In the Art Room: Faux Stained Glass Winter Scene

I don't know what y'all call that time between Thanksgiving and winter break but I have been known to call it a naughty name or two. It's that weird in-between time where we are all comin' down from our vacation high and are so exhausted that we need another one. And just knowing that winter break is on the horizon can sometimes just be more than I (and the kids!) can handle. 

This week, so far, back to art teacherin' town has been a good one. I'm happy to be back making big messes with little people. One project that seems to have the fourth grade really excited is this Faux Stained Glass Winter Scene.

 I used black glue for the very first time in my teaching career last month and I (as well as the third graders) was all WHERE HAS THIS BEEN MY ENTIRE LIFE?! It is so much fun to create with! While they were working with it, I got the idea to introduce my fourth graders to the same media. With my Field Trip! series, I've been introducing the kids to contemporary creatives. Unfortunately, I don't personally know any local stained glass artists to film (any leads would be much appreciated!) so I created this introduction to the art of stained glass with a little iMovie wizardry. The fourth grade watched the first half of the video today and got a good start on their faux stained glass. 

The kids were SUPER bummed when I said that we weren't going to work with cut glass (really guys?!) but were excited when I mentioned black glue. I had them move to their seats and silent sketch several ideas for 5-7 minutes.

I really emphasized not creating a Christmas tree knowing that this project just might not be completed until after the holidays. However, I didn't want to limit the kids so I made it optional. Personally, I love that skull tree on the left! 

After our sketch time was up, we regrouped on the floor and watched the part of the video where I talk about drawing on large paper and using the puffy paint or black glue.

Puffy paint leaves a better, crisper line but it does take a little extra work to squeeze that bottle. The black glue (made with one part black tempra and two parts Elmer's Glue All) comes out faster but leaves behind a wider, flatter line. I shared with the kids the pros and cons and let them decide which they wanted to use. 

All but a handful of kids got to the black glue on the first day. I did change the size of the paper from what was in the video as I thought a 12" X 18" would be easier to manage. 

 One thing I had to really emphasize was keeping the drawing large. Showing that clip of the stained glass artist really did help them conceptualize the idea of large and enclosed shapes. 

 Of course, it wouldn't be black glue painting if we didn't have the occasional smearing. We learned to just let it go. The chalk can hide any imperfections. 

Gotta love a tree of Hershey Kisses! I'll keep you posted on the progress of this project. I see so many variations: landscapes, abstract designs, etc. I'd love to know if you have used this method. If you do, please drop me a line and share. 

In the Art Room: Fourth Grade Faux Stained Glass

Hey, y'all! Today I saw a couple of fourth grade classes for their second day working on their Faux Stained Glass Winter Scene project. I was so impressed with their beautiful work that I thought I would share and let you take a peak at how these 12" X 18" beauties are turning out. In case you missed the demo video, here it is:

On our first day, we sketched out our ideas, enlarged our favorite onto our 12" X 18" piece of paper and drew the lines in either black glue or puffy paint. I decided to change the size of the artwork to better accommodate frames. I have had parents tell me that when we do odd shaped artwork, it is difficult for them to frame. I really love the idea of them framing their child's work so of course I'm going to make some changes to have that happen!

Today we watched the second half of the video and dove right into chalkin' it up. I stressed the following: no more than three colors per shape; colors had to be analogous; keep your fingers clean by washing and drying regularly. 

 About 1/3 of the kids finished today, some used glue today (because they were absent last time) and others are still in the middle of creating. Yay! That should be real fun to coordinate all those finishers/almost finishers/no where near finisheders. Such is art teacherin' life. I plan to provide some open ended projects for those wrapping things up as that will be our last class before break. 

 This project was inspired by the success of this third grade project!

One of the half dozen freshly-glued designs from today. We dry these on our messy mats on the floor. I found that placing them on the tilted drying racks causes the glue to run.

The partially finished pieces really stole my heart. These kids were serious about taking their time and doing their best. I love this Hershey Kiss tree!

 This one is really so stained-glass-esque.

 This artist got a big warm hug from me. So stunning!

And this artist, ah! I was so concerned when I saw his glued design as I thought, that is gonna take him forever! I was worried that he wouldn't have the patience to fill it in the best he could but he really is rockin' it!

And this one says Paul Klee to me! 

Please feel free to give this project a go in your art room! I'd love to see the results if you do.

In the Art Room: Top Ten Favorite Winter Art Lessons!

 On my way in to school this morning, IT SNOWED! Well...it "snowed" Tennessee style. It looked like a blizzard of dandruff bits but for us in the South, that means a lot! It put me in the mood for all things winter and so I thought I'd put together a list of my Top Ten Favorite Winter Art Lessons. If you follow the link on each of these, you'll find a video for most and a lesson for all. Let's go!

 SNOW GLOBE CITIES! This lesson was a hit with my fourth graders last year. They really loved working on their buildings that were inspired by famous places from around the globe...get it, GLOBE?! yeah, it's okay, they didn't get it either. 

 PENGUIN LOVE! My first graders created these last winter and they made our halls so cute, cuddly and happy. We went big with these guys and my students could not have loved it more!

 KINDERGARTEN SNOWMEN! This lesson was pretty similar to the first grade one in that the background involved learning how to paint overlapping spiral lines. 

 WATERCOLOR WINTERSCAPES! My third graders are getting ready to work on these tomorrow! We paint ours on cardboard pizza rounds, inspired by the artist Jen Aranyi. 

 KINDERGARTEN WINTER LANDSCAPES! The smallest of artists made the snowiest of artwork! Follow the link on more lesson details. 

 HOT CHOCOLATE TIME! My second graders were inspired by the artist Heather Galler to create these delicious cups of hot cocoa. I'm thinking I need to bring this lesson back soon! 

 FAUX STAINED GLASS WINDOW! My fourth graders created these fun pieces inspired by stained glass windows. They even learned how real stained glass windows are made, check out the video!

 PRINTED MITTENS AND HAT SELF-PORTRAIT! Oh, these second grade selfies were a hit! This is another lesson I think needs a repeat this winter. 

LOOKING FOR MORE LESSONS AND INSPIRATION? Well, then, just head over here! I've got plenty more. Happy wintery creations! 

In the Art Room: Recycle Hearts with First Grade

Yesterday, I shared on Instagram (I'm @cassie_stephenz), I shared this fast and furious 2/thirty minute session art project that I did with my first grade students using recycled materials...and I received many questions. I'm MISERABLE at responding to questions on Insta (I dread typing on that tiny phone keyboard with my sausage fingers) so I promised to share this simple project in blog form. So here you go!

 This lesson was created outta the fact that I had two classes that were ahead of the rest (gotta love that!). We've been focusing on the theme of love and last week finished off our 101 Dalmatians. Recently, while second grade was cutting out hearts for this project, I noticed how pretty the negative heart shapes looked when laying on the surface of a messy mat. Later, when I was tidying up, I found a stash of transparency film and had a eureka moment...what if the kids collaged tissue paper onto the film and created a faux stained glass window! I hope that thought process of mine made some sort of sense. Isn't it funny how ideas come to us?

Day 1 of a 30 minute class...

Supplies:

* Transparency film cut into 8" squares
* Warm colors of tissue paper
* Modpodge
* Large brushes
* Paper to write names and transport wet transparency film

We chatted about loads of stuff before starting: warm colors, transparent, translucent and opaque. We also talked about static electricity as the transparency film was so staticky! One kiddo said, "it's art science!" Art is a science, buddy. The kids then went "shopping" for their supplies. They were to coat their transparency in Modpodge, apply whatever colors of tissue they liked and then add another layer of the 'podge. This was placed on a sheet of paper with their name on it and placed on the drying rack. 
The next day, they looked like this coming off the drying rack. So pretty! We had fun holding them  up to the light. This was also a super fun color experimenting activity as many of the students noticed that when certain colors overlapped, they created new ones. 

Day 2 of a 30 minute class...

Supplies:

* Messy mats cut to 8" square (these are the tag board mats the kids use under their artwork when they are painting. I got the idea from my buddy Laura to use them for art projects and I LOVE it!) 

* Black and white paint

* Paint brushes and Q-tips

The next day, the kids were to pick a messy mat which they liked the colors of. They traced a heart template, cut it out (starting at the bottom of the heart to make a clean cut) and bring it to me. While I hot glued their "stained glass" to their negative shape, they worked on painting their positive shape hearts. 

In my room, we talk A LOT about using a paint brush correctly, pretending it is a ballerina who always dances on her tippy toes...and never EVER scoots around on her bottom. This really helps my kids understand how to create delicate lines. Once their hearts were dry, I framed them with more recycled messy mats!

I'm so excited how pretty these turned out. Our halls are looking so LOVEly right now. I can't wait to add these to our displays. 

Hope y'all have a lovely weekend. Stay warm, rest up and take it easy. That's my plan, anyway. 

Favorite Winter Art Lessons!

It's December 1st! Which means it's time to embark on all sorts of fun, colorful and winter-y art projects around here! Today I'm sharing with you some winter-y greatest hits lessons that I've done over the years. Be sure and click on the link to each as many of these lessons have instructional videos...all free, of course! 

Let's kick things off with these black glue outlined stained-glass inspired trees my fourth graders created a couple years ago. If you need a review on line and color with an introduction into the world of stained glass, than this lesson is for you and your kiddos!

Nothing says cozy like a delicious cup of hot cocoa! My second graders created these collage paintings inspired by the artist Heather Galler. This is a lesson I did last year with my kindergarten and they used Model Magic to create marshmallows! You can find this lesson right here. 

A HUGE hit with students and fellow art teachers alike is this project inspired by the artist Jen Aranyi. Check out the video and share in your art room! 

Printmaking and portraits make for a fun collage project in this lesson I've done with first and second grade! You can check out the details here. 

These kindergarten snowmen are the cutest! And they had a blast creating them. All the details (and a video!) can be found here. 

And if you think those snowmen are cute, check out these penguins! First grade created these and they are so adorable! Another video lesson for y'all!

My fourth graders loved creating these snow globe cities. Read all about it and check out the video here. 

One thing I've really missed this year is having my students work closely together on projects like murals. We have been making it work tho! We recently created a massive school mural (oh, y'all, I cannot wait to share here!) and with some outside-the-box thinking and spreading WAY out, we have made it work. You can check out details on creating a winter mural here. 

If you are looking to add a little fiber arts to your art class this winter, you might want to try on these printed and stitched snowflakes on for size! 

Kindergarten snowy landscape collages are always a hit and cover so many lessons in painting, cutting and gluing! More here and here! 

Check out these snowflake reliefs! Always a fun one, details here. 

Need a bunch of lessons that are a little on the shorter side? Well then look no further as this blog post has plenty!

Happy creating, y'all! Stay cozy!