4/5s Create Tunnel Books

The 4/5 class is working on their life stories, creating animations in the classroom. In art class they are designing tunnel books highlighting events from their life. The back panel of the book reflects their life and interests at the current time, while the preceding cut border pages pinpoint previous experiences and/or people.

A horse on the back panel

Composite picture of many interests

Gluing the sides to the back page

Sliding a frame page into place

Finished book

And another

One more!

2/3s Make Indian Shadow Puppets

Each 2/3 student is studying a particular Hindu God as they study India this spring in the classroom. In art class they are making a shadow puppet of their particular God, keeping in mind profiles and postures that will enable the viewer to identify their puppet by its particular characteristics.  This has been a challenging and thought provoking task. As part of their celebration of work, they will perform a shadow puppet play introducing their God to the audience.

Fitting the figure on the final paper

How many arms do I need?

Finished puppet

Another

One more

Puppet performance

another performing

K/1 Amate Painting

The K/1s recently began their spring study of Mexico and learned about Mexican Amate paintings in art class. The  paintings are done with bright colors on bark. They usually depict flowers, birds, deer, rabbits and everyday stories from the community such as fishing, hunting and harvesting. The K/1s used brown paper to simulate the bark and painted their flora and fauna in bright tempera colors.

Sketching ideas

Deciding what elements to include

Beginning to paint

White shows up well against the brown "bark" paper

Getting that blue right

Details clarified with a Sharpie

Middle School Work On Scratch Design portrait

Beginning  with their completed self-portraits, the middle school students copied their work onto heavy paper, outlined the faces and backgrounds with Sharpie and added intense oil pastel color in unusual combinations, covering the entire composition. They were then painted over with black tempera paint and intricate designs were scratched into the surface revealing the face underneath the scratched surface.

Adding unrealistic colors

Going over the lines in Sharpie

Working on the background

Beginning to scratch into the ink

Patterns across the top

Check out the face!

Finished work

Another with lots of texture variety

Lots of color and texture in this one

Great variety of possibilities here

K/1 and 2/3 Self-Portraits

The K/1s began their self-portraits, some attempting this for the first time. Most of the 2/3 class has had some exposure with this assignment and are making use of the previous experience. The students looked in mirrors, thought about the shape of their faces and tried and capture their features. Working with pencils and then tempera paint, they made an attempt to create an image that is recognizable as them. This focused time is a great exercise in being in the moment, really being aware of where they are and what they are trying to accomplish. This is a skill that is useful in many aspects of life, apart form drawing self-portraits. 

Focused attention

Early attempt

Mixing the right skin color

Thoughtful painting

Checking the progress

Striping the background

Consultation

Painting the plaid shirt

4/5 Self-Portraits

The 4/5s worked from mirrors, thinking about the shape of their face and trying to accurately locate and capture their features. Working with colored pencils they tried to put all these elements together to create an image that is recognizable as them.

First sketch

Just beginning

The sketch is taking form

Checking the mirror

K/1 Bird Puppets

The K/1s are creating tagboard articulated puppets with flapping wings in conjunction with their classroom bird study. Working from a photo of the bird they're investigating, they are accurately coloring their puppet to look like their particular bird. The body and wings are cut out, the wings attached with brass fasteners, and a string tied to the back to allow the wings to flap up and down.

A sparrow emerging

An owl with delineated feathers

Cutting out the body

Cutting around the tail

Finished chickadee