Initial Art - First Grade

We started off the school year in 1st grade with this very cool initial art made using warm and cool colors. 

The first step was to figure out what our "initial" is!  This was the main vocabulary word for the day! This was a little tricky for first graders, and so some of them had to try again, but we  think everyone finally figured it out!  We painted our initial in with yellow tempera, and then decorated it with orange.  While our initials were drying, we learned about cool colors and abstract art as we created this decidedly cool background.  I gave the children creative freedom with this. The only rule was that I wanted them to use all the available cool colors and they were to fill their page with color.

After we were done painting the background, we cut out our large "warm" initial and glued it down on the paper.  This was the hardest part.  Some of the children struggled a bit with cutting, but if they made a mistake, we just glued all the parts down and it worked out great!

Back in the classroom the teachers helped the children write about the project to reinforce the sounds that were in their name, and what exactly an "initial" is.   The next week, we came back to art and created name art using all the letters in their name.  While most of the children know their letter sounds, these lessons were designed to provide some reinforcement and help for the lower students who have not quite mastered these skills.

2nd Grade: Out of the Rock!

The 2nd graders used colorful chalk in warm colors to create rock monsters that literally come "Out of the Rock" to greet everyone as they walk by! In the final installment for our rock unit, we learned how to use chalk to create beautiful art. We learned that chalk is one of the "softest" of rocks and is rated a #2 or #3 on the "Moh" scale. We learned to blend and shade three different colors of chalk to give our rock monsters dimension and depth. Come enjoy the beautiful scenery of Utah as you attend the 2nd grade program on March 23rd and 24th.

The inspiration for this art project came from the movie "Galaxy Quest". My 7 year old son was watching the movie and when I saw the "rock monster" rumbling out of earth and start to chase Tim Allen, I knew that the children would love to draw their own rock monster. The children love working with the chalk... perhaps because it is so messy and different from anything they have ever done before.

Kindergarten: The wind is cool. The sun is warm.

If you have walked down the hall by the art room lately, you will have noticed these captivating art prints created by the Kindergarten children at East Elementary. We learned about the wind and the sun as we read the book "Dona Flor" by Pat Mora. We finger-painted spirals and curvy lines on white boards using either warm or cool colors and then we made “prints” of our spirals by putting paper on top of our paint. The children were amazing as they learned this very early form of printing. When we left class we "became the wind" as we floated quietly down the hall. The children loved this activity and the resulting artwork is just beautiful.

Core Tie-in: Literacy

Art Concepts: Cool Colors and Warm Colors

Vocabulary: Cool, Warm, Texture