Most posts have video which may require a computer to see.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Mondrian-Style Designs


1st and 2nd graders learned about Piet Mondrian and Joan Miro. Students participated in SMART Board sorting activities which compared Mondrian's use of line, color, and shape with Miro's. Watch for Miro-style designs in a couple of weeks. (See Animoto below)


Monday, October 3, 2011

The Eyes Have It!


3rd and 4th graders are learning about facial features and proportions. We began with eyes since they require the most detail study. Students worked with mirrors as well as other exemplars. Training a child's "eyes" is as important as training their hands and these students are beginning to "see" more than they used to. (See Animoto below)




Working on the "Beasties"

All classes will have a hand in the creation of our Beasties. The younger students got to stuff the plastic bags with softly crushed newspapers and tape the bags shut. Since it's a total waste of time to clean up for a different activity, whenever we do paper mache' it's for the entire morning or afternoon and all classes get involved. This also gives everyone a stake in the project and most students use good craftsmanship while working. It's especially important to instill a sense of craftsmanship in the younger students who are quick to point out when they see something that was not done carefully and they fix it. (See Animoto below)