YAM Statehouse Exhibit 2015

March is Youth Art Month! I'm so excited that the Indiana Statehouse is once again hosting a Youth Art Month art exhibit and celebration of the arts! Five of my students have been selected to participate in the show. The reception for the show is on March 1 at 2:00, and their artwork will be on display throughout the month of March. If any of my blog readers are in Indianapolis during the next month, pop in the Statehouse, and see my students' art, as well as many other pieces from across the state! It's a K-12 exhibit, and the high school pieces are always outstanding. Personally I prefer to teach the little ones (I have been asked by students multiple times why I'm not famous since I'm "so good" at drawing; in high school, there's always a chance one of your students will be better than you!)

6th Grade Landscape Paintings

I've posted twice already this semester about my 6th grade students' acrylic landscape paintings on canvas. The last group just finished up this morning! I've put all the paintings on display in our school's hallway. I went through three boxes of thumb tacks....my thumb is very sore!

Youth Art Month Exhibit at TAF

The Tippecanoe Arts Federation holds an annual exhibit for Youth Art Month each spring. It's almost March, and the opening reception is tonight! I'm excited for 12 of my students who are participating in the show. Below are photos of their art. TAF's gallery hours are Tue-Fri 9-5, and Sat-Sun 1-4. I know most of my blog readers don't live in the area, but if you do, I encourage you to come see the show! It will be up through April 3. I'm always inspired by artwork from students at other area schools. It's a fun exhibit!

More 6th Grade Landscape Paintings on Canvas

I recently posted about my 6th grade students' acrylic landscape paintings on canvas. When I made the initial post, only one of my four 6th grade classes had finished, but I was too excited about how well the students had done to wait until everyone was done to share photos on my blog. Well, I have two more classes done now, and here are some paintings from them!

Acrylic on canvas sounds like an expensive project for an elementary school art budget, but the canvases are quite inexpensive bulk from Dick Blick. They are not stretched canvases over a wooden frame; they are wrapped around cardboard. But, they are primed and ready to use, and worked well with the Blick brand student grade acrylics I bought. Even though acrylics are significantly more expensive than the tempera paints usually used in elementary classrooms, the paints stretched a long way. When used effectively, there is little waste. I'm really happy to have shared this opportunity with my public school students, and I hope many of them will enjoy their painted canvas for years to come!

Valentine's Day Art with 2nd Grade

It's Valentine's Day week at Carroll Elementary! I love holidays in elementary school; the kids get so excited. I get excited too; it's a time when I can get all my classes back on track by adding an "extra" project for classes that are ahead (i.e. haven't had as many snow days as the other classes).

This week, my 2nd grade classes that are ahead are having fun with the element of art line and watercolor resist. They drew a heart in the middle of the page, using any crayon color they liked. Then, they added more and more lines, adding some creative ideas like dotted lines and zigzag lines. Lastly, they painted the whole piece of art with watercolors.