Snails, by Prekindergarten

Somewhere on the internet (kinderart maybe, I must look) I found a lesson idea for making snails.  They used the primary colors in cocentric circles to make the shell.  Then whatever they wanted to do to finish the picture.  These turned out better than I thought, but then again, the LOVE to paint, and mix colors!

Love the happy face on the blue snail!

 



I do not know where the snail went, but I love it!

 

 



 

I love the expressiveness in their painting!



Rangoli by Kindergarten and Primer

 

Rangoli designs are made in India, primarily by the women, and decorate the entryway into a home.  Kindof a welcome mat.  They can be made of dyed rice, flowers, etc., and can be swept away to make room for a new one! 

The kindergarten students loved looking at all of the pictures we found on the internet of Rangolis.  The designs are so varied, intricate, and simple.  Beautiful.

We made our own  Rangoli designs.  I made a simple grid and photocopied it so that the girls could get some ideas.  Then they drew their designs on large butcher paper, working on the floor, just like they would if they were in India.

 

They used white tempera paint and then added color. 

Some turned out so well and so vibrant. 

 

We hope you feel welocomed as you view our Rangoli designs!



relief, circles, paint and PreKinder!

The Prekindergarten students do one of my favorite projects.  I started this when I discovered TONS of cardboard circles in the closet, left from the previous art teacher. HMMMM, what to do?  I cut up some circles, cut up some regular cardboard, and had the girls glue them down to the large circles.  I encourage them to layer the pieces, and to tear off some of the paper to reveal the corregated texture of the cardboard.  Some of the girls will stand the pieces up on the large circle, almost like a sculpture.  The next class they paint the work, and during the third class they use oil pastels to add whatever they like.  These always are so expressive and beautiful.  Love them!!!

 

 

 

"I Ain't Gonna Paint No More..

One of my favorite books for Preschool is "I Ain't Gonna Paint No More".  It does not seem like a book an art teacher would read, but it is pretty silly and has fun rhymes.  The little kid paints his entire self!  The kids enjoy guessing the rhymes and repeating the "Ain't gonna paint no more" theme. 

To create the art project, the students drew a self-portrait using Sharpie Markers.  They were encouraged to add patterns with the markers.  They used watercolor to paint themselves and the surrounding area.  The wilder, the better!

 

I love how she filled the page, and even painted her hair purple.

 

Maybe she painted a beard on herself?

 



Eric Carle, lots of paint, and Kindergarten

Eric Carle is a well known author and illustrator, especially among the younger set.  We watched the video, "Eric Carle, Picture Writer" in class, and then used his methods to create our own collages.  I like how he just makes decorative papers without an image in his head.  He just makes them, and later pulls the sheets he needs to create the image. 

After I cover the room in paper (this is one messy project), I set up for stations to create the colorful papers.  The girls splatter-painted, rolled, scratched, and stamped their hearts out.  They loved it!

 

 

You can see the mess!  During the next two class sessions, they girls cut out shapes for their collage and glued them onto large pieces of paper. 

 



Working on the floor was easier for most of the girls.

 

 



 The one above was one of my favorites!  I loved the rhythm of the snakes!  They are large as well, she used the entire page.  Wonderful!

 

 I loved the ears on the animal on the right!

"I Want My Hat Back" in 1st grade

 

In 1st grade we read "I Want My Hat Back" by Jon Klassen.  As we learned about the bear looking for his hat, we noted the textures and the use of red to emphasize certain items in the book.  We also discussed the use of animals doing human things in books, and why that would be done.  Some other books that used animals were also looked at.    I got the idea for this from Mrs. Knight's Smartest Artists blog, here.

 

 

The elephant above broke his student chair while the lion was teaching!  The artist used yellow to emphasize the broken chair!

 

The snake is taking a bubble bath.  I guess the artist wanted to emphasize the red rubber duck!

 



Snowmen.... when it is 80 degrees!

 

Yep, it is December 4th and 80 degrees in Dallas.......

 

 

Let's make snowmen!!!  The Prekindergarten girls drew a snowman picture with Sharpie Markers, and then painted them with white paint.  The next class, the used oil pastels to add details, redraw noses, or add more snow.  I think I made these when I was little.. a throwback I guess!

 



First Grade and Still Life

   Fall is my absolutely most favorite time of year! Each year, I set up items on a table to create a still life for all of my classes. Each class creates several pictures using a variety of media. First grade used oil pastels and then Sharpie marker and watercolor. I love how their sharpie line shows through the transparent watercolors. 

 

  

 

  I like to add some strange objects and toys into the arrangement to keep the girls interested.  They change seats with each picture to keep it fresh.

Love how she filled the page, lots of detail!

 

 



 

Love the detail on the vase, the squiggle marks for the table cloth!

 

 

Funny picture of Skelley, he has been drawn so many different ways. 

 

 

Students working on their Sharpie and watercolor projects.

 

 

Some in oil pastel.



 

Hope you enjoyed their work!

My Painted House by PreK

Prekindergarten girls read the book "My Painted House, My Friendly Chicken and Me" by Maya Angelou. The book describes the beautiful homes of the Ndebele in Southern Africa. The women paint the houses with bright geometric shapes and patterns. The girls discussed what some of the things that were the alike and different between themselves and the girl in the book. More things were alike. They then used black paint to make a pattern on a house. The next class, they added color, and in the third class they mounted the house on paper, and added whatever details they wanted. These are awesome!

 

Love the red dragon she added!  She really took her time painting her house.

 

I like the slant to this one!