African Cultural Study

In February 1st grade students began a study of African Cultural through art and the IMC.  In March they will be learning about the musical side of the culture.  In Art 1 we began our study with a look at the world map.  The students are facinated with the colorful shapes before them, even though it's a little confusing to learn about state, countries and continents.   Students have also had a chance to see and touch African artifacts such as wood carvings, masks, musical instruments and textiles.  Our first project is inspired by African masks.  Students have been able to practice their collage and printmaking skills for this project.  Of course, everyone wants to know if they can wear their masks.  Well, they are designed to be "art" masks so they are not very functional, but when they make their way home - who knows how they will come to life!  In Art 2 students have been inspired by the geometric patterns of African textiles.  They are creating small studies using oil pastels and india ink.  We plan to continue our study into March.

January 2011 Art News

   Happy New Year to all. Coming back to school in the wintery weather gave us inspiration in the Art 1 studio. Kindergartners made clay snow “creatures” using air dry clay and model magic. It gave them an opportunity to practice their modeling skills along with clay construction. Each creature had it's own personality once the children added their embellishments. Please note: even though the students practiced the proper way to attach the clay pieces there still may be some that come apart on the way home. It's easy to make repairs by just using a little Elmer's Glue. 
   While the kindergartners worked with snow creatures, the first graders created art inspired by frozen fog. I discovered this beautiful phenomenon last year and took a series of photographs. This year I added to my collection with images from the internet and created a Photo Story for the students. Our young artists used collage, drawing and painting to make their tree art.  If you visit the building, please take a moment to view the Winter Tree display in the front lobby.  In Art 2 students worked to finish various projects and created a wonderful portfolio of projects to bring home. Watch for these materials to come home!

Coming Up: Over the next few weeks our first grade students will begin a study of the African culture. They will explore the art and culture of this diverse continent during their visits to art, music and the IMC.