Week of 12/12/22 - Birch Aquarium visit

 We had Birch Aquarium visit Zamorano to present and share their "Fish Diversity" program with all 6 3rd grade classes. 

The staff from Birch aquarium did a great job engaging the students, answering questions and sharing their material. Students learned about the different fish adaptations, fish teeth, body shape, and coloration in small groups. They were able to compare and contrast the same by observing an actual mackerel and Rex Sole and document their observations.

I am looking forward to using this information to use in an art lesson in the New Year integrating science and art.

Below are a few photos from this awesome experience!

 

 

 

Week of 12/05/22 - 2nd and 3rd grade

 2nd and 3rd grade returned this week - 2nd grade created Koinobori fish while 3rd graders worked on creating a relief sculpture on paper.

 Art teachers  in my district received a large donation of canvases and paint brushes that came in plastic containers. I saved those containers and had been looking for a way to reuse them. The Japanese inspired Koinobori fish was the perfect way to reuse the containers.

Koi means fish and Nobori means a flag - May 5th is celebrated as children's day in Japan when families make flags representing a carp out of fabric to  represent the children in the family. They are hung outside their homes and are colorful and vibrant.

After discussing as a class what we saw in Koinobori photos, I gave each student a plastic container that they covered with strips of paper. I pre- cut so they would fit around the container. Once done, students glued fabric along the base to represent the tail fin. They added scales using paint sticks - can I just say how much I love these? The colors are rich, bold and bright and the students love them as well!! After this students drew and cut large eyes and glued the on either side on the opening which was the mouth. Using black and white for the eyes provided a nice I hot glued a piece of yarn and that way students could take their works home the same day! I 

 

3rd grade students created a relief sculpture with paper inspired by the art of sculptor Halima Cassell. We looked at her sculptures and discussed what kind of balance we observed - symmetrical, asymmetrical and radial. I showed students 3 different kinds of folds after which they created more folds of the ones they liked, arranged them on the card stock paper and glued them to create symmetry. I love how unique each work is!

 

Week of 11/28/22 - UTK, K and 1st grade

 Is this really the last week of November!!? I can't believe how fast the weeks are going by!

 Inspired by the book"Not a Stick" by Antoinette Portis, UTK students changed a paint stick into something new by adding paper, yarn and fabric! This book is great in sparking kids imagination and having them really think! I showed students several examples of what the stick could be changed into and encouraged them to come up with something unique!

Kinder students created Dhurries inspired by rugs handwoven in India and Pakistan. We looked at examples of Dhurries, talked about how they are created by an actual person on a loom and not by machines. We looked at the book "The Goat in the Rug" by Geraldine which talks about the process of weaving a rug from scratch to finish. Students first created lines with pencil, traced them with paint sticks, added shape patterns and glued yarn strips after measuring and cutting them. Here are some examples!

1st grade students used yarn to create Huichol art inspired by the art from Mexico. We looked at several examples and had a class discussion about what we notice and wonder. We looked at the book "The Journey of Tunuri and the Blue Deer" by James Endredy where all the illustrations are created Huichol style. I have 6 1st grade classes - each class created a different image that they filled with yarn. I love how bright and colorful the works are!