My second graders recently learned about simple ways to show depth in an artwork. I gave a demonstration on my new document camera and showed them how rivers and roads that go back in space would be wider in the front and narrower in the back. I demonstrated how things that were far in the distance would be smaller than things in the front. The use of overlap is also a way to show depth. I showed the students this … Read more…
I love Dr. Seuss’ art. Did you know in addition to writing books he created over 10,000 works of art. Amazing! The book The Secret Art of Dr. Seuss is a must-have for art teachers who love Seuss. My students, of course, also love Dr. Seuss and read many of his books in their language arts class. We watched a YouTube video about the Secret Art of Dr. Seuss and one with a slideshow of his artwork. The second slideshow … Read more…
I came up with this idea from my daughter’s obsession with playing with her figurines and maps. She has a few of these map sets that come with a large fold-out map, a book and a bunch of related figurines (they have these at Barnes & Noble). This project taps into children’s natural interest in miniature toys! I showed the 2nd graders this map with some figures (many of them had similar maps at home) and told them to bring … Read more…
Aren’t these fantastic? I love these pop-up winter scenes. Guess what? I just made a companion Facebook page for my blog! I thought it would be fun to have another avenue to easily share all kinds of artsy inspiration I come across. Most of the Facebook updates will be links to other blogs, articles and interesting artistic things I find around the web. Of course, I will also share things about my blog, but MOST of the posts will be … Read more…
These cute pinch pot monsters were made by my 2nd grade class. Here is a handout you could use about how to make a pinch pot. After making a pinch pot, the students turned them on their side, squished the mouth down a little and then added eyes, noses, horns, ears, tongues and teeth. Make sure to score and add water in between each part. (Some people make slip, but I have found that with our consistency of clay, just … Read more…
This oil pastel drawing project is inspired by the artwork of Paul Gauguin, in particular his painting Tahitian Landscape. To build up a little enthusiasm, when the kids arrived to class there was an envelope at their seat. I told them to open the envelope and see what was inside. I had printed off pictures of Tahitian Landscape, laminated them and then cut them into puzzle pieces. The kids worked quickly to put together the puzzles. Then, I introduced the … Read more…
Hello all! Wow, summer is almost here! It’s hard to believe, right? I entered a blog giveaway to receive a free layout review from a web designer. I won! She posted the review on Blacksburgbelle’s blog. Bottom line: reduce the clutter. I think it was very useful and gave me a lot to think about! Maybe you will get some ideas from her review. This will be a little project to work on during the summer. Building with cardboard and … Read more…
