Snowmen Ornaments

I save the lids to frozen juice and I have a lot of them. 

First graders made these snowmen ornaments using punched out white circles glued to the lids...

and construction paper for the hats.

Here's a group of them...

and another group of jolly, happy, frosty snowmen!

Shrinky Dink

Second graders learned how to use Shrinky Dink. 

They used a template to draw a circle onto a piece of paper where they did their design. 

The clear plastic Shrinky Dink material was place on top and traced. 

They outlined it in a sharpie and then colored with colored pencils.

Here you can see the variety of designs. 

The circle is about 4" in diameter and flexible before shrinking... 

and is about 2" in diameter and a hard plastic after shrinking.

I shrink it in my oven at 325˚ for 3 minutes. 

You can find Shrinky Dink at most craft stores. Kids love it and you might love it too!

Roy G. Biv

First graders learned about the color wheel order last week when they created a color explosion. 

This week they met Roy G. Biv and created a little portrait of him. 

Roy G. Biv is important because it's a way to remember the color wheel order. 

Red

Orange

Yellow

Green

Blue

Indigo

Violet

Here are a few portraits to enjoy.

It's also a way to remember the order of a rainbow. 

Roy G. Biv 

By the way - I think he might be related to Mr. Dot - there seems to be a resemblance!

Using Our Painted Paper

Second grade students start to create their poinsettia collages. 

They use a solid color for the base and the table top

 and cut a symmetrical vase out of textured wall paper.

The petals and leaves are cut out of the painted paper they created last week.

Below are some of the wonderful pieces second grade students created. 

They used gold and white paint to accent their work.

Students who finished early made a poinsettia ornament out of the left over scraps. 

Beautiful!

Painted Paper

Second graders explored paint, mixing, color and scraping to create textured painted paper. 

They will use the paper they created next week. 

They started by painting their paper with a random design using mostly warm colors on one sheet and mostly cool colors on the other sheet.

 Next they used scrapers to create interesting swirls and stripes.

Here is a sample of some finished paper. Check back next week to see their creations. 

Watercolor Town

First graders created a town using basic shapes. First they drew their town with a black crayon, then they added details to their buildings, a road and a car. 

Looks like a great place to visit!

Hallmark Card

Last March I entered a Hallmark card contest and my watercolor of a dove won!  Hallmark made my painting into a UNICEF card that can be purchased online at hallmarkcontests.com and they also printed it to be sold in Hallmark stores as part of their UNICEF boxed card line with the profits going to UNICEF. Be on the lookout for my card in your local Hallmark store!

Marbled Clay

Pre-k and early childhood students created beautiful marbled clay pots using Model Magic air dry clay. 

First they started with white and a smaller amount of another color. They had blue and red to choose from. Then they squeezed and pinched the clay until it started to blend together for a marbled look. They rolled it into a ball and flattened it then they used their knee to create a curve shape. They placed it onto an upside down bowl to dry. 

Here are some close up shots of the beautifully marbled clay and 2 finished pots. 

Mr. Dot

Oh Mr. Dot - the students at Tate Woods love you. 

When we have some extra time in class, students are making small (3" x 3") portraits of Mr. Dot and hanging them all over the art room. 

But it's not just Mr. Dot they're making - oh no - they're making Mrs. Dot, baby dot, Mr. Dot's sister, pumpkin dot, Frankenstein dot, ninja dot, kitty dot - really too many to list here. The creativity and joy that I see when the students are making Mr. Dot is amazing. Try giving your child some small pieces of paper and see what they come up with. You could make a version of Mr. Dot with your child. 

It's fun. 

Read about why Mr. Dot is in the art room in my post dated January 21, 2013.

Here he is - Mr. Dot!

iPads in the Art Room

First and second grade students are using iPads in the art room to create art work for their ocean banks.

They used the free app Hello Crayon. 

Here are some samples of the wonderful work they created.

Owls

First graders painted these wonderfully textured owls. 

They dabbed on the paint to look like feathers

and used a pencil eraser tip to print the black in the center of the eye.