Art Class

Our weekly art class is a highlight for students and teachers alike. Our school year started with yarn dogs and melty beads. Melty beads are a great way to work on fine motor skills. A great back-to-school warmup.  

In October we made crayon resist haunted houses. House design with a spooky twist. The full moon and watercolor sky finished the piece.

Our fifth grade students independently planned our Halloween activities. They decided math should have a Halloween theme, so they carefully drew out a Halloween poster and enlarged it using the grid method. Next, they filled each blank with a math problem at the appropriate level for the student. On Halloween each student solved their problems and used a key to determine the color based on the solution. After everyone finished coloring, the papers fit together like a puzzle to make a large poster. Awesome idea fifth grade!

Our fifth graders also designed a Halloween art project. They created salted watercolor backgrounds and pumpkins covered in yellow and orange tissue paper. What a cute crop of pumpkins the students made!

Thanksgiving seemed like an appropriate time for collaborative art. Students created papier-mâché fruits and vegetables, as well as a large cornucopia. They enjoyed looking at pictures of real produce to inspire their paint mixing. They will be looking at squash differently now that they have observed its beauty, even if their perspectives on taste remain unchanged.

In December we melted hard candies to make beautiful glass-like ornaments. 

We also created button trees. Besides making a beautiful craft, all of the students can now thread needles and sew on buttons. 

In January we explored quilt patterns. The children recreated different classic designs out of foam squares as they explored patterns and colors. Then they each created their own colorful paper quilt.

For Valentine's Day the students created and stitched together heart shaped Valentine's envelopes. They enjoyed taking them home stuff with cards from friends after our party.

A collection of yarn and flower fairies brighten our school as we wait for the spring weather to arrive. 

Saint Patrick's Day was celebrated with a bit of Irish dance, making soda bread and creating Celtic Knots. Our students each worked on shading at their own level with gorgeous results. 

As the first tree blossoms of spring arrived we learned a bit about the cherry blossom festival and created our own blossoming branches.