Organic Shaped Monsters

Student Work - Flower Monster

I have been trying to come up with a color mixing project for my students using model magic for a while.  I have made pumpkins for many years with 1st and 2nd grade students but wanted something else that would connect with my curriculum for students a bit older.  After a unit on Organic Shapes where students tore paper to create a shape and then turned it into a monster, (here it is) I had a light bulb go off.  What if I followed up with a sculptural project that revisited the organic shape, this time in 3D?  An so...this project was born.  It worked great to reinforce learning and the kids loved it.   My only expectations were for them to make their monster's body using a secondary color, they had to mix it using two primary colors, and that the monster's body was an organic shape. These are made with Crayola Model Magic.

Student Work - So many teeth!

Student Work - Sooo many eyes!

Here are some more of the fabulous creations by 2nd grade students.

Student Work - Monster with a Bow

Student Work - Orange monster

I have a new love

Diffusion geometric to organic

I have fallen head over heels for a new art "medium".  In the beginning weeks of school I venture into a local distributor and purchased a mega size container of coffee filters.  I intended to utilize them as dots for an annual dot day project.  Students used them to demonstrate symmetry and for mandalas.  Check out the link to our Artsonia pages to view those.  Along the way, they were used for a project to demonstrate the difference between geometric shapes and organic shapes  (draw geometric, spray with water and they turn into organic shapes).  At some point,  I became totally hooked on the diffusion qualities obtained with coffee filters.   My students have added them to Morris Burton projects, used them to make trees, as well as Artist Trading Cards.  The other day I decided to play with one for a project for an Art with Mr. E project for his #aheartadaychallenge.  The ideas are totally endless.  My newest effect was dropping on some Kosher Salt.

Morris Burton

Analogous colors for trees

Start with shapes

Spray with some water

Let it diffuse

Morris Burton using the paper the filter was sitting on to dry

Dropping on some Kosher Salt

If you haven't attempted these

Close up of  Kosher Salt affect

yet, pick some up and try it out

with your students.  The "WoW"

effect is totally worth the experience.  

For now, I'm off to do some creating 

with these new papers.

Working on ATC in 4th grade

4th grade ATC

Students in both of my buildings are participating in the ATC exchange with  Mini Matisse over on blogspot.  I decided to structure the cards around particular lessons so that students would be exposed to artist or concepts by grade level and then able to prepare their card with some specific parameters.  Fourth graders investigated the artistic style of Laurel Burch, folk artist, who was propular within the last 40 years or so for her whimsical jewelry designs and other commercial items.  Students were drawn to the colors and patterns and jumped right in to develope their own individual ideas for their subject matter.  Burch is most well known for her cats but has also included other animals in her work.  Students choose cats, horses, dogs, unicorns from stencils I had prepared ahead of time.  A few creative individuals dabbled with their own personal ideas.  The backgrounds were created using coffee filters.  Students drew a variety of geometric shapes.  These were squirted with water.  Students watched in amazement as they discovered the shapes were morphing into organic shapes.  Finally, a way to truly demonstrate the differences in geometric and organic shapes.  The results were breathtakingly beautiful.  We have stashed away the left over scraps for future projects, these were too beautful to throw away!

White Fang by Analeah

Dragon by Hope

Kids love Monsters!

I sent my monster to the North Pole because he is a snow monster.

I think this is one of my favorite lessons for second grade every year.  I start by reading a fun little book by Peter McCarty, "Jeremy Draws a Monster".  The book is about a young boy who never leaves his third story apartment but instead gazes out the window watching the neighborhood children playing.  One day he draws a monster that doesn't turn out to quite be the great companion he had planned for.  Jeremy sends the monster away and in the process, meets the neighborhood children and joins them in play.  My students quickly determine that the monster is quite rude and not very kind to his creator, Jeremy.  They are not surprised when Jeremy decides to get rid of the monster and begin to see the positives from the experience as Jeremy joins the other children to play.  The fun side of this project begins when I challenge my students to draw the destination that Jeremy has sent the monster off to.  We've ever explored the possibilities of a sequel to the

My monster is a blue monster.  He is in Paris.
 I hope the rain is over by now.  My monsters name is Bluer.

 book in hopes that Mr. McCarty had plans for
his monster.  But until that book is published, my second graders have stepped in with their own conclusions.  Students drew a perceived destination and then tore an organic shape to create their own monster.  The best part of this lesson for me happens once they write their artist statements to describe their work.  Most often they give the monster a name.  It's a fun project and I am so delighted with the results this year.  I can tell they really put their hearts into these.  I'm very proud of their work.  The captions under the photos are some of their artist statements.  I have posted the lesson play on Artsonia.  It can be found here.

I sent my monster to the desert.  His name is Paper.

I sent him to New York.  I used blue and red.

My monster can fly.
 I made my monster in Wacky Town.
 It's name is Jacke.