After school art has begun their first project

We are hard at work on our still life paintings.  This is our first major project of the year.  So far so good!

Feeling the Love!

We invited our old 5th grade students (who are now in 6th grade) to come back and paint their High 5 tiles. They decided to leave me messages on the board before they left. I certainly miss those guys when they head out of here at the end of 5th grade.

2nd grade radial balance designs

Thinking in circles.

Another wonderful lesson

I had a wonderful class on encaustic art.  Can't wait to apply some of these techniques with my students. 

Learning at my Art Conference

I am learning about and making Native  American ceramics. This is a simple rain stick. We also created clay totem poles.

The value of teaching VALUE!

Teaching these 5th grade students about how to use VALUE in their drawings is so much fun. They are amazed at what they are able to do to create the illusion of three dimension. Learning to take drawings to a higher level of realism helps to teach students to observe in greater detail. When making them think about how light and shadow move around a 3-D form, you are helping them to better understand the mathematics of Geometry.

"Fall Trees" in all their glory!

As seen in an earlier post, our Kindergarten students are learning and reviewing about COLOR. Specifically, how to mix primary colors to create secondary colors. Here are some examples of "Fall Trees" that they painted, demonstrating their mixing abilities. I can hear the crackle of those leaves!

Time for photography.

This is one of the 5th grade students favorite project.  It is a great way to teach framing and composition.

A very surprising and humbling honor!

This week I was very honored by being selected as Teacher of the year for my school.  One thing about Chets Creek is that we have a school full of exceptional teachers, any one of whom would be an admirable representative. That is why this is particularly special to me.  Thank you, Chet's Creek!

Color study with Kindergarten

Kindergarten students are starting to learn about mixing colors.  We started mixing blue and red to make purple tree trunks.In some cases, we are also getting purple hands. But then that is what all those baby wipes are for! We will continue this color mixing lesson by mixing primary colors to make secondary colors. Be on the lookout for some pictures of the final masterpieces.

After school art begins!

We just had our first After School Art Class.  Students were given a "diagnostic" drawing of a still life, and believe me, I was surprised at how well they did!  

In Memory of Linda

We had a very sad start to our year. A precious third grade student had a fatal accident leaving us stunned.  She had just started her Art To Remember project and I couldn't just throw it away,so we decided to display it at our school as a way to remember her.  Kind of like an unfinished drawing representing a life cut way too short.  We will miss you!

Art to Remember is under way!

Very soon you will begin to see a different Art To Remember package coming home to you, giving you the opportunity to order many different items with your child's artwork printed on them.  Be on the lookout for these masterpieces!

About time I get back to it!

I can't believe how long it has been since I blogged last. There have been so many wonderful things going on and I haven't shared them with anyone. I am hoping that I can make myself do at least one entry a week this year. At least that is my goal. Watch out for post number one of the 2013-2014 school year!!!!!!

Clay Projects are BUSTING OUT all Over

The dust has not settled yet, in the Art Lab.........literally! Clay dust is everywhere as we are building clay things in every class. This is such a perfect way to teach the element of FORM and how it differs from SHAPE. I will have to say that this is probably the MOST FAVORITE medium, with which the students like to work. Here are some of the projects that have been done so far: 2nd - slab birds 3rd - apples, wild cat faces, blue bowl, pies 4th - slab plates 5th - sea turtles, masks

Learning about Organic Shape in Kindergarten

These cute little alligator paintings were done with Kindergarten students. We talked about geometric and organic shapes, and then practiced by painting gators. They had such fun with this. Afterwards, we embellished with oil pastels and gave some detail to our works of art.

Where have I been??????

Sorry to all of you who check me out on a regular basis. I have been so busy that I have not let you know about what I have been doing. Going back to being the sole Art Teacher at a school of 1300 students has not been as easy as I thought. Therefore, I have not been blogging regularly. Well, get ready....... a lot of new posts are coming your way.