The Ratner Montessori School Art Program

I trust you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving break, I have enjoyed hearing about the travels, the cousins the students played with and what their favorite food was! Each class has started a new project and the art room and Maker Space are hopping. If you ever doubt my love of my job, picture a class of 4th grade students using power tools for the first time. I love seeing the confidence of the students grow, their willingness to fail at a new process and their obvious joy of the creative process. 

***For my 7th and 8th grade parents, I will have a table set up at the Winter Band Concert for you to sign the Scholastic Art Award forms. The deadline for entry is December 11th, so please make sure to sign the form for your child before you leave. I usually put the mother's name on the form, but either parent signature will suffice. 

As always, thank you all for your help and support.

My family holds a apple turkey design "contest"  for the kids each year at Thanksgiving. This was the winner this year.

Kindergarten Art

I have missed seeing my Kindergarten students the past 2 weeks! This week we will begin a longer project based on the paintings of Marc Chagall. The project involves text, drawing, painting, oil pastel and collage. We began the project by looking at several examples of Chagall's paintings and talked about the use of color, fantasy and the feeling they experienced when looking at his work. What sort of things did Chagall like? Why did he use the colors he used in his work? Does his work tell a story? These are just a few of the questions the students were asked when they were studying his work. The process should take us up to Winter Break and possibly extend beyond the break. This is a very creative group of young artists, I am excited to see the work they create as they are inspired by Chagall.

1st, 2nd and 3rd Grade Art

We started a new process this week based on Zentangle designs. Zentangles are highly detailed patterns created with the repetition of curves, lines anddots. Simple shapes are repeated, overlaped and combined to create the image. I enjoy the focus of zentangle designs and the success the students achieve with the work. There are several levels of skill involved in creating a zentangle pattern. Some students can view a pattern and quickly determine what steps are needed to create the work. Other students can easily create their own patterns and repeat the lesson to others. I appreciate the variety in skill level and the students enjoy the work. The 1st and 2nd grade classes will create a large circle "mandala" using at least 7 different patterns. The 3rd grade class will create a more difficult zentangle cube sculpture. This week our focus is on breaking down several patterns and practicing line control in the designs. 

This is an older students completed zentangle mandala

4th, 5th and 6th Grade Art

We have begun a sculptural project based on the assemblage work of Louise Nevelson. The students watched a short video and a presentation of several images of her work while making note of the compositions and materials used in her art work. We talked about the negative space created with her assemblages, the use of black, white or gold color in her work and the relationship of shapes and layers in her art. All the students had lessons on the drill press, the scroll saw and the belt sander in the Maker Space. They are beginning to gather wood materials to create their assemblage sculpture. The 6th grade class has the option of working on a free standing sculpture, all the other students will work within a set scale to create their work. If you happen to buy any clementine oranges in the wooden boxes, please save the boxes for the art program.

7th and 8th Grade Art

We are collaborating with Language Arts to create a visual representation from a choosen quote based on the book "Animal Farm".  The students worked with Mrs. Urban to define the quote and began to develope an idea of how they would represent the quote in a visual language. We worked together to give them a few guidelines to follow and work on their individual projects began last week before the Thanksgiving break. Many students are creating a diorama in the black display boxes on the second floor. They have to design the scene, add details and create props that illustrate their quote. Other students are creating a poster to illustrate the quote. I expect this project to take a couple of weeks to complete as the class is a bit shortened with band rehearsals this week and next week. 

The Ratner Montessori School Art Program

Well, we had a good run of solid weeks of school, now we enter the holiday zone! I am able to see all my classes with the exception of  the Kindergarten class and feel assured that they have art every day in their classes. The fact that the students all have access to art in their main rooms is one of the cores of Montessori philosophy that I appreciate. You can see the benefits of daily access in their willingness to explore materials, the care taken with each material and the general thoughtfulness the students show in their art. I appreciate the support in each classroom as it affords me more detailed instruction with the students. 

Frost "trees" on my car this morning