The Summer Art Curriculum focused on the merging of Art and Technology. Technology plays a big part in our everyday lives and is also an exciting Art medium to work in and to explore in numerous ways. The School Age classes created different types of circuits and learned how sound, movement, and light could help to tell a story or communicate artistic expression, while the younger classes explored both old and new technology: through electric play dough to creating photograms with the sun's rays to making their own paint from fruits and vegetables. The process of our art-making plays as much of a role as the final result, if not more. We spent the summer being curious problem solvers by taking things apart and putting them back together, learning by questioning and challenging our peers, and coming up with new inventions and ideas. The Cheetahs spent several months learning about Mexico and artist Frida Kahlo in both their Social Studies and Art classes at scho. We had a chance to visit the New York Botanical Garden on Wednesday, June 10th to see the new exhibit featuring a re-creation of Kahlo's garden and studio at her home, Casa Azul, in Mexico City. The Cheetahs got to learn about some of the plants native to Mexico and also got to create a still-life drawing of Mexican fruits and plants.
The Tigers and Great White Sharks are busy filming their movie scripts with the help of a green screen to make their films come to life! Here are some behind-the scenes shots from the movie-making: both with and without the special effects. The color weeks are in full swing! Today for BLACK week, the preschoolers drew in the dark on black paper with metallic markers. We had flashlights, a disco ball, and listened to Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon.The Tigers and Great White Sharks are building and designing hats! We've been learning and looking at many different types of hats throughout history. The students helped each other measure the circumference of his/her heads and created a mold of the top of their head on a head form with aluminum foil As the Tigers began creating the brim of their hats, each student's hat really started to take on its own personality. Here is a sneak peak of what's happening so far in the classroom:
The Great White Sharks are learning how to build with and manipulate clay over the next several weeks. Students will explore techniques such as pinching, coiling, modeling, and slab making. The Sharks are also exploring how to combine clay with other materials such as mosaics and wire and how to use clay tools. The Chinchillas and Joeys have been busy building the set for their upcoming stop-motion film, "Peter and the Wolf." Each group was responsible for different aspects of the set, such as Grandfather's house, the forest, meadow, and pond. The Cheetahs learned how to a use several digital drawing programs on their on individual iPads and compared digital vs. traditional drawing methods. Using the iPads helped students to understand that all drawing mediums use a varied use of lines and colors to convert expression. Students elaborated visual information by adding details in their artwork and learned that drawing helps support memory and imagination skills. We made 2 run, 3 color prints using shapes inspired by outdoor observations. The Bunnies have been talking about objects that roll in Art. We've been using materials that roll such as brayers, spools, and wooden dowels.Screen printing with the Tigers and Great White Sharks
After participating in a collaborative activity inspired by geometric landscapes, the Tigers and Great White Sharks observed the shapes and lines in the environment outside the windows at Gillen Brewer. The students sketched and then created stencils of different shapes inspired from their observations. Each student received their own screen printing frame and the stencil was carefully placed onto the screen. The students then learned about the process of screen printing and all of the tools involved. Students then created 3-4 prints of their stencil. Screen printing is an activity that involves a lot of teamwork so each class worked in groups of two. Each "printer" needed a "helper" to hold down the screen while he or she pushed and pulled the squeegee back and forth. The "helper" also helped place the ink on the screen and held the squeegee while the printer lifted the screen to reveal his/her print. For our next class the Great White Sharks and Tigers will place a second stencil on the screen and make a multi-colored print that overlaps their first stencil. The Dolphins and Bunnies learned about different tools that artists can use to make paintings. In addition to a paintbrush, the students tried using a funky brush, made out of a rubber-band top and a Q-tip and talked about how these materials made different types of marks on their papers when dipped in paint. Many of the preschoolers also realized that their hands can also be used as a painting tool!
The Penguins and Grasshoppers are exploring ways in which artists use lines and shapes in 2 and 3D form. Over the next several months they will be exposed to many different art materials and forms and learn to make individual choices about the way they engage with these materials. Today, we talked about different types of lines. The students were asked to stand up and stretch their bodies. (always a good thing to do when making a transition to another classroom!) We made tall, straight lines by reaching our arms high above our heads and standing on our tiptoes. The students curved their bodies from left to right. We wiggled and jiggled. Students made their own suggestions to jump up and down in place or spin in a circle. The classes were then introduced to the materials for the day: a large piece of white, watercolor paper, ink, and a brush. We talked about how artists can use their paintbrush to make different types of lines...just like we did with our bodies. The Grasshoppers and Penguins shared their ideas with their classmates and teachers and enjoyed trying out a new material: ink.
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May 2018
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