G&T​ ​​Makerspace

By: Daisy, Isai, Maddie, Marleen, and DyAndra

If​ ​you​ ​​know​ ​the​ ​meaning​ ​of​ ​art​ ​it​ ​is way​ ​different​ ​from​ ​the​ ​meaning​ ​of makerspace. Makerspace​ ​means to​ ​make​ ​something​ ​that​ ​art teachers​ ​have​ ​never​ ​seen before.​ In​ ​our​ ​makerspace​ ​we​ ​do things​ ​that​ ​teachers​ ​will​ ​be​ ​surprised to​ ​see​ ​and​ ​amazed​ ​at ​our creativity skills.​ ​So​ ​let​ ​us​ ​begin.​ ​First,​ ​we started​ ​Illumination​ ​where​ ​we​ ​wrote our​ ​names​ ​and​ ​we​ ​made​ ​our​ ​first letter​ ​stand​ ​out​ ​and​ ​put​ ​things​ ​that are​ ​special​ ​to​ ​us​ ​and​ ​put​ ​it​ ​in​ ​our first​ ​letter​ ​of​ ​our​ ​names​ ​to​ ​stand​ ​out. Then​ ​we​ ​learned​ ​about​ ​​Frida​ ​Kahlo and​ ​what​ ​she​ ​did​ ​during​ ​her​ ​time when​ ​women​ ​​ ​did​ ​not​ ​have​ ​equal rights​ ​yet.​ ​She​ ​also​ ​inspired​ ​us​ ​to​ ​do self​ ​portraits​ ​because​ ​when​ ​she​ ​did self​ ​portraits,​ ​it​ ​showed​ ​something about​ ​herself.​ ​Next,​ ​we​ ​took​ ​pictures of​ ​our​ ​partners​ ​that​ ​we​ ​have​ ​chosen to​ ​take​ ​a​ ​photo​ ​of​ ​ourselves​ ​with​ ​an outfit​ ​that​ ​represented​ ​“Be​ ​a​ ​learner not​ ​a​ ​finisher”​ ​or​ ​“be​ ​a​ ​leader”​ ​​ ​with our​ ​lovely​ ​teacher​ ​Mrs.​ Simovitch who​ ​let​ ​us​ ​borrow​ ​her​ ​camera​ ​and taught​ ​us​ ​the​ ​right way​ ​to​ ​use it.Then​ ​we​ ​chose the​ ​photo​ ​that looked​ ​best​ ​and created​ ​a​ ​frame for​ ​our​ ​portrait​ ​of ourselves​. ​We took​ ​portraits​ ​that represented​ ​us,​ ​meaning​ ​what​ ​stood out​ ​the​ ​most​ ​about​ ​us​ ​and​ ​our personality. Now​ ​in​ ​art​ ​class​, we​ ​are working​ ​on​ ​format,​ ​futurism​ ​with shading,​ ​and​ ​I​ ​can’t​ ​forget​ ​the acrylic​ ​workshop​ ​and​ ​how​ ​to​ ​create different​ ​tints​ ​to​ ​create​ ​3D​ ​forms. We are​ ​also​ ​combining​ ​ELA​ ​with​ ​art​ ​by making​ ​blueprints​ ​and​ ​3D​ ​houses​ ​for character​ ​with​ ​specific​ ​details​ ​from the​ novel, ​Maniac Magee​ ​​​by​ ​finding​ ​the​ ​length, height, and width​ ​for​ ​each​ ​room. ​ ​We​ ​even connected​ ​to​ ​Math​ ​by​ ​doing abstract​ ​art​ ​and​ ​connected​ ​to Science​ ​by​ ​drawing​ ​our ecosystem. Last​ ​year​ ​in​ ​4th​ ​grade we​ ​did​ ​a​ ​lot​ ​of​ ​cool​ ​things​ ​I​ ​am mentioning​ ​this​ ​because​ ​those ​ ​gave​ ​us​ ​a​ ​head​ ​start​ ​for​ ​what was​ ​really​ ​waiting​ ​for​ ​us​ ​this​ ​year and​ ​all of​ ​those​ ​things​ ​involved​ ​different subjects. In​ ​art​ ​we​ ​also​ ​identified lines​ ​in​ ​other​ ​words​ ​we​ ​made​ ​a​ ​line encyclopedia​ ​that​ ​also​ ​stated​ ​their names.

Technology

We recently used the program "Scratch" to create our very own "Google Logo". This is the beginning of our coding journey this year, with more opportunities to come. Next, we will be participating in the "Hour of Code" on Code.org, the first week in December.