In the Art Room...#12-Weaving, Portraits and Coil Pots

It's NYS testing week. Our third through sixth grade students finished their ELA state tests this week. The tests flip flops the special schedule and the kids are all out of sorts when they come to specials. 

After 70-90 minutes of state testing the students do appreciate the brain break that art provides. Here is a little catch up of went happened this week. 

Third graders worked on their portraits this week. I played my portrait video I created using screencast-o-matic.com. I use the same portrait video for first through 6th graders. Since the heads on these portraits are so small I gave the kids mechanical (!) pencils to work with.

 Friday we began coloring and I am amazed at their skill and progress at this level. We use colored pencils for this project because of the amount of detail we can get with them. Next week we work on clothes, hands and feet (which we stamp our shoes!) 

5th graders have been in the computer lab working on tessellations. We completed a webquest on MC Escher and Tessellations. We started by designing an equilateral triangle using paint.net. Then we use layers to create a hexagon. Hexagons become wallpaper.  I use templates for students to create in. 

 

I have slowly been updating Artsonia. I also found a lot of photos on my camera that I never uploaded from the fall. UGH. So I am getting there. 

I did another #throwbackthursday this week. I paired remaining 6th grade portraits with their first grade superheros from 2010. 

This was the first year I did the superheroes. They are so creative and fun! I have done them every year since! This year I am moving the superheros to second grade, so they are on sabbatical for a year. But they will be back next year! 

Kindergartners are making progress on their flower project for Mother's Day. 

Opening the lid on a glaze load still excites me. I have some beautiful clay wall hangers coming out of the kiln this week! Check out the entire clay wall hanger project here!

The fourth graders have finished up their coil pots. (See I told you they were working!) 

First graders began weaving this week. 

I spent some quality time with the paper cutter this week. I cut all the first graders painted kente cloth papers into strips. Strips were placed in ziploc bags with a nametag.  I cut most strips into one inch pieces. However, I also used this as an opportunity to differentiate the project. I cut some 2 inch and half inch strips for my advanced students who finish every project early! 

Whew! What a week!