3D Paper Card

Description: For our 3D project we created cards for each season. My season was summer, so I created a lake scene. The sun is shining, the boat is floating on the water, and the water is calm. We created 3D cards with one main element in the center. My main element was a sailboat because being on the water is something we greatly enjoy doing at the lake. We always enjoy when the water is clam because it makes water sports more enjoyable! We used tissue paper for the elements on the bottom. I created a wave using blue tissue paper and the brown tissue paper is the beach. 

Extension Activity: One extension idea for this project would be to have the students create the card and send it to a family member. They would be required to write a little note somewhere on the card and then give the card as a gift. This would be a great idea to send grandparents on grandparents' day!

Arnie the Doughnut Project

 

Description: For this project we used clay to create our own doughnut inspired by the book Arnie, the Doughnut. We were challenged to create our own version of Arnie the doughnut out of clay. I created Squints the Doughnut based off the movie The Sandlot. My doughnut has glasses as well as a baseball glove to make it look like Squints from the movie. Working with clay ended up being a lot easier than I thought it would have been and this project was a great introductory to clay projects. 

Extension Activity: I think a great expansion activity for third grade students would be to have each person in the class create a character and then they could act out a scene they wrote in front of the class. This challenges the students to create a character and then act out a script that they wrote themselves. 

Action Art

 

Description: In this art project we discussed action art. Action art is very random and spontaneous. We created three different forms of action art for this project. The first action art (top left painting) was marble painting. We used marbles with paint on them and rolled them over the page. The second action art (middle) was shaving cream art. We mixed shaving cream and paint and then dipped the paper into the cream, we wiped the extra cream off to show the design. Our last action art was string art. We dipped two pieces of string in paint and then pressed the paper together. When we removed the string, it created a beautiful piece of art. 

Extension Activity: A great extension activity for this project would be to do a life size project outside. It would be cool to make large marble paintings outside. The projects would look awesome, and the class could even use one long piece of paper for each painting style. The students would enjoy this outside art project a lot!

Lego City Printmaking

 

Description: For this project we learned about printmaking. We used Legos to create our own city. I learned how difficult printmaking can be. The biggest challenge was not getting big lumps of paint on the paper after dipping the Lego in paint. We were required to have at least three shapes and use two colors. My city has a few different elements. I created skyscrapers as well as a rounded church in the center of my city. After the project was dry, I used a sharpie to add doors, windows, and clouds. There are also people walking into the church. 

Extension Activity: A great extension activity idea for this assignment would be to challenge the students to create the town they are going to school. The students would need to make elements like the grocery store, school, and any other small businesses. After creating their own Lego town, they would write a story based on their town. This incorporates both art and English into one lesson!

Zentangle Pumpkins!

 

Description: Today in art class we discussed Zentangle. This is the process of creating a piece of art out of patterns. We first discussed the process of Zentangle and then we got to create our own Zentangle pumpkins! We had to use a minimum of four different patterns. I created both elaborate and easy patterns to make my pumpkin look very different from regular pumpkins. I also drew a face on my pumpkin, so it turned into a jack-o-lantern! We were challenged to use three warm colors to create our pumpkin. 

Extension Activity: I think a great extension activity to go off this project would be to have the class create a huge Zentangle pumpkin patch! Using a large piece of paper, they could all create their own Zentangle design on the paper to see the different patterns come together and create a piece of art. It would be so awesome to see all the different patterns a class comes up with. 

Sunflower Project

 

Description: For this project we created a sunflower using tissue paper, construction paper, and sunflower seeds. We used stencils to cut out the leaves, stem, and center. The flower petals were created out of tissue paper. We discussed Vincent van Gogh's Sunflowers before creating this project and discussed the elements and principles found in that painting. We also discussed the parts of the plant before creating the project. After looking at the painting and reviewing the parts of the plants, we created the sunflower project ourselves. We glued the stem and leaves first and then added the tissue paper petals. We finished off by adding sunflower seeds to the center and a pot to the bottom. 

Extension Activity: A great extension activity for this project would be to have the students label each part of the plant on the project. After they label the part of the plant, they can write on a separate piece of paper on what each part of the plant does. They can explain what the stem and leaves do to keep the flower alive. This extension activity could be done during science class, and it could even turn into a research project. The students could be encouraged to research what each part of the plant does and write a paper based on the information they gathered.

Hidden Safari Animal

Description: For this project we used backwards drawing to draw a Safari animal. Backwards drawing is turning an example picture upside down and free hand drawing on a different piece of paper. We then used warm colors like red, yellow, pink, and orange to create patterns on top of the animal we drew. The patterns cover the animal, so it is not seen from a naked eye. We created red film glasses to go along with the project. When the glasses are on one's eyes, the animal is able to be seen again. We then framed our artwork with a piece of construction paper to finish the project. My notecard has three hints for people to guess my animal without using the red film glasses. 

Extension Activity: One extension activity that could be done is have the students create multiple hidden animal pages and create a book. The pages could be smaller which would require less time for each page. Then the book could be stapled together all with the patterns covering the animals. Then when a person puts on the red film glasses, they will be able to see the student's entire book.