Color Wheels

At the end of the year, I did a quick color wheel unit! This was easy and fun...it had quite a few teachable moments too. Lots of K-2 kids didn't quite understand why some colors had double names...well now they know - those are the ones that are side by side on the color wheel. You get them from mixing a primary and a secondary color together. Have you ever looked for color theory information on YouTube? If not, check it out there is lots of information on it. We watched a couple of quick video clips from YouTube then they had to fill out a work sheet by using our own color wheels. Ok - just Google color wheel work sheets you will find so many options. Finally, they had to create a color wheel in some form or fashion using their imagination. I thought these were pretty clever for K-2 grades!

Happy Memorial Day! x0x0x, Kim 1969

me and mary

by karen #1965 third grade teacher...now folks...i am not real into this serious art, but i could not resist getting my picture made with this piece by mary cassatt...mary is famous...check out her work here...

mary cassatt gallery

quick story on mary ...she was born in 1844 to a wealthy family in pennsylvania...they traveled to europe a bunch...she wanted to be a painter...she had difficulty "breaking into" the world of impressionism...she met edward degas...they were bffs...check him out... 

so anyway...degas introduced her to some of the old masters...like claude monet, auguste renoir, camille pissarro and other impressionist rebels... so...of course, mary had her lucky breakthrough...and now she is remembered and we blog about her...

mary was one of these folks that spoke her mind...never holding back her thoughts...she said that claude monet's later work reminded her of "glorified wallpaper"...and she was not fond of picasso either...(ouch, that hurts...)

i really don't think mary would appreciate me having my picture made with her painting in this manner...of course, i didn't realize it until i read a little about her...and i am a little like mary and really don't care...make life fun...enjoy...

so...what can we do to educate kids about her?...she was really one of the first women to break out the paintings and make a name for herself...

you could...read this book...

this is the story of a painter who is commissioned to paint the members of the royal court, but who would rather paint landscapes...mary was kind of in the same boat...she received a commission for a mural for the woman's building at the chicago world's fair...could discuss commissions...compare and contrast the two artists...

get students to take a picture with someone in a chair like this...

mary painted this...caused some controversy...and supposedly...degas helped...you might could get the picture the kids took and run it off on a copier and get the kids to work in pairs and color the picture with chalk pastels...

pretty good resource to introduce mary cassatt...

mary cassatt on YouTube

the monkeys, 1966

Mary, Mary, where you goin' to?

Mary, Mary, can I go too.

This one thing I will vow ya,

I'd rather die than to live without ya.

Mary, Mary, where you goin' to?

the monkeys singing "mary mary" on YouTube

happy may 20, 2010!

Clay Plaques & Amaco Art Lesson Plans

Clay can be used for so many things in art class! These are wall plaques - we used the slab roller and stamps to create the textures. So many many many possibilities with this lesson. If we had created them smaller, then they would have been great Christmas Ornaments or Holiday decorations!

On the Amaco site they have tons of ideas for clay...did you know that? If not, have a look-see and check it out for future lesson plan ideas! I did and some were way cool.

AMACO® Lesson Plans

The AMACO® series of lesson plans, technique sheets and Power Point presentations cover a wide range of topics and offer art teachers an excellent starting point for creating memorable lessons that incorporate art history with hands-on classroom activities. Listed below are the available lesson plans, technique sheets and Power Point presentations from AMACO®.

Each lesson plan and technique sheet is available in HTML or PDF format. PDF files require Adobe Acrobat Reader to open. If you do not have Acrobat Reader, you can download it here.

Lesson Plan No. 42
Create a Flock of Birds-One Pinch Pot at a Time

Lesson Plan No. 41
Image Transfer: How to Make a Clay Monoprint

Lesson Plan No. 40
Create a Barn & Silo

Lesson Plan No. 39 
Overglaze Decoration on Tiles [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 38
3 Methods of image transfer and printmaking with clay and underglazes [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 37
Learn to use the Sgraffito technique to create masks [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 36
Make a Marionette in Claycrete Instant Papier Mache [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 35
Create a cat with Sculptamold and WireForm [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 34 
Marbled Butterfly with Friendly Plastic [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 33
Butterfly Journal Cover with Balsa-Foam [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 32
Painted Balsa-Foam Butterfly [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 31
Sculpted, Painted Balsa-Foam African Masks [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 30
Sun Sculpture with WireForm and Sculptamold [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 29
Textured Pottery Using Self-Hardening Clay and Multi-Cultural Design Texture Molds [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 28
Creating a Japanese Garden Lantern in Crea-Stone [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 27
Daybreak – A Sculpture Utilizing AMACO Sculptamold [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 26
Claycrete Calaveras – Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) [PDF format]

Technique Sheet No. 25
Fused Glass Jewelry [PDF format]

Technique Sheet No. 24
AMACO® Gloss Decorating Colors…”Majolica GDC’s” [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 23
Ceramic Self-Portrait as a Famous Artist [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 22
Creative Glass Casting [PDF format]

Technique Sheet/LP No. 21
Plates Everybody Can Make [PDF format]

Technique Sheet/LP No. 20
Hand Built Tea Bowls [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 19
Exploring Life in the Coral Reef [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 18
Warm Glass Renaissance: Modern Technology Brings Back an Ancient Glass Art Form with Amaco Glass Select Fire Kilns [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 17
Mi Casa es Tu Casa: A lesson in Creating Small, Animated Houses With Amaco® Clay and Gloss Decorating Colors [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 16
Sculptural Heads: A Lesson in Creating life-sized Heads with Sculptamold® [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 15
A New Approach to Developing Images on Clay [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 14
Recreating Chinese Bronze Vessels [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 13
Creating Relief Sculpture: A Lesson in Sculpture and Moldmaking Using Sculptamold® [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 12
The Intricate Art of Persian Tiles [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 11
Cave Art Revisited: A Lesson in Recreating Prehistoric Art [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 10
The Fascinating World Of Insects: A Lesson in Bug Making With Polymer Clay [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 9
Creating Cast Paper Sculpture: A Simple Lesson In Papermaking and Moldmaking [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 8
Clay Animation: A Interdisciplinary Lesson [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 7
Beautiful Beads: A Lesson In Making Beads With Polymer Clay [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 6
A Passion For Pots: A Lesson in Glaze Decoration for Students of All Ages [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 5
Dig This: A Relief Sculpture of Dinosaur Bones for Elementary Students [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 4
Portraits in Clay: A Lesson in Sculpture for Elementary Students [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 3
Spoon Printing Lithography: A Printmaking Experience for Elementary Students [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 2
A Multi-Color Printing Experience for High School Students [PDF format]

Lesson Plan No. 1
Ceramic Tile Wall Murals [PDF format]

An Introduction to Glass in the Classroom
This Power Point presentation offers a brief overview of glass fusing, slumping and casting in PowerPoint format. Great step by step and critical information for using AMACO® warm glass products [PPT format]

Glass Drop Ring Kit Instructions
Learn to create a unique glass vase using our Glass Drop Ring Kit.

Bisque and Recycled Tile Murals
After a brief history of the tile mural as an art form, this Power Point presentation provides practical information for creating beautiful murals in the classroom [PPT format]

Mosaics From Broken, Recycled Ceramic Pieces
Learn to create unique and colorful ceramic mosaics using broken ceramic pieces, a slab roller and grout.

Hope your summer is off to a good start!

xoxo, Kim 1969