Honoring

Fourth and fifth grade students created a collective series of work to honor veterans for Veterans Day this year.

Students created the Ohio flag.

They also made a flag of the United States.

Students also created a poster for the army, navy , air force, marines and the coast guard.

After drawing the design and tracing it with marker, students added a wash of watercolor paint for the background.

After retracing the poster with marker, students began to use dots of paint in a pointillistic manner.

Every group began adding dots of color to their art work.

Collectively the work began to take shape as dots and colors began to fill in the design.

It was fun to watch the students take ownership of their work as their skills increased.

All of the students were introduced to new art techniques and design ideas as they worked cooperatively on this project.

Here are examples of their work:

 

 

 

 

Arbor Day

Fifth grade students recently participated in the City of Willard’s Arbor Day poster contest.

The poster contest was sponsored by the Willard Tree Commission.

Students were given the theme “Trees are good for life.”

After learning about Arbor Day, students created three ideas and picked their best idea for their poster.

Lettering was a large part of the students’ design for their posters.

Everyone had a variety of materials to choose from to create their poster.

I was very proud of the hard work most everyone put into their posters.

This was a great project for the students to become aware of their community and environment and how they have a part in their local community.

Students also learned about the process it takes to come up with an idea and turn it into a poster to educate their community.

Here are some examples of their posters:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Christmas portraits

Fifth grade students were busy before Christmas break creating Christmas portraits for presents.

Students worked in teams of two to create a portrait of each other for their project.

Everyone learned to work together and use available space and light to create nice studio space for portraits.

Fifth graders also learned the importance of a solid background for a portrait.

Everyone enjoyed learning to use the new technology of digital photography and creating a gift for others.

Portraits

Fifth grade students have been learning how to create a photographic portrait in their digital photography unit of study.

After turning our art room into a make-shift studio, students learned how to use a tripod and it’s importance to creating a portrait.

Everyone has enjoyed learning about digital photography.

Students have learned how difficult it is to create a good portrait.

Students have enjoyed working with partners as they learn new technology and principals of digital photography.

Big news

Fifth grade students have begun their study of photography using digital cameras.

Everyone has been working with a partner as they learn the functions of the camera.

Students have been learning how to compose an image which forces them to focus on the image and background.

Students are very excited about learning this new technology in the art room.

It’s great to see the students become so excited to learn!

At the end of class students review and edit their images in camera before they are reviewed next week by the class.

Photo-collages

Fifth grade students have been exploring creating a collage out of their photographs.

Fifth graders had many options to choose from as they worked to create a collage from many layers of one image.

Photographs were printed in several solid colors and students cut them up and put the pictures together to create one new image.

Some students added color to their images to add another dimension to their project.

This was a great project to stimulate the students’ creativity and to open their horizons to new ways of thinking about images.

Second Critique

Fifth grade students participated in a second critique session, this time from their winter photography session.

Students have been using the four-step process of critiquing their photography.

Students  learn to:  describe – tell exactly what they see;  analyze – use the elements/principles to reflect upon the art form; interpret – ask what the image is trying to say; and evaluate – determine how successful or important the photograph is.

The fifth graders enjoyed participating in this hands-on method of photographic critiquing.

Winter photography

Fifth grade students had the opportunity to venture outdoors to explore digital photography in winter.

Students worked in teams of two as they explored the winter environment through photography.

The fifth graders are learning how to use the various functions on the cameras to add many special effects to their images.

Learning to look at the environment, use the available light and compose a pleasing image are a few of the concepts students have been learning in this unit of study.

Here are a few examples of the students’ photography around Richmond School this winter.

Students explored color and black and white photography.

Critique

Fifth grade students participated in a critique of their first semester photographs.

Students have been learning about the four-step process of critiquing their photography.

Students  learn to:  describe – tell exactly what they see;  analyze – use the elements/principles to reflect upon the art form; interpret – ask what the image is trying to say; and evaluate – determine how successful or important the photograph is.

Everyone enjoyed this hands-on method of photographic critiquing.

 

Snowflakes

Students have been exploring creating snowflakes through paper cutting.

First graders learned how to create a four-pointed snowflake.

Fourth and fifth grade students learned how to create a six-pointed snowflake.

Everyone enjoyed the process of folding and cutting the paper into unique symmetrical shapes.

Most people make snowflakes with four or eight points. Real snowflakes in nature form with six points (or occasionally three if they formed weird).

Kirigami is a variation of origami that includes cutting of the paper rather than solely folding the paper as is the case with origami.

Kirigami are usually symmetrical, such as snowflakes, pentagrams, or orchid blossoms.

This project is always a favorite for students to learn and master basic folding techniques.

Here are some examples of students’ snowflakes.