
Art with Ms. Fun Update #2
December 8, 2023

Welcome to Ms. Fun's Art Room!
We had an amazing year together and it was such a joy getting to work with and know all of the Elm Street Students. A special thing about being an art teacher (or any special subject educator) is that we have the privilege to work with and build special relationships with every child. I look forward to coming back next year and see everyone grow into their new role as they enter the next grade.
See you next year!
Artfully,
Ms. Fun
Students are Creating... May/June
Kindergarten
Kindergarten is finishing off the year with summer-themed Self-Portraits. Artists learned how to create a self portrait with sunglasses and we focused on creating the correct proportions for our arms, neck and torso. We listened to a Summer Storybook to inspire us for our Summer Portraits.
1st Grade
1st Grade artists learned about Claude Monet and his Water lily paintings. We discussed how he painted outside, which was a new method of art making at the time. Artists learned new techniques for watercolor painting including the "wet on wet" technique and salt technique. To finish off the year, we are making model magic frogs on lily pads to complement our water lily paintings.
2nd Grade
2nd grade artists are finishing off the year with still life drawings of fruit. We learned about the artist, Paul Cezanne, who is famous for his still lives of apples. The artists learned that he made still life a more popular and appreciated art form by making his still lives more interesting to look at through the way in which he painted them. They were challenged to look at actual (fake) fruit and draw what they see and then color them in using a style similar to Cezanne.
3rd Grade
3rd grade artists are working on their surrealist animal paintings. Students learned about artist, Salvador Dali, a founding member of the surrealism art movement. We discussed the two types of surrealism and how Dali's surrealism was focused on fantasy and dreams. We looked at Dali's painting of "The Elephants", and then the artists were challenged with choosing an animal and manipulating it in a weird, surrealist, way. The artists used watercolor paint to color in their animals.
4th Grade
4th grade is finishing off the year with a much awaited clay project. Students are learning many valuable clay skills through making "sea rocks". We looked at different examples of coral reefs (including from Finding Nemo) and the different plant and animal life one might find there. Then, artists created a pinch pot to use upside down as their rock base. Utilizing other skills such as sculpting and coiling, the artists created different coral and sea life formations to attach to their rock. I am super impressed with these!
5th Grade
For the 5th graders last ever art project here at Elm Street School, we are making Graffiti Inspired Name fences. First, we discussed the difference between Street art and Graffiti, and how graffiti is typically considered vandalism as the artists do not have permission to paint on that public surface, whereas Street art, such as Murals, have been commissioned to "beautify" the landscape. However, we discussed the nuisance of this in that some graffiti artists became very popular, and their art is now considered Street art, or appreciated, despite its origins. The artists learned a how to write their name in a graffiti style and then used acrylic paint markers to color their graffiti designs on a Popsicle stick fence. I am very proud of all the amazing work these artists produced this year, and I cannot wait for what they create in middle school! While I only got to work with them for a year, I feel lucky to have had this group as my first 5th grade group.
Town Hall Update #4
Congratulations to Elm Street 3rd Grade Artists who have their artwork on Display for all Summer.
Ryan McDowell
Jack Doller
Evie Tuchscher
Cam Walther
Lucas Moore
Claire Costello
Declan Bowes
Dhaanvi Vinod
Connor Bell
Oliver Nauman
Joseph DiGiantommaso
Parker Hatch
Isla Ward
Kinsley Fenton
Egypt Tseytlin
Students are Creating... April
Kindergarten
Kindergarten is learning about Warm and Cool Colors and learning how to create art using different color schemes. Artists guessed which colors they thought might be "warm" or "cool" and then we listened to our beloved color song to discover the answer. Students will be using the color schemes to create paper weaving and work on some fine motor skills with that activity.
1st Grade
1st grade artists have been creating so many things in April. We talked about warm and cool colors, which they used to create "warm and cool colors fish" sculptures. We also focused on collage, shape, and pattern making with some collage pizza creations. I loved seeing them create all of their favorite toppings! From pepperoni, to mushrooms, to pineapple! We are now venturing into color mixing where the artists will explore mixing different colors of watercolor paint on paper to see what colors they can create.
2nd Grade
2nd grade artists learned about pop artist, Wayne Thiebaud, who was known for painting images of desserts. We talked about how he used repetition and variety in his paintings and was known for painting blue shadows and created "halations" around the desserts (you will have to ask them what a halation is!!) They then had to create a set of desserts that were all the same type but looked different and use the iconic blue shadows and halations in their works. The artists used oil pastels and tempera paint for color. The artists just completed their foil embossing projects, a new method of art making a that we learned about. Foiling is when any kind of metal is used to enhance details in a work of art and embossing is when the metal is carved. We took our own spin on this technique with yarn and tin foil.
3rd Grade
Third Grade artists just completed a project that was certainly a labor of love. They worked diligently on their identity portraits for around 5 weeks before we completed them and ventured into a printmaking project. The artists learned how to create a relief printing plate and print it using a brayer and printing ink. We spent one class practicing printing before we took the plunge and created our final pieces. The artists were impressed with their success (and so was I)!
4th Grade
4th graders will be venturing into a detailed project focusing on creating "zentangles". Zentangle is an art method that is meant to inspire relaxation in creating different patterns and designs with ink. It is about embracing mistakes and feeling where the art takes you naturally. The artists are just finishing up their still lives with printed flowers. This project was started while some friends were still finishing up their paper mache food sculptures and we are just ready to move on! Even thought I certainly was excited about how they turned out.
5th Grade
5th grade artists have been impressing me out of this world lately with their hard work. I think even they felt impressed with themselves with how their stellar planet projects turned out. The artists learned how to use chalk pastels, a new art material in the art room. We learned different techniques on how to use them to create different effects including galaxy looking skies or something similar to the northern lights and blending black and white into a color or two to create a 3d planet effect. I was so impressed with how each and every one turned out. We are now moving into an architecture/stained glass project focusing on radial symmetry and Islamic art and design.
Students are Creating... March
Kindergarten
Kindergarten has been learning different techniques and methods of art making this month! Kindergarten artists just completed their Very Hungry Caterpillars and they are feeling very proud of them! They were introduced to chalk pastels and how we can blend them in different ways, which they used for the sky. They fingerprinted the ground and we cut circles and reviewed pattern for the caterpillar's body! With the extra time that we had left, we got to explore sculpture again as they manipulated pipe cleaners into different shapes to create their kinetic model magic/pipe cleaner sculptures.
1st Grade
First graders are learning about Still Lives as a subject of art. We took a look at some still lives of flowers in vases by artists Vincent Van Gogh and Henri Matisse. The artists were directed on how to incorporate pattern and perspective in a work of art with the background as they created a table and wall for the location of the vase. Then students used model magic to sculpt flowers and a vase onto their backgrounds, creating a "low-relief" flower still life. Next week we will paint the flowers. I can't wait to see them completed!
2nd Grade
2nd grade learned about Tertiary colors for the month of March. We learned how they are made, how to correctly name them and place them on the color wheel. Then we learned how to mix them and create a painting with all 12 colors of the color wheel. The artworks they created were "nonrepresentational" which they learned means, not meaning to represent anything from life. This is a type of abstract art, but not all abstract art is nonrepresentational. This week we began a fun spring project where we are creating a flowery background for either a bunny or bear with drawn texture that they will create.
3rd Grade
Third grade artists have been working very hard on their "Identity Portraits". Together, we discussed what Identity means and we brainstormed together what things make up our identity. Then, they had to individually brainstorm the different things that represent them and make up their identities while I individually traced each of their side profiles in silhouette. The artists then began to fill in their profile silhouettes with different imagery of the things that represent them. We discussed how we are drawing the symbols of those things and they were encouraged to use as little words as possible and to express their identities with drawings and symbols. The artists are now beginning to color in their portraits and finish them up. They are working on employing good craftsmanship with their coloring.
4th Grade
4th graders have been diligently working on their "Foods with Moods" papier mache sculptures. Artists had to choose any kind of food and decide a "mood" for it by giving it a face. This projects is being completed using papier mache which involves sculpting a form and then wrapping the form with paper soaked in the papier mache solution (glue and water mixed together). After completing their form and it is solid and ready to be painted, the artists must coat their entire sculpture in a layer of white base paint so that they have a bright white canvas to add their colored paint on top to complete their artworks. This has not been an easy task and I am proud of their hard work and persistence!
5th Grade
Town Hall Display #3
Congratulations to Elm Street 5th Graders who have had their artwork selected to be displayed at the Walpole Town Hall!
Cami Ruscio
Jake Morrin
Diya Satheesh
Anna Boudreau
Lexi Tjonahen
Oliver Ramirez
Srihan Kotha
Diya Nishad
Daniella Kaufman
Jackson Walther
Charlotte Fryxell
Scarlet Boulos
Please feel free to stop by Town Hall on the second floor to see the display as well as art from the other elementary schools and middle schools here in Walpole. This display changes every 1-2 months.
Students are Creating... February
Kindergarten
Kindergartners recently completed self-portraits in the art room. They learned about different artists who created portraits as well as different styles that portraits can be made in. Portraits can be...Abstract... realistic... up close... a part of a scene... We traced an oval tracer to create a good size for the head, created a neck and shoulders. They drew their features while looking at a mirror and painted in their skin colors. Finally we spent a class coloring in the rest of their portrait and painting the backgrounds. In February, Kindergarten learned about the artist, Alma Thomas, and created collages inspired by her paintings.
1st Grade
First grade artists learned about Pop Artist, Jim Dine. They learned that Pop artists created art of "popular symbols, places, people, and objects". Jim Dine created a series of hearts, which we took inspiration from and tried to mimic his style with our own heart paintings.
2nd Grade
3rd Grade
3rd grade artists are currently working on a clay unit. I introduced several artists who create food sculptures and paintings, specifically sweet dessert foods. For this project, 3rd graders are creating clay cupcake boxes that involve creating a pinch pot for the bottom, a coil pot for the frosting top and sculpting any toppings or extra details they want to add. We discussed how art can be functional, which we defined as "something that can be used". They are looking forward to painting them next week!
4th grade
4th grade has been working diligently on creating beautiful and complex Japanese Notan designs. We spent 2 classes practicing and learning how to create a Notan. Notan is the Japanese word that literally means “light-dark harmony”. We discussed how a Notan utilizes symmetry and reflection to create a harmonious design with positive and negative space. For example, a yin yang symbol is a Notan design where the black parts and white parts are reflected on opposite sides of a line of symmetry.
5th Grade
5th grade artists are starting a clay unit for this month. Students will be learning how to roll slabs, coils and sculpt and attach clay with their themed tic-tac-toe boards. They each have to come up with a theme for a tic-tac-toe game board and 10 pieces. The board, and two styles of playing pieces must all coordinate with a clear theme. The clay boards and pieces will be painted and sealed at the very end and the game will be playable!
Town Hall Display #2
Town Hall Display Update
Congratulations to Elm Street 2nd graders who have artwork up on display at the Walpole Town Hall!
Harvey Galt
Brooke Fuller
Oliver Certo
Amelia Schleicher
Thomas DeGirolamo
Eva Cohn
William Cupo
Ritivikka Karthik
Grace Greener
Ren Ohashi
Please feel free to stop by Town Hall on the second floor to see the display as well as art from the other elementary schools and middle schools here in Walpole. This display changes every 1-2 months.
Artsonia Update
If you are not already connected to your student's account, please use this qr code attached below or use the parent code FKT2N4RF.
Grades 3-5 are now responsible for uploading their completed projects to Artsonia using my classroom set of iPads! So far, it has been a success! I am proud of them for learning and picking it up so quickly.
Artfully,
Ms. Fun