Projects for the Week of August 29th

4th Grade:  

This week students will be working on an oil pastel architecture-based "San Jose landmark" project to decorate our hallway bulletin board.  It will include a drawing of St. Frances Cabrini church at the heart/hub of the bulletin board and will then be surrounded by a variety of Silicon Valley landmark architecture/buildings.  It will be fun for students walking down the hallway to try and find some of these landmarks that are special to our city.

Inspiration for the project:

5th Grade:

Students are learning all about the artwork and life of artist Frida Kahlo.  Students will be creating an oil pastel portrait of Frida incorporating what they have learned about her own style and her life.

Portraits will include features such as:

-Hair with flowers in it
-Use of vivid colors
-Connection to Mexican culture
-Depiction of her pets in the portrait
-Exaggeration of her eyebrows
-Adornment of jewelry and accessories
-Use of cactus, leaves, and flowers in the background.

Inspiration for student art:

6th Grade: STEAM-BASED PROJECT

Students are starting out the year by learning how to shade properly.  We will be looking at how lighting affects shading and shadow direction and we will be looking at how to shade a variety of forms including a sphere, cylinder, cone, vessel, and cube.

Finally, students will create a composition that only features the before-mentioned forms and we will explore how to shade when an objects shadow falls on an adjacent object.

7th Grade: STEAM-BASED PROJECT

We are jumping right into 2-point perspective.  Students just learned how to draw a city using 2-point perspective.  They will be working over the next few weeks to create their own cities which will then be outlined in sharpie and embellished with watercolors.

8th Grade:  STEAM-BASED PROJECT

Students will be learning how to draw the face in proportion.  We will be looking at the mathematical proportions of the face.  Along with this, students will be learning how to properly draw lips, eyes, ears, and a nose which can then be applied to a proportionately drawn face.

Think Like An Artist: Artist Statements

This year in grades 4th-8th grade, students will be attaching these artist statements (see picture) to the back of their artworks.  They will need to write a response to the prompts after the completion of every art project.
My goal this year is for students to be more aware of the art process instead of worrying about the art product.  After all, it is in the process where the learning happens.

"A Note From the Art Teacher......"

In grades 4th-8th, expect to get one (or multiple) of these notes home this year. 

Every week, I am going to make an effort to send a few notes home in each grade, letting parents know what GOOD I am seeing in their children.  Maybe I caught them helping another student out in class, or has been working really really hard in art class, or every day greets me when they walk in with a smile and thanks me on the way out the door.  Whatever, the "goodness" is, I want to send each student home with at least one of these notes this year. 

Too often the notes that parents receive from a teacher at home are negative in nature.  I want to send home some of the positive this year!

The students seemed very excited about this today in class and had lots of questions in regards to this "new" item in art class.  There are going to be a lot of proud students coming home with these notes this year. 

New for 2016-2017: Creative Compassion Corner

How can we use our creative talents for good?  How do we instill a community of kindness?

This year when students finish a project early, instead of free draw students will now go to the Creative Compassion Corner to work on a project that will give back to the community.  They will get to choose from a binder of twelve art-based projects.

The station is set up to give students the opportunity to work independently and choose what creative project interests them most.  They choose a project and each binder has detailed instructions for each one.

By doing this, I am hoping to show students that their talents can always be used to do good and to create a classroom environment that instills the idea of kindness.

Middle school students will get to choose to either work on their sketchbooks or a project at the Creative Compassion Corner if they finish an in-class project early.  4th-5th graders will only have this option.

Your Trash Is My Treasure

Cleaning out a closet?  Kids old craft drawer?  

Grandma’s a hoarder?  You need to make room in your garage to fit your car?  

Feel free to contact me to see if the art room could use your unwanted items.  

Some items that the classroom would gladly accept:

-Postage stamps (for our Creative Compassion station, letters to military personnel and letters to grandma and grandpa for our Mail-a-Hug’s)

-Hot glue guns (preferably low or dual temp)

-Sandpaper

-Foam poster boards

-Yard sticks

-Collection of wood scraps

-Glass marbles (for melting in the kiln with some of our ceramic projects)

-Newspapers (Do people read these anymore?)

The above list are things I can think of right now, but you’d be surprised at what projects I can come up with with some of the random “trash” that we receive.  So, anything goes.  I will also keep an ongoing list on the right-hand side of the blog page titled "Your Trash is My Treasure."  

If you find something you think we can use, just send me an email and I'll get back to you ASAP. Thanks in advance!  And your welcome for giving you an incentive to clean that closet ;)

2016-2016 Newsletter/Syllabus

On the right-hand side of the blog column, if you scroll down there will be a section titled "2016-2017 Newsletter/Syllabus."  Here you will find all of my grading policies, procedures, expectations, sketchbook information (6th-8th grade), and new things in the art room.

If throughout the year, you ever have any questions on grading policies or sketchbook questions for art this resource will always be available to you.

Art Blog Revival!!

It has been almost 4 years since the blog has been used and coincidentally this also coincides to how old my son is now.  It is time for a blog revival!  I am just coming up for air from the baby/toddler phase and think I will have enough time to do the blog justice this year.

I will be using this blog in the 2016-2017 school year to share the goings-on of the 4th-8th grade art classes at SFC.  I look forward to sharing projects in progress, information about the art program, and keep you updated on fun art news in our local community.

For your own convenience, if you become a follower of the blog (just add your email to the "follower" section on the right hand-side of the blog) you will be notified by email each time the blog is updated with a new post.  It is a very convenient way to stay connected.

I look forward to the upcoming school year and have lots of fun projects planned, as well as a few changes to the program, which I think the students will be excited about.

Enjoy the last few weeks of summer!!

-Mrs. Saca