Gus and the Art Room

 I had an unofficial mascot in my art room this year. 

The story started ten months ago.  Lots of chairs, tables and supplies from other classrooms ended up in my art room so that social distancing could be enforced in each classroom. It was decided that I would go to each classroom to teach art, rather than having kids come to the art room so that COVID-19 exposure could be minimized. Between classes, I went to the art room to grade art and do prep work. Over time, I became accustomed to the towers of chairs and tables in the room. So when a second grader peered into the room recently, his question surprised me.

“Mrs. Sarah, why is there an esophagus in your room?” He asked, and so I glanced over to the mountain of chairs and supplies. Was there a biology model tucked into the mountain? No, I don’t think so. And how does a second grader even know the word “esophagus?” I was impressed.

“Oh! You mean the sarcophagus. That’s from the sixth grade room, and they moved it down here. It took up too much room and they needed to space the sixth graders out more,” I explained to my student. And how does a second grader even know the word “sarcophagus?” Is he some kind of pint-sized Egyptologist?

I decided that Gus the sarcophagus would be my co-teacher. We make a good team. Frankly, I feel like I do more of the work than he does, but he brings a lot of style to the room. Gus and I cooked up some fun art projects for the kids in the final weeks of the school year. 

One of our spring projects was coloring chameleons. I drew a chameleon, photocopied it, and the kids added lots of color to the critters. Bright colors. I told them, “Show me how a chameleon changes colors. Add leaves. Add an environment!” Some kids skimped on the leaves—I think they were worn out and were counting the minutes until school let out—but some kids ran with it. I gave the seventh grade scraps of origami paper to turn into leaves, and this brought an extra dimension to their art. How cute are these?

Kindergarten

Kindergarten

1st gr

1st gr

4th gr

7th gr

7th gr

7th gr

7th gr

Next up: designing a fictitious package of food. It could be based on a real food, I told the kids, but they had to change the name. I also asked them to try to give the food unusual features. My example was “Growtoni,” the rigatoni pasta that makes your hair grow extra fast. The kids used their imaginations and really came up with some creative ideas.  

8th gr

7th gr

3rd gr

4th gr

5th gr

5th gr

7th gr

8th gr

4th gr

8th gr

4th gr

5th gr

My youngest students, Kindergarteners, made 3-d sunflowers last month. I did the prep work but the kids did cutting, gluing and accent drawing to bring these happy flowers to life. They are inexpensive to make, with paper plates from the dollar store, construction paper, pipe cleaners and glue. Each flower is a little bit different, and I think they look cheerful.

And so, another school year has drawn to a close. I am simultaneously shocked that it went so fast, and relieved that it’s June, because it was a big, full year and I need a rest. Thanks for checking out my wonderful students’ creations. Until we meet again, have a healthy and safe summer.

I’ll see you soon, probably at the Dollar Store, where I’ll be looking for things to turn into art supplies…

  

May the Force (of Art) Be With You

The final hours of May are upon us, and so it’s time for my May blog post. Sure, I could have posted on the thirty days of May before today, but then you wouldn’t feel the sense of suspense and anticipation that you have right now. You’re welcome.

In my defense, it’s been a super busy month around here. I put together a student art show and it came out very well, but it took a lot of work to prepare and install. I sorted roughly two thousand pieces of art, installed more than three hundred pieces in the show, and now I have the…joy…of sorting the two thousand pieces and distributing them to the kids. Oh, and my fourth quarter grades are due tomorrow. Obviously, this is the ideal time to write a blog post.

My students have made some really fun and imaginative creations this year and without further ado, here are some of their springtime creations.

Let’s get things started with some zebras.

We’ll begin with a few pieces of zebra trivia. Did you know that a group of zebras is called a zeal?

How fast can a zebra run? Up to 65 km/hr. 

Their stripes help them to camouflage, but the stripes also act as sunscreen and bug repellant.

And now to the art. Zebras done by third graders:

Zebras drawn by fifth graders:

Next up are some pipe cleaner figures made by the eighth grade. This was a quick assignment but big on fun. The colors are bright, the rules are few, and the results are imaginative and playful.

 

Now we will look at puzzle art made by kids of all ages. I drew and photocopied a blank puzzle template and told the kids they could draw whatever they wanted in their puzzle (using good judgment, of course). Some made abstract designs and some drew their favorite Anime or video game characters. There were rap stars, nature scenes, cityscapes and animals. I love the variety and the kids seemed to like choosing their subjects.

Kindergarten

1st grade

1st grade

1st grade

2nd grade

3rd grade

3rd grade

4th grade

4th grade

5th grade

6th grade

7th grade

8th grade

Last up we have what I called Reflection Art because the shiny silver material we used acts as tiny mirrors. My friends Jeanne and John gave me the material, and I put it into my art supply stash (hoarder’s paradise) to figure out later. One day this spring I came upon it and decided that the kids would cut the material into small shapes (almost like mosaic tesserae) and make some kind of art. Some are abstract and some have a representational subject, but all are creative and unique.

All of the following were made by 5th graders:

When I arrived at 7^th grade last week, the kids were placing a large bucket below a drip coming from the ceiling. The air conditioning was acting up and leaking through the acoustic tiled ceiling. I stood at the laptop ZOOM setup (for distance learners) about a foot away from the drip and joked that I was about to have my Nickelodeon slime moment. As the minutes passed, the saturated ceiling tile sagged lower and lower. I inched away and attempted to teach, but some teens are easily distracted and I could not compete with the drip. Suddenly, the ceiling tile crashed to the (carpeted) floor and broke into pieces. With their layers and dotted texture, they looked like giant, soggy, broken graham crackers. Some kids shrieked. Others jostled for a look. What have I said before? Never dull when you teach teens.

I’m saving one last batch of student art for my June blog post, so stay tuned. I'm ready to stagger over the finish line of the school year, and I’ll share more kiddo creations soon.

Until we blog again, may the force of art be with you. (It’s the only Star Wars reference I know, so I hope you liked it.) 

On this Memorial Day, I thank those who have fallen in service to our country.

To everyone, stay healthy and be safe.