COMPLETED ART WORK!!! WHOOHOO!!!

Finished "I'm a Keith Haring projects left to right: Riley Ellington, Gabe Doebert, Abriana Schmutz and Brennan Nichols

Finally getting some classes finishing up their first projects of the year.  The fifth graders are completing their Keith Haring projects while the sixth graders are finishing up their Lego Self-Portraits.  

Finished Lego Self Portraits left to right, top row: Emma Ingle, Andrew Bentz, Natalia Cymbal and Krista O'Shelski
bottom row: Logan Stowers, Victoria Engle, Cooper Palermo and Emma Menge

As more kids finish their projects this week and next, I'll be sure to share some here on the blog!  Have a great Thursday!

PAUSE...

A brief pause from today's regularly scheduled Art Blog in recognition of today's late start and today's nonstop art room schedule.  The Art Blog will resume tomorrow at its normal time.  Thanks for your patience and understanding.  :)

QUIRKY THINGS IN THE ART ROOM pt. 3: THE GOLDEN THRONE

There are a lot of interesting odds and ends within the walls of my classroom...none more odd than maybe the golden toilet, or as it's more affectionately called..."The Golden Throne".  The history of the golden throne starts 14 years ago, during my second year teaching at East Elementary.  And while the story has lots of interesting twists and turns...the ending is that it was donated to me (brand new!) for inclusion in our fourth grade musical, "The Emperor's New Clothes".  Since then...the throne has sat in my classroom and has been used for a variety of purposes over the years...none of which would be the most obvious (I mean...it's not even remotely hooked up to plumbing!)

Twice each semester I hold a "Message from the Golden Throne Day" where one lucky (or unlucky) student reaches inside the golden throne to read a message that usually allows classes the opportunity to earn bonus Weller Bux for the day.  It's fun coming up with new and exciting messages for the kids to reach in to read...wow...only in typing this do I really realize how interesting my classroom must sound.  Well...the kids love it, and it's just one more example of the the 'quirkiness' of the CIS Art Room!!!  Happy Tuesday everyone!!!

QUIRKY THINGS IN THE ART ROOM pt. 2: WELLER BUX

For the past few years I've paid my classes in Weller Bux based on how well they follow the rules in the art room.  The art rules are fairly straightforward with an 'art room twist'.  

Ninja Time asks students to enter the room quietly and find their seat; Gimme 5 asks students to get quiet in five seconds and listen to art making direction for five minutes; Quiet Questions asks students to raise their hands to ask questions in the art room; Rock and Goal asks students to achieve daily art making goals; The Artometer (my noise meter) asks kids to work and talk at a comfortable level; and RESPECT asks students to be nice to one another and use art materials appropriately.  Students earn Weller Bux for how well they follow each of the above rules as well as cleaning up and lining up at the end of the day.

Classes can also lose Weller Bux if they say "I Can't" when working on their projects, or by saying an "S.U." (...shut up...) during art class.  At the conclusion of each class, we look at how well the class as a group managed to follows these art room expectations and then Weller Bux are paid out to them.  Over the course of the year, they have options of spending some of their Weller Bux if they wish...but the ultimate goal is to win the end of the year art room pizza party by saving more Weller Bux than every other class!

Former pizza party winners!

It's a good system for the art room and the kids respond to it very well.  And it's just one of those wonderful, quirky things about the art room that make it interesting and unique!

...MORE QUIRKINESS ON MONDAY!!!...

HAVE A GREAT WEEKEND!!!

QUIRKY THINGS IN THE ART ROOM pt. 1: BOB

There are a number of odd and 'quirky' things to take note of in the CIS Art Room.  The room is really an extension of my personality, so of course it's going to be as odd and weird as I am.  :)  One such quirky item is my pet skull, Bob!  Well...this year I've promoted Bob to 'sidekick' status because he's not really a 'pet'.  Sitting on his perch atop the golden toilet, Bob sits and listens and takes note of all the happenings of the art room.  Once a month, Bob, the last king of Atlantis, has some wonderful and glorious idea...a "thought"...and we have a "WHAT'S BOB THINKING DAY" at the start of art class.  One lucky student from each class gets to pull this thought from Bob's brain and share it with the class.  Bob is a bit of a 'trickster' though and is often trying to convince the classes to spend some of their highly coveted "Weller Bux".

Bob has been a part of my art room for many years...and the kids love listening to the 'arguments' and 'disputes' we get into.  It's been a long-running joke that I can hear Bob talk whereas the kids cannot.  It's quirky...and often times fairly humorous...and just one of the wonderful experiences kids love about the CIS Art Room.  

And after reading this if you're wondering..."Weller Bux?"..."golden toilet?"...I'll cover those in the next few installments of "Quirky Things in the Art Room"!  And I haven't even mentioned my rubber chicken, "Snickers" yet!!!  :)

Have a great Thursday!!!

I'm a Keith Haring

Keith Haring is by far my favorite modern artist.  Actually...he's probably my favorite all time artist, comic book and comic strip illustrators aside...but I think it's my love of comics that has drawn me to him.  Aside from enjoying and appreciating his art, I also LOVE to teach his art to the kids!!!   The fifth graders are currently 'modifying' Keith Haring's artwork to create wonderful self-portraits of themselves in a project I call, "I'm a Keith Haring". 

 Typically in years past I have done this project with sixth graders and this year...well...it's a long story...but ultimately I opted to go with the fifth graders for this project which will serve as their Art to Remember fundraiser project...which again I'll touch base on later this month (WOW, that was one long run-on sentence!).  Have a great Wednesday, everyone!  

6th Grade Sketchbooks!!!

Starting today, my first semester sixth graders will be assigned sketchbook assignments on the first of each month.  The videos, directions and due dates for these assignments will be on your student's Schoology account on their visual art page.  Students will have nearly the entire month to complete them and turn them in for a grade.  These assignments are not meant to be long, drawn out, hour-long art making sessions.   I ask the students to put forth their best effort, but each assignment should only take 15-25 minutes to complete.  The assignments are a great way for me to hit some of my drawing standards that I'm unable to hit in the classroom due to only seeing the kids for a semester.  

Please...if you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask!!!