Mini Matisse

Oh Scrap...

2012-02-23T14:00:00.000-06:00

We did a little scrap'n last weekend. It's fun to show what I do for art sometimes rather then always the kids (although I love what the kids do:)). I do one spread a month for each year... You will notice I didn't get my 12 month, but got a good start on 2011.

A Portrait for Me!

2012-02-19T17:56:00.002-06:00

How great is this. I stumbled across this blog named Know and Tell Crafts by a young blogger named Ty. There were some great tutorials and good ideas. I loved readying from a young persons blog because it inspires me to incorporate projects that are relevant and meaningful for my students. He said in one of his postings that he was interested in creating portraits for people and I was all about it. He made me (well MiniMatisse) the portrait above. It's WONDERFUL. Thanks so much to Ty, and if you haven't see this great blog, be sure to check it out.

The Perfect Tool for the Job!

2012-02-16T08:00:00.000-06:00

Pinterest comes through again!!!

Really, how did I ever have any ideas before pinterest:) I found this lovely tool pinned by someone and had to have it! Take a look, this $30.00 wooden tool saves so much on time and energy. Wish I would have had this when I was teaching the elementary kids and had 650 students at a time. This still helps with my 150 that I have now:) Check it out for yourself! (click here)

My Shadow and Me

2012-02-15T08:00:00.000-06:00

This is one of my favorites so far this year!!!

My 8th grade started out with drawing this quarter. The main concept covered was value. The instructions were to take a photo of yourself and draw your shadow. WOW did they come up with some GREAT stuff! I just took a digital picture and they had to cut it out. Photoshop would be ideal but with all the testing in the school right now, I don't have a lab available this quarter. So, I printed their picture out in black and white. There has to be something vertical behind them. Most choose a brick wall but others did trees and interior wall as well. I explained how a shadow would fall on the floor at an angle and go up vertical on the wall. I let them choose if the shadow was going to be large or small according to their idea. The shadow had to tell me something about the story. Perhaps their dreams, or nightmares, something they enjoy or maybe a hobby. What a way to get to know this group of kids for their first project of the quarter! You MUST do this project!! it was so much fun!

Valentines Day in Homeroom

2012-02-14T18:04:00.001-06:00

We had a blast today celebrating valentines day with my homeroom kids. The kids worked on their Valentine boxes outside of class. They brought them in and boy... were they creative. I asked the kids to share some kind words on a sheet of paper to place in each others box. Some kids brought in candy too! It was a lot of fun to see the energy from this simple activity. They may be middle schoolers, but they are still kids and it is fun to play some days!

Homeroom, a set on Flickr.

Paper Bead Cuff Bracelet

2012-02-14T13:33:00.000-06:00

Jewelry making is not my strong suit... but I was happy with this last jewelry piece we worked on at the end of last quarter. I have a VERY UNEDITED video to share with you (see below). This is the way I approached the lesson. I'm sure there are MANY ways to teach this and if you alter the plan a little, I would love to hear about it. I was inspired by the MANY jewelry works I have found on Pinterest. (click here to see my jewelry board).

Follow these two new blogs!!

2012-02-13T13:22:00.000-06:00

I wanted to introduce to you to a couple new art blogs. These are both Elementary Lessons primary. Both are up can coming. Be sure to visit and become a follower.

Artisan Des Arts

Super Happy Art Class

More on radial balance

2012-02-11T08:00:00.000-06:00

After posting about a lesson featuring radial balance, I received a question from Jamie Lea. She writes,

Jamie Lea...
These are beautiful. Would you mind sending me a link to where you got this lesson plan or how you went about doing this lesson? I think my students would love it as well!

I didn't find this lesson on any site but I have since found other do this lesson the same way as I did. The best tutorial that I have found is on Mrs. Keller's, Splish, Splash, Splatter. Click here to check it out. I think I would do the lessons as Mrs. Keller did next time I try this lesson, I found the detail that my kids put into this lesson created a TON of work and the lesson lasted a bit too long. Mrs. Keller had more free form shapes and lines and it is a very successful project.

Oil pastel face...

2012-02-10T08:00:00.000-06:00

We didn't just stop with the nose with our oil pastels. Students were asked to do an eye, noes, and mouth. The last day I asked the students to place all the parts of the face on a black background and get a picture or two. This was GREAT! The kids had a great time playing with all the different parts of the faces. Have fun looking at the photo's taken.

Art, It's in the Air, Smell it!

2012-02-09T08:00:00.000-06:00

My students participated in a Triarco contest. The contest is titled: Art, It's in the Air, Smell it! (click here to learn more about the contest) We had a handful of kid who wanted send their nose into Triarco in hopes of winning! Go ahead and check on the many noses the kids made!

More on the coil build projects

2012-02-08T15:35:00.000-06:00

Ashley asked the following about the 8th grade clay works I posted about the a couple weeks ago...

These are really neat! Could you please explain how these were made? What directions did you give yours students--are the coils scored and slipped? Did you use a mold for the shape of the bowl?

Many Thanks,
Fellow Art Teacher :)

I made a video when I was working on this project. It is not the most edited thing and it is a little long but you will hear how I taught the kids. Hope this clears things up.

(view the video here)

District Student Art Show

2012-02-07T08:00:00.000-06:00

Every year out district does a student art show for K-12. This year I was able to enter several strong works by both 7th and 8th grade. The following students have their art in the show this year...

Jessica Sola

Claudia Barbieri

Leksi Basel

Samuel Suedbeck

Samantha Keopraseut

Lexi Ostman

Emma Kangas

These artist and their families are invited to join us at the Elk River Art Alliance on Feb. 11th. For more details (click here) or contact Mrs. Hahn at Nichole.Hahn@elkriver.k12.mn.us.

Swapping ATC's again!

2012-02-06T13:35:00.000-06:00

Not much time left! Come join us on Swap-bot for another Swap with other classrooms.

We have 4 stacks for middle school. Each 'stack' is 25 cards, so if you have 100 kids you can sign up for all. The theme for this trade is mediums. You can use any quality medium for this trade. The trade closes on Feb. 17th so hurry to sign up. Buzz me a comment with questions or explore the many posts I have about trading on swap-bot. (click here) Hope to see you join us soon!

Vacuuming your kiln

2012-02-05T13:06:00.000-06:00

A while back I posted about a Kiln sign I have in my kiln room. (see by clicking here) Jan, from Snippety Gibbet, commented the following...

Do you vacuum it or do your custodians? What kind of vacuum? Is it just a regular one? I' ve never gotten any instruction about that. Jan

Thanks Jan for your questions. I recently had a kiln guy in because the kiln at the middle school I am working with kept giving me an error every time I fired. We discovered we had the wrong voltage for the elements that it had in it. He told me he gets a call for simular problems a couple times a year. Who knew. Anyway, I was asking him about maintenance of a kiln. He tole me you SHOULD vacuum your kiln on a regular basis. We are going to have a cleaning every quarter for our kiln. He also mentioned ANYTIME you blow something up, you NEED to vacuum as well. Any bits of clay or even dust can cause damage to the elements. I have an amazing custodian who cleaned out my kiln well this last quarter. He used a wet/dry shop vacuum and got any pieces a the base as well as a quick one over on the coils. That is what I have been told. I'm always learning new things, and this is one of them:)

8th grade clay works

2012-02-01T20:08:00.000-06:00

I had my 8th grade create bowls and plates for their clay project this last quarter. The ceramic works were stunning when finished. They used coils and spheres to create the designs. I asked students to put feet on their projects. They good do as the student did below, create 3 or 4 feet at the bottom or they could add a coil wrapped around into a circle to raise the work off the surface a bit. I really stressed that they needed to make these 'thick as a double stuffed Oreo cookie' and almost all made it through both firings.

Flickr slide show (click here)

Radial Balance with 7th grade

2012-01-30T13:57:00.000-06:00

Radial Balance is so much fun to teach and apparently to learn. My seventh grade students did an EXCELLENT job crating these masterpieces with colored pencil. I have over 40 images of this project on my flickr account.

SchoolArts Room posted my students work.

2012-01-29T17:11:00.000-06:00

What a surprise to look at my blog roll today and see that Nancy Walkup has featured some of my students work and my articled on her blog. I'm always amazed by the great things that she writes about and was honored to be one of them. In this post Ms. Walkup is talking about promoting your program. I have mentioned this many times before, getting published in SchoolArts Magazine is one of the best ways to tell everyone about the GREAT things going on in your classroom. Check out SchooArtsRoom for this post and many other tidbits, and opportunities available in the art education world.

This is a link to the Star News Article of Elk River (click here)

Succulent Scribbles!

2012-01-28T21:26:00.000-06:00

What's better then eating the frosting off the beater? Creating art and eating that too!!

We melted Wilton Candy Melts in a plastic bag in the microwave. I set the microwave on 50% and 3 or 4 minutes later, the candies were melted.

I placed down wax paper and I cut a small hole in the bag. Matisse drew her artwork all over the wax paper. We let it completely cool before proceeding with the project.

Matisse had fun breaking the drawing and placing all the pieces on the cupcakes. They looked so cute. She kept telling me, "Mom, it's my first time:)" She has seen me decorate a cupcake or two in my time:)

They tasted pretty good:)

8th grade registration...

2012-01-27T20:16:00.000-06:00

At our school students are asked to sign up for high school classes about this time of the year. They have to decided what they want to take in a place some kids have never stepped foot in. I wanted to make sure they made informed decisions when it came to art. Our high school happens to be across the road so I spoke to the the high school art teacher who was more then willing and welcoming to the idea of 8th grade students taking a 'field trip' to her room. We met in my class at the beginning of the hour and walked across the street as a group. Students were invited into all three studios, toured the school to look a the MANY displays of quality work, and finished the tour with a discussion with the high school teacher. She explained the many options in art at the high school, the terminology, and we even were able to talk to the high school students about their projects. The kids loved this experience. After teaching middle school for this short time, I've noticed that if it directly effects them, they care. If I can't show them how they are benefitting, they check out. I guess as most of us do:) I think I could have taken them to the Minneapolis Institute of Arts and had a tour but they wouldn't have cared as much as they did for my free, 1 hour, tour of a school they will be moving to soon.

Painting with lights in the classroom!

2012-01-26T08:59:00.000-06:00

Brought it into the class… Sooooooo fun!!! Brought in some of my 8th grade into my storage closet (only dark place in my room) and they had a TON of fun painting with lights! I had a great comment from Mrs. Novak (Organized Chaos) as well. Her class did some WONDERFUL activities. She suggested hooking the digital camera to the TV to allow students to see what they are doing. Great hint. That would have been helpful. She also has her whole class involved at once. She has a room that she is able to make very dark. It was fun for me to see the kids with smiles from EAR to EAR! Great job all!

Painting with Lights

2012-01-25T09:39:00.000-06:00

Painting with lights was a FUN projects I did with my mini's this weekend. Again, this was inspired by a pin on Pinterest. It lead me to a blog called Artful Parents. The post was about Picasso's painting with lights and gave some hints on how to crate the energetic art! Here are just a few of the pictures we did at home but I think we will see much more in the future in my class. This is the perfect one day project or project for kids who are done early. There is more images on my flickr account.

Mr. Potato Head and Angry Bird Digital Collages

2012-01-24T09:53:00.000-06:00

This quarter I asked my students to do two different digital collages. This first group of students were asked to research a artist and create a Mr. Potato Head. I used iMovie on the iPad to create the video's and a similar tactics as I did in the past for the digital collage (see past posts). I like found this lesson to be successful because it shows student learning, give a snap shot of how to create a digital collage, and encourages team work.

The other group of student used the subject of Angry Birds to show an art style. I found Art Styles to be a little two abstract for 8th grade. I think they did a good job, I just feel that the artist was a bit more successful for this group.

Both groups did a GREAT job!!! I they thought this was a fun activity and I thought it promoted creativity. I had my minis help with each of the video's and my students even liked that. I will miss these groups of 8th graders, things move so fast in the middle school.

I actually made something I pinned...

2012-01-23T09:27:00.000-06:00

I wanted to share one of my New Years resolutions in 2012. No… it's not to make more pin cushions, it's to DO more things that I have pinned on Pinterest. I have been doing quite a bit from my classroom but I want to do more personal projects. Here is a project with a GREAT tutorial from My Go-Go Life. I was surprised how easy Kim made this project for her readers. Go ahead… give it a try. If you are addicted to Pinterest as I am, make a resolution too and start doing what you're pinning!

Kiln Notes!

2012-01-22T14:20:00.000-06:00

I am a crazy lady when it comes to my kiln. I like it running well and keeping it clean. This is a laminated sign I have up in my kiln room. This helps me to remember certain facts such as how many hours each speed of firing takes or what to fire Greenware and and Bisque ware at. It also helps my coworker and I with scheduling firings. If anyone else is firing for some reason, there is helpful notes such as giving clay at least 5 days or more to dry. Finally, you will see a cleaning schedule. I like to have the kiln vacuumed once a quarter or when ever something blows up. Maybe this could be helpful in your room.

Art Ed, Top 10 Blogs of the Year

2012-01-21T12:12:00.000-06:00

I am happy to announce MiniMatisse was one of the top 10 Art Ed Blogs of the Year.

Thanks so much to Jessica and the people that voted for me. What an honor. Please see the rest of the top ten list at… The Art of Education.

Three more new blogs...

2012-01-20T08:25:00.000-06:00

Jessica, from The Art of Education was kind enough to let me know that MiniMatisse is nominated for Art Ed Blog of the Year. I am so humbled by this, especially when I see who the other nomination are. I want to take a minute to highlight some of the other blogs that are being honored in the same way. If you are not following these blogs, please do because they are AMAZING!!

These are blogs that I was not as knowledgeable about.

The Paper Pear is a newer teacher sharing her exciting discoveries. I found out that she is a Pinner on Pinterest and love that about her. She seems to think BIG with her lessons and art shows.

Splats, Scraps, and Glue Blobs is another blog I hadn't visited before but now I am following. Theresa Gillespie is another Midwest gal working in Illinois. I learned that she has a Med in Education and Technology (a girl after my own heart). I agree with her philosophy that art and technology are a great combination.

Finally, Organized Chaos, is another blog that I am a new follower of. I would make number 40 in followers, so I would say Mrs. Novak is a untapped resource. She seems to post often with some great ideas. That is one of my favorite things in a blog, new information often.

Splish, Splash, Splatter

2012-01-19T20:00:00.000-06:00

Splish, Splash, Splatter is one that you may not be a follower of. Ms. Keller classroom art work is 'pinned' often on Pinterest. Her work is admired by many. Look at the energy in this work. I would say that is one of her trade marks, she encourages energy in her students work. Go ahead… Check it out!

Painted Paper

2012-01-19T16:00:00.000-06:00

Painted Paper is just the sweetest blog! I love the lessons that come from this Ohio native. Her solid black background makes the work she post, pop! I enjoy her step by step explanations and as a visual learner, I find her methods easy to follow. If you are working with elementary age students you need to visit this wonderful blog.

Homeroom Trophy and Twitter

2012-01-19T13:46:00.001-06:00

In the elementary setting, art teachers make connections with every student, yet not like a homeroom teacher. Homeroom teachers know the students, their families, their siblings. At the middle school level I have a mass amount of students but I also have a homeroom. We meet everyday and I will have these kids for 3 years (6th-8th). What a treat. I have been working hard to get to know these kids. Here are a couple ways that I have found success.

Above you see my homeroom with a trophy. Every Friday our school plays a game on the morning announcements. My kids have played but they have never worked as a team the way they did this last week. I am happy to say it payed off. They worked as a team and we get to have the BIG trophy in our classroom for a week. The trophy to me was the way we all worked together… I wanted to highlight that with a picture… Aren't they cute:)

Another thing that we are trying in the is a TWITTER account… not what you think… these kids are tweeting on a laminated sheet of paper that they designed. They come in everyday and 'tweet'. It is fun to see the random thoughts of a middle school student! I got this idea off someone's pins from Mrs. Whites 5th grade class. Thanks Mrs. White! My kids are loving it!

If you have other ideas for me to do with my homeroom, please comment so I can add on to the community building happening in my art room.

Art with Mr. E.

2012-01-19T10:00:00.000-06:00

Mr. E is a father of two, a teacher in Nashville, and a blogger… and a popular blogger at that! Art with Mr. E is a great resource for 'what's happen' in the art world. He thinks big and shares his BIG ideas. Again, Mr. E has so many followers that I'm sure if you are seeing this post, you are already a follower of his blog. If for some reason your not… check out Art with Mr. E.

FugleBlog

2012-01-19T07:33:00.000-06:00

Jessica, from The Art of Education was kind enough to let me know that MiniMatisse is nominated for Art Ed Blog of the Year. I am so humbled by this, especially when I see who the other nomination are. I want to take a minute to highlight some of the other blogs that are being honored in the same way. If you are not following these blogs, please do because they are AMAZING!!

FugleBlog… What more do I have to say:) This blog is AMAZING!!! Her FugleFlicks are more then impressive. She has her students fully involved in technology and art. I completely enjoy visiting this blog on a VERY regular basis!

Art Teachers Hate Glitter

2012-01-18T13:00:00.000-06:00

Who couldn't love a blog named Art Teacher Hate Glitter? The author of the blog states…

THIS IS NOT YOUR TYPICAL ART TEACHER BLOG.

Art For Small Hands

2012-01-18T10:00:00.000-06:00

Julie Voigt from Art for Small Hands is a blog author that I read often. Julie has an impressive resume teaching in public, private, and Montessori schools, both in the United States and Hong Kong. I have used her lessons once and a while on my mini's at home. This clean, crisp blog is easy to view what is important, the students art work. Art for Small Hands is another blog to add to your list!

The Teaching Palette

2012-01-18T06:47:00.000-06:00

Talk about a professional blog… The Teaching Palette has been a blog to follow for many years. The founders and primary authors of this blog are Hillary Andrlik and Theresa McGee, who both teach elementary art in the Chicagoland area. As a blog authored by art educators for art educators, they focus on arteducationology, or the study or art education. This team has created a wonderful site posting about classroom management, creativity and music/art. Again, if you have not already, visit this wonderful blog!

Hillary Andrlik

Theresa McGee

SmArt Class

2012-01-17T21:00:00.000-06:00

Natalie from Smart Class is a blog to highlight. She does wonderful projects but more then that she is an artist herself. A while back Natalie must have got a new camera and ever since has been practicing creating wonderfully edited images to feature on her blog. Her lessons are not only fun to learn about but also BEAUTIFUL to look at!

ART is Basic

2012-01-17T20:00:00.000-06:00

It is my privilege to introduce Marcia Beckett, and her blog Art is Basic. Marcia is a fellow mid western girl from Madison, WI. She has had a couple of looks for her blog though out the years and even different names. You might have know this blog as Vivid Layers at one point. Mrs. Beckett shares great lessons and breaks them down visually for her readers understanding. She also give great tips along the way. Make a point to visit Art is Basic today!

Deep Space Sparkle

2012-01-17T16:00:00.000-06:00

California Girl, Patty, has an extremely attractive blog called Deep Space Sparkles. Since following this blog, I have watched it go through a couple of looks along the way but the format now is very pleasing to a visual arts teacher. People who are teaching art can purchase inexpensive, comprehensive lessons from Patty at this blog site. Be sure to stop by Deep Space Sparkle today.

Art Project Girl

2012-01-17T11:30:00.000-06:00

I'm very excited to introduce the next blog, Art Project Girl, by Erica! Erica is an amazing art teacher and I have been a big fan of her for a long time. She loves to share her ideas, and brainstorm professionally. I love chatting with Erica about Art Projects. One of my favorite things about Erica these days is what a proud Mama she is! She love to share about her daughter and let me tell you… what a sweetie! Go NOW… check out this blog!

Art Project for Kids

2012-01-17T08:00:00.000-06:00

Kathy Barbro is the creator of the wonderful blog called Art Projects for Kids. I like Kathy's blog because it is right to the point. She knows how to explain her lessons in a short and concise manner. Her lessons are successful and we are fortunate that she is willing to share. Please, go check out this great blog.

Adventures of and Art Teacher

2012-01-16T21:28:00.000-06:00

Katie Morris, from Kansas, has a blog called Adventures of an Art Teacher. This blog is a WONDERFUL insight on how to teach young artist with great success. Her tricks of the trade are worth looking into. She has so many great idea and posts often. This is a blog to follow because not only is Katie an amazing art education leader but she is also a wonderful cheerleader… she is quick to comment and help pump up her fellow art educators.

There's a Dragon in my Art Room

2012-01-16T14:00:00.000-06:00

What an honor to talk about Phyl and her blog There's a Dragon in my Art Room. Phyl feels that 'she has the best job in the school', and I agree, teaching art is a wonderful job. This K-6 art teacher shares everything, her ideas, her opinions, and her celebrations. I'm sure everyone who will run across this post is already following this amazing blog, but if not, you're in for a treat!

The Art Teachers Guide to the Internet

2012-01-16T10:00:00.000-06:00

From his book... The Art Teacher’s Guide to the Internet to his blog, The Art Teachers Guide to the Internet I have been a fan of Craig Roland for a long time. I was fortunate to attend his session when he came to Minneapolis a couple years ago for the National Art Education Convention. This man has great ideas and is a wonderful help to us art people living on the edge of technology! Again, If you are not following Craig Roland's blog, please check it out and become a follower!

Mrs. Knight's Smartest Artist...

2012-01-16T08:00:00.000-06:00

This post, is about Mrs. Knight's Smartest Artist. Hope Hunter Knight is a wonderful educator who is willing to share all of the exciting events, and activities that go on in her room. I have been fortunate enough to trade ATC's with Mrs. Knight's class. She has a wonderful board of all the trades her class has taken part in. Go ahead, check out Mrs. Knight's Smart Artist blog!

Nominated, Please vote!

2012-01-15T18:43:00.002-06:00

I am so exited to be informed that Mini Matisse was nominated for Art Education Blog of the year! Please visit Jessica's blog, The ART of Education, to vote for MiniMatisse!!

Finalists Announced! Vote for Art Ed Blog of the Year!

15JAN

WOW! As a result of our Call to Nominations for the 1st Annual Art Ed Blog of the Year Awards, our email inbox was flooded with nominations as well as over 50 comments on our Nominations page. What a gratifying experience – to give recognition to the great blogs who continually inspire us all.. be sure to Vote Now!

The nominations are in, the committee has narrowed down the list, and today we are thrilled to announce the following 20 finalists for Art Ed Blog of the Year!

Mini Matisse

Voting takes place between January 15th and 20th. The Top 10 will be selected by, of course, YOUR or votes! Be sure to visit all of the blogs by clicking on their linked names above, make your choice, and then vote in the Poll below. Finalist bloggers are encouraged to share the ballot link with their own readership so there are as many voters represented as possible! Voters, yes, you can vote for multiple blogs when you place your vote (give to your love to lots of blogs or put your eggs all in one basket)!

Why wait? Vote for your favorite(s) today!

On Saturday January 21st, we’ll announce the winners. You will be notified if your blog is one of the Top 10 Winners. The Top 10 blogs will all receive a unique Award Badge which they can proudly post in the side column or other prominent location on their blog! In addition to the badge, award winners will be promoted with a permanent space on the AOE Blog, be featured in the Blogging for Art Educators online class, and get kudos in our Weekly Quick Tips Newsletter. Talk about a lot of blog love, huh!

7th grade Magazine Collages

2012-01-14T14:01:00.000-06:00

7th grade students worked on a paper collage. We used lots of magazines to create these wonderful works of art. I was inspired by MANY other artist and art teachers. Many of the images were found on Pinterest. Click here to see my boards to see other examples of similar projects. You can look at other project samples on our classroom flickr account.

UPDATED: 8th grade Face Sculptures

2012-01-13T13:39:00.000-06:00

Eighth grade student from 2nd quarter worked on a low relief sculpture of a face. Students had fun playing with paper mache and painting these in both realistic and abstract colors. I was inspired by FecklePhoto blog. This blog has inspired several projects and projects to come! I found it on Pinterest (click here to see other pins). If you want to see more of what my students created, please visit our classroom flickr account.

Update:

In response to some questions I was asked… I have some more to add to this post…

Miriam Paternoster said...I’ve seen all works of your student, these are amazing! Did you made them with cardboard and paper with vinilic glue? How many hours did your students spend for this sort of job? It’s really original!!!

I had to look up what vinilic glue is. I think it is like our white liquid glue. The paste I used is called Elmer's Art paste.

This product is slimy and the kids love it (but claim they hate it):)! I did use a matte board template because it is a nice, stiff base. On the flickr site you will see the kids cutting with a utility knife. Have band aides on hand:) We used cardboard for the 3-D parts because they are able to cut out with a scissors rather then a knife. They taped these parts on and covered with a light paper (newspaper, tissue paper, even toilet paper) dipped into the art paste.

This project took about 8 hours to finish. Here is a rough guideline (these all overlapped)

Day 1: design
Day 2: cut Matte Board
Day 3 and 4: cut and tape structure of the 3-d parts
Day 5 and 6: Paper Mache
Day 7 and 8: Paint and add the 'extras' (yarn, beads, materials, and so on)

Hope this clears things up:)

Write about it!

2012-01-06T13:29:00.001-06:00

I'm working at the middle school level now but the last several years I was at the elementary level. Rogers Elementary is a STEM school starting this year and WOW are they doing amazing thing! Here are a couple of kiddo's on their morning show and we (the art department) made the news! If you want to see what a really quality morning announcements look like, check out the whole video. If you just want to hear about the art department, forward to 3 minutes and 20 seconds. (click here to watch) Really… this is so cute! This brings me to my next point on this post. Writing an article is an amazing way to share ideas with peers, a good resume builder, but I feel most of all, a GREAT way to advertise your program and empower students! Paige and Kal, from this article are being recognized at the school and district level! These kids KNOW they are artist, they don't have to be one when they grow up! I encourage you to submit articles to SchoolArts or any other arts publication. I recently saw in the latest publication that another fellow blogger, Mr. E. submitted his amazing project too! Way to go. (click here to see Mr. E.'s) article. Make it a new year resolution!

District Staff Happenings (click here)

Last Chance to get them hooked.

2012-01-02T19:08:00.000-06:00

Eighth grade has been a lot of fun for me to develop. In our district, this is the last Visual Arts class a student must take. I want them to continue in art so I have set up the class to "advertise" what they could explore more at a high school setting. I present lessons such as drawing, painting, sculpture, ceramics, digital arts and jewelry so student can see a strong correlation between what we are doing in class and what they can sign up for in high school. After our clay unit for the students who finish early, I invite students to watch and take part in a wheel demo. We have 4 wheels and only a quarter with these kids so a demo is all we have time for however, I like letting the kids touch the clay as it is moving… I have some students say it is the best part of class.

Our class had so much fun, I wanted to share it with my mini's too. Sawyer had a great time. It was a fun holiday break!

Two new apps to try

2012-01-01T14:30:00.000-06:00

I have had a lot of fun playing with some new apps with my kids. I am trying to figure out more ways to incorporate technology in my classroom. I have read about these two apps that allow the user to create puppet plays. I have only just begun with my playing and have not tried classroom application yet but here are my reviews so far.

Puppet Pals was the most fun for my kids and I think it will be fore my students as well. With this app users are able to take pictures of themselves and place their own characters in a play. This would be the same for the set (background of the play). The down falls of this is that the characters are very stiff and one-demetional.

Here is a quick example of my daughters very first play that she directed and stared in:)

The second app that we gave a try over break was Toontastic. I like this one too but for different reasons. Here the characters are animated. They move and interact a bit more. I don't think there is a way to add your own characters (but if you know of a way, please let me know.) I think this would work well for a elementary classroom or any age group for. It would support story set up and writing very well. It give prompts of how to create a play such as the set up, conflict, challenge, climax and resolution. One can get suckered into more and more backgrounds and characters with this app however, so be careful.

New Year Resolution!

2011-12-30T14:41:00.002-06:00

Hope Knight from Mrs. Knight's Smartest Artists is has inspired my first New Years resolution. I have had a map hanging in my new classroom since I moved in. I have a collection from each ATC that I have collected sitting right beside the map… but not hung. My plan is to do a similar display like this. Hope, thanks for the inspiration! It was fun to see Minnesota listed on your ATC map:)

The "stuff'"

The organized 'STUFF'

The second classroom New Years resolution is to finish what I have started… I went in over break a couple of days to clean out a storage room. I know just as well as anyone that after a person has been in a room for many years, one starts to collect 'stuff'… perhaps too much 'stuff'. I entered a room that had too much 'stuff' and I brought stuff with me. Now to organize the stuff. I had the kids pull everything out of one storage closet and place it on the tables in my room. I have organized one storage closet and now I have to finish labeling and MAINTAINING! That is the second classroom goal. I'm sure there will be more, but for now… these are doable.

What are your New Years goals? Are you posting about them? Let me know, leave a link in a comment.

My new office!

2011-12-26T22:25:00.002-06:00

We finished up our office over the break. I'm so excited to have it done. We used our guest bedroom's closet to make into an office. I want to be there all the time!

I love the organization! Of course this is from IKEA as is the stool. I also have a couple of office supplies on some of the selves too.

My husband is very handy. He placed several outlets and the switch for the light inside the closet. It is nice to have all the cords from chargers and cameras all in one place.

I had to make it super 'girly' with a cute little chandelier. With the pink walls, this place was made for me:)

When we are done working we can just shut the doors and put all the office headaches away. I love the way it turned out!

YAM Flag Design

2011-12-19T12:45:00.004-06:00

Even thought I only have students for one quarter at the middle school level, I like to offer contest for all the students to participate in. This last one is for Youth Art Month Flag Design. Some of the entries were fun and outside of the box. It was fun to see what students can come up with with such little direction. To see some of the others please visit my flickr site. I did a little advertising on our morning show with the kids help. Check it out!:)

7th Grade, Emphasis

2011-12-16T18:34:00.001-06:00

7th grade enjoyed creating emphasis in their latest artwork. I asked the kids to draw their picture and place a frame 1 inch thick or more around the most important part. Students shaded with their graphite pencils inside the frame. The goal was to create the same values that they would be creating with colored pencil. The colored pencil needed several layers to be successful. I stressed that they should show shadow and emphasis in this assignment. Good Job Kiddo's!

7th Grade, Emphasis, a set on Flickr.

No. 2 Pencil Challenge

2011-12-12T08:00:00.000-06:00

Some of my 8th grade students choose to take on the no. 2 pencil challenge. they had to transform a image using number two pencils. I thought the kids did a good job and I was excited to see their creativity. I altered a lesson I saw on this website… (click here). If you would like to see a few more pencil drawing check out my flickr account.

With a bow on top:)

2011-12-10T08:00:00.000-06:00

I had a great response on the holidays bows that I had my students work on last quarter create. There were a lot of comments and due to the response I wanted to give you a little more on the lesson. So as a Christmas gift from me to you, I have created a step by step worksheet on how to create a holiday bow. I uploaded it as a Google Doc (click here). It's just in time for the holidays!

SchoolArts printed my article!

2011-12-09T07:36:00.001-06:00

WHOO HOO!! I'm so excited to announce my first article. I have been honored to have clip cards in SchoolArts Magazine but now, AN ARTICLE! I'm so excited I can hardly contain myself. I have always been challenged by writing so for me this is an amazing opportunity! Click here to go to the digital version of January 2012, School Arts Magazine. There are a lot of great articles and the cover is AWESOME (very nice Penelope Venola!). Page 42/43 is ME, Nic Hahn! I hope you can read my inflection in this post… I'm just so excited that I want to show everyone the work my kids created and the fun idea I share in the article.

Earlier posts about this project can be found by clicking here.

8th Evolutions Animals

2011-12-08T11:23:00.001-06:00

8th Evolutions Animals, a set on Flickr.

Last month I was able to attend the Minnesota Art Education Association Fall Conference and came away with a lot of wonderful ideas as always! This lesson was presented by MCAD, a local art collage. I called it evolution of an animal. The presenter has several ideas of how you could bring literacy into this project. Our class was limited so we works on only the development and creation of the animal.

Eye-Fi

2011-12-07T08:29:00.001-06:00

Do you need something to put on your Christmas list? I have the perfect thing… This is an EYE-FI card. I bought it a while back to give it a try and have discovered it is AMAZING. You place it into the SD slot of your camera and when you take a picture it will WIRELESSLY send the image to your computer. You read that right. You take a picture and you can have it placed on your computer, Flickr, Picasa or a lot of other options. It has saved me so much time as an art teacher. Where it really saves time is for my husband. My husband is a Tech Ed teacher at my school. He is in charge of yearbook so he has students carry around 5 different cameras a day to get images. Now, when they take a picture the images are automatically sent to his computer. They are organized and placed into folders according to camera and date. HOW COOL IS THAT! Put an Eye-Fi card on your 'wish list' today.

The POWER of Zentangles

2011-12-02T10:02:00.001-06:00

I asked this quarters 8th grade to strike a pose the first couple of days in art class. Talk about a get to know you activity. I explained that they would be using the pictures of themselves to create a zentangle project. I loved the creativity of some of these works. There are a bunch of others on my flickr account. Please visit and ENJOY!

Emphasis on Oil Pastels

2011-11-29T05:00:00.000-06:00

I asked my 7th grade to create Emphasis using oil pastels. I was impressed with their results. Students drew their images on black tag board and traced their lines with white glue. When the glue was dried they filled in the spaces with oil pastels. I encouraged students to create as much shading as they could. If you want to see more works from this lesson, please visit my flickr site.

7th Grade clay project- 1st quarter

2011-11-27T20:42:00.001-06:00

Here you see one of the clay projects from last quarter. The 7th grades students were asked to bring in a container to use as a mold. They places white clay in the container on day one. Day two, they painted a red clay slip over the outside of the clay container. Finally on Day three, they carved out of the red clay to revel the white clay again. In this work you see the bottom side of Nolan's work. I found the bottom of most of the clay works were the interesting part of the work. We are starting a similar project with my 7th grade this quarter. I will have a post in the next couple of months with the changes I made for them. To see more clay works like this one please view my flickr site.

Thanksgiving Wish

2011-11-23T11:25:00.001-06:00

My Mini's and I would like to "WISH" you a happy Thanksgiving.

8th grade Word Face

2011-11-16T13:09:00.001-06:00

8th grade Word Face, a set on Flickr.

This was a fun wrap up or warm up project for 8th grade.

1) Ask students to draw a contour line image of themselves in pencil.
2) Write words on the lines they have drawn with sharpie marker. I suggested words from a song, or poem. They could use the dictionary or simply write words that describe themselves.
3) When finished. They filled the background in with words as well.
4) I asked students who had time to place water on their face and then use bleed tissue paper on the art work. It gave a great effect.

Fun project and lots of successes.

Shading a Bow

2011-11-12T09:03:00.001-06:00

Source: artsonia.com via Nic on Pinterest

Shading a Bow, a set on Flickr.

Now that I am officially addicted to Pinterest, I have been inspired by many lessons. This was one that I tried for the end of the quarter. The first image is off from Artsonia.com, specifically Connie Baalman, from Immaculate Conception School in Old Montroe, Missouri. Her project was done in oil pastel. I had just finished a lesson with oil pastels and shading so I asked my students to transfer their shading skills to colored pencil. It was a fun 'wrap up' lesson.

2 point perspective

2011-11-09T15:35:00.001-06:00

2 point perspective, a set on Flickr.

7th grade enjoyed this two point perspective challenge. Come check out some of the wonderful examples!

Fall Conferences

2011-11-08T20:48:00.002-06:00

I tried something new for conferences this year. I had conferences two nights this year and the first night I was amazed at the endless amount of students and parents that came to visit me. It was wonderful. I felt bad for the lines however. The second night I made a table in the hallway for siblings and waiting families. I had my 8th grade place scribbles on the table and fill a couple spaces up with zentangels. I left a short explanation of what zentangles are as well as a couple of step by step packets on the table top as well. There was an array of colored pencils for participants to use. It was fun to see the art the families made. I saw it used through out the night.

8th Grade: Watercolor Grapes

2011-11-07T10:00:00.000-06:00

Using the techniques students took 'notes' on (in an earlier post) we created these awesome grape images. These large paintings allowed students to create a composition unlike anything they have made before.

To prepare for the project, we collected grape leaves and flattened them over the weekend.

Day 1: Students placed their paper in a tub of water. They placed a lot of pigment on the leaves rather then the paper. The leaves were pressed into the paper and left to dry. The grapes were also a wet on wet method. They added two or more colors in an area and used wax paper cute into circles in the space. Once again, left to dry over night.

Day 2 and 3: Leaves and wax paper were removed and students finished the project each in their own style.

For many wonderful examples of this project, please see my flickr album.

CBS Sunday Morning

2011-11-06T10:00:00.000-06:00

I posted a lesson earlier inspired by Chuck Close. Here is one of the video's I played for the kids. I have found so many GREAT videos featuring artist from Sunday Morning Show. I know this means I'm old that I love to watch Charles Osgood every Sunday morning, but so be it! You will be amazed at some of the artist, actors, and musicians that they have covered. GREAT resource!

7th Grade: Grid enlarging project.

2011-11-05T07:00:00.000-05:00

One of the lessons that I tried this quarter with the 7th grade was a grid enlarging project. Each student was allowed to obtain their own image. Students learned how to grid an image and enlarge it. In the spaces that were not covered with an image, I asked students to create line design. I like this project, the kids were really proud of this work. For more examples of these projects, please see my flickr account.

Let them choose their subject...

2011-11-04T10:00:00.000-05:00

I wanted my seventh grade students to embrace art this quarter and one way I thought I would do that is by letting them choose their subject. Every project they did this quarter had to do with their subject. I heard from many students that this was their favorite part of the quarter. The first lesson I asked them to do is illustrate their subject in a artful word. These projects were challenging for students. Each letter had to represent the subject as well. For more images of this project please visit my flickr account.

Watercolor techniques

2011-11-03T07:00:00.000-05:00

In order to teach how to watercolor, I had both my 7th and 8th grade take 'notes'. I gave them a half sheet of watercolor paper and had them divide the paper into 8 parts. I asked them to label the parts of their page. I introduced two techniques at a time and gave them the chance to 'take the notes'. This process took the whole hour.

A wonderful resource for this type of teaching is WatercolorPainting.com.

These notes were GREAT for many reasons.

Our school sends out a folder with kids to place evidence of learning in it for conferences. Some teachers place a grade report or worksheets in the folder. I placed these notes. We have student lead conferences and the students were able to explain to their parents how they created each technique (wet-on-wet, dry brush, wash, resist, etching, lifting, salt texture, and plastic wrap texture). I found parents really enjoyed hearing about the techniques.

As second reason this was great was the 8th grade really enjoyed using the techniques for their following project. I found that teaching a base of a project and then asking them to 'create' in their own style, using the techniques they have learned was a real success. I'm hoping to use this idea again next quarter.

8th grade: Creature Jars

2011-11-02T07:00:00.000-05:00

Inspired by a video found on Ceramic Art Daily I walked my 8th grade through this fun lesson. I made a lot of modification to this project for the classroom, but I like how it turned out. In these first two images you see the closed 'jar' (on the left) and the slightly open 'jar' (on the right).

Day 1:

Students were instructed to bring in a soup can for class. We used the can as a form to create this project. I used ideas for the base of the monster opt off from another video from Ceramic Art Daily. Students had to create a three or four footed base. I had student roll a slab, form it around a paper wrapped soup can and create the feet.

Day 2: Because students wrapped the can with paper, the can was easily removed. They repeated the paper wrapping for the top portion. This time they created a face or creature.

Day 3: This was the final day for fixing and fussing on the two parts as well as adding a lip on their jar. You can see in the images below, this student turned his lip into teeth so when the pot is slightly open, it looks as if the monster is smiling.

I learned a lot working with the students on this project. I feel like I would be able to do a better job a second go round. I had some problems with my kiln (learning a new kiln is fun:() ) and my instruction missed on a couple of things, but I may do this project again in the future.

8th Grade: Chuck Close Inspired...

2011-11-01T14:48:00.003-05:00

I was inspired by great blogs such as Art is What I Teach . There are others that have wonderful tutorials of how to do similar project that I don't have the links too as well. If you know of a link to add to this post, let me know. It is something I always wanted to give a try and now I have.

Students were instructed to enlarge their image using a grid process. I asked them to leave their grid behind and use for different color groups for each area (shirt, skin, hair, and background). It was the my first project for these students mixing acrylics. I learned a lot from this project and I know the kids did too.

Update: After posting this I have had a couple of bloggers send me links. Check out the following for spin offs on this lesson. Organized Chaos, and Artsology.

Step 3- QR code Project- Creating a QR code

2011-10-30T08:00:00.000-05:00

After I have recorded the movie, uploaded it to YouTube… not is tis time to make a QR code.

I started by googling QR code generators, there was many options. I just choose one called QR-Code Generator by Kayway.

You will see a place to copy the URL code of the YouTube video. Just plug it in and hit generate.

It will pop out a code. On this site you can find a HTML code below the image. I took all of these codes and placed them in a word document. I also drug the image into the document as well.

When completely printed out I cut and hung the codes by the work.

Step two: QR Code Project- YouTube

2011-10-29T10:21:00.000-05:00

As I mentioned in my previous posts, I have recorded the desired footage and uploaded it to YouTube. I guess I should first say that in order to do this you will need a YouTube account. I have found this to be a great educational tool. I can add to my favorites 'how-to' videos, educational clips and there are so many videos about artist and artwork. All can be added to my 'favorites'. In addition, all video's that I upload are located on 'my channel'. This is helpful for when I am teaching a project a second time or I want a sub to present a video I had created perviously. YouTube can be a great educational tool and if it blocked for you, advocate to have it opened for teacher use.

Here are a couple of settings that I make when I upload video…

When I go into the settings up my video's these are a couple of changes I make when students are involved. I never put last names. Sometimes I will describe with is going on, but other times I will not. I always change the category to Educational, if appropriate.

I like to make my video's unlisted. This means that only people with a link can get to the video. I just like the idea of only letting groups who I want to view videos the chance to. When students are involved, I take off comments, ratings and responses to videos. I think this keeps it a little safer for the students involved. Finally I always leave ON the embed code. This allows me to embed in webpages, blogs, and other educational locations.

This was the second step I did when making the QR codes project.

Step one: QR code Project- iMovie

2011-10-28T08:00:00.000-05:00

I have had a lot of questions about the QR codes and I thought I would bring you through that process a bit more. I have one iPad 2 in my classroom and I use it for real time grading, attendance, and I use it for learning apps (I can project the iPad too). My favorite thing by far is iMovie App. I use it all the time. With the middle school I was able to put the iPad into their hands a bit more.

When students finished early I gave them a set of prompts. In my office I set up a easel for their art work and an easel with iPad on it. I set up iMovie so it was in record mode. The camera was set up so they could watch themselves recording. They placed the prompts out of site and hit record. There was no one else in the room and I think this help students feel comfortable. I also showed them how to rerecord if needed. When they were finished I titled the project and uploaded it to YouTube. This wraps up the first step of my QR code project.

New Label: Art Notes

2011-10-27T09:36:00.000-05:00

I am adding a new label called Art Notes to my blog. I have used Art Notes with ages as young as kindergarten on up to the 8th grade students I am working with now. I feel that this would work well in high school too. I use Art Notes mostly as a communication tool. I might cover any of the following with Art Notes…

·     Self Critique
·     Art Knowledge
·     Peer Critiques
·     Resource List
·     Art Advocacy
·     Cross-Curricular Learning
·   Art Process

Here is a Art Note that you might want to use. This is my Art Process Art Note. I use this for mostly reflection of an art lesson. This is a perfect printmaking or clay wrap up. Click here for a link to this google doc.

Another Swap-bot trade

2011-10-26T11:19:00.000-05:00

We have some more trades set up on Swap-bot. Again, if you want to join us, go to Swap-bot.com. You will need to set up an account and search for out group. In the search field type Classroom… you should fine our group Classroom ATC. I will accept you into the group soon after and a trading we will go:)

We set up our trades a bit differently this time. Ccoyne (Swap name) is the brain child of the new set up and I love it. She is also the developer of our elementary trades. If you have suggestions for trade for either of us… let us know.

These trades are for groups of 25. If you have more then that you can sign up for more 'stacks' (each designed for 25 students) which all have the same subject. We hope to accommodate our more diverse teachers and schools. We are also encouraging non art teachers to join.

Our sign up date is Nov. 18th with a send out date of Dec. 9th. Trading has been a LOT of fun. I hope you can join us!

For other information about Swap-bot and how you can get involved please see my previous posts.

QR Codes in Action!

2011-10-25T09:56:00.002-05:00

Kyleigh using an iPad to show her mom her Youtube explaining her artwork.

Parents at Rogers Middle school were able to hear from the artist themselves during conferences. Nichole Hahn, Art Specialist at Rogers Middle School allowed students who completed their project early to record themselves talking about their art. They discussed how they made the art and gave a self reflection of what they were most proud of and what they would change if they did it again. Mrs. Hahn create a QR code that and hung it by the art work. This way parents could use smart phones, iPads, or iPods to interact with the artwork displayed thought out the building.

Here is an example of one of the QR codes. If you scan it, it will bring you to a student talking about their art. Go ahead… Give it a try:)

SnackTools!

2011-10-21T06:59:00.001-05:00

I just discovered tube snacktools! I have a feeling I will be using them a lot. I like the look of what they create. Below is a example of Tubesnack. Here is an example of that…

Do you use SnackTools? What are the limitations of the free version? Would you suggest purchasing an account? Why?

Slide Share Elements and Principles of Art

2011-10-19T07:33:00.000-05:00

Elements And Principles of Art

View more presentations from kpikuet

While looking for presentations on Elements and Principles I was pleased to run across this slide share.

Advertising the QR codes...

2011-10-18T07:00:00.000-05:00

So I have been talking quite a bit about using QR codes in the classroom and I think I finally have a way to try it. For the last project that students finished I asked some students to sit in front of the iPad and do an iMovie of themselves talking about their art.

My plan is to attach a QR code to the youtube of the students and allow viewers to hear first hand about the art from the artist themselves. I put this on a discussion thread on ArtEd 2.0 Ning and got some good discussion Theresa McGee suggested that I prepare the parents before conferences. She told me to send them how to have the proper app available on their phone. GREAT idea!

Here is the worksheet I adapted for my classes. I used a lot of verbiage from a post I saw from Jump Scan. I will send this home tomorrow in hopes that parents will get word of my interactive art projects.

If you would like to look or use the worksheet, feel free. Click here for a link to the google doc.

Teaching Composition with Rungius

2011-10-17T10:28:00.004-05:00

In learning what to do with my middle school students I discovered that these students know the facts. These kids are coming to me knowing the elements of art but the principles are another whole thing. I have been asking my students to create good composition with out teaching them how to do so. Here is a website I stumbled across when looking for ways to teach composition. Composing with Wildlife

Have you heard planking?

2011-10-14T16:41:00.000-05:00

Do you know what planking is? I have been sick the last couple of days and I got to catch up on some Hulu.com I watch 'The Office' and laughed the whole time because of planking. I thought it was just an office thing but no… It's a pop culture thing…

Maybe it is the cold medicine that is getting me through the day today, or maybe it is because it is a Friday or the weather is changing… but my kids made me laugh so hard as I walked into my art room today to find this. 7th graders planking all over my room. I laughed out loud, told them NO PLANKING… it can be dangerous. (and then asked them to plank one more time for this picture). :)

This is it!!! This is why I teach. You have read my stories before but again I say I love to teach! I love that the kids are so funny (most of the time not trying to be). I love that I can joke with them, make them smile, and they return the favor! These kids are wonderful, fun, unpredictable, and hilarious! Again I say, the kids are the reason I teach!

Mrs. Brown's Art Class

2011-10-11T20:45:00.000-05:00

Another GREAT resource for K-5 visual art teachers. Mrs. Brown had some great lesson plans and a wonderful site!

Art Resource Center by Scholastic

2011-10-10T18:32:00.002-05:00

Another great resource to share with you. Have you heard? The NEW Art Resource Center, developed by Prismacolor and Scholastic, is open and soon to become your favorite online hub for art resources.

Teachers, download the dynamic lesson plans andstudent worksheets. Invite your students to experience the center where they will be absorbed in the amazing art galleries and artist bios. It's full of inspiration.

It's all here: http://www.scholastic.com/prismacolor. Thank you for inspiring your students to be creative!

WatercolorPainting.com

2011-10-08T12:31:00.002-05:00

What a great place for tutorials. Thanks WatercolorPainting. com! I used you quite a bit in class this last week!

Becker Middle School ROCKS!

2011-10-07T07:00:00.000-05:00

Becker Middle School is AMAZING… Well Mrs. Hare is wonderful and her students are very talented! We received an amazing package from Becker middle school students today. Mrs. Hare has packaged the grouping of cards with great care!

Each section was labeled with the them of the cards. Here is an example of texture page.

The cards were in nice and neat plastic loners. They are amazing works of mini art pieces. I'm totally impressed! Way to go Becker Students!

More Trades on Swap-bot...

2011-10-06T15:40:00.003-05:00

More trades offered… Check them out on Swap-bot. These trades are for all size classrooms. You can send either sign up for one 'stack' of 25 or additional stacks to add up to your classroom size. This wonderful was brought to you from Caryn Coyne. We are looking for feed back to see if you can understand the wording. Take a look below and if you have a suggestion, please leave a comment. Thanks!

The wording is as follows…

Group:	Classroom ATC
Swap Coordinator:	ccoyne (contact)
Swap categories:	Artist Trading Card (ATC)
Number of people in swap:	1
Location:	International
Type:	Type 3: Package or craft
Last day to signup/drop:	October 21, 2011
Date items must be sent by:	November 4, 2011
Number of swap partners:	1
Description:
This is an elementary school classroom ATC exchange for 25 cards. Students should be between the ages of 5 and 11. You will be trading 25 cards with one school for each “stack” of this trade. SUBJECT: WHAT ARE YOU LEARNING ABOUT? Get creative and share knowledge on an ATC. It could be in any school subject art, or academic, adapted and shared on an ATC. Examples: a cool art project or element, compass rose, cells, writing music or even presidents! The specific subject is up to you, but please make sure each "stack" of 25 is similar. PAPER & SIZE: All cards must be on a sturdy substrate (paper, cardboard, metal, plastic…). The cards must all be 2 1/2 by 3 1/2 inches or 64 X 89 mm. MEDIUM: You may use any medium that you would like. Just keep in mind that students might be placing them into their ATC sheets so mediums that smudge are not recommended. Instruct students to write the following on the back of EACH card. Age, grade and school are optional. Name (first names only) Title, State/Country, Date ATC are 2.5 inch If you have less than 25 students, some might not mind doing multiple cards. If you have more than 25 students, we are trying out a way to accommodate. Please see section on "stacks" below. STACKS - Notice the multiple titles with different “stack #”? This is designed to allow a diversity of participation from whole schools, after school programs, homeschoolers, and single classrooms. Students will receive ATCs from more places. Students love to talk about all different places they have swapped art with. Each “stack” is designed for 25 students. Each “stack” swaps with one school. Teachers can join multiple swaps to “stack” the right number of students. If you have 100 students participating, please join four “stacks” to equal 100. You will mail to four schools. If you have only 25 participating, please look at all the stacks and join one with the least amount of swappers. You will mail to one school. If you have more than 100 students, please contact me. I can work it out to accommodate more students. Right now we are mostly art teacher in the exchange, but feel free to share with your classroom teachers on this one. It's a great opportunity to get cross-curricular and reinforce academics with art!

MIA… What a Great Place for Teachers!

2011-10-04T13:22:00.003-05:00

Great images and teacher guide from the MIA for the Day of the Dead. I visit the Minneapolis Institute of Art on a regular basis and many of my students have also have the opportunity to do so too. But if you are not from Minnesota and perhaps don't know of this Museum… it's worth checking out. They send out emails with GREAT teacher resources and have a wonderful website with their collection.

Rogers Middle School Art Webpage

2011-09-28T18:13:00.001-05:00

Introducing my new website for the middle school. I have a long way to go but here it is so far. I use it all the time for kids to find resources for my class and as a way of communicating. Come check it out!

Printable Worksheet for the Potato Skull Prints

2011-09-24T11:39:00.000-05:00

Here is a link to the Potato Skull Prints worksheet I created to create the potato prints in an earlier post. Feel free to use it!

Virtual Body

2011-09-21T20:41:00.000-05:00

I did the skull prints with my middle school kids this week as we had a modified schedule for a week. More to come about how I used it but I wanted to highlight this great resources, The Virtual Body by MEDtroplis. We used it for an introduction of the bones of the body. There is a nice narrative, a build a skeleton game, and you can zoom in on different parts of the body. I loved it and the kids did too!

Slot Shelter

2011-09-16T08:00:00.000-05:00

I want to get the word out for a new friend, Corinne. Please read the below if you are an art educator in any aspect of the word. This looks like an amazing project!

Hi All,

This is an invitation to participating in another large scale collaborative design project that engages both national and international schools!

We are two artists and arts educators, Corinne Takara and Pantea Karimi, based in Bay Area, California; who are currently designing an exciting student collaborative art project, Slot Shelters, an exploration into shelters and patterns reflecting on community globally. This project will be conducted in various schools both inside and outside U.S.A. between Falls 2011-2013. We are partnering with Zero 1, the art and technology network based in San Jose, CA and have applied for a NEA Media Arts Grant (results of which will be known after May 2012). Slot Shelters is starting now with a few schools and will be launched on a larger scale in the Spring and Fall 2012.

Our project website: http://www.slotshelters.com/

We have submitted a Library 2.0 conference proposal regarding Slot Shelters:http://www.library20.com/forum/topics/building-visual-and-digital-literacy-framing-a-youth-conversion

Currently we have students participating from: 2 schools in California, 1 school in Hawaii, 1 in Utah, and 1 in Azerbaijan (where students conducted the Explore: Building Prototypes of Slot Shelters lesson last week. We will update our website with the outcome soon).

This year, the project is inviting 4th and 5th grade classes. We are looking to add to our pool of schools participating this academic year. If you are interested in joining Slot Shelters this academic year or are contemplating it for next academic year, please contact us! We’d love to hear from you! We have a teacher informational and instructional welcome packet to share with you.

Corinne Takara, Lead Teaching Artist and Project Lead
Pantea Karimi, Lead Teaching Artist and Project Co-Lead
www.okadadesign.com www.redcanvas.net

corinne@okadadesign.com and pantea@redcanvas.net

2011-09-14T13:00:00.000-05:00

I have heard of Pinterest but I just figured I didn't need another thing to do online. I saw someone pinned me on Pinterest and when I clicked on it, lot's of people have 'pinned' my blog. I had no idea. What do you use Pinterest for? How could you use it with students? How do you use it professionally or personally? Do I need one?

Potato Skulls

2011-09-13T19:19:00.000-05:00

So fun! The kids and I are going to have a party so we had to start on making the invites. We decided on potato print skulls.

We used black acrylic paint, a brayer, and printing plate.

Both the kids helped print one skull on every invite. They had a blast! Me too!

SchoolArts Clip Card

2011-09-11T19:14:00.000-05:00

I'm excited to announce that I have another clip card published in SchoolArts Magazine. I was so proud of my student Paige W. that I had to send in her work. She is a VERY talented little artist. I love the digital magazine. You can order it too. Please visit SchoolArt Magazine to view Paige's clip card and read about many more wonderful ideas for you classroom. Please see my previous post about this lesson.

You know you blog too often when...

2011-09-10T10:55:00.002-05:00

... your husband sends you this clip and tell you it reminds him of you. Thanks Mr. Hahn:) You are too funny:)

Just a funny post for a Saturday:)

Lots of firsts...

2011-09-09T08:00:00.000-05:00

It was my son's 1st day of kindergarten yesterday. This is an email I received from his teacher about midday. It got me through the day with a smile...

...He's doing great. He said that if we don't behave on the bus our parents will write a note to Santa Claus. LOL!!!!! Love his tie.

From, Mrs. G

Whoop Whoop for Google!

2011-09-08T13:42:00.000-05:00

I love Bloggers new look! For those of you who use google you would have noticed a bunch of change this last week, all for the better. I like to look at my state of what people are interested in on my blog now and again and today I looked and I saw that I have had 110,000 previews to my page from starting it up. I thought it was a fun looking number so wanted to post about it. More then that I wanted to praise, and encourage others to use google. There is nothing better then coming onto you blog, or google docs or any of the other great google wear out there to find out that there is upgrades done... No $ to you! Very cool!