Negative leaf print by one of my second grade students earlier this year. Hey, guys! This post has been very popular on my blog...if you are interested in other leaf-y projects, look at my Leaf Relief project and my Pressed Leaf Project as well. Thanks! I don't know what it's like where you live, but here in Tennessee, we are experiencing spring-like weather. For the most part. I mean it did snow the last two Saturdays (and, in Tennessee, "snow" means just a few flakes and a couple of inches) but the other day it was 78 degrees. Crazy, right? For that reason, I've got touch of spring fever. You too? Well then you might enjoy this leafy printmaking project I did at the beginning of the year with my second graders. It's simple, scientific, beautiful and fun...okay, enough talking about me (!), on with the lesson. For this project, you'll need the following: gelatin, not Jell-o. Most grocery stores carry a brand called Knox which sells in boxes of 16 pouches. cookie sheets printmaking brayer, sold at most craft stores printing ink variety of leaves paper Print pulled from the same printing tray, this time the positive version. The night before you begin, you'll need to prepare your sheets of gelatin. To do that, bring about 3-4 cups of water to a boil. Once boiling, whisked one pouch of gelatin into the pot. You don't want any clumps of gelatin, so whisk like there's no tomorrow. You'll end up adding about 12-15 pouches of gelatin into that one pot. Sorry, I'm not into exact measurements. Which could explain a lot about my cooking. If there are any remaining unwhiskable clumps, remove them with a spoon. Pour mixture into a cookie sheet filling it about 1". Leave uncovered over night. If you see any bubbles in the cookie sheet, pop them or remove with a spoon. For my class of 20 students, I made three trays. Pulling the first print always managed to get oohhhh's and aahhhh's aplenty. The following day, we were ready to print. The surface of the gelatin was squishy yet very firm, perfect for holding our printing ink. I think I can explain this best in steps, so here you go: Using a brayer and printing ink, cover surface of gelatin in ink. Place leaves onto the ink-covered cookie sheet with the veiny side down. I don't recommend using anything with pine needles because that will puncture the gelatin. But experiment, you never know! Once leaves are in place, lay paper on top of cookie sheet and rub (er, we call it "massage") the paper. Pull paper off, as you see in the above photo, and viola! You have your first print! Notice how clear the gelatin looks. All of the ink that was once on the tray is now on the paper. I love her dainty fingers pulling up the second print. So sweet. Now for the second print: Gently remove all of the leaves from the tray. It's best to pull them out by the end of the stem. Place a new sheet of paper over the now-empty cookie sheet and rub. Pull second print which will be a positive image of the first. Looks like a black and white photo, don't you think? Once both prints have been pulled, re-ink the tray and begin the process all over again. With a class of 20 students and 3 pans of gelatin, about 10 kids were able to print per half an hour class. The pans of gelatin can last about two days with an endless amount of printing. I tried to cover the gelatin and keep it for a little longer, but condensation droplets created strange little craters on the surface. If left uncovered for too many days, it begins to dry and crack. For that reason, if you plan to do this project for longer than a couple of days, you'll just need to prepare more gelatin pans the night before. Our second go-round of printing involved using white ink on black paper. Just as pretty. This project is so easy and the results so stunning that everyone is successful. I've now had a couple of craft get-togethers and this is always a hit. Once those leaves start growing in your neck of the woods, I do hope you'll give it a shot! I love the photo negative quality of this print.
For a few years, I've done an abstract project involving line, color, and sweet lil' second graders. Recently, I saw images of artwork by Jean Dubuffet that reminded me of said project. So this year, I've incorporated the two. There are other Dubuffet lessons out there; I found the following before re-styling my own: Dali's Moustache Kids Artists Hands, Head 'n Heart in the Artroom Prior to seeing his work, I didn't know much about Dubuffet. If you're in the same boat, check out the following references that really helped me out: Dubuffet.com MoMA Poul Webb Art Blog Art Smarts 4 Kids Here's what we did. First, we began by filling a 9x12" white piece of paper with a 'controlled scribble,' allowing our imaginations and our pencils dance around the page. The kids did this on both sides of the paper before consulting tablemates to choose their better side. Then, pencil lines were traced with a fine-tip black Sharpie. We erased any peek-a-boo pencil lines. Kiddos colored a few spaces with the Sharpie, while other sections were filled with linear patterns using a white crayon. Everyone's abstract shape was cut out. Next art class, the watercolors came out and the artists went to work! Students were limited to two colors of their choice (like Dubuffet and his limited color palette). Some spaces were left white, while others got the bold color treatment. When works were dry (within a few minutes), they were mounted onto paper. Glue stick glue was put on all edges of the pieces, but pushed down in select locations to create 3D sculptures, a la Dubuffet. They were THRILLED with their (simple) sculptures! And I have to say that I agree--the results are simple yet arresting. Cutting a few of those black lines for more dimension While we worked, we listened to a bit of music that Dubuffet had put together: http://www.ubu.com/sound/dubuffet.html The kids' reactions were quite entertaining! This was a quick two-day project that gave us room to finish any previously incomplete projects (in this case, Gators), and fostered peer helping, as some kids 'got' it more than others. I look forward to finishing this project with my other second grade sweeties!
Looking for something to keep little hands busy? Try this adorable Build A Monster Printable Kit! All you need are office supplies and some imagination!
Looking for ways to engage your students while teaching the continents and oceans? I've got you covered with games, songs, vidoes, and more!
Hey parents, this project will keep the kids busy for a while: You will need: A ruler, markers, a pencil and a piece of typing paper. Here is what you do, trace a shape on the typing paper using a …
back in august, i made a superhero cape for Em. i’ve made a few before – they’re kind of my go-to boy gift, because boys are generally harder to sew for. today i thought i’d…
There have been numerous installments of Math Monday on origami or kirigami of one mathematical form or another, but today is the first time we've covered a classic workhorse from this genre: the Sonobe modular origami unit. One of the simplest and most versatile of the modular units, there's so much to say about Sonobe that today we're going to start from the basics (parallelogram one?) and next time we'll take it to places I hope you've never seen it go before.
I’ve been teaching art for over 15 years and have taught every grade, K-12. In those years I have made resources and handouts helpful for the art room, contained classrooms, or homeschool parents. …
It’s hard to believe that the summer holidays have finished! Wowww! They flew by! With teachers, students and parents across the world preparing for the return to school, here at Beneylu we’ve got you covered.
A collection of drawing exercises, downloadable worksheets and beautiful line drawings: inspiration for the student, artist or teacher.
I'm back!!! did you miss me?!?!?! I hope that there haven't been any disasters while I've been gone?!?! I had my last tutorial of the year at Uni today - and my last assignment went in on the weekend. yayay - I'm finally done for the year. (and I'm just a little relieved about that I must say!!) lots to catch up on - lots to tell - but let's get back to the art lesson I talked about in my last post - on Op Art! here's my attempt at some Op Art -(I made this this evening to go through the steps!)..... the actual lesson went really really well. the kids were very focused, and loved all the examples I showed them of Bridget Riley's work. (in my researching - I found out that our own National Gallery here in Canberra holds 14 of Bridget's works. I'll have to pop in over the holidays to have a wee look me thinks!) I took along a tape measure in class and explained that my little A4 copies were tiny in comparison to most of the works in real life. They ooo-ed and aaaah-ed about that - especially when the little versions played with their eyes and heads on the small scale!! anyhoo - here's how I led them through the practical side of the intro to Op Art lesson. (the 2 lessons - for 2 separate classes - were for 1 hour each including a talk about Bridget's work and the movement of Op Art / the classes were both combined Year 5/6) I roughly modelled the following on the white board - step 1. take your A5 card - write your name on one side - on the other rule a rough 1cm border in lead pencil all the way around the edge of the card. (this helped so that they wouldn't draw on the tables when the textas/markers were used later)..... step 2. with the lead pencil - draw concentric circles out from the middle to the border lines. (I explained that they did not have to start exactly in the middle - they could start to one side - and they didn't have to be perfect)..... step 3. with a ruler and a lead pencil - draw a vertical line through the centre circle..... step 4. add more vertical lines across the whole image - varying the thickness. ie make some closer together and some wider apart..... step 5. grab a black felt tip pen and start colouring in - carefully. start in the middle....then work your way up and down - then outwards. (white out/liquid paper works well to fix up any mistakes). biggest tip - take your time!! (from here on in the actual lesson - I let the students run with it - and I circulated to help out here and there - lots and lots of circulating!!!)..... and here's my final pic before I used an eraser to gently rub out the pencil marks..... if you squint your eyes and look at the pic - you should be able to see movement - ie - waves!! (Bridget Riley is far more clever than I - you don't need to squint at her pics!!! - she's very clever - her lines are meticulous - go back to this post to see again). some more pics tonight of mine..... and finally - here's some of the student's work from when I was on prac..... this was a super fun lesson - I had fun - and the kids loved it. sad I couldn't expand on the lesson and get them to reflect more on what they had achieved and then look at making more Op Art - exploring it all a little more. sadly there was no time to fit such a lesson in while I was on prac. (just wait till I get my own classroom!!!!) the entire prac was absolutely brilliant. my mentor teacher already talked to the principal about me!!! they want me back when I have my degree! (even if it's just relief work to start with) nice. one more year........one more year......one more year....... so - after having such a long break from house business and crafting - I'm raring to get back into it!!! the in-laws arrive on Thursday for a wee 5 day visit - but other than that I'll be busy as a mad woman around this place! (are mad women busy????? maybe should have stuck with 'bumble bee' !!) hope I still have some followers?!?! for those that are still visiting - thank you. I promise to be a little betterer with posting - at least until Christmas!! (insert huge cheeky smiley face right here!) hugz from here. cheryl xox.
My fourth graders struggle with knowing what is a polygon and what is not a polygon.
These FREE printable geometry nets will make learning about shapes fun and easy!
A comprehensive ebook with 51 chapters explaining in detail various aspects related to living as an empath/highly sensitive person. This past month I’ve had the honor of reading and editing two books by psychic and empath Gary Leigh. The first one is The Empath Guidebook. Though written by Gary based on his personal experience, growth, and development as an empath, it is written in a conversational format with one of his channeled guides. They take a look at many of the signs of being an empath as well as give information and guidance to help with some of the challenges that come with it, such as setting boundaries and avoiding burnout. In addition they give advice on diet and various healing and vibrational therapies, and discuss in depth the Bach Flower Remedies and the healing benefits for each one. The Empath Guidebook is a helpful tool for both the new and advanced empath.
This project was inspired by Salvador Dali’s painting The Persistence of Memory. While I worked on these with my kids, we talked about surrealism and imagination. The info sheet on Dali is at the bottom of the post. This project was a little bit harder than the others I’ve posted and younger kids
Over the years I've created and shared more than 500 printables here on the blog. Keeping track of all of them and, more importantly, making them easy for you to find can be a bit
A blog about my life as a teacher, mom, and essential oil user.
Free printable Pop art templates for learning to create in the style of Andy Warhol. This free art tutorial for kids will have your students begging for more....and you can give it to them! We've included three different templates that are sure to delight your budding artists.
3D shapes are always fun! If your classroom theme is Fairy Tales, here's how you can incorporate 3D Shapes... students can create Cinderell...
Let's create an art project inspired by the dessert art work of American artist Wayne Thiebaud. Not only do students learn how to draw 3D shapes but they will learn how to use color combinations and knowledge of shading and light to create an oil pastel dessert still life that looks so good you want to eat it! This art lesson is so fun for students in upper elementary and middle school!
Spring brings good mood and sunny days, lifting our spirits and filling us with renewed energy and optimism. Let's craft more! I've designed some new
RIBBON LETTERS! This is a simple technique for getting a ribbon style letter. There are a lot of different techniques out there, but this one makes sense for my 7th-8th graders who have never tried this before. It starts out by writing out a word in cursive. Then you extend the edges back in space. They must all be the same direction, and the same length. For example, if you draw from each edge up 1 inch at 45 degrees to the left, then they all go that same length and direction. For curves, you pick the outermost part of the curve you can find. See the top and bottom of the C in the "Carthage" example? You finish the drawing by drawing in the back edge of the ribbon, which should go the same direction as the front edge (the cursive letter.) Don't forget sometimes you have interior spaces that need to be addressed, like the o in Love in the below example. Color is different. You have lots of options, but I have my students use marker to outline, and colored pencils for shading. Shading can really make you ribbon drawing seem more real. You are trying to get the illusion of depth, and if you gradually shade from light to dark, to show overlap or distance, you can enhance the image. Here are some examples ...
A fun doodle art 3D pattern cat activity for kids. Make a bold and colourful cat with this printable template with a cool 3D effect.
Do picture books work with STEM? One day I read a roomful of second graders this delightful book - What Do You Do with a Tail Like This? Then we talked about what we could build in STEM! This was magic with the youngest engineers. They loved having books read to them and I often
Apps for the Art Classroom. I’ve been teaching with iPads for a number of years now & I thought I’d share what Apps I’ve been using & found success with.
Make this paper toy and be mesmerized by the colorful action! Get the template and instructions on Babble Dabble Do.
Fiona, your stormy sky is spectacular! I don't get the chance to travel much. But that doesn'...
looking for some fruit crafts for kids? We've rounded up 15 of the best fruit crafts for you to try today.
These paper roller coasters are SO fun to make. All you need is strips of construction paper. The steps f...
