Dr. Seuss Skirt

Lately, I have been able to wear my DIY Dr. Seuss skirt to some of my substituting jobs and to a couple of interviews.  Just recently, I even purchased red and white striped tights to wear with the skirt. A little over the top?  Maybe.  Awesome?  Of course! Below are pictures of the skirt from last week.

Roy Lichtenstein Inspired Still Life

Roy Lichtenstein Inspired Still Life
5th Grade

Great lesson to use for Pop Art aspects and review on warm colors, cool colors, symmetry, and pattern.

Step 1.  Choose a spot to sit around the still life with paper and pencil.  Draw bowl and fruits. Leave  just a line to indicate the table from the wall.

Step 2.  Using different types for patterns and shapes, create a symmetrical design for the bowl.

Step 3.  Use patterns for the table design and the wall.

Step 4.  Color in the fruit with warm cools.

Step 5.  Color in the bowl with cool colors.

Step 6. Use a sharpie to outline everything and color in any black spaces in the designs for the table and wall.

View my lesson plan with link below:

COMING SOON!

Eric Carle Inspired Bugs

Eric Carle Inspired Bugs
3rd Grade

Eric Carle is one of my very favorite artists.  I thought up this project idea my first year of teaching.  I discovered my 3rd grade students where doing a play about bugs.  It was perfect timing to do an Eric Carle inspired class! Not only did I love it, but my students had a lot of fun with this project.  This lesson stressed the idea of process.  One can't move onto the next step right away, and each layer uses different media to create a unique product.  

Step 1.  Choose idea for a bug and its background.

Step 2.  Hand out watercolor paper (9"x12"), watercolor, and paintbrushes. Paint background.

Step 3.  Hand out plain, white paper (8.5"x11" or 9"x12"). Paint paint with a variety of colors that will be need to make up chosen bug.  Make sure to add flicks of color, so the bug isn't made up of plain, solid colors. (Note: The use of different tints and shades and colors in Eric Carle's bugs and animals.)

Step 4.  Allow time for both background and painted papers to dry.

Step 5.  Once dry, cut out needed pieces of painted papers to create all the bug's body parts.

Step 6. Glue bug pieces onto background.

Step 7. If any other details are needs, add color/detail with oil pastels.

View my lesson plan with link below:

COMING SOON!

Coil Hearts

Coil Hearts
1st Grade

The project was inspired by the artist Jim Dine.  Jim Dine was part of the Pop Art movement.  An easy way to note that is his repetition of his shapes and the vibrant use of colors. This lesson allows the students to gain more experience and learn a new few clay techniques while creating an art piece that has the concept of form (aka dimension).  As the students continue in their education, they can use their knowledge and experience on the concept of form (2D vs. 3D) in core areas such as math.  The first year I made these, my first graders really enjoyed this project. 

Step 1.  Use a rolling pin to roll the clay flat.  I usually use the “Roll, Roll, Flip” method, so my clay doesn’t get stuck to the table.  Roll it twice then flip it over.  Roll it twice then flip it over.

Step 2.  Use a “large toothpick”  (aka. a picked wooden stick) or a pencil to cut out a heart shape.

Step 3.  Use the excess clay to roll clay snakes. 

Step 4.  Roll the clay snakes into coils.  The number of coils needed will depend on how 1) how big the clay heart is 2) how big the coils are.

Step 5.  Score the bottom of each coil and score the area of the heart to which you wish to attach coil. Score definition (for the students): To scratch hatch marks into the clay.

Step 6. Add slip to the bottom of each coil and the heart.  Slip definition (for the students): Liquid clay with the constituency of thick cream.

Step 7. Smooth coil and heart together as needed.

Step 8. Allow heart to dry for a week then bake in kiln.

Step 9. Color coils with construction paper crayons. (Oil crayons pastels will work, too.)

Step 10. Paint the entire heart with black tempera paint. Sometimes I would water down the paint just a tiny bit to help.  (Making sure to get paint even in-between the coils.)

Step 11. For students finishing early, they may choose an activity from the Jim Dine Choice Board. (For 1st graders, I, the teacher, would just pick a few (3ish) activities from the Choice Board and have examples and simple materials ready to go.) If you move this whole project up to older grades, I would let the students read and pick from the choice board themselves.

Choice Board:

View my lesson plan with link below:

COMING SOON!

Sewing @ Last

Around the age of 9 or 10, my mother tried teaching me how to sew.  I found some interest in it, but for the next 13 to 14 years I found little interest in it.  Then... Boom! Recently, my interest in sewing started to grow immensely.  I saw on Pinterest and Etsy all these cute skirts and dresses.  If they could do it, why couldn't I?  With the help and encouragement of my mother, I have begun sewing my own projects.  I just finished my very first skirt.  I am in the middle of sewing a couple of fun patterned dresses.  Furthermore, I just ordered a load of Eric Carle fabrics, so I can create my very own Eric Carle throw quilt.  Yet, the genius I am, I decided to chose a hexagon pattern.  Hexagon patterns aren't the hardest thing a quilter can make, but they certainly aren't the easiest thing for a beginning quilter to make.  Oh, well.  I'll have a grand old time nonetheless.  Below is a picture of the skirt I just finished.  It is made out of Dr. Seuss Cat in the Hat fabric.  So fun! I can't wait to wear in it the classroom next year during Dr. Seuss week!

More photos of my sewing projects to come as I finish them. :)

Lichtenstein Inspired Self-Portrait Cartoon

Lichtenstein Inspired Self-Portrait Cartoon

Junior High 

The idea for the lesson came from a junior high art teacher from Georgia named Amy.  Her blog is called, "Artful Artsy Amy".  Making my own example was quite fun.  Thanks for the idea, Amy!

This lesson connects the pop culture today (a major part/influence on students lives) to the ideas of the Pop Art movement, like Ben-Day dots and cartoons, and its a few of its artists, like Warhol, Lichtenstein, Oldenburg, and Raucshenberg.  It also allows the students to practice their skills and knowledge of primary colors (RYB) and how to copy the contour lines of a photograph.

Step 1.  Find a picture of yourself where you can at least see the head and shoulders. Print off photo on a 8.5" x 11' paper.  The picture should take up most of the page.

Step 2.  Grab a blank piece of 8.5" x 11' paper, and lay it onto of the photograph. Using a light tray (or a window with good light shining in) trace all the contour lines of yourself with a pencil.

Step 3.  Double check you drawing to make sure you traced all the necessary lines.

Step 4.  Free hand a thought or speech bubble.  Make a school appropriate sentence or two that can relate to the picture.

Step 5.  Make a gestural thumbnail sketch of the your picture, and label each section with the primary color you intend on using for it. Next, either make a mental or written note for what sections are going to be filled with dots and which sections you would like to be solid.  (Example: I chose to make my skin red dots, but I filled in my entire outfit with solid color.)

Step 6.  Begin painting picture with primary watercolors. Background needs to be painted in, as well.  NOTE: If students would like to make a section look like a secondary color a little bit, they may do this my painting the whole section with one primary color. Once the first color is dry, they may go back and make little dots on top of that section with the other needed primary color.  (Example: I colored in a few areas on my puppy's paws and nose with yellow.  After the yellow dried, I went back and put red dots on top of yellow.  This gave those areas a bit of an orange look.)

Step 7. Paper may curl on edges.  If possible, carefully place the paper under something heavy to flatten in out AFTER it is all dried. Make sure the paper is laying as flat as possible, so the edges don't edge up getting creased the wrong way.

View my lesson plan with link below:

COMING SOON!

Ben-Day Dot Pop Art Bottles

Ben-Day Dot Pop Art Bottles

Junior High 

The idea for the lesson came from Ms. Bryans' blog "Art Teacher Diaries". I thoroughly enjoyed creating my own example.

This lesson connects the pop culture today (a major part/influence on students lives) to the ideas of the Pop Art movement, like Ben-Day dots, and its a few of its artists, like Warhol, Lichtenstein, Oldenburg, and Raucshenberg.  It also allows the students to practice their skills and knowledge of colors (primary and secondary) and value (by shading using hatching and cross-hatching).

Step 1.  Allow students to pick out a pop or juice bottle to draw while handing out Ben-Day dot worksheet.

Step 2.  Fold the Ben-Day dot worksheet in half to draw only half of the bottle. (This will help the students get the symmetry right.)

Step 3.  Add the details to the bottle. (Lego, ounces, design, etc.)

Step 4.  With the pencil, give the bottle value and shading by using hatching and cross-hatching shading techniques.

Step 5.  Before the students been coloring, they will need to refer to the color wheel to figure out what complimentary color they should use for the background. (Note: Whatever color takes e up a majority of the bottle, use its complimentary color for the background. Example: If my bottle is mostly green, I should use green’s complimentary color red.)

Step 6.  Lightly color in the colors of the bottle with colored pencils. (REMINDER: One of the colored sections on their paper needs to be colored by using two primary colored pencils to create the needed secondary color.)

Step 7. Using markers, color the dots. (Note: Students need to match the marker color to the color the section already is.  The section where two primary colored pencils were use, they students can just use the one secondary colored marker instead of using two primary colors markers. (Examples: If I used yellow and blue colored pencils to make a section green, I can just color in the dots with a green marker.)

Step 8. Outline the bottle and its details with a fine-point Sharpie.

Step 9. With the Sharpie, go over the hatching and cross-hatching lines used to give the bottle value and shading.

Step 10. With a glue stick (bottled glue might make the marker run), paste the worksheet on a piece of colored construction paper (students can choose the color). 

View my lesson plan with link below:

COMING SOON!