Ready, Set, Stitch!

The fifth grade quilt is underway after over a month of exploring the Underground Railroad coded message quilts through a digital quilt design (thought to be a myth but such a cool idea!) now on display throughout the Lafayette building. We also looked at quilts from before and during the Civil War and explored the stories behind their creation.

We spent 2 class periods hand stitching pieces of a North Star pattern for our annual 5th grade quilt that we will sell to raise money for Lafayette at the auction in March. Just today we began working on the machines during open art! Look how far we've come already! Excitement abounds and the momentum is palpable!!!

Sharing Our Art With Those Less Fortunate!

What can top creating art? Creating art for others… especially those who need our care! 

A special thanks to first grade parent Regina Davis who came into the art room during my time with Ms. Howard's class to read a touching book about a homeless woman titled "The Lady in the Box" … a wonderful story by Ann McGovern about how a young brother and a sister befriend a homeless woman and how it enriches their lives. 

The illustrations were full of gorgeous visual texture… a concept our first graders have been exploring this winter. After reading this story, three classes of our first graders created cards for Miriam's Kitchen and Ms. Davis delivered them for us before the holidays. The snow was created with sponges in visual texture and then clothing and other details were added the following week with tactile texture (texture you can touch!) So charming!!!

Ms. Davis passed on a warm thanks:

"Just wanted to share a picture of one of the case managers and guests of Miriam's Kitchen. The Executive Director said she couldn't even begin to tell me how much the guests loved the holiday cards, and one of the guests saw the bag of cards and wanted his early so many others followed suit. She also said the guests thought the cards and their messages were incredibly sweet and that the personal touches meant the world to them.   Thanks again for the opportunity to share this project with the students."

This week our third graders are creating more cards for Miriam's kitchen using textured papers they created last week using various techniques including scraping and stamping… more to come soon! Creating art to share with others is truly a privilege for those of us who are so privileged!

Still Recovering From a Crafty Month!

December is delightfully overwhelming in so many ways… and having an art room covered in happy 3rd grade weavers everyday at open art is one thing that makes it special! 

More challenging is the loading and unloading of several hundred pieces of pottery, each of which have to be fired twice… once for bisque and the second time with glaze!

Whew!!!

Celebrating Native American Heritage Month

Second grade and fourth grade curriculums embrace studies of the first Americans. I love teaching how Native Americans value the importance of beauty in functional objects and celebrate the spiritual in the everyday natural world! 

Each 2nd grade class studies a different region and habitat: from the Seminole to the Hopi to the Tlingit to the Kansa to the Iroquois… we explore how the everyday object contains aesthetic value and meaning.

A student from 2O smearing a coil onto a pinch pot in the Hopi fashion

Each Hopi pot unique… others made Iroquois cooking pots and Seminole mortar and pestles
and Plains Indian containers…

Seminole patchwork provides 2C a great opportunity to talk about patterning,
rhythm and geometric shapes!

Glazing our mortar and pestles in 2C

2N creates a Tlingit dance button blanket featuring
the power animal that represents their clan

… finding inspiration in the artwork of the Northwest Coast Native Americans

Fourth graders create a Kachina Doll in the tradition of the Hopi Indians to teach the school rules to the children. Each mixed media assemblage doll sports an elaborate headdress,
represents a spirit of the natural world, and possesses a spirit power. 

Happy Halloween!

Spooky 4th grade skeletons and mysterious 3rd grade graveyards teach the skeletal system, body proportions and the art of perspective techniques... oh, and lend some Halloween ambiance to our great Hall!

Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month!

Lafayette's 1st -3rd graders journeyed to Mexico, Panama, Chile and Peru to explore Papel Picado, Amate Bark Painting, Cuna Indian Molas, and Storytelling Arpilleras!

Did the brother fall down the well? Was there a magic garden? Did an erupting volcano threaten the village? Arpilleras tell stories and these Arpilleras had a setting, characters, a problem, and a solution... all created with a mixed media assemblage in a RELIEF by each Lafayette 3rd grader.

What's red, brightly colored, full of lines and organic and geometric shapes? Cuna Molas are layered and very decorative fabric panels originally created to wear on the San Blas Islands off the coast of Panama. Second graders captivate us with their playful version in oil pastel.

... And what fanciful creatures jump and fly around the Great Hall? Amate Bark Paintings from Mexico!

Viva Hispanic Heritage Month!

Dot Day Takes Lafayette by Storm!

Celebrating creativity and a belief that you have the courage to "make your mark" is a message Lafayette students embraced with gusto as we celebrated DOT DAY today along with 1.4 million children around the world! 

We "Made Our Mark" on a huge mural in the Great Hall!

We wore dots and stickers to show our courage and creativity...some of us created our own things to wear!

 

We wrote messages about how our teachers 

make their mark! 

 We created dots of all kinds during our recess using sidewalk chalk! By the end of the day our playground was filled with ART and symbols of Lafayette's creativity!

 Based on the children's book "the Dot" by Peter Reynolds (read here https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5mGeR4AQdM) the message of the book of believing in your own creativity and being brave enough to "make your mark" is taking the world by storm every September 15. Thank you to all our Lafayette families who joined in by wearing dots to symbolize their belief in "I CAN BE CREATIVE and I AM COURAGEOUS!" and who added to our dot extravaganza day!