Patterns!!!

As we have been finishing up our Math unit on patterns, the students have been working on using pattern blocks to create beautiful 3-D pictures. They have been very creative with their designs.

Directed Drawing Lessons

We have Directed Drawing lessons 3 or 4 times a week. Students follow the direction of my drawings on the whiteboard while creating their own pictures on paper. They have been taking these lessons quite seriously and are gaining their skills more and more each week. We have been drawing a variety of domesticated animals.

As a result of these lessons many students are spending their free time (book time or Centres) using my collection of ‘how to’ drawing books to continue to work on their drawing techniques.

I am happy to see so much enthusiasm for Art!!

Pumpkin Carving in the Classroom

As part of our pumpkin unit, last Tuesday afternoon we dissected the class pumpkin that I got from our trip to the Laity Pumpkin Patch. I had a bulb / root that had come out of my garden when I was collecting leaves for our Elements of Art lesson a few weeks ago. So we began by talking about the ways that plants grow – bulbs or seeds. We talked about the similarities and differences between the two methods. While one is a bulb, and the other a seed, they both are planted in soil and begin by sending roots down into the earth. The jobs of the roots are to hold the plant securely in place and to suck up water to provide the plant with the means to make food. Once the plants are ‘grounded’ they send shoots up into the air from which the plants grow. We have spent a fair bit of time over the past two weeks discussing the process of photosynthesis – the way that plants use water, air, and sunlight to make their own food (glucose).

I had cut the lid off of the pumpkin and then let the students clean it out. Those students, who wanted to, formed a very productive assembly line which included: some students cleaning out the seeds and pulp; some washing the seeds; and others drying the seeds and putting them onto a cookie sheet. I baked these after school and left them for the students to have the next day.

The students had all tried the pumpkin pie that I brought into class the day after Thanksgiving so they were interested in seeing the part of the pumpkin that we eat.

Elements of Art – Colour

In the ongoing series of our lessons on the elements of art we have been experimenting with colour. Students learned about the three ‘primary’ (or first) colours: red, yellow, and blue. These are colours that cannot be made by other colours but, when combined, will create other colours. These colours are called ‘secondary’ colours. These colours are: green (made from blue and yellow), purple (red and blue combined), and orange (red and yellow put together). These are ‘secondary’ colours if they are mixed with equal parts of each ‘primary’ colour. When more of one primary is used than the other, then the resulting colour is called an ‘intermediate’ colour.

Elements of Art Lesson

Last Thursday we had a discussion on the Elements of Art. Students learned what an element is (the parts that make up a whole thing). We then discussed the six things (elements) that make up Art – colour, form, shape, value, line, and texture.

On Friday, students explored these elements through the media of wax crayons and leaves by experimenting with rubbing techniques. They outlined some leaves to show ‘line’ and ‘shape’. They used a variety of ‘colours’. By putting more or less pressure on the wax crayons they were able to show ‘value’ (lightness and darkness). The feathery look of the rubbings inferred ‘texture’. The only element that was not able to be demonstrated was ‘form’ as the leaf rubbings cannot be picked up off of the paper.

The students’ work is on the bulletin board in the hallway outside of our classroom.

Here are some portions of the rubbings:

Laity Pumpkin Farm Trip

We had a really great trip to the pumpkin patch on October 6, 2015. We were lucky to have so many parents willing to give their time to help make this a fun day for our students. The weather was spectacular which added to our great experience.

Here are some of the highlights of our trip:

The Petting Zoo