They each printed off numerous coloring pages from the internet.  The simple drawings were easily enlarged to the primed panels by using an overhead projector.”

At the beginning of the semester my art students were ready for something different.  They were told that we were going to look at ways to get their art out of the art room!  They all had many years of art and knew a lot about art history, multicultural art, master artists and how to express their own views through a variety of art media and techniques.  So this semester started differently when I asked them, “How can art and community be connected?”

When I say community here I am referring to the city of Maturin, Venezuela where I was in my second year teaching K-12 Art at an international school.   The school is located outside of the city and was fenced and guarded.  To look for connections right outside our gate would be great but there were mostly fields of cattle.  The gated community “next door” was the most prestigious living complex in the city, and most of the students attending the school lived there.

The school was “separated” from the local community due to its location, socioeconomic status, and it was also the only school (that I knew of) where English was the primary language.  I would say that 99% of the students spoke Spanish so the language barrier was not an issue.

Our school already had some community service projects started and so it was easy for them to put their focus towards the children’s ward at the Manuel Nuñez Tovar Hospital.  Just last Christmas the school had collected gifts to take to children.  Also we raised money through a variety of fundraising (even proceeds from the annual art auction) to repaint the ward and buy curtains for the windows.  To say the public hospital was bleak would be an understatement.  After it was freshly painted and with the new curtains, really all it needed was some uplifting art on the walls.

After a trip to the children’s floor, my high school students decided that they wanted to paint murals on the walls to decorate as well as add cheerful inspiration to the children and their families.  Our school schedule did not permit them to paint at the hospital so we bought large panels from the local home improvement store.  Each student would work on their own panel and then we could have more to place around the different sections of the ward.  As for subject matter, the average age of the children on the floor was 2 years old.  After asking them what kind of subject matter they preferred, it was decided… the children loved cartoons!

The art students started searching for images they would like to paint.  They each printed off numerous coloring pages from the internet.  The simple drawings were easily enlarged to the primed panels by using an overhead projector.  As they “copied” their selected coloring page, I kept wondering “Is this copyrighted?  Is it bad to copy a coloring book page?  Does this lack creativity?”  I think maybe yes but in our defense, we could not change the characters too much or the children at the hospital would have most likely noticed.  The art students had to research and mix the paint needed for their panels.  They also had to consider the background, most coloring pages don’t have a background so they had to decide to add one or not.   After their paintings were finished, they added varnish to protect them from the many little hands that would surely be admiring them.

At the end of the semester, the school handyman went with us to permanently affix the panels in the various locations of the children’s ward.  It was so nice to be there and look at the excitement on the faces of the children and their families.

It was our goal to extend the boundaries of artmaking and connect with the local community.  I believe that this project allowed my students to make a significant art-life connection.икониПравославни иконииконописikoniбългарски икони

1. Search out local artists to complement units in your curriculum.
2. Contact a variety of  local artists to share and inspire at your Art Exhibitions, Art Fairs and Art Auctions.
3. Ask around about local artists that are family members/ relatives and friends of students.

What is key is to search out local artists in your community that are willing to share and inspire your students.  Plus, your artists will have exposure to “real life” artists.

The school year can be pretty hectic and sometimes just updating lesson plans on-line can take up most of your time.  That is why I try to at least have one visiting artist a year.  To be honest it does take some time when you are new to your community and even longer in the international school community where I had to overcome a language barrier.  Here are examples of my experiences at four different international schools and the visiting artists that shared with and inspired my students.

KOREA:   CHINESE BRUSH PAINTER

My high school art students were studying a unit on Chinese Brush Painting.  I introduced the lesson with a short educational video I purchased from Crizmac.  I also demonstrated my fine skills as well although it can be somewhat humbling when a student in the class has been studying Chinese Brush painting for years, but it that case I always have the experienced student do a demonstration and talk about their experience and  give pointers.  He or she can also help instruct the other students on the proper way of holding their special bamboo brushes and using their ink blocks.  After asking around, another teacher had a friend that was a Chinese Brush painter.  Since he was a professional artist, he required an hourly rate for visiting with the students.  Since this would enhance a current unit, it was easily approved by administration to pay the $50.00 fee.  The principal also came by the class and participated in the demonstration.  After the demonstration, our visiting artist walked around the room instructing and helping the students in creating their paintings.  He was not comfortable speaking in English but all the students spoke Korean so language was not an issue in this situation.

At the time, I had not invested in a digital camera yet so these were taken with a web cam.  Make sure you are more prepared and document your visiting artist with lots of photos so they can be used in the school newsletter, yearbook and your portfolio.

ANGOLA:  BASKET-MAKER

My school in Luanda, Angola followed the IB PYP/MYP curriculum.  The sixth grade Unit of Inquiry was African Arts.  Time was put in the schedule for me to meet with the sixth grade teacher to plan connections.  We planned a field trip to the local art market and with the help of local office staff at the school, we organized a local basket-maker to visit and demonstrate her art.  Because the local basket-maker did not speak English, we (okay, the office staff) brought in a translator.  The basket-maker did not ask for any fee, she just gave a list of supplies she would need to do her demonstration and for each student to create a small basket.  I asked if the school would pay her for her time and to cover transportation.  I believe the school gave her a small fee but not sure on the amount.  With the help of translator, she explained her background and artwork.  Then we had question/answer time in which the students could use the questions they prepared in advance or new ones.  Time had to be watched pretty close so they have time to see a demonstration on how to start a basket and also for the students to have time to start and work on their baskets as well.

THAILAND:  ORIGAMI ARTIST

During the last month of school at my school in Thailand, I would have a huge art exhibition where I would turn the library into an art museum.  I did this because I had over 400 K-6th Art students and could not get an art museum field trip organized.  So I turned the library into an art museum along with gallery guides, activity sheets, guest book and a guest artist.   Because this school had over 800 students, we had a Thai principal which was also the Head of the Arts Department.  She organized a local Origami artist to come display, demonstrate and teach her art in the library for a week.   She would stay in the library between 8am to noon for a week and classroom teachers could sign up their classes to participate in this extra activity.  I planned on taking my AM classes but my afternoon classes were left up to their classroom teachers.  She had simple projects planned, such as the crane so then it was easier for her to walk around to help where needed.  Often she would have 2 classes at once.  It was pretty active in the library with all the artwork, the hands-on activity sheets and the origami making.  It was very festive.  The visiting artist did not speak English but all the students spoke Thai so this was not an issue.

VENEZUELA:  PAINTER

My most recent school was in Venezuela.  I taught K-12 Art and a first grade student would always tell me, “My grandmother is an artist, and I am an artist too!”   Her admiration for her grandmother led me to ask her mother if the grandmother would like to visit our art class.  Her mother was very excited about this idea and in a week we had organized a visit.  She brought a wide variety of paintings in which she had painted on a various surfaces.  She painted on canvas, wood panels, tablecloths and purses to name a few.  She spoke to the students about her childhood interest in painting, how she sought out instruction and what motivates her to create.  The students were so excited and had many questions.  They also treated her like she was famous and the artist’s granddaughter was very proud.  I tried to limit the discussion to only half the class and then planned a still-life drawing exercise for the students to have a hands-on activity where she walked around the room and offered pointers to every student.  I really enjoyed this student-grandmother connection and it was a very special event for the students.  The visiting artist did not speak English but the one student that did not understand Spanish had a student translator help her understand.  This visit just happened to come about during the school’s annual silent art auction.  That is when the front of the school is turned into an art gallery where the artworks can be bid on and the money raised went towards a couple of the school’s community service projects.

OTHER IDEAS FOR VISITING ARTISTS:

Folk Artist, Muralist, Photographer, Potter/Ceramicist, Sculptor, Weaver, Doll Maker, Puppet Maker, Mask maker, Printmaker, Graphic Designer, Jewelry Designer, Calligrapher, Glass Blower, Children’s Book Illustrator, Cake Decorator, Interior Decorator, Fashion Designer, Woodworker/Woodcarver, Make-up Artist, Tattoo Artist, Graffiti ArtistИдея за подарък

The two classes before Chinese New Year are a great time to  introduce Chinese brush painting to your elementary students. I have been very successful with doing these lessons with my first grade art students. First, when the students arrive they look at an example of a Chinese brush painting of a simple animal painted with black as the main color which has a name stamp or two on it. There are many examples but I recommend “Lion is Awake” by artist Wang Yani.   They look at and discuss the elements of art in the painting with a focus on the flowing black lines and limited palette. They will also find out about the unique way of signing an artwork: the name stamp. I have done this lesson with monkeys, but in the last two years, I used the appropriate animal for the year, the Ox and the Tiger. This year, Year of the Rabbit will make some very cute paintings!

CLASS ONE: Have the students open their sketchbooks and ask them to make a quick drawing of a rabbit from memory. After about 3 minutes, hand out several print-outs of some simple drawings of rabbits. Ask them to draw one or two more drawings of rabbits using the images, but no tracing. Have them circle their favorite and place in front of them. Now by table, have them put on aprons, hand out brushes and paper. I cut the paper 12” x 18” so later when it is mounted it resembles the Asian scroll style. Luckily, the rabbit is made up of very simple shapes and can be created easily and recognizable.

I do a simple demonstration on the white board, drawing a large oval for the body, a large circle for the head filling a large part of the space reminding them to leave room for big rabbit ears! I add the ears, tail and legs, then I do the demonstration again using the black paint. I show them how to make careful sweeping brushstrokes in the Chinese brush painting style and how to hold the brush properly. This demonstration has to be done on a flat table or the floor with the students gathered around. After they watch me then I hand out the black paint and they can paint their rabbits. Another color can be given out if you feel it adds to the artwork and is appropriate for the animal. Such as brown and red was added with the monkeys. Because they will be making name stamps next class, the students will write their name in pencil in the bottom right corner and put on the drying rack. After clean up, the students are lined up by which students can recall something they learned about Chinese Brush painting during the class.

CLASS TWO: This class will also begin with the students looking at and discussing a different Chinese brush painting. They can do a comparison exercise using the painting from the first class. I hand out 1 inch squares that I cut out of Styrofoam. I demonstrate how I can write my name on it by pressing into it using a pencil but being careful not to go through. Then I use a very inky red marker to cover the Styrofoam and I press it on the paper. I point out how my name is backwards, so in order to have your name print out correctly, one has to write it backwards on the Styrofoam. I say this is very challenging so if you want to use a symbol to represent your name, that is fine, such as a smiley face, heart, sun, etc.  I show them how to carefully press over their name stamp if it doesn’t come out clearly the first time. I limit them stamping their name stamp only one or two times. I do always have a student that misses this information and they end up with like 10 stamps which is a fun comparison.

If there is time, I have the students glue their paintings down on 14” x 21” paper, usually gray or black. I demonstrate how to “center” it as they glue it down. I will often mount it on another color (16” x 23”). The measurements vary, but I do give it a long and slender look such as in Asian scroll paintings. I usually stick to gray, red, brown and black paper. This makes a great display for Chinese New Year!!!!!

Van Gogh´s Starry Night

My 7th and 8th grade art students are learning about Van Gogh. I printed off a color copy of his famous painting ¨Starry Night¨ and cut it into 16 equal sections. I gave each student one section and a larger paper (11.5 x 15). They were instructed to enlarge the small thumbnail onto the larger paper with tempera paint giving special attention to Van Gogh´s brushstroke. The students got their own palettes, brushes and paint. They were told to only ¨pump¨ one pump of each color and then when that is used, get another pump. This reduces wasting the paint. A lot of the students needed to make brown by mixing red, yellow and blue. They also had practice mixing the tints and shades of blue, yellow, green, etc. Many students needed to be reminded to put the paint on ¨thick¨ like Van Gogh. After I allowed them to paint the way they thought matched Van Gogh´s style the best, I pointed out the sections of Van Gogh´s artwork that have small dashes. I asked them to make sure they included the short brushstrokes or ¨dashes¨ in their paintings if they had not done so already. By layering the colors of tints and shades, it added richness to the painting. This exercise got the students talking about the use of paint and brushstrokes on a deeper level because they could reflect on their own experiences.

My first graders this year created pumpkins from clay using the pinch pot method. They have Art two fourty-five minute periods per week. Three classes before Halloween, I have the students work with clay. They create a simple pinch pot, turn it over, smooth the rounded sides, pinch a stem on the top and draw a face on it using a paper clip. They also put their initials on the back.

Due to the time crunch, I let the pumpkins dry over night and then I stack them in the small kiln, on low heat (with the lid cracked open) for ten hours. Then the following day, they are dried out enough to start a cone 4 bisque fire. The next class, the first graders learn about glaze, the special paint for clay, as they paint at least four ¨layers¨ of glaze on their pumpkins. I only let the students have the orange glaze at their seats but I call them by groups of four to hand in their pumpkins.

When they come over to hand them in, I have green, brown and black glaze for them to quickly add details. I do this do they do not mix all the glaze together at their tables. They are also limited to how much time they have so they don´t over do it with the other colors. They quickly add black to the face of their jack-o’-lantern and green or brown to the stem. After the class, I loaded the kiln for a cone 5 fire and they will be ready to hand out the last art class before Halloween. Happy Halloween!икони

This year the school that I am teaching at went Halloween crazy with decorations and a huge costume party. So when I introduced the holiday Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) it was no surprise to have the students confuse it with Halloween. I printed out a page of information on Halloween and a page on Dia de los Muertos and had my 8^th graders fill out a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting the two holidays. Then I had them create family portraits with all their family members as skeletons. I explained that it is a holiday that focuses on the gatherings of family and friends to remember friends and relatives who have passed away. Their portraits were to be happy as if at a celebration and not dark and spooky. The students added individual details to their family members such as hair style and clothing. Some also added family pets as skeletons as well. When they finished with their drawings they put their portraits in a frame. A nice touch was adding their family names to their artworks such as “The Marquez Family.” We put them in the entrance of the school in an “alter” display which included flowers, tissue paper cuttings, fake food, candles, bread and a sugar skull. We also added the Venn diagram to explain how two holidays compare.

   

Draw–> Collage–> Paint

This art activity includes three sequential art lessons. The first lesson consists of a number of contour line drawings of a simple six string guitar. The second includes opportunities to look at and discuss collages made by Picasso (Three Musicians.) The young artist will use paper scraps, cardboard, yarn and their contour drawings to create a collage. After it dries or is partially dry then it can be worked on with additional drawing or painting (part three.)

This three part lesson allows the student to work back into a project to transform it into a new work of art. Some students will benefit from this process because they may feel that they will destroy their work if they cut into their drawings or paint on their collage. It is an excellent way to push them to add to and manipulate their artwork.

The young artists know that the simple contour drawing can be a finished artwork and so can the collage but those works can also be transformed into another work of art. If the student feels that they have spoiled their artwork during the third lesson, they have the experience of bringing it back to where they are satisfied with the result. The whole process of building on another lesson, pushing it further (even to destruction), layering and making it into what the artist is happy with will benefit any young artist.

The above photographs are from a fourth grade class.

The art of weaving has been used in every civilization to make clothing, containers, rugs and furniture.  Weaving is the process where natural or synthetic materials are passed over and under each other in a given pattern.  In the classroom students can explore weaving by creating simple paper weavings or more advanced yarn weaving using a cardboard loom.  Younger students can successfully create a paper weaving by alternating paper strips through a paper loom.  After strips are woven through, the ends can be glued to keep them in place.  Students can play around with materials by using strips of wrapping paper, aluminum foil or recycled shopping bags.  The size and shape of the strips can also be varied. 

The history and examples of the craft should be added to enhance the activity.  Kente cloth, Navajo blankets/rugs and basket making are just a few prized examples of the art form.    

Suggested Resources from Blick Art Materials

1. Weaving Kit  $32.64  item number 65021-1009

2.  Basketry Kit  $62.99  item number 60900-1001

3.  You Can Weave (Book)  $26.95  item number 69902-1001

Сувенириикони

Clay is great fun and I like schedule a clay unit around the end of November. Students are starting to get a bit restless with the holidays around the corner and working with clay recharges the energy in the studio. With a bit of control and technique they can have an earthenware pot at the end of their session other than a mud pie, although mud pies are fun too.

The three basic ways of making an earthenware pot are the pinch, slab and coil methods. Here is a very basic introduction to each of the methods:

1. The Pinch Pot
   Make a handful of clay into a ball then push one of your thumbs into the middle of it. Leaving the thumb inside and pressing with the other fingers, you “pinch” and rotate. When the opening is big enough, you may want to place it on a surface and shape it using both hands and smoothing out cracks as you go.

2. The Slab Pot
   Take a handful of clay and press it down with the palm of your hand. (This is often described as making a hamburger patty.) Use a roller to even out the surface and be careful not to roll it too thin. Cut a rectangle out of the “slab” of clay. The rectangle will be made into a cylinder by using the “score and slip” method to join the sides. Then you cut out a circle or base out of the slab to attach to the bottom also using the score and slip method.

3. The Coil Pot
   One way to start is to make a circular slab base. Then you make a coil or “snake” by simply rubbing the clay between your hands. Measure the coil to a length that can be made into a ring and placed along the edge of the base. Attach the coil to either the side or on top of the base by using the score and slip method. Make as many of identical rings as you want then stack and join them. To give the pot extra support you may want to smooth out the crease between each coil on the inside of the pot.

Each kind of pot will need cracks smoothed out as you go, so just be careful not to use too much water which could lead to a collapsed pot. You may want to play around with the shape and add different textures to make it unique.

Younger art students love to make paper mache pumpkins or jack-o’-lanterns.  Starting with crumbled up newspaper, they shape it the size they want and wrap masking tape around it to hold the form.  After soaking orange construction paper in water for a couple of minutes, the paper can be torn into large sections.  Their little hands rub watered down elmer’s glue all over the orange paper and wrap it around the newspaper ball.  Depending on the thickness of the paper, it may need up to four layers.  

When the ”pumpkin” is dry, a stem, leaves or jack-o’-lantern face can be added.  Although I usually make these with younger students, many upper school students comment “I wanna make one!” when they pass by the pumpkin patch. Идея за подарък