I'm about to enter the last week of the first quarter and just now getting around to blogging about one of my first projects of the year! Keeping up with 3 schools can be a bit hectic...but lots of creative fun is happening in my Art Rooms and I get at least one hug a day thanking me for it. This year I decided to start the year by doing one line project with all my 1st graders and 2nd graders and another project with all of my 3rd - 5th graders instead of my usual different project for each grade. Of course my 3 classes of 2nd/3rd grade splits through a monkey wrench in that...so some 3rd grade students did the younger one. My goal was to introduce, discuss, or review (depending on the level) line quality to all my students, while keeping the craziness of the first couple weeks of school to a minimum. There always seems to be schedule changes, students moving from one class to another, or waiting on numbers to settle before possibly getting another teacher, splitting a class, or even unsplitting a split class these first couple of weeks. So I thought less planning and prep would come in handy...and it did! I called the 1st/2nd grade project "Hands Up". I got the idea from a Pinterest post and adapted it to fit what I wanted. After discussing Line as an Element of Art, students traced their hands and arms. We drew as many different kinds of lines as we could think of on the Smartboard (or under my document camera in one of my rooms). Students used crayons to design their hands/arms with lots of lines and colors. I insisted they use white at least once. The next class we talked about the crayon-resist method. Students had fun painting watercolors over the crayon. When dry they carefully cut the hand and arm out. At each of my buildings I displayed all of these creative hands together radiating out from a bright orange and yellow spot. The display was quite striking all together!
In my family, I am notorious for my thriftiness. This of course carries over into my art projects. I hate to throw anything away! So I have boxes of scrap paper from the Eric Carle inspired collages I have done with my classes. I love to think of new ways to use these. Here are just 2 ideas. This piece was inspired by a children's book from my childhood called, "Attic of the Wind". It's a beautiful lyrical book illustrating all the things that are taken away to "the attic of the wind." I plan to use it as a source of inspiration again and again. Here is a verse from the page of balloons lost in the wind which could be substituted for this piece I did with kites: "Balloons in the Attic? Of course there are! Lost at the Fair or the Church Bazaar. Balloons from the birthdays of all the years That you watched float away with a smile...or tears." This piece was simply sponge painted(with a kitchen sponge) with white, blues and purple of tempera. A traced hand is done in Sharpie in the corner of the piece when it dries. Next cut and glue some kite shaped pieces from textured paper scraps. Draw the kites strings and ties.) The Masai people of Kenya and northern Tanzania adorn themselves with "Shuka" that are the sheets wrapped around their bodies. These are often in different bold colors with stripes and plaid. To create this abstract Masai collage, I cut simple organic rectangular shapes from leftover textured paper. I added geometric designs with a permanent marker. Last I added head shapes that were colored in with Sharpie. Some people were given large necklaces and earrings that the Masai often use to adorn themselves.
Students select a landscape magazine image (National Geographic good op, no text) OR one that provides them with a range of cool and warm colors. Emphasis is on complementary colors, i.e. : Reds/Gr…
With budget cuts this year came some rearranging of elementary art teachers in our district to cover all 12 elementary schools. Along with my "home" school I returned to an old favorite and added a new to me school. The new school had a simple art room with really good art tables. When I walked into it this summer I saw a very white blank slate. Look - a chalkboard! Oh goodie - how old school. Here are the after shots - My Mona Wall Above each table is an artist with their work. I refer to the tables as the color or artist. My Data Center - more things will be added like the art room mission statement A close-up of my behavior incentives & Smart Goal This shelving unit was just screaming for lots of art stuff! The sign in the middle says: The "EARTH" without "ART" is just "EH" Word Wall, drying rack, and I'm Done...Now what? This will be a spot for students to find things to do if they finish early. I hung felt up for word wall. The words are laminated and have velcro on back making it easy to put up and down. Added a bit of color and art element posters to front of room.
This is a recent project from 1st grade. We started the lesson by watching several youtube short biography video's and montage clips on Matisse. I love doing these Matisse cutouts, because it challenges them to use their cutting skills. You can really get an idea of the students motor skills and hand-eye coordination. We talked about some of the types of cutouts Matisse did, like the starburst, splash, spirals, zigzags and wavy lines. Students kept both positive and negative cutouts and could use both parts of each of their shape as part of the final arrangement. We spent a total of 4 days and ended the lesson with one of my favorite art books, When Pigasso Met Mootisse, by Nina Laden.
You need: wooden chair for each student or one chair for two students water-based paint in various colours paint trays paint rollers brushes sandpaper ammonia newspapers Redecorating chairs is a nice activity for older kids. Ask students to bring an old wooden chair or buy some old ones in a recycle store. Discuss how to redecorate a chair. How do you manage that? Do you choose a theme, for instance flowers or sports, or do you want to decorate it with motives? You can even choose an artist. How about a Keith Haring chair, or a Piet Mondrian table? What colours do you use? How do you draw the design on the chair? Just drawing or is it better to use a template? Create a design on paper, on which you see colours and patterns / designs clearly. Put the chairs on newspapers. Sand the chair and make it completely greaseproof with a cloth and ammonia water. Let dry. Draw the design first with pencil and paint it. The table below is redecoratied by a group of students. For the tabletop they used chalkboard paint. This table is still in our classroom as an instruction table. Useful, because we can write on it! All furniture is redecorated by students of 11-12 years old
We love using materials that we already have lying around like cardboard so we turned some scraps into a 3D cardboard structure.
Use your scrap fabric to make this free quilted sleep mask! Step by step instructions for a beginner-friendly tutorial.
Children collect small things from their homes to make a collage inside a recycled cereal box.
Make It Love It shows you the step-by-step process of how to cut fabric straight so that your projects turn out beautifully.
A full bust adjustment on a dartless shirt is done by slashing and spreading the pattern until you have the extra width and length that you need.
Learn how to draft pattern blocks with Pattern Making Basics! A text course with one lesson per day you can start making your own pattern blocks or slopers!
Aren’t these just incredible?! These were made by my 2nd graders!! And they turned out fantastic! It was a very simple process and a great end-of-the-year wrap up as the work is collaborative…
Léon vous souhaite une très bonne année 2013 de créativité. Il a réalisé des petites cartes de voeux à la manière de RICHTER.. Matériel Peinture à l'eau rouleau et une règle plate. Tu vas commencer par peindre ta feuille au rouleau en rose tu vas ajouter...
Easy tips for teaching kids to sew, with a list of online classes and books along with links to free kids sewing tutorials.
3 Cool Projects to Use Up Scraps at the End of the Year Media & Techniques % %
Ever wonder what you're going to do with all of your leftover scrap fabric and batting? Make a lanyard, my friend! Creating a lanyard is a quick and easy project that allows you to use up your scraps and wear your favorite fabrics! . . Here's what you'll need: 3
Learn how to make triangle pattern weights in this super easy tutorial. All you need are fabric scraps and dried rice! Clear steps with pictures.
In this tutorial, I'll be showing you how to add inseam pockets to a dress, but you can do this with any garment.
Want to learn to sew pajama pants? You're in luck. You can make these without needing to purchase a pattern. Easy beginner sewing project!
These are a nice 3-D addition to our intro on gesture drawing... ... each one is made from a sheet of aluminum foil, about 12" long. Use this guide to make the cuts, then carefully bunch the parts together. After the students made the figures and shadows, I did the gluing myself with a few dots of hot glue.
Sewing tricks from professional seamstresses. Your sewing is about to get easier and more efficient. Grab a project to test them out!
A simple tutorials on how to make handmade mitered corners napkins from fat quarters as an easy DIY project for home or homemade gift idea.
Learn how to install an invisible zipper properly on a pillow in this step-by-step tutorial by Jona Giammalva. -Sewtorial
Echt Spitze, diese Spitze! V-Ausschnitt nähen Step-by-Step Anleitung. Hier lernst du, wie man einen Halsauschnitt einfassen kann!
Schiebermützen sind einfach cool und eigentlich immer aktuell. Das kostenlose Schnittmuster aus dem Bernina Blog bringt alle Größen für Jungs und Mädels von ca. 6 Monaten … Mehr erfahren!
The Hana Tank + Dress Pattern features the bias binding method of finishing the neckline and armholes. While this method is a great scrap buster, the first few times you try it might be frustrating. It takes practice and a little patience to make sure all those seams lay flat with no puckering.
