Swingin' into Spring...

As students returned from spring break, many were very eager to get right back into the swing of things!  What does this really mean?  Many of our youngsters have been working diligently on projects in their core classrooms and have been anticipating having the time to create visual representations of their ideas.  In order to make this week's post as short and simple as possible, I will quickly do a rundown of some of the highlights:

Ms. Kate and Ms. Wilkinson's class have become experts on various different countries including India, Antarctica, Guatemala, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Tanzania and Mexico.  Students conducted their very own research using computers on their own and visiting the library multiple times and used their research to write informative books about their country.  When students entered the atelier after being immersed in such rich information, they were really ready to build representations of their countries!  Students used paper mache, modeling clay, paint and wire to construct replicas of famous architecture, scenes and sculptures from their countries.

In Ms. Shonte and Ms. Michelle's class, students discovered their "alter-ego" and have been studying comic book characters, deciding which kind of alter-ego they would like to invent.  A small group of students who dove deeply into the project decided to work intensely inside the atelier to create their own animated stories.  Students began by developing a character and used model magic to construct a sculpture of their hero/villain.  Afterwards, students used a storyboard to sequence their narrations.  The storyboards helped the children see what kind of settings and backgrounds they need to make for their animation.  Students are currently working on flushing out their stories and painting backgrounds and will soon be taking pictures to begin their flash-animation.

Students in Ms. Leslie and Ms. Kim's class have wrapped up their study of dinosaurs and have expressed their knowledge freely and easily inside the art studio.  Along with an understanding of the concept of "extinct", students have studied fossils (and created their own in clay), discovered which dinosaurs are herbivores, carnivores and omnivores, and can name multiple different species.

In Ms. Cassandra and Mr. Justin's class, students are learning about birds.  Along with learning specific features of birds and their habitats, students have also learned bird calls.  In the atelier, students made          clay, wire and string birds and nests. 

                                     

Students in Ms. Lee and Ms. Robertson's class are working on the idea of communities and
neighborhoods and along with the discussion came ideas about different places to live, blueprints and planning, architecture and diversity.  Students worked on making blueprints of block designs and tested the accuracy of each other's by building from each person's prints.  Students also worked on drawing from observation and went outside to draw buildings around the neighborhood.  Afterwards, students created a web on neighborhoods. Currently the students are making their own sculptural community!

Although I have not covered all classes, I will continue to update often and let you all know how our projects are coming!  Finally, I want to thank all of our wonderful, supportive parents who work so hard to make sure we can do our best for the children.  This past week was teacher appreciation week and our parents went above and beyond to show their gratitude.  One particular parent built EIGHT (yes, eight!) light tables for our classrooms and I'd like to leave you with a picture of the students working around one of them (using watercolor paint)...  :)