Underground drawings, 2nd grade

Second graders are finishing up some really creative drawings set under the ground, so we did a lot of visualizing to come up with our ideas. We looked at some classic book illustrations by Garth Williams of Cricket in Times Square fame and the always classic Beatrix Potter. All of these story animals live in a hidden away, subterranean world and the job of the illustrator is to create that world.

We talked about visual textures found in the layers of soil, clay, and rock. Some drawings show a realistic setting for a possible hibernating animal, readying for winter, and others have more of a sense of humor about them, as if the animals lived like people.


Thanks to North Art Alert for posting their lesson on underground worlds - my students were inspired by yours.

End of Unit 1: what have I learned so far?

Keeping track of what we have learned so far, and assessing ourselves and peers - it can be a time consuming task. I've been working on ways to make these activities not only engaging but also quick and easy. Here are some of the methods we have used and are beginning to use now that we are starting up our second 9 weeks unit - already!

First graders are using a rubric created by Artful Artsy Amy to review their favorite piece from Unit 1, then they are commenting on each other's work using symbols we created in class. Kindergarteners are also learning the Art Walk, when we check out each other's art and offer compliments.

Our first grade portfolios show our word wall progress and our media usage so far.

Second and third graders are tracking artistic behaviors and accomplishments on a chart which we will return to each 9 weeks. We also use The Art Stack critique for ourselves and a peer. 

Here are some shots of my 4th and 5th grade portfolios and rubrics, including self-portraits that show off our new facial proportions knowledge.

Each of these activities only take between 3-10 minutes at the beginning or end of a project or unit - it is not something we do every week, but it does play a big part in student ownership of learning. Keeping portfolios has created a whole new level of respect of our artwork from the students.

On a fun note, here are some pics from Reading Extravaganza, when art students were treated to a reading of "The Day the Crayons Quit" and a letter writing activity.

What's to come in unit 2, you ask? Printmaking, lots of landscapes, K-2 clay projects... and Artsonia, our digital art gallery - Stay tuned!

If any of these teaching tools interest you, please check out my Teachers Pay Teachers store at http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Mrs-Knights-Smartest-Artists .

If the Dinosaurs Came Back

Kindergarten artists use dinosaurs and prehistoric art during several projects throughout the year as their "Art from other times and places" focus. I saw this book by Bernard Most in our media center and I was intrigued by the cover illustration, and the story was funny and inventive. The kids enjoyed contrasting the modern setting with the natural dino habitat.

We worked on our drawing skills here, combining geometric shapes for the city setting and combining organic shapes for the dinos. We used the bubble cutting technique, cutting a large bubble around the dino first then making the bubble smaller and smaller without actually touching the line (which would pop the bubble). This way of cutting really helps young kids who tend to cut straight through lines and have the pieces fall apart. I think we only lost one wing the whole week!