Quarter 3

Exploration 2:

Color mixing

Kindergarten artists got to experience the strong connection between Art, Math & Science in this fun exploratory investigation into color. Artists were given liquid watercolors in primary and secondary colors. Each color had a pipette dropper. Artists had small containers to use the pipettes to mix new colors in their color mixing trays. The excitement and giggles that came from making new colors, and "fairy potions" were so much fun. We took the color mixing to the next level by seeing what would happen when we took our newly made colors and put them on cotton balls and cotton pads.

Exploration 1:

Finish the line

Kindergarten artists began the new semester jumping right into building their visual analysis and ideating skills. The tables were covered with large format paper that had unfinished lines drawn throughout the paper. The artists were supplied with only a sharpie marker to start. Every artist had 5 unfinished lines to turn into something. Giving students an unexpected beginning and no end challenges students to create under a bit of constraint. Having to finish someone else's drawing can also challenge artists to adapt. By using markers instead of pencils, we create opportunities for failure in a low-stakes, safe, and supported way. Once our fun drawings were complete we brought them to life with color!

Exploration 3:

Gallery of Gratitude

Kindergarten artists are getting into the spirit of being thankful! We questioned, thought & wondered around what a "Gallery" is and what may be displayed in a gallery. It was so fun to hear the "wonders" and connections the students made during our discussion. We also explored how we can show gratitude! These kindergarteners have such big hearts! Each artist explored their gratitude within a picture frame and shared it with their peers. It is a pretty exciting day in the art room when we use "GIANT!" paper and get to draw on the floor! This is a great way to expand our knowledge of what, where, and how art is made and displayed!

Exploration 2:

Material Exploration: Chalk

Kindergarten artists spent some time exploring artist chalk pastels. This is a very exciting material as it has similar properties to sidewalk chalk, however, the colors have a much higher pigmentation which results in a very strong saturation on the paper. Artists explored what happened when they used only the pastels, used their hands, and even tried out using stencils with the pastels. While many artists choose to explore the new material, there were some artists who chose to work using the materials that we always have available to our artists. All around, it was a fun day of exploration!

Exploration 1:

The Four Seasons

Kindergarten artists are reading the book "Red sings from the treetops, a year in colors" by Joyce Sidman and illustrated by Pamela Zagarenski. Each week artists will explore a specific season based on the readings. The artists think about how symbols and imagery can represent feelings and experiences to create a piece of art. To go along with a new season each week, the artists will also be introduced to new art-making materials to explore! Exploring art mediums is a large part of artist development. By giving a broad theme to create around, artists are able to have an anchor while they explore.

Exploration 1:

Material Exploration

Exploration 2:

Dot day "...Make a mark and see where it takes you."

"The Dot" by Peter H. Reynolds is an art studio favorite! As we read the book, artists played the role of "Artist Detective" and made observations about the character using the illustrations as our guide. We explored how the background colors changed in the story as the main character "Vashti" experienced emotions throughout the book. Artists were then invited to explore some art materials to create their own dot inspired by the story.

Exploration 3:

Exploring the work of Alma Thomas

Alma Thomas taught art in the public schools of Washington, D.C for 38 years! Alma is recognized for her major contributions to abstract painting and women artists. Kinder artists are learning to identify irregular shapes. Using our pincher skill set, students explored tearing paper to assemble an abstract paper painting.