Artroom News
January 12th, 2024
End of the Semester
Happy New Year and to an end of a semester. As we wrap up in some classes we are beginning new units in others. A few student pieces will be on display at the Royal Oak Public Library for the rest of the month, and a few more will hang at Oakland County Schools next month.
I would also like to tell you about an art contest available through the Public Library:
The i love Royal Oak Youth Drawing Contest.
Click HERE for more information.
Report cards will have grades for art classes this marking period, they will be available in a few weeks. The scale is: 1-area of concern 2-progressing 3-proficient, 4-excelling. Please reach out if you have any questions. I understand all students progress through the ages and stages of artistic development at different paces, and rarely see a need for concern. I am fortunate that most students come to art with a willingness to try and a positive attitude which makes all the difference.
Current Work
Kindergarten:
We are beginning a unit on Art History. We started this week looking at some of the oldest artworks drawn in caves. We used charcoal that I make each summer to draw our images. Instead of large animals we drew the things we see in our lives everyday. The combination of newsprint paper, charcoal and warm washes of ‘mud’ make for great modern themed cave walls. Next we will work with clay. Students learn about the first writing forms pressed into clay tablets. Students will design a tile by pressing, drawing and mark making into a leather hard slab of clay. The pieces will be fired to harden them, and then the students will be able to glaze their works. We will touch on several time periods across the world in the coming months.
1st Grade:
Students are beginning a new unit about mark making using different surfaces for each project. We are starting by creating our own scratchboards by covering a board with oil pastel, then painting it with a layer of black. The following week when the paint is dry, students will scratch through the black paint to reveal the colors they laid down beneath. After this we will work with Repoussé a metalworking technique wheel metal is ‘pushed forward’. We will draw into aluminum, and then use the raised marks on the reverse side as cells to be colored in with permanent markers.
2nd Grade:
Students are beginning a unit on Printmaking. They were introduced to the technique last year with, but will use a relief technique this year. Students will create a foam printing block by drawing into the surface. This process lends itself to multiple variations of color of ink and paper. After that set of prints, students will create a monoprint using varied techniques. Their imaginations can go wild as we introduce the concept of ‘over work’ and layering images and designs. We also talk about another meaning where you can go too far and over work an image.
3rd Grade:
Students have been working hard on our Storytelling Unit. Some are finishing their comic strip and beginning a Comic Cover. This project will have the students create themselves with superpowers. After the illustration portion of the unit we will do some basic forms of animation. We will do a ‘Flip O Rama’ from the Dogman Series. Students will create a creature that opens its mouth to reveal a surprise, and finally they will create a short story with a flip book.
4th Grade:
We are coming to an end of our Stop Motion Animation Unit. Student’s hard work will be rewarded with a movie day where we get to watch all of the projects. I will provide popcorn for our viewing party. The week before their class I will send home a note for you. If your child cannot eat popcorn and would like to bring a healthy alternative like pretzels or goldfish, but please no candy or nuts. The file format doesn’t work with Artsonia, so students will be able to download their movie to their chromebook once we finish in a few weeks.
5th Grade:
Students are coming to the end of their clay Memory Containers and will be glazing them soon. Students will also get the chance to pick a favorite image from our Perspective unit to be included in the yearbook. Our next big project will be a Self Portrait. It will literally be big as each student will create a life self portrait with charcoal that I make each summer. The images will line the halls once they are complete to celebrate their time in elementary school.