Form

We are already into the fourth week of school and the busyness does not slow down! Hard to believe that on this day five years ago, I moved to Istanbul. What a wild adventure it has been!

I wanted to share some of the middle school projects from our first weeks. It has been two whole years since I taught middle school, so it will take some getting used to again. I am glad I keep a blog because I have a record to look back on of all the wonderful projects from years past.

20180907_161359 — The fifth and sixth graders *About Me* sculptures

We started off the year with making portfolios- I will have to remember to share some photos!

The new middle schoolers, the fifth and sixth graders made paper line sculptures. These are hanging up in the hallway across from the art room. Each line represents something about the artist; for example, an orange tab if you have been on a train, or a green spiral if you like ayran (a Turkish yogurt drink).

This project may look familiar, it is typically one that I do with kindergarten (see here and here) but I have learned that it works for many ages. Thank you to Cassie Stephens once again for the inspiration!

Fifth through eighth graders also made paper foldables for the elements of art; this was information I knew I wanted them to get down from the beginning!

Here are a few of the finished foldables. Each of the seven elements of art were to be written in an illustrative way; to add meaning to the element. Inside are definitions for each element and further drawn examples.

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This was our final project in fifth grade, following bootcamps in the art elements and principles. We looked at Louise Nevelson’s work, trying to identify recognizable objects and discussed the idea of relief and assemblage (sculptures utilizing found objects). I gave each student a square of cardboard, asking them to fill it with an assortment of forms. This was a great way to get rid of those little bits I have been storing: popsicle sticks, bottle caps, pasta, shells etc. I asked them to make sure they filled the whole space, and had areas of both high and shallow relief.

The final step was to spray paint the pieces, unifying all the components together. I was able to get extra time to take the class outside so each student could paint their own piece. It was a lot more fun to have them involved than for me to do it myself. A few of the students said they felt so ‘cool’ spray painting, it makes me want to do a graffiti unit with them next!

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