5th Grade Gesture Sculptures

 This project is a natural extension of our gesture drawings.  Students began by building their figures out of aluminum foil, and after bending them into the desired action pose, they covered the figures in tape. Duck tape seems to be a better choice than colored masking tape, which did not stick very well.   An environment was created out of foam core board or tag board, and then I began the hot glue extravaganza in order to balance the figures and add details.  Student's personalities and interests were definitely reflected in their work!

1st Grade Snowflake Secrets

 Snowflake secrets revealed!

1.  Start with a circle shape
2.  Use thin paper - in this case, tissue paper
3.  Fold 3 times - we call the folds the taco fold, the
     pizza fold, and the party hat fold
4.  Cut from all 3 sides - don't be afraid to cut out
      large shapes!
5.  Iron snowflakes in between wax paper to protect
     them

This is impressive 1st grade work!  

3rd Grade Weavings

 I was only able to get a few pictures of these impressive weavings before my camera battery died...more later!  Weaving can be difficult for students to master, but a round weaving format seems to make the process fun and easier, but still a bit of a challenge!  Students focused on creating just the right color combinations to make their artwork pop.  Feathers, beads and braids were finishing touches that students could choose to add if they wished.  My 3rd graders noticed right away that these look quite a bit like Native American dream catchers!

2nd Grade Rainbow Fish!

 This project is inspired by the beloved book, The Rainbow Fish. Students were required to use organic shapes to draw their fish, create pattern in the scales, and mix the secondary colors by using only the primary colors.  The finishing touch, beyond the wonderful background details, was a glittering silver scale.  Beautiful!