Spooky Halloween Trees: Art for Primary Children

Here is a quick halloween activity

 for primary students.

Firstly, grab some A3 paper in white or yellow. 

Blue could work nicely too.

Find a circular object and trace around it to make the moon.

We discussed that a centred moon

 does not make a terribly interesting composition.

Now for the fun... charcoal experimentation!

Students were challenged to try using their charcoal sticks

from all angles and create all manner of marks.

This gets a lot of their system as well as being fruitful.

Then I demonstrated how to create variety of tone

 by varying the pressure, using smudging etc. 

They filled in the background, except the moon.

Ink time!

Brushes, nibs, sticks.

More experimentation time.

When it was time to move on,

they used ink to create a tree.

Trees always look easy peasy,

 but actually can be quite challenging for some.

Its important to discuss overlapping,

and the change in the thickness as the tree branches out.

 Many students just put the tree to one side,

 but I like the way this student is playing with position and composition.

Finally, an introduction into light sources.

Turning the fluros on and off in the classroom

and noting how it changes the light on our faces and the objects around us.

We noted that in our spooky pictures

the moon was our light source.

We used a waxy white pencil and simple lines to highlight the branches and trunk of the tree.

A simple line on the underside or top side of the branch

 was all that was required to make the trees extra spooky.

What else?

Add a eerie bird. 

Take a photo of the image and play with filters.

Create a new foreground.

Or, simply put it up for halloween!

Boo everybody!

Trees, dots and colour blending :TR Mack style Yr 5 Primary art

My year 5 boys have just completed a painting unit based, 

inspired by the work of TR Mack.

There are a number of art education ideas

 floating around the internet,

 regarding this artist.

 One I particularly admire 

is by One Crayola Short,

 so check it out too.

I have taken a slightly different approach with my Yr 5 boys.

We began with some colour wheel theory and vocabulary (building the foundations).

Eventually we turned our focus
 to monochromatic colour schemes.

The boys were set the task
 of painting a monochromatic background.

We discussed choices they could make such as blending,

or using a more textured cross hatching approach.

Monochromatic Background using a textured approach

The next step was to look at the work of TR Mack
 and deconstruct his approach to tree scapes.

The boys practiced drawing trees...
 splitting branches again and again.
We discussed styles; swirly, angular, sparse, spooky etc.

(incidentally there are real science and Maths links

 possible here, as my husband pointed out).

Fill in the trees in a solid colour such as black or navy

Before the boys were ready to draw
 up their tree(s) on their background,

we recapped some compositional concepts
 that we had covered in a previous unit.

Points such as:

•  avoid placement in the centre,
•  anchoring the image by connecting to the edges,
• variety of size if there is more than one tree etc. 

Add a ground if you wish

Finally, we printed dots,
 and dots on dots,
 and dots on dots on dots. 

We used old corks, cotton buds,

 industrial offcuts, anything circular will do. 

Testing colours and objects for printing.

Spacing is important here,

and we discussed clusters,

 regular spacing, irregular spacing

 and the pros and cons of all possibilities.

These examples are only a handful of the class,

as they were all successful.

I love how each tree has its own story.

Cancer Council Art Eggs

My boys have been doing something for others.

Its what we all need to do-

think of others a little more.

They have been decorating wooden eggs

for The Cancer Council.

These eggs are sold around Easter time as a fundraiser.

Some eggs are also given to the courageous people

 fighting the hardest of battles.

The Cancer Council

is not just an organisation.

Its backbone are the volunteers in the shops,

the researchers, the educators, the supporting carers.

Its backbone are the people,

 who search out schools and other community groups

 to help where they can.

They quietly plug away, 

doing and amazingly selfless job.

My students researched messages 

of hope that 'spoke to' them,

and used the words to decorate their eggs.

It was touching to see the boys

 approach this task with such pride and care.

 It was wonderful to use Art as a link between

the students and the community.

How to make a Robot Mask

How to Make a Robot Mask Tutorial

Art teachers are always being asked to just "whip up" something for someone.

It could be to screen print t-shirts for the cross country team,

make a gigantic fly for a sketch on assembly (true story)

or in this case 12 robot masks for a drama competition.

So even though it is school holidays,

this is what I've been up to.

Begin with a generic paper mask like this one.

They cost about $1 (or less) from art stores.

Grab a pencil and mark out your areas as below.

Get a kraft knife and cut out the eyes

(be careful, your goal is

 to retain your own eyesight and all of your fingers).

With silver acrylic paint,

brush on the eyes, center head and sides of the cheeks.

Mix silver and blue paint together to paint the other areas.

Use black paint and a smaller brush

 to define the feature areas.

Use a cotton bud to dot on 'rivits'

I used off-cut stickers from Reverse Garbage

to create the central detail on the forehead or you could paint something similar.

Too easy- look and it doesn't have to be perfect.

And you could add more, or less as you desire/require.

Metropolis x 12 and now...

to tackle the astronaut helmets.

Sharing this Elle and Lou Post at
Bloom designs
My Creative Space

Maths meets Art: Bunting to stimulate inquiry

When it comes to maths my mind is a black hole.

Simply put:

Algebra + me = coma

Sound familiar? Is this you? Your child? 

Well, I used to think this way and

 I thought I was super crap at maths.

It ends up -I'm not too bad actually!

How do I know?

Well I married a Maths teacher!

So many people consider that Maths and the Creative Arts
are at opposite ends of the learning spectrum.

I wish to assert an alternative and less common belief,
 that just as music and maths are intrinsically linked,
so are visual art and maths.

In my Art classes I teach about measuring, fractions,
how to visually divide an image, how to frame,  angles, pattern, tessellations...(big breath)...
the golden ratio, sequencing, perspective...
Do I really need to go on?

So if I can teach all this,

 why did I think I was so rubbish at Maths for so long?

Maybe it has something to do with the unimaginative approach of my Maths teachers from

 some 20 (a-hem) years ago.

Maybe it has something to do with

 the notion that Maths has an image problem,

 especially with girls.

So when the library staff at Mt Alvernia College,

 an all girl's school in Kedron

commissioned some maths bunting I jumped at the chance!

How exciting to potentially engage young womens' maths inquiry through the visual arts! 

I hope that when the girls' eyes wander

 that maybe they will begin to wonder....

"What does that have to do with Maths?"

"Is Maths connected with that?"

Any inquiry is good as it is the beginnings of engagement. 

Who knows?

The girls might even come to the conclusion

 that maths can be beautiful,

(something my husband has been telling me for years).

Envelope for Maths Bunting

Extra education for no extra fee:
In Australia we call the subject Maths not Math as they do in America.

Sharing this Elle and Lou Post @
http://carolynshomework.blogspot.com
http://www.homestoriesatoz.com/
http://lilluna.com/
http://www.gingersnapcrafts.com/
http://cheapcraftymama.com/
http://bloomdesignsonline.blogspot.com.au/
http://www.bedifferentactnormal.com/
http://whilehewasnapping.blogspot.com.au/
http://www.serenitynowblog.com/
http://tatertotsandjello.com/
http://www.happygoluckyblog.com/
http://www.kadie-sevenalive.blogspot.com.au/
http://www.iheartnaptime.net/