Blind Contour Spring Drawing

This lesson incorporated different geometric symbols and used color in a local stereotypic way. This lesson was for a 1^st grade classroom but could be used for 2^nd or 3^rd. I was never aware of blind drawing until this lesson but learned that it is when an artist draws a subject without looking at the paper. In this lesson they used warm and cool colors to create a painting over their drawing of a spring scene with a white crayon. The drawing showed up because it was drawn with a white crayon. An extension of this activity could include integrating this drawing with a science lesson when learning about the four different seasons. A teacher would assign each student a different season and they would have to draw a scene that would look like the season they were assigned. The students would have to include something that makes the scene look like their season and the colors of that season.   

Crazy about plaid!

This activity was done over Easter time but could be used to make any kind of animal. We read the a book about plaid and used vocabulary like lines, warm colors, cool colors, and color wheel. As an extention activity I would have the students bring in something plaid they have at home and have a "plaid day" on a Friday at school. During plaid day, the students would wear their plaid they found from home and we would go over the various types of plaid one can have. The students would then be able to paint something plaid using two different colors. The students would get many different examples to choose from and I think they would really grasp the concept of the plaid pattern through these exercises.   

Hidden Safari Drawing:

This is a drawing of an elephant. I drew it in a cool color (light blue). I then drew over it with warmer colors and used a variety of patterns. This camoflaged the drawing of the elephant. When the students put on their already made glasses, the picture of the elephant will appear. An extention activity for this drawing could be a lesson on animals that use camoflage as a form of protection. The studnets could research different animals and then draw a picture similar to this one to depict their reasearch.  

This is a Eric Karle inspired painting. His paintings are very unique and many different strokes and colors are used. I painted many different papers a couple days before. I cut the shapes out of the painted papers. This created a variety of textures and colors. 

 In the classroom, I would let the students make their own stories  and use their own colors. To integrate a subject, I would use it is reading. The students could read a story and create a collage from what they see in their head. It would be very cool to see what each child comes up with!

This project included tissue paper, gel medium, black construction paper, and a silver sharpie. It was a very enjoyable project to do and would be easy to incorporate in a classroom. I liked it because the students will be able to create their own design with the tissue paper. It requires cutting, gluing, and drawing. The students will first cut out designs out of tissue paper. They will be using the gel medium and paint on the tissue paper. They will then take another construction paper and cut out the "city" scene. Next, the students will glue on city and paint on the gel medium over the whole picture. This gives it the glossy look. You can integrate this into a lesson about the sky and view from different areas in the world. While the student's are learning about cities and open areas, the teacher can use this activity to let the students show their creativity. This will give the teacher a better assessment of their understanding of the topic. 

This is a finger painting of a view of a lake. This was done with a blank canvas and blue, red, green, and white paint. The students were able to use their creativity to do this project. This put the lecture into action. The students were able to mix paints and create anything they wanted! 

Elements and Principles of ART!

LINE: a mark made by a pointed tool. This picture is of the bricks on my fireplace at my house. What kind of lines are these? Thick, thin, straight, curvy?

TEXTURE: the surface quality of artwork. You use your touching sense when you are dealing with texture. These three oranges were photographed at my house on the kitchen table. What do you think these oranges feel like?

VALUE: the darkness and lightness of an object. This basketball can be found in my house. Where is the darkest and lightest value of this basketball?

RHYTHM/MOVEMENT: repetition of visual movement of the elements. This is a picture of the frost on my car on a cold morning. What kind of movement do you see?

EMPHASIS: creates dominance and focus in art work. This picture is of a peacock at Wylie Park. Does anythink stick out in the photo? If so, what makes it stick out?

ME!

As an introduction of myself, I created a footprint with things that I want my students to remember me by. My footprint ranges from my hobbies to some of my favorite things! All, in which, have impacted my life and made me the person I am today. To start off, I made my footprint in pink. Pink is my favorite color! I'm a sucker for bright and colorful things! On the top right is a hay bale. The hay bale represents where I grew up. I grew up in a small town and did many "small town" things, such as, rode horse, fed cows, picked rock, and even drove a tractor! Moving to the right is an ice cream cone. This is my absolute favorite food! It also represents my friends because whenever we are stressed or bored, we get ice cream and bond. It seems to calm us down a bit! The F represents my faith, family, and friends; three of the most important things in my life. The sun represents my favorite season. I love everything about summer, from the lake to the watermelon! The purple music notes show my love for music, especially country music! I put an apple and banana on my footprint because I like to lead a healthy lifestyle and I hope to educate my future students about staying healthy inside and outside the classroom. The faces on the bottom are children! I have a passion for teaching young children and can't wait to start my own classroom. Last but not least, the basketball, volleyball, and softball's represent my love for sports. I am very active and love to play, watch, or coach any kind of sport!

This project would be very helpful in the introduction of a class. The students would be instructed to use three different mediums to create their “footprint”. They would be excited to share about themselves as well as learning about their other classmates. The foot print would include their name, any hobbies they have, and what is important to them. I would integrate this project with a pen pal unit. I would work with other teachers from other areas of the world. They would have their students do the same and send them (or digitally email them) to their pen pal explaining themselves. The students would then have a chance to examine their pen pals foot. We would send letters back and forth asking questions about the items they listed and why. For example, if they like to fish. In class, we could talk about how fishing is an important industry in their country. Each student would have something to share about their pen pal that would relate to where they are from.