M"art"ch Madness in Full Swing

This is our second year to have our M"art"ch Madness bracket full of artwork.  This year the art for our sweet sixteen were all completed by Texas artists.  For our first round we had some really close contests with one coming down with votes at 50.3% to 49.7%!  We will vote down from our elite eight starting next week. On an even more positive note, if that were even possible, we decided to email all the artists from our brackets to let them know we were learning about them and their art works.  We have already received emails back from 7 of our 16 artists within the first day!!!  As the emails were read to all the classes, the excitement was built even higher.  We looked at a map of Texas to locate all of the towns in which the artists lived as well as looked at some of their other art. It has been a learning experience beyond any we could have imagined. The presentation the students used to vote and learn about the artists is linked below.  Feel free to learn along with our Polser students. Can't wait to see which of the Texas artworks will be the final 2016 M"art"ch Madness winner! Stay tuned.....
M"art"ch Madness Presentation

Japanese Lanterns Light Up Fifth Grade

Fifth graders focused on the artwork of Japanese artist and printmaker Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849).  They learned about...

ü creating a sculpture/form with paper

ü printing blocks and how they are used in layers

ü landscapes of nature

ü blending/shading with colored pencils to create texture

ü writing Japanese symbols that have personal meaning

ü reinforcing our artwork for stability

ü creating a square top/base using precise measurements

ü using tabs, folding and nets to create 3D shape

ü light reflection through paper

ü the artists series, “Thirty Six Views of Mt. Fuji”

Weaving Wonders in Second

      Second grade created some wonderful weavings this month! First we painted two abstract paintings, one in cool colors and the other in warm using watercolors.  Then we learned how to make our own looms by creating the warp with one of our paintings, then making our weft pieces with the other. We then wove them together to create a beautiful tapestry of color. Finally we took our weaving and turned it into a unique design.  We used collage techniques to add interesting details, turning our original artwork into something entirely different.  Our imaginations got quite the work out! 

Kimono Kids in First

We created self portrait Kimonos in first grade using our giant dots we made during dot week earlier in the year.  First graders learned how clothing can be art and designers are artists.  We learned all about the parts of Japanese kimonos: geta (shoes), tabi (split-toed socks), haneri (collar), obi (fabric sash), obijime (belt) and the kimono (main wrap) itself.  The students created a portrait of themselves to put inside their kimono and added several Japanese symbols that had personal meaning.  We finished by adding unique details and accessories.  Don't we look ready for a celebration?!

Texture & Form in Kinder

Our kindergarten kiddos learned about creating texture within their forms.  We experimented with clay as well as using Model Magic.  Color was added to further individualize each product.  They created necklaces, ornaments, statues and charms.  It was so fun to try out two different materials to create our 3D art works.

"Sugar" Skulls in Fourth

Fourth grade researched the holiday, Day of the Dead and compared/contrasted to Halloween.  We learned that it is a celebration of life and not scary at all.  The students focused on the use of a sugar skull as part of the celebration.  First we used paper mache to create a basic mask, then painted it white.  Then they researched what kind of decorations are used on the sugar skulls before decorating their own.  Finally they added unique details and accessories to make it their own.  All of them were very different and true to their personalities.  What an awesome job they did!

Warm & Cool Trees in Third

In 3rd grade we created our own horizontal/vertical grid.  Then we drew a realistic tree trunk within a circle we had created with a compass.  We added details to our tree to create a unique trunk & branches. Using oil pastels, we chose warm colors in the circle and cool colors outside our tree following the grid we created.  All of us approached the project a little differently which created a very unique "forest" of trees!

Chalk Pastel Pumpkins

2nd grade created realistic still life pumpkins using chalk pastels.  Some of us used our artistic license with our color choices, but they sure looked cool hanging in our hallway.
We learned about

• drawing a still life
• using layering/overlapping to show depth
• creating contour lines
• using different values of the same color to create shading & depth
• blending different tints & shades to create unique colors

"Boo" portraits

In 1st grade we learned about emotion in artwork through facial expressions and/or body language.   We created a self-portrait demonstrating how we thought we would look if startled or scared by something.  As a class, we reviewed our use of oil pastels and how to blend to get the exact colors we want.  Each student created their own bald likeness in oil pastels before we added "hair".  To add our scared hair, we used drops of liquid watercolor that we then used a straw to blow upwards to create crazy hair.  We have gotten tons of complements from our BOO portraits hanging in the hallway!

Lots of Lines in Kinder & 2nd

In kindergarten, we are learning about line as an element of art.  We find lines in famous artworks and each others artwork. We can use actions to demonstrate different types of lines as well as use and recognize lines in our own art.  We first practiced line types/styles on white boards then created all 5 types of lines on watercolor paper using crayons.  After adding our lines, we learned how to use watercolors and filled in the spaces we created with our lines.  We also learned about watercolor resist and how the paint is repelled by the waxy crayons.
In 2nd grade we created a large leaf then designed patterns with all 5 types of lines using oil pastels.  After our designs were complete we used liquid watercolors to add even more color.  We reviewed how oil and water don't like each other so the liquid watercolor was repelled by the oil pastel.  Lastly we put all our leaves together to create a beautiful tree.  We are all
having fun and learning so much!