Clay Week

It's that time again, playing with clay for every grade and every day for a week (plus one day)!  The kiddos love it, though I confess that after day three, realizing that you have three more days to go... whew, it's a labor of love!  

I started this last year, as the PTO helped fund for our brand new and beautiful kiln.  I schedule Clay Week for this time of year since Spring Break is just around the corner.  I thought this would be perfect timing, as obviously the clay projects need to dry for a bit before the week of firing begins.

In preparation for classes, each table has placemats, palettes of slip, pencils, paper plates for finished pieces, and step-by-step directions (with visual representation) for making a Pinch Pot.  To further protect the art tables, I also wrapped each table with a plastic party table cloth.

Above is a photo of some of my clay samples from K-5 grade levels demonstrations.  All projects, with the exception of the coiled snake, begin with the age old Pinch Pot.  Cats, dogs, turtles, fish, frogs, and monsters are among the projects created!

WC Art Show at The Frist, 2013

I am so proud of my young artists for all the work that they produce during our time together.  Our art was a hit and got countless compliments at our county art show, held at The Frist in Nashville.  My students were blushing with pride and I could not be happier for our school and it's success over the weekend! 

Incorporating Technology into the Art Room

Kids these days are so tech savvy and sometimes I feel so behind!  In the elementary art room I feel that I should take care and not go overboard with the allure of technology, as I don't want to sacrifice the kinetic hands-on approach to art that this age needs.  

The technology tools that I use the most in my classroom are the Elmo document camera, SmartBoard, and projector for PowerPoint presentations.  I have a PowerPoint with most of my lessons to use during introductions to each project.  Something else that I absolutely love x3 is my iPad!  I have found so many fun and exciting art apps through Apple and think you might find most of them addicting too:

1. AppsGoneFree- This is a fantastic (and free) app that shows you a list of cool apps that have gone free.  Most of the iPhone/iPad apps it shows are only free for that day, sometimes for the entire week. Apps range from educational games to exercise schedules to Angry Birds, and everything else in between.  AppsGoneFree has free apps for iPhone and as well as iPads, this is a must have!  

2. Hello Crayon- Fun and interactive art app that lets you create and save your work.  If you like this, you should also check out Hello Chalk and Hello Color Pencil!

3. Let's Create! Pottery HD- Exciting and interactive app that takes you into the world of sculpture and ceramics.  You can create your own clay pieces on the wheel or try to replicate others in "commissioned" pieces. There is a free version if you want to try that first.. Let's Create Pottery HD Lite

Box of Faces

Fifth grade is working with plaster and O.M.G are they obsessed..  I had no idea that they would have the time of their lives applying plaster strips to a plastic face mold!  We had a great time talking about plaster throughout recent (and not so recent) history.  I told them about my art classes as a child, that we wouldn't use face molds, but actually our classmate's faces (obviously taking care to avoid the mouth and eyes).  We also got a big kick out of the photo below, a box full of plaster faces!  Where was this photo around Halloween?  Spooooky.

So I can confidently say that right now I'm pretty popular with the fifth graders for letting them get themselves (and my tables) dirty!  If you're wondering about classroom management during this organized chaos, I selected helpers from each class who assisted with cutting extra strips, refilling water bowls, providing paper towels, etc to their classmates.  They really enjoyed having a hand in helping set up and clean up, and it was also beneficial to me at the end of a busy day of teaching!  These helpers will get to make their masks during the next class as the others begin the painting process.

Happy Hearts, Happy February!

February has been a blast at my school.. busy, yes, but a blast!  Recently my talented Art Club artists made hearts for the administration and also for the art room door.  How wonderful to walk into a classroom covered in colorful, funky, wonderful hearts!  They were beautiful and brought smiles to faces, Kindergarten through Fifth.  Happy Valentine's Day to all!

Presents For Paws 2012,13

I am a BIG animal lover, dogs specifically, so I was excited about my school (and county) approving my Art Club's holiday drive.  We chose to put in our time and effort with a pet food and supply drive for all the local furry friends in need during the holiday season.  We named our week-long event "Presents For Paws" (cute, right?) and all proceeds were donated to the Williamson County Animal Control and Adoption Center in Franklin.

  

 This photo doesn't do it justice, but look at all the goodies for our furry friends in need!  Food, treats, bowls, beds, leashes, towels, blankets, toys, and more.

I took my two rescue pups along for the Presents For Paws drop off.  The shelter staff came out to help carry in all the food and supplies, they were so excited (and impressed) with our school's generosity!

The Art of Thinking

At the beginning of the year, my county and Principal wanted all teachers to work on encouraging higher level thinking skills within the classroom.  More specifically Creative, Practical, Research Based, and Analytical Thinking.  Coming up with something for "Specials" was initially tricky, but then I started thinking like a student.. what would help me, as a student, make connections in the art room?

So often students hear teachers refer to these thinking skills but have a hard time making a visual connection, hence these visuals on my art room wall!  I hope that you find these helpful in implementing more meaningful questions and thinking techniques within your classroom.  Enjoy!

As seen above:

Creative Thinking:  (Images of monsters, various).
Imagine that you had a pet monster.
What would it look like?  What does it like to eat?  Does it have a name?
Would it be made of clay?  Would it be a painting or a drawing?

Practical Thinking:  (Paper orientation images).
Place your paper "portrait" style (perfect for portraits).  Place your paper "landscape" style (perfect for landscapes). Hamburger vs. Hotdog fold.

Research Based Thinking:  (Two images, one by Matisse and one by Van Gogh).
Using the table artist bios as a reference, identify who painted the paintings below.

Analytical Thinking:  (3 images to compare and contrast).
Compare and contrast the three dog paintings below.
How are they similar?  How are they different?