INFORMANCE celebrating our learning in 5th grade this THURSDAY 3/22 at 7PM!

Fifth graders are asking, "What are we supposed to wear this Thursday?"
I promised to post a few of last year's 5th graders in their Great Migration, Harlem Renaissance, Depression Era garb. Think button down shirts, hats, vests, suits, ties, suspenders, knee length dresses in florals and solids checks and stripes...

Art Room SHOUT OUT

I'd like to give a huge shout out to Regina Kirchmaier(au pair for the Bryar family) seen here with Ms. Winkelman tying 2nd grade Fon cloths together.

Regina spends 2 mornings every week donating her time to the art room and can be seen mounting displays, matting art, working with students, and generally making my life a little saner.

THANK YOU REGINA!

D.C. Architecture Exploration Meets Color Theory

Third graders use their DC photos as the inspiration... shapes, lines and architectural details are traced, colors are matched... tints, shades, neutrals, and low intensity... all leading to spectacular paintings and DC architectural literacy!

Painting with "MUD" is just squishy:)

Korhogo cloth from the Ivory Coast is just the latest African textile explored by our 2nd graders...

Mud is just the latest material we've experimented with... we also had a blast with Fon cloth made of colorful felt, pen and pastel Kuba cloth, Adinkra stamped fabric, and Kente weaving. 

Noontime Quilters Are Sewing Machine Enthusiasts

Lafayette's fifth grade quilt makers are mastering the use of sewing machines to create a traditional "monkey wrench" quilt. This pattern, first spotted around the time of the Civil War and again during the Great Depression, is still made today. The 2012 5th grade quilt will be featured in the Bids for Bears auction and sports our school colors of blue and gold.

Lafayette's quilt making professional, Principal Lynn Main, was sharing her expertise during Open Art today! Please consider bidding on this keepsake of your child's time here at Lafayette.

Texture Explored Through Habitats

First graders already know TEXTURE is my favorite element of ART! I like both texture you can touch (TACTILE) and texture you can see (VISUAL) and we experimented with changing one into another as we made rubbings and created sea creatures. Then we remembered about habitats and what a sea creature might need to survive and created a tactile texture habitat for our fantastic sea animals. 

Artist and Quilter Principal Main Shares Her Passion

She had them in the palm of her hand... Lafayette's 5th graders were held spellbound as Principal Main shared her own quilts and a Depression Era feedsack quilt with our Lafayette 5th grade history buffs.