Japanese Notan's

In our first few classes of the school year we spent our time reviewing art room procedures and expectations. Exciting I know! The upper elementary and middle school school students created a name  tag for their introduction assignment. I asked that they tell me a little about themselves in each space. They were able to color their tag in with any media of their choice. The students also filled out questioner about their knowledge and interest in the visual arts thus far. 

Middle school then began the year studying Japenese Notan's.

"Notan" is the term used by the Japanese to express "light-dark" as an element of design. We understand this term as positive space and negative space, dividing the idea of light-dark into separate components. On paper it is easy to see that dark shapes cannot exist without a surrounding area of white. White shapes cannot exist without dark to define it. The two elements are really one, they complete one another. The Eastern culture from which Notan arose, seeks a more balanced view of the world. The classic yin/yang symbol is a reflection of this desire for balance.

After looking at a short  PowerPoint presentation the students created a design from a five inch square paper. The trick was for every object they cut, they had to flip the piece to mirror the blank piece it came from. Here are some of our finished examples. 

Color in Review

October was a busy month here at school. Most of our upper elementary and middle school students were MEAPing regularly. I was asked to help monitor our students while they were testing. Some of our art classes were cancelled during the process. When I was able to see my Kindergarten kiddo's again we were in the middle of studying all aspects of color. Just like our other Elements of Art I want the students to gain an understanding of color early on, so that we are able expand on our knowledge every year. What I did not know is how much prior knowledge each student brought to the discussion before the lesson began! 

Below are the photo's of the work the students have produced during our color exploration.

I started out by asking which colors on the color wheel were the primary colors, red, yellow, blue and which were the secondary, green, orange, purple. I then continued by asking which two colors create green, orange, and purple when mixed together. They all did very well. To explore color mixing first hand the students were able to choose a color combination. With the help of our teacher assistant and parent volunteer we squirted a very liquid  mixture of paint on their paper. The students then blew the paint through a straw around the paper and watched the process come together. The following week we  took our blobs and turned them into friendly creatures. The students added eyes, a nose, mouths, and limbs to their creature. They were also asked to give their creature a job, or the job they aspired to be when they grow up! A simple sentence was added to their paper, along with objects that related to their monsters profession!

This monster is a scientist! Complete with a purple potion and bubbles!

A building monster ready with a hard hat and belt. 

Completing our color wheel / color discussion I took the opportunity to quiz the students on everything they have studied in art so far. A big part of our time together in art is focused on the ability to follow a set of directions and review their core curriculum material with a creative twist. 

We sectioned our color wheels off into six sections. With a black crayon I asked the students to complete each of the following in a different space.

1. Different examples of lines
2. Geometric Shapes
3. Organic Shapes
4. An example of a pattern
5. Practice writing their first name
6. Writing the numbers one through ten.

For each space I did not show them examples on their white board.

Jack's Holiday Tile Contest

Early this November the kindergarten through forth grade students participated in a really cool community contest. Jack's Restaurant here in Spring Lake gave each participating elementary school a ceiling tile to paint. Restaurant guests are voting for their favorite this December. In my opinion we have a very unique idea, I hope we do well! In honor of our great state we painted our tile to look like a little Michigan Mitten! Can you tell? As the kid's art teacher it was special project for me especially to build relationships and bonds with each of the students who helped. We have some talented, smart, unique, and, caring kids. I am so lucky to be apart of such a special school so early in my career. OK. I will step off my praise soap box! Parents, you have every right to be very proud of your young ones.