Matisse-Inspired Cut-Out Animals with 2nd Grade

Henri Matisse is considered one of the most influential painters of the 21st century, and one of the leading Modernists. Known for his use of vibrant colors and simple forms, Matisse helped to bring in a new approach to art.  His style of painting is known as a "Fauvism," which means wild beast.  Later in his life, Matisse began to create cut out paper artworks, which are wonderful examples to share with 2^nd grade students.  With this project, I combine matisse’s cut out style with animals in their environment.  Students choose their own animal, and create the background to match which environment that animal lives in.  Encouraging details helps students to identify the parts of the animal and the objects that would reside in their environment.

Materials

-10.5" x 16" light blue paper (or dark blue, depending on the time of day)

-12" x 18" colored paper for frame

-colored paper scraps

-scissors

-glue

-pencils

Objectives

(Science Connection) Students will discuss animals and the environments they live in.  They should demonstrate their knowledge of animals and their environments by creating an artwork displaying an animal in its habitat.

(Art) Students will construct an artwork by using geometric and organic shares.  Students will also demonstrate perspective by creating the background first, and working their way toward the foreground.

Directions

I love this project because I'm able to use all the scraps I have collected over time.  I begin the project by briefly discussing animals in their habitats.  SInce Kindergarten, students have plenty of prior knowledge of where animals live around the world.  Next, I tie in the style of paper cutting by the artist Henri Matisse.  Once students see that famous artists have worked with materials they have worked with before, they are eager to try it out themselves.  

(40 minute class periods) Day 1: Start by having students create the habitat for the animal, which would be the background.  Explain what would be needed for the sky and ground.

Day 2: Give examples of basic geometric shapes used to make the main parts of the animal. Have students draw and cut out the big shapes first, the add the finer details on top.

Day 3: Final wrap up day for details!  Do the students have a sun or a moon? what about different colors for the water to show waves?  Does the animal have whiskers?  Spots? Stripes?  Once they're finished, add the 12" x 18" colored paper for a frame!

Here's some of the finished examples!  As many times as I say "no corner suns," they still sneak it in!

Rousseau Jungles with Kindergarten

Henri Rousseau was a French painter, who’s jungle pictures are an combination of memory images of his Mexican trip, visual experiences from visits to botanical gardens and zoos, and depictions of plants and wild animals he had seen on postcards and in photographs. 

Materials

-10.5" x 16" light blue paper

-12" x 18" colored paper for frame

-cut strips of brown paper

-pre-cut triangles of different shades of green paper (cut strips of 3" paper, then use paper cutter or scissors to slice diagonally for quick triangles)

-pre-cut squares (approx.  3" x 3") of greens, yellow, and/or orange paper

-pencils

-glue

-scissors

-white paper

-black marker

-colored pencils or markers

Objectives

(Science Connection) Students will identify animals that live in the jungle, as well as the plant life that grows in the jungle environment.  Inspired by the paintings of Henri Rousseau, students will create their own jungle scene and hide animals within their environment.

Directions

This project can take about 3-40 minute class periods to make.  

On the first day, the students and I look at paintings by Henri Rousseau and identify the plants and animals in the jungle.  We then discuss how to create the jungle scene, starting with the plants and trees.  For the remainder of the class, students trim and glue down trees, branches, tree tops, tall grasses, and if time allows, a sun and fruit in the trees.

On the second day, I share ways to draw the animals using simple shapes.  Students choose at least 3 different animals for their picture, draw them on white paper, trace, then color.  I do not have students cut out on this day because clean-up is a mess with many little loose un-glued animals all over the ground.  

I've learned that leaving the cutting and pasting is best for day three, which also gives room for finishing touches (like the students who wanted to add a sun or finish a tree).  Have students trace a thin circle around the animals before cutting out.  This saves the trouble of having heads and tails accidentally cut off since students will have a line to follow instead.  Students can then glue down their animals wherever they wish in the jungle, as long as it's within where the animal should be (no turtles in the sky!).  When students have finished their jungle landscapes, glue a 12" x 18" paper to the back for a frame

Imagination Doorways with 2nd Grade

When I was in early elementary school, I would have fun doodling (like any creative child), and I especially enjoyed making houses, doorways, and open windows with my notebooks.  On the first page, I would draw the outside of the house with detailed shutters that opened and doorways with arches.  I would use my pen to press through the paper and open the flaps.  On the next page in the notebook, I would draw what was inside the house with detailed bedrooms and other rooms inside the house.  

While I was planning my lessons one year, I was reminiscing on what I liked making in elementary school, and I came across one of my old notebooks with the drawings.  I thought if I enjoyed doing it so much, maybe my students would!  

This is a nice simple project that requires few materials and plenty of imagination.  When I introduced this project to the 2nd graders, I used the Chronicles of Narnia (Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe) as inspiration for the project.  My question to the students was: If you came across an imaginary doorway, what would be on the other side?

Materials

-9" x 12" white drawing paper

-pencils

-black markers

-colored pencils

-crayons

-rulers

-glue

Objectives

Students are to create their own doorway which reveals another world on the other side.  The doorway should reflect what the world may be, showing details to give us clues.

This project takes around two 40 minute class periods.  The first day is for the introduction and drawing of the door.  Students should draw a doorway, steps, trim, and an archway with details.  I like to have them trace to see the details more clearly.  After their first class, I begin cutting open the doors for them, so they are ready for the next part for the following class.  On the second day, I explain how to glue another piece of white paper to the back, then how to fill the inside space with their imaginary world.

There are times I get students attempting to draw a simple stick figure, so giving good examples will help students who need additional guidance on what to draw.

Here are some finished examples!

Spring Science + Art Projects for K-2

At the end of the school year, I was packing up the classroom like everyone else, except I had to pack for a cart next year.  With so many materials to put away, I was brainstorming on what project I could make with the primary grades with minimal materials, exciting for the students, and tied into their curriculum.  I decided upon two projects that could adapt for grades K-2, integrating science and literature, with a Spring theme.

Kindergarten Grouchy Ladybugs

Inspired by the story "The Grouchy Ladybug" by Eric Carle

Kindergarten students are very familiar with the work of Eric Carle, especially since I like to create lessons inspired by many of his books.  For this project, I only used white paper, pencils, crayons, and tempura cakes (with paintbrushes and water, of course).

We started by reading the book together, then identifying the many insects and animals the ladybug encountered throughout the book.  We also talked about where the ladybug lived and what insects would live in the same patch of grass and leaves.  I demonstrated to the students how to draw the grass, some of the insects, the ladybug, and left the other animals to the kids' imaginations.  Some students chose to work with just ladybugs, while others added different insects to their pictures.  Once the students were done drawing, the colored with crayon and painted with the tempura.  Easy clean up!

1st Grade Insects Studies

Exploring insects in nature

Did you know that if you googled "bugs in a jar," you'll get more art project images that pictures of jars?  This is one popular project with students because they not only love drawing the insects, but their studying the insects in nature.  Through art, they're also learning science by identifying the parts of the insect, what they eat, and where they live.  Having the tempura cakes out from kindergarten made it easy to share materials between grade levels.  To prepare the project, I created a packet with pictures of insects for the students to draw from.

The additional materials are:

-10.5" x 16" white paper trimmed into a jar
-pencils
-black markers
-colored paper scraps for lids
-hole puncher
-tempura paint
-paintbrushes and water
-12" x 18" colored paper
-glue

We discussed together what insects we have in our own backyards and how we safely collect them.  Students like to take the time to identify the parts of the insect and what shapes are used to draw them.  Students had to draw at least 7 insects to fill their jar, watching their space and size of the insects.  Once drawn, they traced with black marker and painted in with tempura paint.  For finishing ouches, students glued their jars to colored paper, trimmed a lid, and punched holes in the lid before gluing down.

2nd Grade Insect Studies

The 2nd grade students were also introduced to the same project, but they were given a few extra responsibilities.  First, they were shown how to cut the jar shape themselves.  The 2nd grade students had previous knowledge of creating symmetrical designs with paper folding, so the task should not have been daunting.  The students also had to cut out their lids themselves to fit the top.

I don't always use one project for different grade levels, but since this one was introduced this past school year, the project will only be used for first grade in the future (so the next batch of 2nd graders will not have to do the project twice).

Amazingly Relevant PD's for Art Teachers This Summer!

Hello!

Now that it's summer, it's the time many of us need to catch up on our PDs, but also sit back and relax. Luckily, there are a few opportunities to do both!  If you're like me and have kids to care for, you may not want to set up the babysitter just to travel to a place for your professional development hours.  I wanted to take the time to share with you two professional development opportunities that you can take advantage of from your own home!

The Art of Education's 2014 Online Summer Conference

In January 2014, I posted on why an online art education conference is awesome after attending AOE's winter conference. It was an excellent opportunity to gain some very useful knowledge for my art department while having my baby napping next to me!

On July 17th, the Art of Education will have its summer online conference!  There will be over 23 presenters, including me!  I will be presenting "Surviving Alternate Teaching Situations With Ease," which is a summative of tips to help teachers who instruct from a cart, travel from school to school, teach out of temporary situations, or mobile units.  There are many great presentations to help spark your creative lightbulbs for your classroom, such as Heather Crockett's "Art and Soul: Using Songs, Sounds, and Silence in the Art Room," or Alecia Eggars's "Structures and Routines for Success Before the Mess."  There are also presentations geared for teaching in challenging situations, iPads, infusing contemporary art, and more!

To register for AOE's online conference and for a list of presenters, click here for more details!

Education Closet's 2014 STEAM Connectivity Conference

The Education Closet offers professional development for innovative and integrated learning, and on July 22nd, they will be hosting an online conference for arts integration and STEAM.  The STEAM Conference is geared for both non-art and art teachers, and encourages cross-curricular lessons to connect essential elements and scaffold learning.  As an advocate for STEAM, I will also be presenting at this online conference on "Arts Integration: Ways to Include Elements of Art in Your Curriculum."  Earlier this year, I had an amazing opportunity to present to my district on how the art department integrates core subjects into our lessons, but I also wanted to advocate how core subjects can integrate art as well.  I was happy to offer my ideas for Education Closet.  And in case you're wondering what STEAM is, here's the breakdown:

S-Science
T-Technology
E-Engineering
A-Arts <--------------(what we're advocating for, since the country's big on STEM right now)
M-Mathmatics

There will be over 14 presenters giving ideas on how A fits into STEM (Elizabeth Peterson), integrating social media stories (Jessica Witt), Game-On Art (Andrew McCormick) and building inter-school collaborations (Crystal Hall).

To register for the STEAM conference and view the list of presenters, please click here for more details!



To my readers, I feel bad that I have not been posting as much as I used to.  Having the two young girls does take up all my attention, but as much as I'm sad that I can't be here more for you, I don't want my daughters growing up thinking my work was more important than them.  This is why I'm promoting more online opportunities, especially for you parents who can't afford or take the time to travel.  Both conferences do offer PD certificates for your hours and give you vast amount of ideas to use within your classrooms.  Don't pass these opportunities up!

What Creates Burnout? Identifying the Triggers and Finding Solutions

Burnout happens to every teacher…even art teachers and bloggers.  There are some years that push you so much to the brink, you feel helpless and unable to cope with everyday tasks at work or at home.  Burnout should not be a taboo subject.  According to MetLife Survey, teacher satisfaction has dropped from 62% in 2008 to 39% in 2012.  The reality is that we all face it at some point in time, and once the exhaustion takes place, we need to find  our ways to cope and carry on.  Lately, I have been seeing burnout on the rise even among my colleagues.  With political opinions, common core push, testing, and teacher evaluations, many educators are feeling more and more helpless as the year goes on.  And if the teacher is a new parent?  Managing a classroom, meetings, committees, and home life?  We know many parents manage in their everyday careers, but the exhaustion still sets in (especially when the baby's up all night).

We enter our profession with a need to share our passion for the arts with our students, staff, and community.  Knowing full on that the arts are not considered a core subject in most schools, we take on the task anyway, walking onward with our head up high and are paintbrushes raised, advocating the importance of creativity in a child's education.  Many of us knew it was an uphill battle.

As some of us fall backwards in our journey, we must first take the time to identify the triggers that cause our burnout so we can move forward again.

#1 Identify why you're burnt out.  Believe it or not, if you take a moment to "sit down" and write a list (yes, take a pen and paper) of what's troubling you at work, you can identify the causes of your troubles.  Don't worry about complaining too much or sounding whiny, sometimes you need to get it out.

#2 Now that you've identified your troubles, attempt to create solutions.  For example, if you feel a lack of support from your administration or colleagues, make the time to address that in a calm manner.  Communication can be a great tool to fixing many problems, and it will help alleviate future frustrations.

#3 For those troubles you can't fix, find a creative outlet to release the stress.  We are artists, so take the time to do something for yourself.  Create art, write a story, or do a dance.  Sometimes our burnout occurs from lack of our own creativity, so take the time to release your bottled up imagination.

#4 Realize that you are not alone, and many others may feel the same way you do.  Sometimes it's best for you to take the first step to brighten someone's day.  We may feel that we are walking in a dark tunnel, but shining your inner light can help guide others along their path.  Remember that kindness is contagious, so in being a positive light in your school environment, you can help others in shining their lights.

#5 Take time for yourself.  Get out of Pinterest and lesson planning, close the laptop, and go for a walk.  Clearing your mind can help in organizing yourself.  Exercise, go shopping, read a book, or take a nap!

#6 If need be, get help.  Burnout is not just a physical strain on your body, it takes an emotional and mental toll as well.  Some of us fight so hard that we overdo it, and need to step back and recollect ourselves.  It is not a bad thing to go and talk with a counselor.  Sometimes we need some extra support to keep going, no matter what anyone thinks.

For everyone reading this who has gone through burnout, depression, and high anxiety over our careers that we love, I wanted to say that I am very proud of you.  Taking the time to identify your troubles is the first step in moving forward in a positive direction.  It's very easy for others to say to "get over it," but in order for us to "carry on," sometimes we need a helping hand.

Some of you may have seen that I have not posted in over a month, and I wanted to share why I had to leave my blogging alone for a time.  For the first time in my education career, I will be at one school for the 14-15 school year.  For 7 years, I traveled from school to school, pushing carts, and teaching out of cafeterias.  I learned how to manage storage space and share a classroom with others.  Having a room of my own and not having to bring materials from one school to another is going to be a refreshing start.

Sadly, my previous home base school had lost their dedicated art room.  I don't know the exact amount of years the art room was there, but I'm told it was there when my mentor started in the district 40 years ago.  It is always a tragedy when any of the arts loses their dedicated space and have to travel from room to room, but we make the best of it.

Thank you for sticking around.

10 Reasons Artsonia Improved My Classroom

After getting back from maternity leave, I finally decided to buckle down and start using Artsonia.  For those who are unfamiliar with the name, Artsonia.com is an online artist gallery for teachers and parents to use.  Teachers can upload images of student artwork and parents can view the images, plus they can buy products with the artwork.

I was introduced to Artsonia a few years ago, and after hearing about all the work you need to put in, I was turned off.  With juggling three schools, traveling, and pushing a cart, I couldn't fathom taking the extra time to enter in all the artwork.  I was even asked if I had parent volunteers, which I did not.  Then the iPad started mainstreaming in our digital culture and the Artsonia app was created.  With the app, you can just snap a photo of student work, then upload it straight to student's names and galleries.  Hearing how much easier it was to upload artwork, I finally started using the site.

It took me a few weeks to enter the names of students and all the parent emails the school had collected.  I started seeing parents creating their own accounts, and I was elated.  Next, I printed pre-named permission slips (provided by Artsonia) and sent them home with kids for parents who did not provide emails to the school.  Then the slips started pouring in.

While I was collecting parent permission to show student artwork online, I started a project on Donors Choose for an iPad in the art room.  My main intention was to teach students how to upload their own work and create their own online portfolio.  Until then, I had the iPevo documentation camera.

I finally had all the student names and parent emails entered, then I started to photograph the artwork with the camera.  It was challenging at first because I was starting to take too much time away from prepping projects and decorating the halls with work.  Every photo I took had to be entered in manually, matched to the student and labeled to the correct gallery.  Over a few more weeks, I started to get the hang of it.

I had such a positive boost of parent communication, student enthusiasm, and administrative support.  Why did I not start this sooner?  I was afraid of the extra work to put in the beginning, but the positives immediately outweighed the negatives.

Here are some positives I have discovered in using Artsonia, which I feel is beneficial even to the traveling/cart/temporary art educators:

1. Parent Communication: I used to struggle trying to find time to contact parents.  I tried my best to create fliers, send notes home, create a website, and even try emailing throughout the year with little response from parents, but with Artsonia, I'm getting many positive responses.  I see the parents commenting on their child's work, and even sharing their child's gallery with family!

2. Art Room Newsletters:  Artsonia allows you to generate a newsletter that gets emailed straight to the parents.  Another added bonus with parent communication!  The newsletter template is extremely easy to use, and you can even break down each grade level you teach so parent's can scroll to see what their child is learning!

3. Student Ownership: Since introducing Artsonia to the students, they have been showing more pride in their work, which has been seen by the smile on their faces when I tell them it's upload day!  There have even been times where students beg to upload their own artwork they've created on their own!  Fewer artworks are thrown in the garbage, plus if the student loses their projects, we have an instant image to print up.  Also, students want the chance to enter their own artwork.  Now that I have an iPad for the classroom (thanks to all the generous donors on Donors Choose), students are learning to upload their own work!

4. Connections with ELA Common Core: Every time you upload a new artwork, you have the option to add a title and an artist statement.  I've started asking my 3-5 graders to add a sentence to describe their work, and every year, I will be asking for more descriptions to help enhance sentence structure and extended responses.  And, all the art projects that have been inspired by books are posted for the district and state to see as evidence of my integration.

5. Evidence of Student Growth: Many states are requiring teachers to show evidence of student growth. Since I am project-based and do not test knowledge in my class with quizzes, I found this site to be the best way to demonstrate student growth.  All images uploaded to the artist are archived, which means you can go back and visit previous artworks to see how the child has developed in their craftsmanship and understanding through time.  I had a perfect example this week.  One of the kindergarten students was struggling with fine motor skills in the beginning of the year.  Since I started entering artwork on Artsonia, I can now see the child's development each week.  In the fall, the student could not hold scissors properly, but now, he was able to complete his own puppet, cutting out his own shapes!  I was able to show this progression to the child's OT teacher on Artsonia, and she was thrilled to see the evidence through time.

6. Evidence of Presentation (Core Arts Standard): Before Artsonia (and with my limited time), I was only able to provide evidence of student work by displays and blog posts.  Now, I am gathering a portfolio of student work in one place!

7. Evidence of All Common Core Standards You Integrate in Your Lessons:  Has your administrator or curriculum director asked you how you integrate common core into the art class?  Simply send them the link to the school's online gallery and be sure to add the standard in your exhibit descriptions!  This includes ELA, Math, NGSS, Technology, and more!

8. An Automatic Fundraiser: Every artwork you upload into the student's accounts are seen by the parents.  If that parent wants to purchase an item (t-shirt, coffee mug, etc.) with their child's artwork, they can simply order it through Artsonia's online store and it shipped directly to them.  A percentage of the cost goes right back to you to use for your art supplies!  The only thing you have to do is upload the artwork!

9. The Artsonia Staff are Extremely Helpful:  My school has a high transient rate, so it's hard to keep track of all the names you no longer use or need.  Artsonia can work with you to move those student accounts to the next school.   And if your students graduate and move on to high school?  They can help you move those names as well!  This way, parents do not need to start an entire new account!  With teaching at multiple schools, this has been very helpful, and I love the staff for working with me on this challenge.

10. Promoting Your Curriculum: With thousands of art educators already using Artsonia, we can view other school's artworks, network, and share!  It's a quick and easy way to just share a link of your school's exhibits with parents, administrators, and community.  Would you like to see my school's galleries?  Click to visit Wilkins and Lyle Elementary's exhibits!  I know teachers who have an account for every school they travel to!

If you've never heard of Artsonia, or you've contemplated starting your own account, I highly recommend using this valuable resource for your curriculum.  With all the recent changes in education and evidence we now must provide, this is the best one to use for art educators.  It may be a little time-consuming in the beginning entering in all the names, but the long term goals are so rewarding!

Side Note: If you have access to a Microsoft Excel master list of student names, the process of entering names will be SO much faster for you.