Macaw Collaborative Project (Part 2): Endangered Animal Study

Our collaborative macaw project is almost finished!  Yesterday was the last day of school, so I will be finishing the belly on my own.  The students were so eager to see it finished, but I let them know that it will be hanging up all next year when I turn my room into a rainforest.  Here is a close-up of the papers, the students cut "football shapes" or "teardrop shapes" for the feathers and then I called them up a few at a time for placement.

While the students were working, they were also creating their own recycled macaw.  Here are some examples from Kindergarten and first grade.  This was a wonderful end of year project, it only involved the scrap paper buckets and glue sticks or glue bottles.  Best yet, they loved creating their own macaw to take home with them!

Stamping Fish: First Grade Printmaking

In First Grade, my students are studying the stamping process.  They have learned that a stamp is a form of printmaking and that every time they dip it into paint, they will produce the same shape over and over.  We created a pattern that was either random or organized.

First, the class watched the YouTube reading of the Rainbow Fish.  We paused the clip and looked at all of the details in the fish as our inspiration.  Then we began our drawing.  We measured with our hands (one hand in all all sides) to draw a large oval.  Then we added the fins and the tail.  We used oil pastels to color in the fins, tail, and eye.

On day two, we rotated stations to stamp our fish.  Each station had a color of the rainbow.  I told the students that if you are finished before the other people at your station, enjoy watching them finish up, that way no one jumped ahead!

Day three was for cutting out our fish and completing our artist reflection.  On the paper, there was a space to draw our fish (if there was time) and two questions: 1. Was your fish stamped in a random or organized pattern? 2. What was your favorite part/ least favorite part?

For the hallway display, I created a large rainbow fish and as a reward, several wonderfully behaved Fifth Graders got to paint it!

Macaw Collaborative Project: Endangered Animal Study

Every year, I choose a new theme for my art show.  This year's theme was the Art of Asia.  I have begun thinking about next year, and the theme I selected was Endangered Animals.  This will tie in nicely with my school's increased arts integration program.  Part of the reason I choose this theme was because I wanted students to be more aware of the decision that they make and how those decision effect our environment.

So to kick off the them for next year, I told my younger grades that we were going to make a giant scarlet macaw entirely out of recycled materials.  The older grades (3 to 5) were making paintings of scarlet macaws to kick off the new theme, so this related nicely.

After a brief history of the macaw and the amazon rainforest, I made the connection with the students that recycling paper means that less trees are cut down in the rainforest.  Now I know that is over-simplifying a complicated issue, but after a discussion, they saw how the two were related.

So, to begin this project, I showed the class how I drew a large macaw (started with basic shapes.  I did not intend on drawing the entire thing in front of my kindergarten class, but they were mesmerized by watching it, so I did!  Then I got out our scrap paper bin.  Every time a student uses a piece of construction paper, any left-overs are put into these bins.  They come in wonderfully helpful for many things throughout the year: collages, free draw crafts, paper sculpture, fixing mistakes by covering up.

The students love looking through the scrap paper bins.  I talked to my students about all of the colors that we would need to make our macaw (I know there is no purple in the scarlet macaw, but I added it for our rainbow effect).  The students cut papers into football shapes, ovals or teardrops, making sure the shapes were larger than their thumb.  Then, the students sorted the paper into different bins by color.

As the students were cutting and sorting, I began gluing the colors onto the bird.  I called one table over at a time (4 students) to select the next feather to get glued and where they wanted it.

My second grade classes were also involved in this process.  They were given the scrap drawing paper (everything left over from weird cutting sizes) to create painted paper.  They selected colors that were neighbors and I talked about analogous colors.  These papers were then cut into feathers by the first grade classes.  It was really neat how all of the younger grades contributed to this project!  I will post the finished project as soon as it is complete!

Flower Origami: First Grade

Today, my first graders finished up their study of origami.  This project was originally taught to me by Mrs. Carr, so I can't take credit for coming up with it!  I believe strongly in not re-inventing the wheel, and this project is a real keeper :)

This project takes two class periods to complete.  In the first class period, the student learn the difference between shape (flat, 2D) and form (3D).  We talk about all the different ways we can turn a flat piece of paper into a three dimensional form.  I end the discussion by crumpling up a scrap piece of paper and ask if it is three dimensional or not, and they found this quite funny.

The materials needed for day one are: 

• 12" x 18" blue paper
• 6" x 12" green paper (grass - for fringing)
• (x3) 1" x 12" green paper (glued flat for stems)
• (x4) 1/2" x 12" green paper (curled for weeds)

To start, we glue the stems down, evenly spaced out.  The paper is vertical (see picture for the end result of day one).  Then we curl the thin green stripes around a pencil and glue them down in between the stems.  Next, we take the 6" x 12" green paper and fringe it as a class.  I talk about our fringe lines being parallel, to incorporate a math term.  Once all of the green papers are glued down, if there is still time, we add tiny bugs to our grass: caterpillars, ants, snails, but nothing to the sky (they would be making them where flowers will eventually be glued down).

The materials needed for day two are:

• (x3) 6" x 6" colored paper (I used orange, red and purple)
• (x3) 3" x 6" yellow paper

We begin class by discussing the difference between paper sculpture and origami.  Origami is the art of paper folding, not cutting or gluing.  The only origami in this project is the tops of the flowers that we will be creating today.  Everything else is an example of paper sculpture.  I walk the class through the steps to make an origami flower.

To begin, the students need to fold their square in half (both directions).  They will see a plus sign.

Next, they need to fold each corner into the center. 

 Last, they need to fold each corner back towards the outside. 

After they have created all three, they need to glue the tops down.  I found it easier to fit if the center flower is low and the other two are higher.

After they are glued down, the last step is the tube for the center.  These can be a bit challenging, I may change them in the future.  The students take the 3" x 6" yellow paper and roll it up so that it is 3" tall (the short way).  They glue it together and hold it for thirty seconds.  I tell them that this is a good opportunity to talk to your friends at your table about weekend plans!  Next, they fringe both ends of the tube and fold the fringes out.  They need to put glue on the fringe and glue it to the center of the flowers.  And viola, awesome flower origami!