Weeks of 10/27/25 and 11/3/25 - Second rotation with UTK, Kinders and 1st grade

 UTK, kinders and 1st graders returned for their 2nd 2-week rotation! It is always lovely to see the UTK students and some of the kinders getting more familiar with the classroom, asking me questions and engaging more readily by this time if they are new to Zamorano! It is also lovely to see kinder students and 1st grade students that have been in the school the previous year start taking more responsibility of the classroom and guiding the new students.

UTK students and 1st graders created art with clay. 

I read the story "The Big Orange Splot" by Daniel Manus Pinkwater to UTK students - this is one of my favorite books! I gave each student a clay slab and showed them how to slice the top corners off like a triangle using a plastic knife. Once done, they drew a horizontal line to create the roof and door. They used the slip and score technique to add the triangles they cut off to create windows and added a variety of textures to complete their work.

1st graders created owls after we read the story "Little Owl's night" by Divya Srinivasan. Each table received 2 owl templates, and each student received a clay slab. They used the template to cut an outline of an owl. They then used a wooden pencil tool to draw curved lines for wings, added textures and a slip and score technique to add large eyes and a nose to complete their work.

Kinder students created a printmaking artwork! Each student received a 9"X12 " watercolor paper. They used a variety of objects such as legos, forks and cups and that they dipped in black acrylic paint to create prints and then used glitter watercolors to paint the areas between the prints. 

The following week, all grades engaged in a color mixing lesson. I gave each student plastic shapes in primary colors that we held two at a time to see how they change into a secondary color! I love how excited students get when we do this :)

I read the story "Mouse paint" by Ellen Stoll Walsh to UTK students after which I gave each student a 9" X 12" watercolor paper. We drew five curved lines, numbered the areas using a pencil and after which we started adding painting the 3 primary colors in. I then gave students additional primary colors they could mix to create secondary colors and add them into the remaining areas to finish their rainbows.

Kinder students created a variety of horizontal and vertical lines on their paper along with circles, outlined them with a black Sharpie marker and painted primary colors first. They followed the same steps as the UTK students mixing 2 primary colors to create secondary colors and painted them in the spaces on their paper.

I read the story "The Cat and the Bird - A children's book inspired by Paul Klee" by Geraldine Elschner to first grade students. I love this book for its sweet story and how shapes are stacked up to create the buildings. Once finished, students used the plastic shapes to stack them up, draw the outline with pencil and create buildings in three different sizes - tall, medium and short. Students traced the shapes using a black oil pastel and painted primary colors in some of the shapes. They then mixed them to create secondary colors and painted them in the remaining shapes to complete their work.