Autumn Owls

This is an adorable owl project perfect for Fall. Any elementary class will have fun creating these- 

in this case a Grade 3 class.

Show the class photos of owls. Maybe take some owl books from the library so kids can reference from them. On large white paper (construction paper or drawing paper with a slight 'tooth' works best for the chalk pastels later on), draw a simple line drawing of an owl.

Once the coloring if completed, to polish them up a bit, slowly (some kids really want to speed up at this point)  pass over all the pencil lines with a black oil pastel.

Once finished, you can leave as is, or glue onto black paper and cut around it, leaving a thin border.

Ta da!

 

Fall Scarecrows

Grade 1 students drew these adorable scarecrow faces. 

I used the wonderful scarecrow created by Kathy from "Art Projects for Kids" as my inspiration. 

Check out the link HERE. I felt it was perfect for this age group.

To begin, I talked about scarecrows with the kids. I asked them what they were, what they knew about them, what their purpose is, and what they are made out of, etc. 

As a starting point, each student received white paper a circle (head) drawn on it. This is so kids don't draw the head too small. I find at this young age (6) that tends to be a problem; having this simple starting point also helps the students who struggle with drawing. 

 

From there, students added a hat, the facial features (simple shapes) and the upper body. 

Students could add any additional details or a background.

They then outlined all their pencil lines with a black marker.

For colouring, we used chalk pastels. I did a quick demo and then the kids went at it. It was quite messy (chalk pastel tends to go over all their sleeves and front of shirts no matter how careful they are, so beware!!) Some chose to go somewhat realistically and others mixed colours together randomly. A lot of the girls added 'long hair'. haha!

They all asked while I was drawing my demo: "Can I make mine look like a girl?"

 

Ta da! 

 

 

 

Video: The Chalk Art of Peter Han

Such an inspiring video! Great to show students before a still-life or observational drawing lesson.

Via Colossal

Designer Peter Han (he rejects being called an artist) has worked as a conceptual designer for a number of different video games and films, but has also become known for a drawing class he teaches called Dynamic Sketching. Using only chalk, Han works with his students to let go of their preconceived notions about art and design by working in a fast, impermanent medium that always ends up being erased. The hope is to eventually free them from the idea of permanence and allow their ideas to grow through making mistakes.

Krazy Kreatures

This is a fun and creative end of the year project. I call these "Krazy Kreatures"  :)

Kids start off by drawing just the upper body (no legs) of any type of crazy animal, person, 

alien, monster, etc. on cardstock (takes markers really well) or any type of thicker smooth white paper. 

The crazier the better. Draw in pencil first then colour with markers. Outline with a black marker 

once all the colouring is finished. Afterwards, carefully cut the creature out.

For the legs, we made paper spring legs. I think they're so fun and colourful. You can see my previous instructions for making them HERE or visit HERE for another set of instructions. 

I only had to show my students once how to make these and they got the hang of it right away.

I pre-cut strips of construction paper using the paper cutter. These were about 2.5 cm wide. 

You can make them thinner, but it just takes a bit longer to fold them. 

Students choose two colours per leg to work with. 

Once both legs are made, glue them on the bottom of your krazy kreature.

Grade 3 results- ta da!

This guys legs were made with thinner strips of paper resulting in a skinner and longer leg.
The strips were about 1.5 cm wide, I think.

Chalk Pastel Klee Cats

Grade 3 students made these charming chalk pastels cat drawings  inspired by 

the delightful Paul Klee painting "Cat and Bird" (Katze und Vogel). 

Klee was a Swiss artist who had a wide range of styles throughout his career. One of his main influences, though, was children's art. He was fascinated by their art- the simple lines as well as their innate creativity. You can see this influence in "Cat and Bird" with it's simple lines and cat head composed of simple shapes. 

I love the cat's large, unwavering, hypnotic eyes.

Students first looked at the painting and I asked them why they thought a bird might be on top of this cat's head. I got a few different answers including, "The bird is just resting on his head eating small insects", I guess like a beneficial parasite- cleaning the cat! lol  

I prompted the 'suggestion' that maybe the cat was thinking/dreaming about the bird (eerm, to eat it?) Perhaps the artist wanted to show what was happening in the cat's mind. So the kids had to think of one 'thing' their cat would be thinking of and include that in their drawing.

Paul Klee, "Cat and Bird", 1928, oil & ink on canvas     Source

 Students started off by drawing a simple line drawing of the hat's head and what it was thinking of. 

I have to reeeaally encourage this age group to draw LARGE- fill the page!!

Then outline all the pencil lines with a dark marker, crayon or colored pencil.

Once the drawing is outlined, erase any stray pencil lines that are still showing (craftsmanship!!)

Now you're left with a lovely crisp, clean drawing.

Demo or review how to use chalk pastels. I emphasized soft blending using a finger or a paper towel, using the side of the pastel, mixing colours, and using the same 4-5 colours throughout the whole drawing 

in order to create harmony and unity.

chalk pastels

Grade 3 cats- ta da!

Pinch Pot Ceramic Creatures

This little guy is so expressive and creepy! He reminds me of the Rancor from Star Wars!

 

Grade 7 students made these fantastic Pinch Pot Creatures. I was super impressed with the variety and complexity of the creatures that resulted from this project!

love the crabby's beady little eyes

The head comes off...



wonky and cute!

I was so scared these arms would break off but miraculously they didn't.

Raaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrr!

cute piggy

  

 

Glazing time!! 2-3 even coats. We used "Stroke and Coat" glaze.

 

 

Glazed: