A Sky Full Of Stars

Vincent Van Gogh said "what is done in love is done well".

Well I love Van Gogh and on his birthday I decided to take a look at some of my favorite lessons inspried by that love, and that were done very well...

Every spring my 1st and 2nd graders take on Sunflowers.

In 1st they create a paper collage made out of different colors and shapes of paper.

Once in 2nd grade we revisit the Sunflowers, and create a painting more in the style of Van Gogh, I usually send these home for Mother's Day.

Starry Night, which is most dear to my heart, has become what I'm know for as a teacher because I doodle it everywhere.

I have taught it from Kindergartners in the art room,

 to adults at a ceramic studio...

Happy Birthday V.V.G! I love thee...

A Merry and Bright Year

This year has been such a whirl wind, kinda like looking up and spinning under the local tree...

One of favorite things to do as an art teacher is create personal lessons for my kiddos. 

Luckily we live in a city that's full of inspiration, like the Zilker Tree.

This is always a fun, pattern oriented project to conclude the first half of the school year. I love how each student interprets the same colors and lines, some appear to be swaying, dancing, it's really cute.

Well with 2015 at its end I bid you all farewell, and look forward to seeing what the new year inspires. From my family to yours...

Hugs and love, from The Robbins.

Southwestern Succulents

November was a crazy month, and the art room has been so jam packed with projects I haven't had much time for posting. But now that they are concluding and making their way up on the walls, here's what the little birds have been working on...

So this Fall / Winter I decided to go with a Southwestern theme.

A few years ago on our anniversary, the hubby and I took a trip to Terlingua, and every year around this time I am reminded of the beautiful colors of the desert, so inspired this unit.

1st grade worked on a Succulent Garden.

They started with a line drawing on black paper.

Covered their drawings in a glue resist.

Colored their pictures with a variety of chalk.

And got a huge kick out of seeing their final pics get sprayed fix.

The end results were so prickly pretty!

Evolving Plans: Roboto!

So I was walking down the hall this week and thinking about how that Robot Party began as a sub plan and has evolved into much more.

This year it became a full on paper party!!!

The students first cut out the shapes to form the robots, then uses multiple colors to create the whole scheme. I was quiet pleased, and the school is filled with fun energy! And we listened to Mr. Roboto by the Styx while we were working!

Sub Plan: Robot Party!

So I've been sick, and that just throws a major wrench in all your fine planning. Luckily I created a magical lesson a few years ago, that makes those times when I have to be out of my room a little less stressful. Behold Robot Party!

What makes Robot Party an awesome sub plan are all the variables. It's combination of shapes and decorations are plentiful, great for all ages and can be easily repeated without boredom.

It starts with 2 shapes....

All shapes are connected with a "ladder line"! I tend to chant this and my students think it's silly, "ladder, ladder, ladder"....

Next we create joints, this allows for all sorts of action poses....

Connect again, "ladder, ladder, ladder!

Once your base bot is done, it's time to personalize...

Faces, Feet and Hands...

And get your robot dressed for the big day...

And what about the party? Don't forget to plan well!

Color and take home!

Wasn't that fun?!

Moving Lines

I wanted my students to have a better understanding of how to use rhythm and movement to enhance their artwork. To start I had them wash a paper with water and layer water colors one at a time. After applying each color, the students would lift their papers and let the colors drip and blend. The 2nd graders LOVED this.

The next class, to continue the theme, we talked about the use of Lines in our artwork and how different types of lines give the feel of movement. The student then used black paper to cut of a variety of straight, dotted, wavy and zig-zag lines to create a composition. The results were gorgeous, and very striking when displayed with their classmates.