4th Grade Weaving

My first experience with weaving was during student teaching and it was amazing to see a class of usually rowdy 3rd Graders settle down so completely while they were engaged in this activity. It is a tactile project that allows the students to relax and either focus on the work or engage in quiet conversation once they get a rhythm going. Unfortunately, I chose a yarn assortment that I bought from one of our only source catalogs and the yarn had a rough texture. Some of the yarn had multiple strands that did not weave smoothly but the kids didn't complain. For that I was grateful. (See Animoto below)

My Peeps!

Fourth Graders used a pattern to trace their bunny peep onto a folded piece of felt. They cut it out and stitched it together, leaving about one inch open on the bottom. They used the hole to stuff their peep, making sure the stuffing went all the way up to the ears. Since French knots are a bit tricky for Fourth Graders, I had them glue googly eyes on instead. I loved seeing all the pockets filled with peeps as they went to their next class.

Color Order Designs

Students created a color order design using only the 3 primary colors. I was looking for proper color blending, the correct order, and craftsmanship in the coloring. Students simply do not have the same skills they used to have because classroom teachers are relegated to mundane testing skills and discouraged from any basic skills in the classroom. We see a much lower level of craftsmanship because of this test emphasis. (See Animoto below)

Tessellation Transformation

As part of our math concept integration in art class, 4th graders explored tessellations. We looked at Tessellation Exploration by Tom Snyder and they looked at a few samples by M.C. Escher. They learned about adjacent sides, slide translations, and transformation. After creating a slide translation template, students were to sketch a few ideas in their sketchbooks that would transform the slide into something imaginative. After tracing their template to cover a piece of paper, they were to add all the details and color in a checkerboard pattern. Coloring was to include one of the neon colors and students were to use good craftsmanship in their work. (See Animoto below)

6th Grade Block Printing

6th grade classes have been working on block prints. Some of the students had to carve a fairly hard linoleum, but most got to work on the easy cut carving material. They had to draw either a bird, flower, fish, or butterfly from book resources. None of the drawings was traced because the books and the carving materials were not the same size. Students transferred their drawings by rubbing the graphite onto the carving material. They then used sharp gouges to carve away the negative spaces and leave behind the positive. Each carved plate was printed using a brayer to roll the ink onto the plate and then rubbing the paper covered inked plate with a barren. The best carving can be ruined by using too little or too much ink, so the students practiced a few test prints before using the marbleized papers.

Learning to Sew

Since the kids were no longer allowed to do any holiday crafts in the classroom, and I didn't usually do such things, I decided to integrate it into my fibers lesson. Along with weaving, I wanted to make sure they knew how to sew something simple. It was a rush job because several classes were cut for various reasons, but it was something fun to do that classroom teachers were almost forbidden from doing because of the focus on testing.

Character Counts Zentangle

This assignment was a tie to the Character Counts curriculum which was implemented to instill positive character traits into the students. Kids chose a short word and carefully lettered it onto a large piece of paper. Then they divided the letters into sections they could add zentangle patterns to. Watercolor washes were added for an added element of color.

Dia De Los Muertos MIM Reception

Because we agreed to create an ofrenda display for deceased musicians for the Musical Instrument Museum, we were treated to a reception and tour of the museum in November of  2012. The children had boxed lunches on the patio and then saw their work on display. It was a wonderful event including a cello concert.  

Dia De Los Muertos Ofrendas

Students worked as hard as they could to finish up their ofrendas for the Dia De Los Muertos display at the Musical Instrument Museum. Students and their parents will be treated to a light dinner and reception at the MIM followed by a cello performance. It is a gorgeous facility and we hope to get some great pics of the kids and their families that night.

Progress on Ofrendas

Fourth graders in Mrs. Pinuelas' class are spending their art classes working on the Day of the Dead ofrendas for the Musical Instrument Museum in Scottsdale. The backdrops are tissue paper and meant to emulate the blankets of real flowers used on elaborate altars. Next we will work on decorated stuffed felt skulls. Since we only have 35 minutes twice a week, we are having to work as quickly as possible to meet the deadline of October 25th.

 

Fractions, Percentages, & Degrees, Oh My!

Fourth graders learned something about radial symmetry along with degrees, percentages, and fractions while creating designs that were one quarter of a circle. In an effort to recycle, the circles were CD labels that were of no further use. They also learned how to use a protractor during this activity.

Touring the Musical Instrument Museum

Ms. Pinuelas' 4th graders are doing a Dia De Los Muertos art project for the Musical Instrument Museum. The museum kindly gave us an excellent tour of the museum to get us excited about the project. Our "ofrendas" will be dedicated to deceased musicians. Part One of the project is to emulate the chrysanthemum blankets in the shapes of instruments or other symbols related to our deceased musicians. We are limited for time so we used a quick technique using tissue squares folded over the end of a pencil. The pencil is dipped in glue and held in place briefly before removing the pencil. (See Animoto below)

Artistopoly

Although Artopoly does exist, Artistopoly is geared as a fun way to work on visual recognition of famous masterworks and art styles. This is meant to be used on the Reaction Grid so it only existed virtually. I would give clues and the kids as avatars would run towards the correct section of the board. It was so much fun for everyone and they really showed visual recognition. (See Animotos below)

Needlework in Progress

Students moved on from samplers to floral and animal designs. Some of the kids just didn't have the patience to complete the work with good craftsmanship but several students completed more than one piece in the time given. When I decided to retire in 2013, I made sure those more dedicated students were given hoops, fabric, iron on designs, embroidery floss and needles as a lovely parting gift. (See Animoto below)

3rd & 4th Grade Chipboard Loom Weaving

Students used small chipboard looms to weave small pieces that were turned into a pocket necklace. Students learned how to focus and relax while using good craftsmanship. (See Animoto below)

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)

Calligraphy: An Introduction to Beautiful Writing

There is a lot of debate about teaching cursive writing because of the use of computers. I do not want to see writing skills such as cursive and calligraphy be lost just because we use computers. Lettering is an important hand skill and I loved introducing it to students. Oddly, female students skewed towards Italic with its rounded strokes and the males skewed towards Old English with it's boxy strokes. (See slideshow below)

Calligraphy Stack

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Fourth Grade One Point Perspective Designs

3rd and 4th graders got a taste of 1 point perspective and learned about 90 degree angles, using a 30/60/90 triangle as a checking tool, and to create parallel lines with a grid ruler on graph paper. Some of the 3rd graders found it challenging enough just to hold down a ruler and construct straight lines while a few sailed through the entire concept. This is the kind of thing that just takes some more practice till they "get it." Here are some of the 4th graders and their finished designs. (See Animoto below)

Fiber Arts: Needlework Basics

Some of the 5th and 6th graders chose to work on embroidery samplers and it has been fun to revisit some of the basic stitches with them such as the chain stitch and cross stitch. (See Animoto below)

Still Life

Still life is a standard drawing exercise. I left my best pieces in Wisconsin when I moved to Arizona, so I had to scrounge objects for my current classes. The main problem with still life is having a good place for the setup where everyone can see an interesting angle. (See Animoto below)