3rd Grade -- Historical Figures

3rd graders just finished up their historical figure sculptures.  They were assigned one of the following people: Louis Armstrong, Helen Keller, Jackie Robinson, or Amelia Earhart.  They used white talc clay to sculpt their historical person.  We focused on scoring, slipping, and smoothing to ensure that all pieces were attached.  The students used modeling tools to create textures and details in the clay as well.  Tempera paint was applied to the bisque fired clay.  The 3rd graders created cardboard dioramas, which put their person in a scene that would have taken place.  Here are some examples from all 3rd grade classes:

5th Grade -- Ceramic Boxes

Each student designed a box in their sketchbooks.  Students then rolled out slabs to create sides for their box.  With the use of scoring and slipping, they were able to attached all sides and additional pieces of their design.  Glaze was used to finish these ceramic pieces.
Below are some examples from Mr. Rollo's class:

5th Grade -- #Ceramic Boxes

The 5th graders are finishing up their ceramic boxes made from terracotta clay.  Each student designed a box in their sketchbooks.  Students then rolled out slabs to create sides for their box.  With the use of scoring and slipping, they were able to attached all sides and additional pieces of their design.  Glaze was used to finish these ceramic pieces.
Below are examples from Ms. Germanier's class:

1st Grade -- #Heart Paintings

Jim Dine is closely associated with the development of Pop Art in the early 1960's.  Mr.  Kaegi's class focused on Jim Dine's series of heart paintings.  We observed numerous paintings and discussed how he used color, line, texture, and balance.  Those principles and elements were then applied to our paintings.  Great job first graders!

3rd Grade -- Working on Historical Figures

3rd graders are currently working on their historical figures for African American/Women's history.  They have been studying Amelia Earhart, Louis Armstrong, Jackie Robinson, and Helen Keller.  We began by sculpting our people out of white talc clay.  Recently they have been painting their sculptures and also making platforms for their sculptures to stand on. 

Kindergarten -- Cave Paintings

After learning all about Lascaux, the kindergarten students created their own cave paintings.  We crumpled and painted our plain white paper to look like cave walls.  The students then painted animals and human figures on their cave walls.  Each student had a story behind their painting as well.  Great job kindergartners!

4th Grade -- Color Scheme Paintings

Recently the 4th grade students have learned about the following color schemes:

• Analogous
• Complementary
• Warm/Cool
• Monochromatic

We began this project by choosing an animal to draw realistically.  We discussed how cropping the animal will allow us to draw it out bigger.  Each student then chose a color scheme to apply to their drawing.

Kindergarten -- Pinch Pots

The pinch pot is a simple form of a pot that dates back to ancient history. These decorative/functional pots have been used by various cultures throughout history as well. Our kindergarten students learned how to create a pinch pot. Once bisque fired, the students also learned about glazes and how to use them. Here are some finished examples:

2nd Grade - Pinch Pot Animals

2nd graders recently made pinch pot animals with white talc clay.  We focused on building the pinch pot, scoring/slipping, and using modeling tools to make our animals more realistic.  The students glazed their pieces after they were bisque fired.
We discussed that glaze works differently than paint.

• Glaze shows up the best with three coats applied.  
• The color of the glaze could look totally different from beginning to finish.  
• There must be no glaze on the surface that sits on the kiln shelf.  

Here are some finished examples:

1st Grade -- Pinch Pot Creations

Mr. Kaegi's 1st grade class recently made pinch pot creations with white talc clay.  We discussed how to build a pinch pot and how to correctly attached additional clay via scoring and slipping.  The students applied these techniques when adding hair, arms, legs, eyes, feet, etc.  The students also used modeling tools to create details and textures in their clay.  Here are some examples:

3rd Grade -- Practice Sculptures

3rd graders have been working on practice sculptures to help prepare themselves for when we sculpt historical figures from African American and Women's history.  We practiced making a two-legged figure that could balance standing up.  We also worked on our scoring/slipping methods to ensure the clay properly attached.  The students had a choice of painting the bisque fired clay with tempera paint or with glaze.  We discussed the differences of both.  Many who chose to paint with the tempera paint also finished their figures with Mod Podge.  Here are a few examples:

4th Grade -- Clay House Fronts

For this project we examined architecture by Frank Lloyd Wright and Friedensreich Hundertwasser.  Frank Lloyd Wright used geometric shapes and organic colors in his architecture, while Hundertwasser used many bold colors, curvy lines, and organic shapes.  Both architects loved to incorporate the surrounding environment with their architecture.  Our 4th grade students sketched out a design for their own house.  Some students were inspired by TV shows, by famous architects, or even their own home in Oak Park.  The students rolled out slabs of clay, trimmed out the shape of their house, and then began designing it.  They scored and slipped whenever they attached additional pieces.  They used modeling tools to carve in designs as well.  Once the pieces were bisque fired, the students then used glaze to finish their houses.

5th Grade -- Papier-Mâché Bowls

The 5th graders created papier-mâché bowls with their classroom teachers.  Mr. Zander's class was in charge of painting the bowls with acrylic paints during their art class.  The bowls will be raffled off to 5th grade students in the near future.
 

 

Kindergarten -- Klee Fish

We began this project by reading a book on Paul Klee.  After learning about Klee and the style of his work, we observed his painting "The Goldfish".  We noticed how the colors really contrast each other because of the dark black water and the bold colors of the fish.  We started brainstorming as a class what lives under water..  From there the students drew their underwater scene and used oil pastels to color in their objects.  We used a black wash over the paper to fill in the background.  This allowed us to see how the oil pastels resist water. 

Kindergarten -- Space Drawings

In our kindergarten classes we read the book, "Dogs in Space" by Nancy Coffelt.  The story is about a group of dogs traveling through space and visiting other planets.  After reading the book, we discussed facts about the planets in the solar system.  From there we envisioned that we were launched into space and began our own journey.  Some of the students drew what planet they were visiting, or what they were doing on the moon.  Others imagined that they traveled so far into outer space that they discovered a new planet.  They then visually described what was on that planet.  The students used crayons to color in their drawing.

1st Grade Owls

Our first grade students started this project by using a pillow box template. They traced that template onto a colored piece of construction paper. From there, they painted a blank sheet a paper, with values that matched the construction paper color. We discussed the meaning up tints and shades, and also demonstrated different ways we could make texture in our paintings. Once the paintings were dry, the students used spools to trace circles onto their painting. The students cut those circles out and used them as the owl feathers. The students created other key features that the owl would need (wings, beak, feet) and assembled them with glue. Come check out the owls in person. They are located in the glass display case in the lobby.

4th Grade One Point Perspective

Perspective in the graphic arts, such as drawing, is an approximate representation, on a flat surface (such as paper), of an image as it is seen by the eye. The two most characteristic features of perspective are that objects are drawn:
* Smaller as their distance from the observer increases
* Foreshortened: the size of an object's dimensions along the line of sight are relatively shorter than dimensions across the line of sight

After the 4th grade students learned about perspective, and more specifically one point perspective, we began drawing on 12 x 18 paper. The students made a dot to represent the vanishing point. Streets, sidewalks, buildings, cars, etc all lined up according to where their vanishing point was. This allowed the city view to start out bigger and become smaller and you look further down the street. Students had many creative ideas to develop their buildings.

2nd Grade -- Día de los Muertos Sugar Skulls

"Day of the Dead is a Mexican holiday celebrated throughout Mexico and around the world in other cultures. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. It is particularly celebrated in Mexico, where it is a national holiday, and all banks are closed. The celebration takes place on November 1, in connection with the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day (November 2). Traditions connected with the holiday include building private altars honoring the deceased using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed and visiting graves with these as gifts. They also leave possessions of the deceased."

Today, Ms. Smith's and Ms. Mariani's classes learned about Day of the Dead.  We took a closer look at the sugar skulls used in the celebration.  As we examined the skulls, we noticed that they all had similar characteristics.  The skulls used many organic and geometric shapes, floral designs, symmetry, lines, and color.  After looking at many examples, the students began drawing out their own sugar skull with the use of oil pastels.  They choose what shapes to create, what colors to use, and whether or not to have their skull symmetrical or asymmetrical.  Students were encouraged to fill in their color so it was nice and bold. 
Here are some photos from today's classes:

2nd Grade Number Paintings

Jasper Johns, Charles Demuth, and Robert Indiana are just a few well known artists that have created number paintings in their careers. Our 2nd graders learned about those three artists and observed their number paintings. From there, we choose a number 0-9 that was meaningful to us (ie: birthday, age, siblings, favorite, etc). The students drew out their number and created designs around it. We also discussed how warm colors advance and cool colors recede. From there the students used many different colors of tempera paint to carry out their design. Once the paintings were complete, we touched up our edges and redrew our designs with permanent marker.

Here is artwork from the entire 2nd grade!  7 was definitely the most popular number!

Here is a closer view at ten of the paintings:

Kindergarten "Mouse Paint"

This project was inspired by Ellen Stoll Walsh's book "Mouse Paint". The story is about three white mice who wind up covering themselves in the primary colors. The mice discover that they can make three new colors by mixing two of the primary colors together. Those three new colors are the secondary colors. The students used a pencil to draw out a mouse and two puddles. The next art class the students choose a color that their mouse would be (Orange, Green, or Violet). They painted in their puddles first with the corresponding primary colors. Once the puddles were painted, the students mixed their two primaries and created their secondary color to paint their mouse with. Once their mouse was completely painted, the students chose a color to paint the wall behind the mouse. We finished the project by touching up our edges with permanent marker.