Second Grade Cityscape Reflections

 I love when a project or a technique makes my students gasp with surprise! This fun reflection project teaches some vocabulary along with a fun lesson in the magical world of washable markers. The second grade students first learned about the words cityscape and skyline. We looked at some art examples as well as some photographs of big cities. Then we created a skyline on our paper with permanent marker after folding it in half. We used colorful washable markers to color the buildings and windows, add signs, etc.

 Then we did the "magic!" We brushed plain water on the bottom half of our paper, and while it was still wet, folded the paper back in half. When we opened the paper, we discovered that the marker from the buildings had created a reflection in the water, just like the cityscapes near water that we had looked at earlier! We then brushed blue watercolor over the reflections to help them look like water, and as a final touch, colored the sky with crayons. Beautiful!

Scarecrows

Third grade learned about 1-point perspective this week with these great scarecrow pictures! The lesson was inspired by these great scarecrows from A Faithful Attempt. First, we drew a picture of a scarecrow, thinking about all the things we would need from around the house to make the heads, bodies, hands, feet, etc. Then we used 1-point perspective to make a field. We first had to add a horizon line, find a vanishing point, and then draw the lines of perspective to make the field look like it went on for miles. We used colored pencils to color the details, and finished off the background with washable markers and water. 

Patriotic Designs

For this lesson, which happened to coincide with classroom discussions of 9/11, the fourth grade students discussed the word "patriotism." We talked about what it meant to be proud of where you come from, and how we can show respect to our country and its symbols. The most recognizable symbol of our country is our flag. We discussed how the design of the flag has changed since its original creation, but its meaning remains the same. We also looked at paintings and drawings from Pop Artist Jasper Johns of the American Flag. It may look different the way he painted it, but we recognize parts of it, and we remember our country every time we see that symbol. The goal here was to "re-imagine" the symbols in the flag into something patriotic that still represented our stars and stripes, and red, white and blue! We used stencils and permanent markers to create the designs, and used washable markers and water to fill in the spaces. The kids had so many great ideas!