Wrapping up the year

The year's end is always a whirlwind of activity, from finishing those last projects to wrapping up clay and packing portfolios. We always try to get in a little reflection time in that last week too, by reviewing some of our favorite moments and media from the semester. We have a "media talley" section on our portfolios and we were successful at checking off all of them this year.

 Every portfolio contains a handout with instructions for our "Summer Sketch" activity - a list of suggested topics and directions for posting them online. #dolvinsummersketch

Teachers, I have a generic version of this handout on my Teachers pay Teachers page: https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Mrs-Knights-Smartest-Artists

Another big event happening now is prepping for a major renovation in our forty-year-old building. All the framed student art collected over the years was removed from the walls and will be reconfigured, and many of my murals, like the Jack in the Beanstalk inspired one outside the media center, will be painted over - bittersweet, but excited about a fresh start too.

Weaving is part of our final curriculum unit and we didn't get much time to complete these due to interrupted schedules during testing weeks. I sent the looms home with instructions on finishing them up, and this student did a great job working on her own.

Our Artsonia page was super successful in our first year - we are ranked #2 in the state! It was so exciting reading the parent comments that poured in. I have to say that developing this program and watching the kids take it over with our iPads was one of the highlights of the year. Profits from sales will go toward keeping our studio stocked with tools for creation :).

Notes and gifts of appreciation are always a highlight of the year's end, so thank you so much to the students and families who brightened my days with flowers, notes and gift cards!

Happy summer to all - I'm looking forward to seeing those summer sketches very soon! 

Kindergarten lately...

Fish weavings and "April Showers" creations were some of our last pieces in kindergarten this year. The weavings are something we do every year, and the others are inspired from several Artsonia galleries like this one: http://www.artsonia.com/museum/gallery.asp?exhibit=196747

I really like connecting our art to seasons, weather, and other real world experiences. 

5th grade clay bowls

Just like my recent 4th grade post, clay got pushed into the last few sessions of art for the year, so I needed something we could build in a day and glaze the next week, and still fit in some clay learning. So, souvenir bowls it was for my soon-to-graduate 5th graders.

On building day, the kids rolled their own slabs and texturized them before pressing into the styrofoam bowl molds. We also rolled coils for the numbers and scored/slipped for joining.

This past week, we returned the newly fired ceramic bowls to the styrofoam for support during glazing and to remind the kids not to glaze the bottoms. We used several coats of glaze and loaded them into the kiln for the second time...

Voila! Beautiful bowls that will serve as a nice memory from their time in elementary art class. Best of luck in middle school and beyond, 5th graders!