pointillism and watercolor, a very time consuming process, but the results are gorgeous!

Third graders are creating symmetrical masks using multiple media.  They folded the paper down the middle and drew 1/2 of a giant mask, decorated that side with a wide variety of shapes, then took it to a window to trace it on the opposite side.  Voila!  A perfectly symmetrical design.  Now they are coloring in the small shapes with crayons, paying close attention to match the right and left sides.  Finally they will paint the entire mask using watercolor.

Fourth graders have just finished creating giant insects using warm and cool colors.  They are vibrant and beautiful.  Look for them hanging in the hall near the office soon.  They are now working on book cover illustrations for the books they are writing.

Fifth graders are working on creating a class paper quilt.  They have learned about traditional and modern quilters, as well as quilting artists today.  They are working on creating abstract designs that will transfer to foam, print on handmade paper that they created using tissue paper, then piece all of their squares together to create a class quilt.

 

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Cruising through to Spring...I hope!!  I am looking forward to the days when students can come to my learning cottage and not have to wear their heavy coats.  Please remember to dress appropriately for not only art but the weather.  It is so bitter cold going from the big house to the learning cottage!!

 

We are wrapping up Art By Me! and soon beginning new and exciting adventures in art!

 

Kindergarten will be working in Clay this week!!  They will be exploring the art element texture using a variety of tools that can be found around the house!  Hair Combs, sea shells, plastic table ware, netting from fruit bags are just a few items that create beautiful texture in clay.

 

First Graders are going to be reading fairy tales and creating their own Tooth Fairies. 

 

Second Graders are finishing up the City Scenes that we put aside for Art By Me! then working on a unit about the artist Claude Monet.  They will be creating an impressionist watercolor garden scene, then work in clay to create a frog on a lily pad.

 

Third Graders will learn about masks and their role in cultures around the world.  They will create their own masks, paying close attention to symmetry, design and details!!

 

Fourth Graders will be working in watercolors to create giant insects using vibrant warm and cool colors.

 

Fifth Graders are going to learn about quilts and their historical significance to our own culture.  We will create our own quilts using collage and printmaking techniques.

 

http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/02/05/966773/artist-stitches-places-into-collages.html

 

 

 

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 Happy New Year Everyone! 

We are starting out 2011 by creating the Art By Me! project.  Each student will complete a drawing that will be used to create keepsake items that will make fabulous gifts!  Check out the website to learn more: http://www.artbyme.com/

The following are the themes for each grade level:
K- Butterflies
1st- Dogs/Cats
2nd- Garden
3rd- Birds
4th- Undersea
5th- Biomes Check out this fabulous website created by students at the West Tisbury Elementary school on Martha's Vineyard: 

http://www.blueplanetbiomes.org/world_biomes.htm

 

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Seasons greetings!

  We are continuing to try new things and getting messy!  Please don't forget to bring in wipes for our cleanup time.  We do really appreciate the donations!

  What we are doing in the classroom right now:

  Kindergarten:  We have been working with shapes and created several small works using several different skills.  Cutting, tearing, coloring, gluing and of course clean up!  :)
This week we will be reading the mitten and creating our own beautiful mittens. 

  First Grade:  We completed our wonderful pouches just in time for Native American day.  Phew!  That was really a toughie.  Great job everyone!!  Now we are continuing our autumn creations and then on to creating ginger bread babies.

  Second Grade:  The students are learning about nocturnal animals.  We made owls using  felt and sequins.  We are painting scenes for our owls to perch in.  They are going to be coming home soon!  After we finish our owl masterpieces we are going to create a big city scene.

  Third Grade:  We have begun weaving paper as a preparation for weaving with yarn.  This will be a challenge that we are gearing up for!  Patience and concentration are needed to perform this task.

  Fourth grade:  We are finishing up our circle pictures and mounting them on suitable colored background.  The results are gorgeous.  Next we will be looking at our state seal and the motto.  We will discuss creating a seal of our own.  Students will draw/paint a personalized family seal.

  Fifth Grade:  We are almost finished with our multi-step designs.  They are really colorful and eye catching.  Look for these in the hall near the office.  We are beginning to weave this week.  We will be using traditional materials as well as non traditional materials and spice things up a bit. 

 

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NOVEMBER begins....

 

Brrr....It is right cold around here! 
  Please send your little people to art class with an OLD sweatshirt/jacket.  Walking between buildings is not fun when it is so cold!  We do not have coat hangers in our classroom, so jackets must be placed on the back of the students chairs.  I would not want the new winter coats to get messy with the paint, pastels, glue..etc....

Kindergarten:  We have finished our first printmaking project using apples.  Next we are going to explore shapes...geometric and organic.  Tracing, cutting and pasting skills will apply.

First Grade:  We are making Native American pouches for our celebration later in the month.  Many skills are being applied:  weaving, sewing, drawing, pasting, stringing!

Second Grade:  We are creating positive and negative designs.  This is a one day project, so next week we will begin creating nocturnal animals of North Carolina.

Third Grade:  We are finishing our Paul Klee drawings.  They are beautiful.  Next week we will begin weaving paper as a warm up to a yarn weaving project.

Fourth Grade:  We have finished, or are almost finished, with our treasure maps.  They are wonderful!!  We will begin a Mandala project next week.  Students will chose their own theme for their creations.

Fifth Grade:  We are working on a multi-step project that involves many different processes:  Staining paper, contour drawing, pattern design.  We are about 1/2 through this project.  Looking great so far!

 

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Mid October:  More new projects are beginning!!

Phew!  We have completed many projects, or are nearing completion, so new and exciting projects are on the horizon!

 

Kindergartners made beautiful Fall leaves out of our colorful paper.  Next we will begin learning about print making with delicious but soon to be inedible crispy apples.

 

First Graders will be learning about the wonderful artwork of Eric Carle.  After watching a slide presentation on how he creates his paper we will become a working production studio and make beautiful paper to use in our Fall scenes.

 

Second Graders are finishing up their stitching projects.  I had one boy tell me that stitching was for girls.  I asked him if doctors could be boys, and he said of course.  I said that surgeons had to be the best at stitching of all!!  Next we will look at creating positive and negative spaces using complementary colors.

 

Third Graders have finished their outer space pictures.  They look fabulous!!  I will photograph them and have them up to view soon.  Next they will work on a weaving project I learned from Mrs. brown's website.  Thank you Mrs. Brown!!

 

Foruth Graders are working very well on their treasure maps.  They are beginning to add color using colored pencils.  They are looking great!

 

Fifth Graders are beginning a project that I just learned at a professional development gathering.  It is a multi-step process, involving staining white paper with tissue paper, contour drawing, warm or cool colors and patterns.  This will take a few weeks to complete!

 

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October has started with nice cool weather, phew, reminding us that the season is Fall!!

 

We are wrapping up our projects and setting our sights on new adventures!

 

Kindergarten is learning about primary colors.  We just finished tracing our hands and painting them red, yellow and blue.  Next we will take tissue paper in these primary colors and see what happens when they overlap...Color magic!!

 

First Graders are weaving with paper, then adding patterns using geometric shapes.  These are really turning out well!

 

Second Graders are finishing up their root veggie pictures and getting ready to learn the basics of stitching.  They will create a simple animal motif using a running stitch.

 

Third Graders are beginning creating outer space pictures using oil pastels and tempera paint. We brainstormed the many different objects that might be found in space and wrote them on the board, then let our imaginations take over and began our pictures. 

 

Fourth Graders are finishing the undersea pictures.  They are stunning.  I can't wait til they are complete so I can photograph them!  Our next project will be creating treasure maps.  Aargh!!

 

Fifth Graders are creating pictures using the color wheel as a starting point.  They are to make at least one circle on their paper, then divide the circle into 6 "pie" wedges.  This will be painted as a color wheel.   What they do with the remaining space on the paper is up to them!  We had a discussion about the possibilities...Make it into a Ferris wheel at the State Fair, make it into crazy sunglasses, make a pizza shop, lollipop, bicycle etc...  Some of the students are really surprising me with their creativity!  Too cool.

 

 

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What's Happening Now!  September 16, 2010 

 

We are all going to step into the wonderful world of mixed media, including painting, so please remember to wear old clothes on art days!!

 

Kindergarten:   A line is a dot that went for a walk!  The students created pictures using oil pastels by talking their dots for walks across the paper.  They learned about all different types of lines.  Next they colored in the shapes they made when the lines crossed paths.  Next we will paint over the pastels to find out what happens when oil meets water!

 

First Grade:  Self Portraits.  Using oil pastels the first graders are creating self portraits.  They are beginning to learn how to add more detail to their compositions. 

 

Second Grade:  Root Vegetables.  Students are creating a picture that shows both above and under ground.  They will create a vegetable garden that has only root vegetables.  They are using many different types of media; pencil, sharpie, oil pastels and finally tempera paint.

 

Third Grade:  Color Wheels.  Students are learning that the color wheel has an order and that no matter what position the wheel is turned the colors are always aligned in that order.  They will use the same media as the second graders to create a color wheel behind their names written in big bubble letters.

 

Fourth Grade:  Students are creating an Undersea Creature.  They will work on Black construction paper with glue and chalk.  This project is a bit messy, so be sure to wear your art making clothes!

 

Fifth grade:  Students read The Dot  by Peter Reynolds.  They then began an abstract drawing beginning with a dot.  They will work in sharpie then use tempera paint to give their artwork pizazz.

 

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 Weeks of Aug. 25-Sept. 7 2010:  Getting to Know YOU!!

 

  All classes are in the getting to know you phase of school!  We are all creating artworks that give a visual picture of who we are as individuals and what we enjoy.  The center of our pictures has a contour of our school mascot, the Dolphin, with the name we choose to be called on the inside.  All around the dolphin we are drawing objects that describe us!  For example I have my cat, dog and a representative chicken, as well as a mountain scene, my two kids, a sandcastle and sea shells,  a dragon fly representing my love of insects, a soccer ball, and mountain bike.  I can add more, but time may not be on my side!!  :)  That happens sometimes since art classes are only once a week.

 

  This project is a great way to get to know each other, as well as assess students skills and abilities with the art tools.  Students abilities in tracing, writing, drawing and following instructions are all assessed during this assignment.

 

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To get an idea of the kinds of projects we will be doing here is a sample from spring 2010:

 

What's Happening This Week!
 We have been very busy creating a wide variety of art.  Please feel free to come by any Monday or Friday to see what we are up to!

Kindergarten:  We just finished creating our own renditions of Kandinsky's Squares with Concentric Rings.  The students practiced their scissors skills while cutting colorful paper circles that overlap.  Look for these pictures near the student store.

We also finished our wall hangings.  We experimented with a variety of tools to create texture on clay.  These beautiful works of art will be coming home just in time for mothers day.

First grade:  We finished our study on Eric Carle, created our own colorful paper and used it to make pictures using the same techniques as Mr. Carle, and have sent those creations home.
 
We also finished our Clay Turtles, and they will be coming home this Friday. 
This week we will begin our next project, all about printmaking.

Second grade:  We studied the artwork of the impressionist painter Claude Monet.  We then made impressionist watercolors of a garden scene from Mr. Monet's garden and finished creating frogs on a lily pad in clay.
This week we will begin creating giant insects

Third grade: We studied weaving around the world, then created both a warm and cool colored paper using liquid watercolors and used these beautiful papers to create weavings.  The results are gorgeous!

 

They will be hung by the cafeteria.

Fourth grade:  We have been getting ready for our trip to the Outer Banks!  Our clay project is underway.  We are all making lighthouses that can be found on the coast of NC.  They are coming along very nicely, and we are having a fun time playing in the mud!

Fifth grade:   All three classes are working on different projects this week!

Mrs. D's class has been weaving using a small cardboard loom and colorful yarn.

Mrs. O's class has created coil pots using clay and will learn more about the Cherokee Indians and the importance of pottery is in their daily lives.

Mrs. W's class has just finished creating monumental flowers, and will begin their clay pots next week.

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