Letter Value Studies

I'm always looking for that perfect "First Project of the Year" project. The one that's not too stressful or complicated, but sets the tone for learning and thinking creatively. Oh, and it has to be fun for the students, too! Fifth grade was a struggle for me, but I think this project, inspired by a lesson from ArtEdla,  fits the bill. We started by creating a grid on our paper with a little bit of math (STEAM anyone??). Then we added the letters of our names, starting in the first box, and adding letters to each box until we came to the end. Then we started over at the first box, adding letters until there were two overlapping letters in each box. The students then had to color in each box using crayons, pushing to create different values of each color. They turned out pretty neat, and it was a good way to start the year with a successful project!