Each month brings a new challenge with the Children’s Museum of the Arts (CMA) CIVIC KIDS campaign! Their theme for November is “Equity”…. perfect for election month, don’t you think?! equity noun 1 the equity of society: fairness, justness, impartiality, egalitarianism; objectivity, balance, open-mindedness." The challenge is open to kids everywhere… you don’t need to … [Read more...]
Teaching Kids to Be Creative
We all agree that teaching kids to be creative pays big dividends no matter what field of work they choose as adults. But often our efforts at teaching creativity have a future pay-off that we don’t get to see. Kids grow up and leave our schools (or our homes) and we never know the full impact that this creativity will have on their adult lives. So when they go on to create … [Read more...]
A-Mazing Maze Books!
Maze books are fun and easy to make.... it’s almost magical to see 16 pages appear from a single piece of paper!Materials:12” x 18” white construction paperScissorsCard stock or heavy-weight paper, cut to 4 3/4” x 6 12” Ribbon or raffia, about 2 feet per book"YES! Paste" (or Avery Permanent Glue Stick)1” foam brush for spreading pastePencil, markers, etc. for illustrating or … [Read more...]
Happy Birthday, Dr. Seuss!
Yesterday (March 2nd) we celebrated a very special birthday in our Kindergarten classes.... that of beloved children's author/illustrator, Theodor Seuss Geisel, aka "Dr. Seuss". In his lifetime, Dr. Seuss published over 40 children's books which have inspired both reading and imagination for generations of children. His birthday has fittingly been adopted as the date for the … [Read more...]
Grade 3 Portfolios – The Shapes and Colors of Joy
"Matthew's Dream", by Leo Lionni, is my inspiration for our third grade portfolio project. In this charming fable, a boy named Matthew visits the museum with his classmates and is entranced by the paintings he sees there. That night Matthew has a magical dream which helps him to see the world around him in a whole new way. He becomes a painter and creates beautiful … [Read more...]
6th Grade Portfolio Project – Follow Your Star!
I'm especially excited about my 6th grade portfolio project! This project is inspired by an amazing book by author/illustrator Peter Reynolds, who created the classic children's books "The Dot" and "Ish". This potentially life-changing book, "The North Star", is so special, it even has it's own website! (Check out this site for fun activities for the classroom and home, … [Read more...]
Grade 5 Portfolios – Collecting Words
I LOVE kids' books!!! I just discovered a great new book, titled "Max's Words" by Kate Banks. While this book doesn't have a specific art theme, it inspired me to create a portfolio project for my 5th graders based on WORDS. Kids LOVE to collect things. I learned this from personal experience, with a daughter who collected Beanie Babies like there was no tomorrow, and a son … [Read more...]
Grade 4 Portfolios – “Ish” Drawings
There are lots of wonderful children's books available today, but "Ish" by Peter Reynolds stands out as one of my all-time favorites. This is a story that everyone (kids and adults!) can relate to.... in fact, it's so influential that I can literally see a "before and after" effect each time I read it to my students. This year, "Ish" is the inspiration for my 4th grade … [Read more...]
Grade 3 Portfolios – The Shapes and Colors of Joy
"Matthew's Dream", by Leo Lionni, is my inspiration for our third grade portfolio project. In this charming fable, a boy named Matthew visits the museum with his classmates and is entranced by the paintings he sees there. That night Matthew has a magical dream which helps him to see the world around him in a whole new way. He becomes a painter and creates beautiful abstract … [Read more...]
Grade 2 Portfolios – “My Many Colored Days”
This project is a great way to use last year's broken crayons! You can even assign students the job of peeling paper off the broken crayons just for this purpose.... some kids LOVE to do this!! "My Many Colored Days", written (but not illustrated) by the beloved Dr. Seuss, is the inspiration for my Grade 2 portfolio lesson. Dr. Seuss wrote this text more than 20 years before … [Read more...]
