Welcome to Fall 2021 Art Studio!

I am beyond excited to be back in Lafayette's glorious art room for SY21-22!!! 

I am looking forward to interacting with students, being able to get messy, remembering how to explore our own creativity while supporting and getting inspiration from our fellow art makers as they explore theirs. Most of all I am looking forward to the energy and aliveness of looking at art, talking about art, and making art TOGETHER!!!

Some of the many traditions we hope to rediscover: 5th graders trying their hand at the pottery wheel, first graders putting on a puppet show, beautiful art displays around our building, messy materials like clay and tempera paint, using music to calm and motivate, sharing what we are proud of, and open studio times for those who need more time in the art room.

Aaaaaaand... the Blog is BACK! Welcome to Lafayette ART 2020

I am so excited to once again be able to connect with each of my amazing Lafayette artists this Fall... I have missed you these past months! 

Would I love to give each of you a hug and have fun creating in our gorgeous Lafayette studio? SURE! But we will bring the joy of the Lafayette art room into each of our homes instead!!! 

Look for this symbol below on the various platforms we will be using for art... you'll know you are in the right place! And get ready for creating and sharing your work with your classmates and with me. I can't wait!

Remember: Art ROCKS! 

XO, Ms. M

Lafayette LOVES Dot Day... Kicking off the School Year Celebrating Creativity and Having the Courage to Make Your Mark!

Dot Day is just around the corner... wwwhhhhaaaatttt????

Here's the inside SCOOP with sprinkles on top!!!

When is it: Every year on Saturday September 15, although Lafayette will celebrate this year on Friday, the 14th. 


What is it?: International Dot Day, a global celebration of creativity, courage and collaboration, began when teacher Terry Shay introduced his classroom to Peter H. Reynolds’ book The Dot on September 15, 2009, and is now celebrated by millions of children around the world. 
Why at Lafayette: What a fabulous way to build community and celebrate the importance of creativity!

What to Wear & DO: On September 14th, wear your dots to show your school you are creative and courageous! Participate in interactive games, bubbles, and art creations throughout the day! Here are a few photos from last year's Dot Day!

Brightening a Plain Space

A work in progress! Last year's 4th graders created flowers for the garden out of clay which I later found out had to be high fired to vitrification to withstand the outside temps and weather! I promised them I would install them someplace INSIDE the school. 

Better late than never... 

As the now 5th graders graduated from Lafayette, their beautiful clay flowers were installed in the 5th grade stairwell in a space that begged for an art piece!

I've been told we need to add butterflies and such to our mural, and perhaps some texture to our foliage and trunks, so this is a work in progress... but wanted to share my relief and excitement at finally having them hanging!!!

Art for the Bear's Garden

What is even better than art in our building? Art in the garden, where the stones and beads catch the sunlight! 

All our first through fifth graders have been working to create an art installation for our Bear's Garden this past year...

Thank you helpers!

Last Friday, in honor of Earth Day, on a delightful sunny day, we began to place our beautiful stepping stones, insert our pollinator poles, and hang our "messages for Lafayette" beads in the fence.

Some of our installation crew, young and old!

 More clay pieces and beads are still to be installed but we are so excited at how alive and sparkly our garden already looks!

Horsing Around as the Project Wound Down

Thank you to Hope Scheller and Don Rutledge and of course Laura Nelms for helping make this project happen!!!

Fifth Grade Parents... St. Paddy's Day is Your Lucky Day!!! Make it Happen at the Auction!

Each year the traditional Lafayette quilt is a labor of love created to raise money for our school at the Lafayette Auction! The lucky high bidder this year will own a unique and priceless memory of their child's time at Lafayette made of the lucky greens in honor of St. Patrick's Day. 

Every 5th grade student has sewn a patch, then interested students worked with parent Don Rutledge and me during their noon hour to machine sew the patches together.

Some of our noontime sewers!

  Finally, we had a quilting bee where the knots were tied to hold the puffy "sandwich" together.

Tying the knots in our quilting bee!!!

 
I took it home for the weekend to bind the edges and brought it back to school for all the 5th graders to sign on the back with silver ink! Don't miss this chance to own this wonderful creation!!!

Plateaus, Valleys, Volcanoes, Oh My!

Landforms were the focus unit in grade 2, 

artist Ted Harrison was our art connection and inspiration! 

Landscape painter Ted Harrison was inspired by his beloved Yukon to create colorful abstract landscapes. Second graders explored all the landforms visible in Ted Harrison's landscapes, discussed the northern lights that he often pays tribute to in his skies, and also the way he uses many values of a color and analogous colors next to each other. 

Ted Harrison's "Walking Alone" 

A selection of student work inspired by Mr. Harrison's landform landscapes

...And our new display! 

Thanks to "Colors of My Day" blogger for the inspiration for this lesson!