Marker Fish - Grade 3

So again, I will say that the regular teacher must love ocean life! The third grade class was working on these rather large fish. They had used tracers to trace the fish onto 12 x 18 paper. Then they used those ocean life packets to add lots of details. Next they outlined it all in Sharpie. And finally they used brand new -- still very juicy -- Crayola markers to color them in. I have no idea what these will end up being used for. The example that was left was two-sided and cut out, but the instructions that I was given said not to do that, so not sure what the final project will look like. I kinda like the idea of having them be two-sided and maybe hung on fishing line so that they move with the air currents. They would be great as part of an all out coral reef installation in the school because they would look like they were swimming. Anyway, some of the color schemes and patterns look so awesome; I just had to share them!

Spring Trees - Elementary

Now is the time of year when the trees are blossoming. These beautiful signs of spring provide perfect inspiration for some spring art lessons that can be equally inspired by great works of art.

For second and third grade students I have developed two lessons that are inspired by some great paintings that link two completely different approaches to a very similar subject. This creates an opportunity to compare and contrast two works of art, while using ideas from them to create interesting works of our own. A good visual/organizational strategy could be to use a Venn Diagram to point out similarities and differences.

A Young Shepherd by the Chinese School, 1989

The second grade lesson, Folk Art Collage Trees, takes its cue from A Young Shepherd by the Chinese School, 1989. To start the project, paint the grass and sky with watercolor, let dry. Flowers can be added to the ground as well. Then, cut out somewhat oval shapes from spring-colored tissue paper, such as pink, yellow-green, yellow, white, etc. Collage these along the horizon line or slightly overlapping the grass. I used a glittery collage product to seal them down. When these are dry, possibly the next class, finish up with Sharpie in colors to suit the papers to create the tree trunks and branches.

William Biscombe Gardner's (1847 - 1919) Appleblossoms

The third grade lesson, Spring Blossoms Outside My Window, takes its cue from William Biscombe Gardner's (1847 - 1919) Appleblossoms. To start the project tape off the window frame (similar to those birch tree lessons that are abundant in the fall). If using masking tape it helps to remove some of the tackiness by sticking the tape to clothing first -- that way when it is removed later it is less likely to damage the paper. Then paint the entire paper with blue sky tempera (have students mix their own tints from blue and white). This will take a while to dry, so it might be a good step to do the week before at the end of another lesson.
When the blue paint has dried, paint on branches (again mix the brown using the three primaries). The branches should dry somewhat quickly. Mix tints again in spring colors -- such as pink, light yellow, light green, lavender, etc.Get out those brushes that are terrible for most painting lessons -- the ones with splayed bristles. They will work perfectly for the next step. Dip the splayed bristles gently in the mixed paint and equally gently tap them on the paper to create brush marks that resemble blossoms. Repeat with touches of a darker color and touches of white to give dimension. Let this dry completely. Peel off the tape. Use colored pencil to shade the window frame to create a three-dimensional molding effect.

And finally for kindergarten: Paper Bag Trees. This is a lesson that appears often on many art teacher blogs and in many art classrooms. It is simple enough for younger students. Simply cut off the bottom of a paper lunch bag, twist it tightly in the middle, snip the ends and twist those to create branches and roots. Hot glue to construction paper covered cardboard, use white glue to attached crumpled spring-colored tissue paper blossoms.

A possible inspiration painting could be Claude Monet's Woman In A Garden from 1867.

Faberge Eggs -- Upper Elementary

So I wanted to do something for Easter that wasn't specifically "Easter" so I thought Faberge eggs would be nice since they incorporate some very famous art, some use of recycled materials and can be finished in any number of ways depending on how long you have to work on the project.

I was inspired for this idea by a book that I found at a local Used Book Superstore. The book pages are puzzles!

Faberge Treasures Jigsaw Puzzle Book from the Forbes Collection

Another great book resource is Faberge Fantasies and Treasures by Geza Von Harsburg:

The materials to start this project are very easy to find: newspaper (torn up), Elmer's art paste, larger plastic Easter eggs (found at the dollar store):

Step one: Cover the eggs with at least three or four layers of newspaper that has been dipped in the art paste. Since this will have to dry completely before the next step, you may want to allow students who work faster to make more than one egg.

Step two: When the paper mache is completely dry, use an x-acto blade to cut a seam around the middle. This is not safe for students to do on their own. The paper egg should easily come off the plastic one. If you want to save time you can leave the egg in the middle and go on to step four in the first class.

Step three: Then have students tape them closed again.

Step four: Add a layer or two of white paper over the newspaper. I used torn printer paper. Then add a few layers of white tissue paper over that for a nicer finish. Let dry again.

Step five: Decorating! For this step there are many options. Depending on how much time you have you can combine some of these with step four (if you are using tissue paper to decorate) or you can allow a full class time to complete the decorating.

Using tissue paper is a favorite option of mine because when applied with glossy Mod Podge it gives a jewel-like finish. Paint is another option: either tempera or watercolor. I really liked using the watercolor. I suppose you could all out glitter, but I didn't try that one. To get puffy gold paint I actually added gold paint to Elmer's white glue in the bottle so that the tip could be used as the applicator to get the line work. Glitter Mod Podge is nice (see the red egg). Prang makes a nice selection of metallic markers that look good over the painted eggs (see the dark purple egg). Embellishments up the bling factor (like sequin strands and rhinestones). The biggest thing, I think, is that the eggs be shiny, so they should all be coated with some type of gloss, either the Mod Podge that I used on all the eggs or some other gloss medium or varnish.

 This egg was drawn on with blue permanent marker, then layers of two shades of blue tissue paper were applied with glossy Mode Podge. Once that was dry (about 5 minutes), the gold was added with the glue bottle. That is the hardest part because it will drip and it is difficult to hold the egg while applying the decoration. It also takes a while for the thick gold glue to dry. Once it is dry hot glue the rhinestones on.

 This egg was painted with purple tempera (red and blue mixed together), allowed to dry (about 5 - 10 minutes), coated with glossy Mod Podge (dry again for about 5 - 10 minutes), and then drawn on with the metallic markers by Prang.

 This egg was painted with red tempera, allowed to dry (about 5 minutes), coated with glittery Mod Podge (dry again for 5 - 10 minutes), then the sequin strands and rhinestones are applied with hot glue.

 This egg was first drawn on with the gold glue to create sections for the colors, this had to dry and again was difficult to do. Also the egg has to be held while it dries unless you don't apply the gold to one of the tips. After about 20 minutes of drying time, the sections were painted using wet Q-tips and watercolors, which dried fairly quickly. Then apply a layer of gloss or glitter Mod Podge. The rhinestones were hot glued on.

This egg may be my favorite. It was decorated with dark blue tissue paper applied with Glossy Mod Podge. Shades of pink tissue paper were cut into diamond shapes and collaged over that. Tissue paper circles were collaged on the top and bottom. The gold glue was used to make the dots. The metallic markers were used to outline the shapes. The gold glue was also applied to the tip and a rhinestone was pressed into that.

Foam Board Mosaics -- Elementary Level

This coming Saturday I will be teaching an art lesson at a party. There will be kids of various ages from 4 to 13 years old, so I needed a project idea that was adaptable for those ages. This mosaic idea was shared with me at the North Shore Art Teachers Association meeting last school year and I've been meaning to give it a try, so this seems like the perfect opportunity.

The materials are lower cost if you shop around at the dollar stores. The primary material is foam board (which was $1 a sheet at the store). I painted all the boards in advance, but if doing this in a classroom where you have the time you can have the students do this step. I used toothbrushes and bath poofs to add texture to some of the boards; I also used paint brushes and rags to apply paint for varied results.

Next, cut the boards into long strips of about 1 1/2" in width. Leave the strips alone after that and allow the students to use scissors to cut the strips into geometric "tile" pieces.

Distribute Elmer's or tacky glue in small cups as well as cheap paint brushes and water cups. Hand out cardboard rectangles, squares, or pizza circles for the students to use as bases.

The students will then apply the foam tiles, cutting to size, by painting the backs with glue. I used the tacky glue because it adheres better and dries faster. Hint: It is easier to work from the outside edge toward the center when starting the design.

Here is the sample that I made. I will add photos of student examples if I can take a few at Saturday's party.

Torn Paper Illustrations - Third Grade

One of my upcoming April workshops involves illustrating children's books. I've been playing around with the idea of using torn paper as the material to make these illustrations, but wanted to see how students would respond to the challenges this method presents. While I was subbing in an art room last week I took the opportunity to try out the idea with a third grade class.

The school's librarians were an invaluable resource in finding books to share that demonstrated this type of illustration. Two of my favorites for their clear examples were:

The Color Box Illustrated by Giles LaRoche

and Small Green Snake Illustrated by Holly Meade

I had about a dozen assorted books that all primarily used paper for illustrating. I had these spread out on the tables when the students arrived and they automatically began to look through them. On the board I had written "What is paper collage?". Instead of providing the answer or asking them to tell me the answer, I had them work in pairs to look through one of the books and find examples of paper collage to share with the rest of the class. They had five minutes to do this. Then each pair stood, held up their book open to the page of their example and explained why that image showed paper collage. They all got the idea without me having to actually tell them.

Then came the time to demonstrate how we would make our own torn paper collages that illustrated some sort of imagery. I explained how to tear paper to make shapes and reminded them that they could not use scissors to cut the paper or pencils to draw out the shapes before ripping them. This was the most challenging. I demonstrated how it was okay to layer papers and how to work the background out first. I also cautioned against gluing things down until they were sure they had what they wanted.

This was the students first time working with torn paper in this way and while some struggled to create imagery, others did really well. With another class I think they would have easily identifiable pictures to show for their efforts.

Here is what came out of just one class with about 40 minutes of actual working time:

Boats were a popular choice...

As were sun over water or land scenes...


For those who felt overwhelmed by tearing round shapes, buildings proved an easier approach...


Some students preferred illustrating nature scenes with fish, bears and snakes...


A few created interiors with interesting shapes and characters...


And among many other great images, there was this fabulous airplane!

Metallic Hearts: Two Variations, Same Materials - Gr. 4

This particular lesson could easily be done with a younger (third grade) or older (fifth grade) group of students. It uses materials typically available in most art rooms: White model magic (1 oz. per student), cardboard cut to size (3 x 4"), metallic acrylic paint (I used a copper color), sponges, construction paper, and brushes (to apply paint).

Initially my idea was to use the model magic to create unique heart stamps. The stamps will need to dry completely for at least a day.

Use simple items like old automatic pencils that are out of lead to shape the designs.

Close up of one of the model magic hearts.

These would then be used with the metallic paint (although you could probably use printing ink, too) to stamp the hearts onto the construction papers (4" square). Additional pieces of construction paper (5 1/2" square) would be sponge painted with the same metallic paint to create a border for the stamped designs. Alternate the stamped paper color and the sponged paper color. Then arrange the three images on a third piece of construction paper (8 x 18").


But then I was left with these paint covered stampers that were beautiful on their own. So the variation is to paint the stampers and the cardboard they are on with the metallic color to create a sort of sculptural relief image. Mount these onto two pieces of off-set construction paper for a nice display.
And that is how I inadvertently developed two projects in one two-day lesson.

Value Hearts - Grade 3

The Valentine heart-themed lesson I developed for third grade came about while substitute teaching. I filled in for an art teacher who had called out sick and who does not mind when I try out my own lesson ideas.

I had about fifteen minutes before the students would be coming into the classroom and I thought up this idea. There were heart tracers available in the room as well as white paper and black thin and extra-thin tipped Sharpies. I decided to give a lesson in composition and value.

The criteria of this lesson were fairly straight forward:
1. The traced (in pencil) hearts had to show overlapping and cropping in their composition. And there could be 6, 7, or 8 hearts - no more (too crowded) and no less (too sparse).
2. The hearts had to be gone over with the thicker Sharpie.
3. To demonstrate all three values (light, medium, and dark), students had to use hatching, cross-hatching, and stippling (at least one of each). No hearts could be left white and no hearts could be colored in solid black.

Students quickly learned that spacing between marks was the key to changing the perceived value of their hearts. The learned several new key art-terms: value, hatching, cross-hatching and stippling. And they reviewed a few terms they already knew: overlapping and cropping.

Here are some examples from the class I taught: