Showing posts with label Student Journals/sketchbooks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Student Journals/sketchbooks. Show all posts

Monday, January 14, 2019

Quite Time in the Art Room...


12 x12 inch marker spiral drawing by one tired teacher....

I started drawing this the other day when I found it in the trash with just a blue dot in the center of a blank page. As I was drawing I noticed the kids were so quite! When some one would walk up to me and ask a question I had already been asked about 1000 times I just put a finger up and said 
"Shusssss I am drawing". They would look at me for a moment and then quietly walk away. Then they would tell others "don't bother her she is drawing". It was so quite and everyone was working on their projects it was magical. Everyone seemed to be able to answer their own questions and fix their own problems! I am going to start doing this more often. This project is now part of my "Journal station".  A place were they can go work when they have finished all their projects.

Sunday, April 15, 2018

Early Finishers...


What happens when they yell out "I am done"? My first thought is always "you are not a biscuit...you are not done". But what comes out of my mouth is..."Art is not a race, there are no points for finishing first in art"! 

When I first started teaching I would tell the quick finishers to go back and add something here or there or finish coloring the page leaving no white spots. I quickly found out that can be the fastest way to seriously mess up a kid's work. When students come to you they are usually already "done" in there heads, asking them to go back and work some more is like asking them to clean their own bedrooms. They will quickly slop though the motions of creating art just to get finished.  No one wants that. 

Now I ask THEM if there is an area of the page they feel needs some more work. Or sometimes I tell them to find a classmate to help them see if there is an area that might need some more attention.

I have every student in school create their own art journal. On the first day of class everyone creates an art journal. When they are finished with a project they know to go get their art journals and start working.  There is a list of 28 topics to draw and write about. No one has to ask ..."what do I do now".  Everyone knows to go there their art journals.

I also have a Creation Station and library students can work in if they reach certain pages in their a
art journals. 

This is my Creation Station and Library. When students get to certain points in their journal they can go to the Creation Station and work independently. Before you ask I have know idea why the rooster is on the table. I am hoping it is because some one was using it to draw in their sketch book. I have a very large and strange collection of things for the kids to draw in their sketchbooks with. 

Just a small selection for the randomness that is my art room.

On top part of the Creation Station in the green baskets is the journal station. The journal station is a collection of random stamps, scrapbooking supplies and other odds an ends I have bought on clearance from Hobby Lobby or the thrift store or some that some wonderful parent has donated. Anything in the Journal Station may be used in their art journals.

For 1st, 2nd, 4th and 5th I order 18 x 12 inch white tagboard paper for the covers and 17 x 11 inch white computer paper for the insides. I use a 7 page single signature. I have a list of 28 pages students need to complete throughout the year. The journals are due 2 weeks before their last day of classes. 

3rd grade uses cereal box covers. I may go to 1st, 2nd and 3rd using cereal boxes next year to save a little money. The 4th and 5th grade love creating their own journal covers so I will keep them with the tag board.

These are some of the activities students can use in the Creation Station.


Magnetic boxes with colorful pieces...

Pictionary, art memory cards and museum close-up cards...

Atom builder...

Stacking balls...

Make a mobile...

Spirograph...

Spin art..

Preselected art lessons from art text books...

Gear builder...

Writing station...

Graph heart project...


I have a student in charge of the Creation Station and Library in each class. It is that student's job to make sure the area is straight before the class leaves. 

I hope this was helpful. If you have any questions or suggestions please leave a message or email me at artroomblog@yahoo.com



Sunday, December 4, 2016

2nd Spiders and Trash Monsters...

2nd Grade created Spiders out of construction paper and colorful webs for Halloween.

5th grade found the scraps from the cut out spiders in the recycle bin and thought they looked like monsters so they created scrap creatures...





5th grade glued the scraps in their journals and added painted scraps as
the eyes and other parts.

It was a proud day as an art teacher! 

Sunday, October 25, 2015

3rd Grade Accordion Fold Journal...



After students are finished with their projects they art to start working on their art journals. In 3rd grade we make Accordion fold journals. This creates 8 pages on a 12x18 sheet of white 90# paper.
There is a list of topics to work from and there is a box of art "stuff" they can create with.


Sunday, November 9, 2014

Milk Box Journal...

 Milk Box Journals



Trace around a flattened and washed milk box. I use tag board for the house base and roof.

Cut out your form and...

decorate.



Use an index card to crate your roof form. Then sew in cut notebook paper.










Sunday, February 2, 2014

House Journals...

5th Grade created paper house journals. We used a small milk carton as a templet. The roof comes off
and the paper for the journal in sewn inside the roof.

Saturday, November 2, 2013

Brown Bag Journal step by step...


    Materials needed-craft needle, glue, binder clip, yarn, hole punch. The following steps are intended for elementary age students. If you our you kids are advanced you can skip the glue steps.

Take your first 2 bags and....
fold down the flaps and glue them together for your first signature.

 This is what it will look like when the 2 bags have been glued together to create your first signature.
Repeat this set again for another signature. At this point you should have 4 bags total.

Glue the 2 sets of bags together

                                               With the 5th bag put some glue in the flap.

Then slip the other 4 bags into the glued area.
There will be a little flap sticking our. Just fold that over and glue it down.


                                           Use a binder clip to clap it all down until its dry.

Poke 4 holes evenly spaced into the spine.
That is my long arm hope punch that a love! His name is Big Carl. He is a Crop-A-Dile. I bought him at Michaels with my 50% off coupon.



For you kids you may want to number your holes 1. 2. 3. 4. so when you call you the numbered holes they will know right where you are talking about. 

                                         Pull yarn or sting that is 5 times the length of the spine.
I know it is a cardinal sin to tie yarn to a needle but with 4th graders it is an important step. It saves time and is less frustrating to them. The yarn will come off the needle if you don't tie. There is also a looping method if you just refuse tie.
1. put the needle top down through the first hole and pull almost all the way to the end. Remember to leave a tail when you tie off the yarn. Place the knot over the hole.

Run the needle bottom up through the 1st hole again.
Go to the second hole and run the needle from the top down through the 2nd hole.

Run the needle top down again through the second hole.
(you will be leaving gaps between the hole, don't worry we will fill those in later)
From the bottom up run the needle through the 3rd hole twice.

 From the 3rd hole go to the 4th hole and run the needle top down twice.
On the 4th hole, run the needle a third time top down but this time pull the yarn of the top of the bag.

Now you will weave back and fill in your gaps.

From the bottom of hole 3 run your needle up through hole 3 and then down thought hole 2 and then up through hold 1. You are finished. Tie your tails together in a double knot and cut off your string.
If you have kiddos who are unable to sew you can just leave it glued.  NO sewing required!

My sweet cousin Will tucked away in an add on pocket of my brown bag journal.
More of my Brown Bag Journal.
Student at work oh his brown bag journal.

A group of students putting their journals together.

One of my super talented students sewing his journal.