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Sunday, December 30, 2012
Turning a Negative Into a Positive
Gearing up for new lessons for the new year. One lesson I'm going to miss is the "Turning a Negative Into a Positive." This was one of my favorite ways to engage my high school students in working with social issues. I'm offering up the lesson plans, rubrics, etc over at Teachers Pay Teachers. Below are some samples of the typical results from the assignment.
I think what I loved most about this lesson were all the teachable moments that always popped up. While the primary objective was (from a studio standpoint) their use of negative space, the discussions on how to unpack a social issue were some of my favorites. When students brainstorm, they typically yell out an issue: "medicare" to which I would throw back "what about it" and we would banter for a long time until the student got to the crux of their issue which might be that their grandparents couldn't afford their medication. What would be the symbol for that?
It also allowed most students in my introductory level one class to be successful. As a warm up activity I would have students place a pair of open scissors on a colored square of paper with both handles and both blades touching an edge of the paper. Then they would recreate in their sketchbook by drawing the negative space (the colored parts that show through). Some of the students choose to use the scissors as the item for their final project and choose a topic of something they'd like to "cut out" or get ride of (like smoking or guns).
This is one category from the rubric that I use with the assignment.
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Sculpey Draped Bowl
While experimenting with Christmas Gift ideas for my sister who wanted "something hand-made in a gingerbread theme" I came up a potential lesson idea.
Roll out a slap of sculpey. Use cookie cutters to create lots of flat shapes. Press into mold and bake. This could also be a cute collaborative project done the week before. Have each student make one, press it into the form and then give to the homeroom teacher as a class gift.
Roll out a slap of sculpey. Use cookie cutters to create lots of flat shapes. Press into mold and bake. This could also be a cute collaborative project done the week before. Have each student make one, press it into the form and then give to the homeroom teacher as a class gift.
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Personalized Ornaments
Shrinky Dinks + Sharpies + Your favorite photo = personalized ornaments. 10 minute craft into a last minute holiday gift.
Punch a hole in top of ornament before baking (325 for about 3 minutes). It would be cute to trace the pictures that others have included on their own holiday cards for a personal touch. Remember that items shrink to 1/3 original size. Enjoy!
Punch a hole in top of ornament before baking (325 for about 3 minutes). It would be cute to trace the pictures that others have included on their own holiday cards for a personal touch. Remember that items shrink to 1/3 original size. Enjoy!
Thursday, December 20, 2012
Paul Klee Messages of Thanks
A while back I saw a great idea over at Mrs. Picasso's blog using Paul Klee. I tried it with grades 1 through 4, modifying for each level. They all did a great job, but I think I like the lesson at 2nd grade best. First grade wrote messages of thanks. This lesson started the week after Hurricane Sandy and right before Thanksgiving. Second grade wrote abstract poems listing things about either fall or winter. They colored in with warm or cool color schemes. Third and Fourth grade worked with marker. Their poems were more sophisticated and they tried to transition the colors from fall to winter to simulate the change of seasons.
Here are some finished samples by 2nd grade:
1st grade samples:
Here are some finished samples by 2nd grade:
1st grade samples:
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Snowmen Charades
I was going to have my first grade students do the styrofoam printmaking lesson for Snowmen at Night. And then. Well. Then I met them. They are totally not doing that. Nope. Not happening.
We read snowmen at night. Before reading, I told the students that they had to look for a few things in the book. The color of snow and the snowmen's arms.
After we read, I asked them what color the snow was. Some remembered it was not purely white. Then we talked about the arms. On the board I drew two snowmen bodies, just bodies, no arms, noses, etc. One was skiing and one was throwing a s snowball. I asked the students which was which (trick question!) and they couldn't tell. So we talked about the importance of body language. Which part of the snowman can tell us what they are doing? Ah, the arms.
This is a three part lesson.
Day one we read the book. They went back to their seats and drew a horizon line across the paper. Straight if snowman doing a flat activity (ice skaing, snow ball fight). Hills for sledding, skiing or snow tubing. Each table had a mix of white paint and a tiny bit of color. They dabbed it on with a sponge and we let it dry till next week.
Second class we added tree or house backgrounds. I gave them square and triangle sponges and showed a few ways to dab the shapes.
Third class we tore three circles for snowman bodies. We overlapped and glued them on.
Construction paper crayons were used to embellish.
Student work
We read snowmen at night. Before reading, I told the students that they had to look for a few things in the book. The color of snow and the snowmen's arms.
After we read, I asked them what color the snow was. Some remembered it was not purely white. Then we talked about the arms. On the board I drew two snowmen bodies, just bodies, no arms, noses, etc. One was skiing and one was throwing a s snowball. I asked the students which was which (trick question!) and they couldn't tell. So we talked about the importance of body language. Which part of the snowman can tell us what they are doing? Ah, the arms.
This is a three part lesson.
Day one we read the book. They went back to their seats and drew a horizon line across the paper. Straight if snowman doing a flat activity (ice skaing, snow ball fight). Hills for sledding, skiing or snow tubing. Each table had a mix of white paint and a tiny bit of color. They dabbed it on with a sponge and we let it dry till next week.
Second class we added tree or house backgrounds. I gave them square and triangle sponges and showed a few ways to dab the shapes.
Third class we tore three circles for snowman bodies. We overlapped and glued them on.
Construction paper crayons were used to embellish.
Student work
Friday, December 14, 2012
Printmaking Snowman Lesson
Second grade students just finished their snowmen prints.
I gave them the chance to make more than one. They will add permanent marker over top to embellish. Taking a few pictures now in case they get ruined during the next step.
My lesson plan for this is posted over at Teachers Pay Teachers. It includes step by step visuals and professionally designed lesson plan templates.
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Bottle Cap Teaser
I have been collecting bottle caps while monitoring lunch for about a month. I think I have close to 2,000. The kids keep asking what we're doing with them, so today I made a display in the hallway case near the cafeteria to get them excited about the mini-murals we will be starting soon.
The top row says "happy holidays" with a candy cane and a stocking. The bottom shelf has a snowflake, tree and menorah. It was so much fun to overhear the kids talking about it in the hallway. I think I'm going to let them play with the caps for a few weeks as an art center activity before we work on our designs.
PBIS Bulletin Board
This happened sort of by accident. I was trying to quickly fill the skinny bulletin above my chalkboard and had drawn and cut out the head of my school's mascot (a falcon). It looked kind of empty so I used our PBIS tokens (which are paper tickets) to create feathers. The kids love it.
Monday, November 26, 2012
Elementary Scope and Sequence
This summer I created a scope and sequence document in excel. I used color coding to separate the grade levels and add the project name so that I can see at a glance what I still need to get to. The other page features a marking period at a glance chart, also coded by grade level. It's available for free download over on Teachers Pay Teachers.
Sneak Peek:
Original post here.
Sneak Peek:
Original post here.
Thursday, November 15, 2012
Valued Pumpkin Patches
The students have finished the lesson on creating value with oil pastels. I decided to use this lesson with second grade students. First we read the book "Spookley the Square Pumpkin" as our inspiration and then we really looked at pumpkins. The beginning question about what shape and color are pumpkins quickly changed from "round and orange" to "they can be any shape or color." This is a sample of the items on display throughout the lesson.
The next thing to do was practice using values with our oil pastels.
That was about all we had time for in our first lesson. During the second session, we looked carefully at pumpkin shapes. They aren't round at all! I showed the students how to make a pumpkin with 5 ovals (four of them are hiding behind the first guy.)
Then we shade in the darkest areas with our black, careful not to cover the tops. Some of the students noticed the highlights, so that helped us remember to save the tops for white.
The next step was very difficult for the students. They had to blend the color into the black. Many wanted to color across the pumpkin instead of going with the contour. I had them make little tiny circles all over the black to soften the hard lines.
Then we wiped the edge of the pastel clean and colored in the remainder of the pumpkin.
The final step is highlights. We did a dot on each section and then blended over it with color.
Here are the amazing results!
The next thing to do was practice using values with our oil pastels.
That was about all we had time for in our first lesson. During the second session, we looked carefully at pumpkin shapes. They aren't round at all! I showed the students how to make a pumpkin with 5 ovals (four of them are hiding behind the first guy.)
Then we shade in the darkest areas with our black, careful not to cover the tops. Some of the students noticed the highlights, so that helped us remember to save the tops for white.
The next step was very difficult for the students. They had to blend the color into the black. Many wanted to color across the pumpkin instead of going with the contour. I had them make little tiny circles all over the black to soften the hard lines.
Then we wiped the edge of the pastel clean and colored in the remainder of the pumpkin.
The final step is highlights. We did a dot on each section and then blended over it with color.
Here are the amazing results!
Tuesday, November 13, 2012
Marbled Laurel Burch
I've been enjoying the many Laurel Burch lessons over on pinterest and have been working on a few ideas for my 1st and 2nd graders. Today I was experimenting with marbling paper and thought this might put a new spin on the idea. Could have students create warm and cool themed papers and mix together. Doesn't everyone know that cats run hot/cold?
Here's a still wet sample. Would probably have the students do some marker drawing on top.
Here's a still wet sample. Would probably have the students do some marker drawing on top.
Saturday, November 10, 2012
Teachers Pay Teachers
Last week the east coast ground to a halt in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. Huddled on the floor of my husband's camera store, I uploaded a few lesson plans to the Teachers Pay Teachers website that I had found a few days earlier. Tonight I was notified that one of my lesson plans sold. It was a unit plan of nine lessons that coordinates with the step by step pictures I posted to this site earlier this week.
Wednesday, November 7, 2012
Word Up
Sample Finished Work:
To start the project I have the students listen to three songs (for homework) and write down as many uses of "slang" as they can. Then they sketched ideas for three of their words. We did a mini history of logo design and they typeset their words on the computer in three fonts to select their favorite.
Scrap matboard and cardboard was used for the armature.
Paper mache to solidify the sculpture.
Students could choose celluclay or decoupage as a surface texture along with paint. The finished words had to stand, so there was a structural balance component.
*update* the unit plans for this lesson are for sale on Teacher pay Teachers.
To start the project I have the students listen to three songs (for homework) and write down as many uses of "slang" as they can. Then they sketched ideas for three of their words. We did a mini history of logo design and they typeset their words on the computer in three fonts to select their favorite.
Scrap matboard and cardboard was used for the armature.
Paper mache to solidify the sculpture.
Students could choose celluclay or decoupage as a surface texture along with paint. The finished words had to stand, so there was a structural balance component.
*update* the unit plans for this lesson are for sale on Teacher pay Teachers.
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Model Magic
What do you do with the small remnants of model magic?
It pains me to waste the stuff. One day I was just playing with the extra bits and kept worrying it between my fingers trying to think of something to do with it before it dried. It became a cube. Lately I've been seeing lots of ideas on pinterest for art dice. My daughter got a game called doodle dice last year for Christmas - and it seems like the perfect thing for an art center.
Here's how to make the dice.
Scrape out whatever you can from package (or have the kids "pick up" what they can by taking a small bit and lifting the bits off the desks. Doesn't matter what color the dice are (you can draw on dice with a metallic sharpie). Marble dice are fun.
Roll into a ball.
Pinch, rotate and tap it into a cube.
Decorate the dice with types of lines or shapes. Make several and have the students do a drawing where you add on with the next line or shape. Can be used in groups or alone.
Other uses for dice in the art room:
1. Random selection of helper table
2. Assigning jobs when meeting for group work
3. Used in art center to select the activity of the day (puzzle, how to book, free draw, blocks)
4. Review games
5. Critiques and token response activities (Find a work with good craftsmanship, good ideas, etc)
It pains me to waste the stuff. One day I was just playing with the extra bits and kept worrying it between my fingers trying to think of something to do with it before it dried. It became a cube. Lately I've been seeing lots of ideas on pinterest for art dice. My daughter got a game called doodle dice last year for Christmas - and it seems like the perfect thing for an art center.
Here's how to make the dice.
Scrape out whatever you can from package (or have the kids "pick up" what they can by taking a small bit and lifting the bits off the desks. Doesn't matter what color the dice are (you can draw on dice with a metallic sharpie). Marble dice are fun.
Roll into a ball.
Pinch, rotate and tap it into a cube.
Other uses for dice in the art room:
1. Random selection of helper table
2. Assigning jobs when meeting for group work
3. Used in art center to select the activity of the day (puzzle, how to book, free draw, blocks)
4. Review games
5. Critiques and token response activities (Find a work with good craftsmanship, good ideas, etc)
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