V i s u A L A r T s
Teacher: Kelly Lewis
Welcome Back!
I am looking forward to a new year of fantastic artwork from the kids of Thetford Elementary School. I am always amazed at the creativity and spirit that the kids show when expressing themselves through their artwork. I have some exciting new projects planned and am looking forward to meeting our new students. As an opening project all of the grades will be creating their names using a variety of materials in a 'graffiti' style and then cutting them out and putting them up on the brick wall that I have painted in the art room. The goal of this project is to show school spirit and unity within the school. If you are in the school please feel welcome to take a peek at the wall of names in the art room!
At the end of the 2009 - 2010 school year we had our first "Arts Night" which was a great success! All of the students in the school had one piece of artwork on display and after family and friends had a chance to admire the amazing finished pieces of art, they were treated to a concert of music and dance by the students. We are planning on having this event at the end of each year and hope to expand the event to include writing and poetry as well. You can view some pictures of the event below.
The K through 6 grade art curriculum is designed to create a progression of creative experiences for our students which will introduce them to the elements of art -- line, color, shape, form, value, texture and space -- through drawing, painting, collage, printmaking, sculpture and crafts. At all age levels, the program is designed to encourage children to communicate their own ideas visually and to immerse themselves in the process of art making. The curriculum is built to introduce children to a wide range of cultures, historical periods and significant artists. Concepts and skills are introduced in basic ways in grades k through 2 by exploring why people make art. In grades 3-6 artwork representative of many cultures, styles and time periods are examined in depth allowing students to recognize, compare and identify motivations and purposes for why that art is made. These will include cultural traditions, religious beliefs, personal satisfaction, communication of beliefs, social commentary and story telling. The visual arts program supports many school wide initiatives that promote a creative, productive and happy school climate. Throughout the year each classroom will be doing a “Featured Artist” project where they will learn relevant historical information regarding the artist, the artists style and appropriate art vocabulary to accompany the artwork. Projects will be both individual and group efforts and students will be applying learned techniques to their own artwork and in some cases “re-creating” masterpieces. This artwork will be prominently displayed outside of the library so that all students can be exposed to this artists work.
Guiding Principles of the Art Program:
Our students are part of a community of learners in which respect and effort are valued.
Our students will have creative experiences with a broad range of materials. Students will experience art as personal expression, and learn that art is all around us and has many purposes -- functional, decorative and inspirational.
Projects are developed to ensure students learn the visual arts skills/content, critique and reflection skills, work habits and citizenship skills defined in the Vermont Frameworks.
Each student comes to the art room for one class per week. Units of study have two roots: 1) The district- wide art curriculum; 2) Units taught by classroom. Art can be a lifelong interest, and early appreciation and participation in the process of “making” art enriches one’s journey. In the art room students develop work habits that help them in all of their school studies. They work independently to solve problems and learn that the act of making something is challenging, requires commitment and deserves respect. Parents are the archivists of their children’s work. All children appreciate having their work displayed at home and saved for future enjoyment!
Kindergarten: From themes taught in the classroom and seasonal inspirations, projects are developed to give students both two-and three-dimensional experiences. Students learn the routines of the art room, proper tool handling techniques, basic vocabulary and most importantly they have lots of opportunity to explore materials and express themselves creatively.
Grade 1: The elements of art are introduced through individual projects at the beginning of the year. Students expand their art vocabulary and practice proper tool handling techniques. Projects include line drawing, landscape painting, collage, printing, found object sculpture and numerous painting assignments. Students develop observation skills by practicing “reading” paintings. This unit helps students see that paintings have stories to tell.
Grade 2: Students continue their study of the elements through projects designed to expand their independent use of the elements and challenge them to express themselves visually. Students are introduced to mixing secondary colors, to using pattern and watercolor painting techniques. Projects include craypas drawings, pastel drawings, sculpture, printing, making silhouette scenes, crayon resist paintings, tempera paintings, and watercolor paintings. Students begin to critique their own work.
Grade 3:
Visual art in grade 3 expands self-expression skills; emphasis is given to learning the work habits of goal setting, pacing work to meet time constraints and fulfilling cleanup responsibilities. Projects closely follow units taught in the classroom in-line with the new Social Studies curriculum including local community structures and culture throughout Europe. By the end of third grade students understand the color wheel (primary and secondary colors), can draw self portraits based on natural proportion, consciously use line for effect and know the difference between abstraction and realism. Students continue to critique their own work. Students work to develop skilled application of watercolor paints. Projects include watercolor painting, paper mache puppet making, tempera painting, self-portraits, line drawings and sculpture. Third grade students will be part of a district-wide visual arts assessment. The unit to be assessed is the self-portrait unit.
Grade 4:
The fourth grade art curriculum has two focuses: 1) improvement of drawing skills; 2) studying arts of other cultures. Projects come from Native Americans, Mexico, Africa, and Ancient Greece. Students continue to develop their work habits and focus on practicing good craftsmanship.
Grade 5:
In fifth grade projects closely follow themes taught in the classroom. Some projects will include printmaking, scratchboard to study line and emphasis, weaving, optical illusions in painting, pastel drawing and water color painting. Students will be doing ongoing critiques of their work. Independence is fostered by asking students to create their own visual expressions when posed with challenges. Students often have to create a piece that incorporates several complex criteria. Students use new materials including charcoal, scratch board, pastels and colored pencils in addition to the familiar standards: tempera paint, water color paint, color pencils, block printing ink, paper mache and paper for collage.
Grade 6:
In sixth grade students will continue to create artwork that responds to visual challenges designed to expand their use of the elements of art and principles of design. Units will include collage, scratchboard, paper mache, painting and human figure drawing. Sixth grade students will also participate in a district-wide visual arts assessment. The project to be assessed is our unit on learning how to draw the human figure. Student work will be kept in a portfolio until the end of the year, when everything will be brought home.
