….my grade two class always embraces my lessons and can’t wait to start
This is the same assignment that I gave to my grade one classes but I asked the grade 2s to add some colourful doodles around their portraits. Dali, Picasso and Warhol never looked better.
…..owls, ferns, cacti, fish, fungi, tulips and bikinis
I’m almost at the end of my 31 day challenge for drawing simple objects with Lisa Congden on Creative Bug. Here are a few more of my drawings:
….there were plenty of gifts made for moms in the kindergarten classes last week
I wanted to come up with a nice piece of art to put on a card that the children would be excited to give to their moms. I decided to to teach the children how to draw simple hearts and flower line drawings using paint. When the paint dried they could add more interesting detail using black (or coloured) markers.
When the children were happy with their creation they could use the entire piece and glue it down onto a sheet of card stock or they could have their favourite section trimmed to fit onto a card. Some of them took it a step further and actually cut up their shapes and then glued them down individually.
We wrote a message on the board for the children to copy in their own hand to add to their cards to create their original Mother’s Day Card. What do you think? Of course I’m biased but I think they’re fabulous.
fins
….I knew that some of my students knew about my blog but it still surprised me to hear this question
I needed a break from using paint. Most of the older students are pretty good at cleaning at the end of art class but some of the younger children, especially the boys, have a hard time with the cleaning concept. Two days ago I snapped and told my students that we were done with paint for awhile. When we go back I think I may limit the number of students who paint and have the rest of the students work with another medium. In other words, I’ll have two separate projects on the go.
Yesterday I introduced line drawing using pencil and then finishing if off with a fine tip Sharpie. I place a number of objects on their tables to arrange into an interesting still life.
I demonstrated how to draw what they see without lifting the pencil off the paper. We used rough copy paper to practise and then when they felt comfortable the students produced a final copy that was trimmed and then mounted on black construction paper. The following examples were done by grade 3s.
So what’s next? Maybe I’ll use oil or chalk pastels. At least there won’t be any brushes to clean.
Cheers!
….Picasso’s Doves of Peace drawings were the inspiration for this lesson
Pablo Picasso was very political and didn’t like how the world’s peace initiatives were emerging after after the the second world war. He created The Dove of Peace as an extraordinarily powerful and lasting political symbol for peace, liberation and equality around the globe. Doves also had a highly personal significance for Picasso, going back to childhood memories of his father painting the doves that were kept in the family home. Doves were a frequent presence in Picasso’s homes and studios in Paris and in the south of France. ( adapted from Tate.org.uk)
Back in the spring when I came across The Dove of Peace I decided then and there that I wanted to do a similar theme for this year’s Remembrance Day assembly. I liked the simplicity of the drawings and felt that my students would be up for the challenge.
I didn’t want every student to draw doves so I had them research symbols of peace that could be easily drawn. My only rule was that the picture couldn’t have blood or weapons in it. After working out a rough copy of what they wanted to draw I gave each student a piece of watercolour paper. They were allowed to choose between a small and medium size.
First they drew their symbol with pencil and then went over the lines with crayon. To make the symbol stand out more I showed them how to add a bit of black marker. Then I taught them how to do a simple wash of colour for the their background while leaving the symbol white. This was a difficult concept for some because they wanted to paint everything.
As a final touch the children were allowed to take photographs of each other. The photo had to symbolize friendship and or peace. Some children embraced each other while others shook hands. If they didn’t want a photo taken the other option was to find a magazine picture with the same theme. The pictures were in black and white because we printed them from the computers in the room onto our shared printer which only prints in black.
On Friday, most of the art was finished and ready to be displayed in the gym. Other classes did a similar theme and some of the younger grades changed it up a bit. All in all, everyone did a great job and the space looks wonderful. A big thank you goes out to all the staff and students.
Mama Cormier 