The Ratner School Art Program

We are officially in wind down mode after this week. The artwork is down from the hallways, always the saddest time of the year for this art teacher. The school looks empty but the students continue to fill the halls with activity and learning. I will be sending home hundreds of pieces of artwork this coming week, so ask your child to see their pieces. I try to pack it up so it arrives home safely, I hope you all enjoy the creativity of your children. They never cease to amaze me. I look forward to seeing you all at the various celebrations and graduations in the coming weeks and will probably send out one final blog update next week.

Kindergarten Art

The students finished the Van Gogh watercolor resist paintings and they are so lovely I am going to photograph them all and make a series of note cards. I will hopefully have sets available in the Ratner Shop early next year for purchase. Several pieces of art will be coming home on Monday with your kindergarten student. I separate all the work and try to roll it up to protect it and place it in a handled bag. We will continue to work on Monday on their final special necklaces for the graduation next week. Part of the celebration includes a slide show of some of the kindergarten work this year in art. I hope you will enjoy viewing the images as you wait for the celebration to begin. It is a wonderful ceremony and I am pleased we found a way for art to be a part of the evening. I look forward to seeing you all there.

 

1st and 2nd Grade Art

We hope you all enjoyed the paper geometric shape sculptures that came home. The projects grew a bit larger in size than I expected, but once the building started, it was impossible to stop! We began working on a texture and watercolor project for the end of our unit this year. The student became texture detectives, going around the room finding interesting surfaces to create texture rubbings with crayons. They divided their paper into several sections and created a well balance composition. The final phase of the project involved a watercolor wash over the rubbings, utilizing the resist effect. The final pieces are going to be very beautiful. Be prepared for a pile of art work to come home next week as I begin to sort and send work home. 

3rd and 4th Grade Art

We finished the outdoor art installation this week of the Op-Art inspired wood panels. We tried to finish the work by Grandparent's Day, but as a student said: "Greatness can not be hurried, Mrs. Fields." So true. The panels look great on the school grounds and the students were proud of their work and enjoy hearing people talk about it. I will not send the panels home on the sticks, but may send the painting panels home with the students. I will talk to them and see if they would like to add to the installation "collection" each year and just keep the art work in storage. I will let you know what they decide.

              

5th and 6th Grade Art

The ceiling panel painting project was completed this week and the work looks fantastic. I have plans of coming into work this weekend to install the panels in Mrs. Schwab's classroom and will try to post a picture here when I get the 9 panels up. We all had a great time designing and painting the tiles and I think the classroom environment will be beautiful with the addition of the students work. I think the students were sad to see this unit come to an end but are anxious to see their work installed.

I made it into work Saturday to install the 9 ceiling tiles into Ms. Schwab's room. They look fantastic and the students were so excited to see them up. Try to stop in to see the "installation".

7th and 8th Grade Art

This was the final week for the students to work on their History projects in art. I am impressed with the creativity and diversity of the individual projects. The students truly reflected their individual interests and styles with their work and I was glad to take a more active role in assisting the construction and execution of the visual side of the yearly History  project. Thanks to Mr. Persanyi for letting me be a part of the project. I believe it is traditional that the students leave their projects at school over the summer to be displayed in the upstairs showcases. They, of course, may take their projects home at the end of the year if they choose. 

The Ratner School Art Program

I know it is redundant to keep saying this, but we were so busy and created so much great work in art this week. Maybe it is just the act of writing down all the work that happens, or maybe it is the documentation through photos, but I am just amazed at all the projects and processes the students experience and create each week. I love seeing the progress of skills and ideas at the end of the year, the growth and confidence the students possess is inspiring. I thank you again and again for the privilege of teaching your children, I truly do love my job. So thank you!

Kindergarten Art

Week 31 of our arts and humanities program brought the final artist study of the year. The students learned about Vincent Van Gogh and the painting style of impressionism. We talked about how impressionist painters painted with colors and expressions in their work and how Van Gogh developed his distinct style of work in his application of paint. The students looked at several landscape painting of Van Gogh and chose one landscape to be inspired by. They transferred the horizon line and other information onto a large watercolor sheet of paper and added crayon resist to their drawings. The final step of the project was to add the watercolor paint to their pieces. I believe you will all enjoy the completed works of art.

1st and 2nd Grade Art

We began a sculpture unit this week that involved using paper, tape and scissors. The students were instructed to create a 3-dimensional sculpture using at least one geometric solid form built from paper. The form could be a cylinder, cube, cone, sphere, or any other geometric form they could figure out. I gave one lesson on how to construct a cube, but they had to problem solve and figure out the construction of their other forms. They so enjoyed the process they wanted to work on this project again, so I will extend this unit for another class. I am always amazed at the creativity of our students.

 

3rd and 4th Grade Art

We began an outdoor installation project this week that involves painting geometric designs on wooden panels. With spring fever officially taking over, the best treatment is to get outside as much as possible, even in art class! The finished panels will be attached to wooden stakes and will be installed wherever the artists choose to put their art. I am always interested to see if this age group works together for one large art installation, or if they will all scatter and make individual choices. We will work for one more week creating the panels and hope to install the work the following week.

                                                           

5th and 6th Grade Art

The students are so excited about our current project that several kids have tried to come in during their study halls and lunch time to work on them! Their enthusiasm is evident in the work and they are showing great progress in the ceiling tile designs. They are very anxious to see them installed in Mrs. Schwab's classroom and are working diligently to finish the artwork.

 

7th and 8th Grade Art

The classes are continuing to work on their history project for the next 3 or 4 classes. We have lunar modules being built, fashion illustrations, computer models, nintendo game designs, homeless projects, the list is long and varied on the focus of the students. The next week will show more completion on the ideas and the art room has become a great maker space.

The Ratner School Art Program

We continued to create and complete several projects across all grade levels in art this week. While we missed the 5th and 6th grade class while they were away for their Pittsburgh trip, we continued to make and display the ongoing projects in art. I delayed the art blog post so our 1st and 2nd grade students could surprise their moms with their paintings. They were very excited to give their art as a gift. The end of the year is quickly approaching and we will work in art right up until we do not have time for paint or glue to dry, so stay tuned.

Kindergarten Art

Week 30 brought the study of the traditional Japanese Kite Day and the construction of Koi wind socks. The students cut out the large fish outline, designed the scale patterns of their choice, applied oil pastel resist to the designs and colored the fish with watercolor paint. I was pleased to see the pattern making and control of the materials used. With each project, their skills and vocabulary are increasing. The students have progressed so wonderfully this year. The assembly of the fish will take place Monday and will be coming home soon. We have several projects to send home with the end of school coming quickly. I will keep you informed when the work is coming home and I will try to get it back to you safely.

1st and 2nd Grade Art

I trust by now all the Mothers have received the paintings from your children. I rarely do any specific project for Mother's Day, but the paintings were so lovely and well done the kids wanted to give them to the Moms as a "gift of art love," their quote, not mine! They had so much joy painting the flowers and looking at the wonderful work of Georgia O'Keefe. The students showed great independence and control of the materials, I marvel at the progress they have made this year in art. 

3rd and 4th Grade Art

The wood sculptures were completed this week and should be coming home. The students showed increased skill building in 3-dimensions and learned many skills building their sculptures. I was impressed with the craftsmanship and attention to safety they all displayed. I approach this unit with high expectations and was impressed (again) that they all rose to the standards. The school year will end with shorter focused projects allowing for added exploration of materials and skills. The Beatles record/cd cover project is hanging outside their classroom! If you are in the school, try to make time to view them all before the artwork is sent home. I apologize for the delay in displaying the final projects, it is a multi-process project that takes much effort from many people to complete. Thanks for your patience.

5th and 6th Grade Art

The final stabiles were completed and are now on display in the upstairs boxes. If you happen to be in the school, take the time to view the work, I am very impressed with the sculptures. The students definitely gained wire working and problem solving skills with this project and were very diligent with their work. Our next and final project for the year will be a ceiling tile painting project for Mrs. Schwab's room. It is an exercise in experimenting with paint that may or may not be successful. We will let you know the outcome. We only had 1 class this week because of the Pittsburgh trip, so we will have a busy end to the school year.

 

7th and 8th Grade Art

The final face pots are out of the kiln and we were successful with another firing adventure in the little kiln. I always have a great sense of relief when the kiln makes another run and the glazes work. I am going to display the face pots in the upstairs boxes for a couple of weeks, then we will wrap them up and send them home. We will be working on the art element of the students annual year end History projects, I will try to keep you updated on this last independent project in art.