Ugly Dolls

This year, 5th graders put their sewing skills to the test.

After hearing the story of how co-creators David Horvath and Sun-Min Kim began their business, and discussing what "ugly" means to them, students were excited to begin planning their dolls.

Students drew a few thumbnail sketches before deciding on a final version. After creating a pattern out of newsprint, 5th graders chose 2 pieces of felt and began cutting out their shapes. 

Felt glue was used to tack down pieces for eyes, teeth and other facial features before the stitching began. Students practiced sewing running or whip stitches to attach all pieces and close the outside edges before stuffing their creations.

Although this was a challenging project, these 5th graders did an amazing job!

Eye Spy With My Little Eye...

Artists find inspiration everywhere. A couple of weeks ago, as I was walking by our school library, a book caught my attention. I Spy with My Little Eye by Edward Gibbs is a beautifully illustrated book that inspired this 3rd grade lesson.

After reading the book and looking at the illustrations, students chose an animal for their own "I Spy" book. They started by cutting out a hole so they knew where to place the eye before drawing the rest of their animal.

Using a wet-on-wet watercolor technique, students completed their illustrations.

Finally, they covered their books with a color that defined their animal, cut out a corresponding hole, and added text to the front cover and inside.

Fun with Hats!

   Kindergarten and first graders had so much fun creating these unique, wearable sculptures. After talking about what a sculpture is, students were given the challenge of transforming a flat, 2-dimensional piece of paper into an amazing 3-dimensional creation!

   They worked really hard on them for two classes. The first day was spent transforming the basic hat shape into an original form--one that didn't look like anybody else's. I was amazed at what these kids all came up with--SO creative!

                                    

   During the second class, students added paper embellishments. I demonstrated how to fan-fold, curl, and fringe-cut strips of paper to get them started, and they took it from there. We also discussed how a sculpture should look interesting from all sides, so students made sure that no matter how they wore their hats, they would be fun to look at!








Of course, the best part was getting to wear the hats once they were finished and pose for a silly picture!

Hooray For Fish!

Kindergarteners listened to the story "Hooray For Fish" by Lucy Cousins and then used black tempera to paint their fish shapes.

During the next class, they used florescent paints to fill in their shapes and add patterns. 

But...the most fun part was getting to have our art critique in the dark and seeing how the fish lit up under the black lights!

2nd Grade Cave Art

Second graders learned all about cave art and went on a virtual tour of the cave of Lascaux.

Explore the cave here.

Afterwards, they partnered up, put on their headlamps, and began looking for more examples of cave art throughout the classroom.

During the next class, students worked together to create their own cave art paintings and really enjoyed leaving their "mark" on their artwork!