Paper Composition Giant Ladybug 1st grade

This project is available on several art websites.  We started with 9"x 12" red construction paper and drew a large "hill" for the ladybug's back.  First graders cut out a large black circle from 4" x 4" paper for the face.  The spots were made with black marker and could be realistic or artistic shapes.                                     

After adding eyes and a pipe cleaner for antennae, we cut out our ladybug.
A yellow 12" x 14" background was glued onto a larger piece of colored paper and we made some pretty flowers, leaves or grass.  Some 1st graders have been studying ladybugs in their classroom and told me ladybugs have 6 legs, so that is how many we drew with black crayon.







 These giant ladybugs have such cute personalities, just like 1st graders!

                                              

 

                                         

Lion Painting Kindergarten Project

Can you believe these were painted by Kindergarteners?! We were trying to paint like 1st graders, being very careful and doing details with a small brush.  This project was found on the ART WITH MR E blog, and the Kinders loved it.

 
 We drew on brown paper with chalk then painted different colored lines for the mane.

 
 
 Green eyes, white teeth and outlining black with a small paintbrush added the final touch.
 

 

5th grade Final Elementary Project

My final project for 5th graders involves them making a lot of choices about their art to finish out the year.
First, students choose a theme for their last project, anything they enjoy or will be interested in for the last few weeks of school.  Examples are: friends, sports, imagination, seasons, animals, etc.
The next step involves planning out 3 pieces of artwork which will be created on a trifold piece of tag board.  The size is usually about 12" high by 18" long.  To choose their 3 projects, 5th graders look at a list of projects we have done throughout elementary school.  If someone moved here recently, they just choose 3 things they enjoy doing in art.
Examples they might choose would be: Vincent Van Gogh starry night, optical illusion and pointillism.  Once they have decided 3 types of art they wish to show that will go with their theme, they must decide what art supplies to use.  Each piece of art must be a different medium.  I am pretty open with what supplies they can use: paint, tissue, glue, yarn, oil pastels, chalk, construction paper and more are all available for the students.

So a final plan in their sketchbook will have a thumbnail sketch of a rectangle with three parts, quick sketches of each piece of art and some writing to tell me what art project/technique they will use and what art supplies are needed.

Sports themed final project

Dessert theme...yummy!

An example would be: sports theme:  a baseball with flames behind it done in pointillism with markers.  A football made of cut paper with an optical illusion background made with colored pencil, and a basketball drawn and shaded with pencil.

This project has a fashion design theme

When all three parts are finished (usually about one art period per piece of artwork), the trifold is stapled together so it stands and all three pieces of art can be seen.  A small piece of cardboard with two cuts at bottom is used for a title.  The theme and artist's name are written on both sides of the title piece.

This artist added some black yarn

This project works well to keep the 5th graders interested the last few weeks of school.  It is a chance for them to make decisions/choices regarding their artwork and to use art supplies they enjoy most.  The results are always creative and fun, and I enjoy walking around talking to them about the artwork they are making, while they like the freedom the lesson allows to "show what they can do".

This artist used a drawing book to draw her fish

Painted African Elephants 2nd Grade

Love this project from DEEP SPACE SPARKLE! She gives detailed instructions on how to draw the elephant.  The 2nd graders were able to follow along with the drawing lesson easily.

 

I gave them white and black tempera paint to mix their own gray. When elephants were dry we cut them out and used oil pastels to make a hot, dry looking "Africa" background. Then we glued our elephants onto the background. 

 

I LOVE that even though every student had the same drawing lesson the elephants are all unique in size, shape and color.  Super job 2nd graders!

 
 
 
 
 
 

 

Pattern Snakes with Glitter Glue Kindergarten

We just finished these pretty snakes! Kindergarteners were divided about whether they liked snakes or not, but they were enthusiastic about making patterned snakes and using a little glitter glue to shine the snakes up a bit. 

 We used oil pastels to make our patterns and spread the glitter glue around with our finger so it would dry quickly.  A snakey folded tongue was the final touch.

 

Koi Fish (Drawing and Crayon Resist) 5th grade

5th graders enjoyed learning to draw a koi fish. The directions for this drawing lesson are available on DEEP SPACE SPARKLE.  We looked at a video of different varieties of koi, and we learned that there are koi fish shows in Japan. I changed the lesson from tempera to crayon resist because I liked the idea of painting over the crayon colored fish with paint so they would appear to be under water. They look very beautiful in their ponds!

 

Weaving Unit 3rd grade

3rd graders began weaving on a small loom last week.  They will weave a book mark to take home.  Before we started, 3rd graders looked at posters of Native American weavers and talked together about what they thought "weaving"  meant, who had done weavings in the past, what materials and tools are needed for weaving.  They did a great job of answering these questions just by looking at the photograph posters!

Every 3rd grader will also have a special opportunity to weave on a big wooden loom which was built for the Art room several years ago by a parent in our community.  Three students at a time can go back to the large loom and experience what it is like to weave on a much larger loom with more strings.  We also try weaving with different materials such as pieces of wool, ribbon or thicker yarns.

 

These larger weavings created by all the 3rd graders, stay in the Art room for everyone to enjoy.

 

Drawings from my students

My students often bring me pictures they have drawn or painted, which is very special.  Sometimes we have free drawing time for the last few minutes of art if we finish a project a bit early. Here is an adorable drawing a first grader gave to me at the end of class. He saw this photo of our adopted black lab hanging behind my desk on a bulletin board...
                                                      

 

 

and this is the picture he drew.... I love it!  Artwork made by children is amazing on so many levels, it always makes me smile.

Cave Painting In A Cave! First Grade Art Experience

I do a cave painting lesson with 1st grade every year.  They hear a story called "Discovery In the Cave", look at photos of cave paintings and draw their own small version of a cave animal painting.  This year as I looked at the large cardboard pieces our wonderful custodian had saved for me in my supply closet, I had an inspiration to make the lesson more exciting. What if I created a "cave" in my closet and the kids could actually paint on the walls?!

 

It took two planning times to create the cave using cardboard, brown kraft paper, staples and black paint but when it was done I thought it looked pretty good. I was anxious to see what the first graders would think about our "cave".

 

Luckily, 1st graders are easy to impress and get excited about special surprises because they loved it!  Some comments I heard as they entered the cave were: "This is so realistic!" and "This is so cool!".  I also heard "I want to live in here..." and "I think we could build one of these in my living room!"  I was happy that my students liked the cave so much.

 

 They each did a practice cave drawing (we discussed the fact that cave artists didn't get to practice on a paper first!) and then they entered the dimly lit cave to draw with oil pastels on a piece of the cave wall.

 

As the walls became covered with cave art, I added new pieces of paper to the cave.

First grade teachers enjoyed peeking into the cave to see the special surprise when they came to pick up their classes.

The 1st graders were very proud of their cave art,  but 2nd graders were rather unhappy
that I hadn't thought of this idea when they were in 1st grade!

Over all it was a very fun thing to do and I will definately make a cave next year.  Next week as a continuation of our lesson each 1st grader will get to paint on a REAL rock.

 

 

 

Impressionist Fingerpainting with Bridge 2nd grade lesson

I have done this fingerpainting project for years to teach Impressionism and Claude Monet.  Recently I saw the taped bridge idea  on Deep Space Sparkle and added it to the lesson.

First, the 2nd graders heard a story about Claude Monet and Impressionism painting. After learning that Monet liked to paint outside, and seeing pictures of his water garden paintings with water lily ponds and Japanese bridges we began our picture with masking tape.

The kids were intrigued with the chance to build a bridge on
their paper using masking tape and scissors.  

             

 

When the bridge was done, 2nd graders drew a landscape around the bridge with permanent markers.  Anything behind the bridge was drawn right over the tape as if the tape was not there.

 

Students were reminded that Claude Monet used more than one color to show reflections in the water, light on the grass, etc.  We use fingerpaint in a special way on this project because fingerpainting is a great experience for the kids but often turns out like mud when they just mix it around.  Instead, they can use three fingers "paintbrushes" with one color on each finger.  We talk about what colors would be together in water, the sky, grass, mountains, etc. They work quickly, letting the finger marks show just as Monet let his brushmarks show.

 

The tape is painted over so that it is not visible when the painting is done.  It is important that no white space be left around the bridge so that when the tape is removed the white bridge is surrounded by color.

 When paint is dry, tape is carefully peeled away to reveal a white bridge in an Impressionist landscape.  The kids love watching their bridge magically appear!

 

 

 

 

 

Fluttery Butterfly in a Flower Garden Kindergarten Project

I give the kinders a 9" x 9" piece of blue construction paper and step by step we make 3 big flowers in the garden with crayons. 

 

Stems first, then leaves ,then brightly colored flowers.  Next the kids trace a butterfly shape onto a 4" x 4" piece of white paper and we look at butterfly pictures.  We figure out that a butterfly has symmetrical wings.  The students draw a body in the middle and then color with crayons, making both wings the same.  They can make imaginary butterflies with ideas like rainbow wings or heart shaped spots but some kinders choose to make a real butterfly from one of the pictures on the board.

 

This great little artist made a monarch type butterfly for her flower garden.

 

We cut out the butterflies, fold their wings up gently and glue them into the garden.  Final touch is taping a bent pipe cleaner under the head for antenna.

Easy Alligator Sculpture 1st grade

First graders really enjoyed making these simple alligators/crocodiles from jumbo craft sticks, paper and pipe cleaners.  This is about a 20 minute lesson that I do in the spring on a day when we finish one project and need something 3 dimensional to do for the rest of the art period. 
Color on a jumbo craft stick with markers or crayons, making alligator or crocodile type skin pattern.

 

Draw a tail and head on green paper, add details with marker or crayon and cut out.

 

Glue head and tail at ends of craft stick and tape two pipe cleaners underneath for legs. Bend pipe cleaners down until alligator balances and stands up.  The kids just love these little sculptures and I love the simple art supplies needed!