Animal Silhouettes with 4th Graders at Shirley Rominger

Taught this crayon resist silhouette in Nico's 4th grade class at Shirely Rominger today! It was a great experience to teach on this campus and I am excited for Nico's school year at intermediate school. 

 

2nd Grade Birch Tree and Cardinal Collage

This project is my favorite so far this year! I think it is my favorite because of the different steps and instructional methods used to teach them. This is my 4th art project with Nico's class and I also feel like I am getting to know them a bit more.  

Here's a few collages. 

Valentine Printmaking Class at The Clayground!

I am very excited be be teaching another class the The Clayground. For more information and to sign up, click this link.

5th grade Snowman Reflection Project

This project was so eye-opening for me to teach! For the first time I incorporated a task and apply segment approach step-by-step as opposed to reviewing/modeling the entire process and then having students apply. DUH! The time spent in between task and apply segment was perfect for assessment and revision. PLUS, I feel like less time was spent on redirecting the process. The results? This potential complex project was simplified by task segments and the results were super successful! I walked away from this lesson with new ideas and a fresh to teaching art in the elementary setting!

2nd grade Winter Birch Tree and Cardinal Collage

Winter Art is so fun to explore! This Winter Collage merges a few concepts from different sources and I LOVE the stunning results. I listed the materials, steps and resource links below if you want to try this with your kiddos. Have fun!

Materials:

• Birch Tree and Bird Template
• Black fine pt. Sharpie and Ultra fine (optional for wind detail)
• 12 X 18 black constrcution paper ( I only had purple at the time)
• 9 X 12 assorted blue construction paper
• 9 X 12 red construction paper
• scissors
• pencils
• glue sticks
• white hole punch circles

Step 1: 

• Show Birch Tree in Nature example. Point out how the black markings CONTRAST with the white bark. Click this link for an article about the history of the Birch Tree.
• Point out the differences in each black making, not one is the same.
• Tell students they will create black markings using different sized lines on Tree Template paper like this:
  

Step 3:

• After students mark their paper, have them cut out each tree trunk.
• Glue the colored blue 9 X 12 centered on the black 12 X 18 (landscape).
• Glue the tree trunks over the blue 9 X 12 (allow choice for straight or leaning or both!):
  

Step 4: 

• Show a Red Cardinal in nature example:
  
• Point out how the red color of the wings CONTRASTS with the background color.
• Point out the black markings on the wings.
• Pass out bird template, place over red construction paper. Pressing hard, outline over bird and wing outline indenting the red paper beneath. 
• Cut out the birds and wings.
• apply Sharpie line designs to create wing patterns (optional).
  

Step 5: 

• Talk about how birds look in nature: always moving, wings flapping. Have students arrange their birds and wings with that concept of moving and flapping in mind. Random placement is key to a natural look.
• Glue birds and wings down:
  

Step 6: 

• Glue hold punched white circles around the perimeter of the collage (not within the collage) to create a snowy-like border!
  

Winter Wonders Art Class at The Clayground

What a GREAT first day on winter! The Winter Wonders Art Class was a huge success! 17 young art students filled The Clayground with creative joy while creating winter landscapes on canvas.

The 7-9 year old group created a collages scenes using techniques such as paint scraping, tissue collage, and paper layering. The older group made up of 10-12 year old students applied impasto techniques combined with drawing and painting skills to complete their landscapes. The older group also learned the art of repousse' in order to emboss aluminum into the shape of Christmas ornaments that were embellished with burlap and ribbon.

The best part? The feeling of joy I have for the opportunity to connect and work with students in my home town that share a common love for the arts is. LOVE! Thank You, Rebecca!

Cuddly, Adorable Polar Bears

So my 10 year old daughter saw the Polar Bear Project designed for my son's second grade class and she begged to do it, too. Here are some adorable, cuddly examples of both 2nd grade and 5th grade Polar Bears!

5th grade

5th grade