Archive for the ‘Program Details’ Category
Art Night at Whitman April 2010
Posted on: July 7, 2010
Dozens of families came to see displays of student art and make their own art using tons of art materials donated by SCRAP. Students loved using the hot glue guns, which make it so easy to glue plastic together – it’s not something we could do in class. So many kids made such interesting projects and it was great to watch their parents interact with and encourage them.
5/3/10 Update
Posted on: May 3, 2010
I am pretty excited – I volunteered 154 hours in April, bringing my grand total to 1005 hours since September.
In other news, I will be changing the format from more formal, traditional lesson plans to tutorials. I just cannot keep up with the lesson plans and this way I can still put up pictures of student work and share ideas for creative reuse but be slightly less exhausted. This summer I will go back and categorize all the projects by material type, which might make it easier for people who are searching for creative reuse suggestions.
Thank you to Mt. Scott Fuel for contributing gravel and soil to fill our planter boxes we made to celebrate earth day, and to Seven Dees Landscaping for donating grass seed for our upcoming seed heads!
4/3/10 Update
Posted on: April 5, 2010
Last trimester… oh my gosh, this year has flown by! Though I can honestly say it is so much fun. I have never woken up and grumbled about having to go in to school this year.
In March, I contributed 103 volunteer hours during the school day, and am up to 841 hours for the year.
My goals for the rest of the year are to maintain what I’ve built so far; publish some assessment results at the end of the year, and host an Art Night showcasing the amazing stuff the kids have made this year, while giving the families a chance to make art together in the evening on May 12th.
Update 3/1/10
Posted on: March 2, 2010
A few things… One, thank you to the Dreaming Zebra foundation for fulfilling my wish of brayers, glue and stamp pads! They are local nonprofit where teachers can wish big and they try and do what they can to fulfill your wish. Teachers at school got an email through the school district and many passed it on to me and encouraged me to write in. Neat!
Also, my hours for February topped 118 volunteer hours in the school; that’s about 168 total for the month. I am up to 688 hours donated to Whitman ES since the school year began. Not too shabby.
The topics I will be combining art curriculum next trimester are
Kindergarten – Animals
First grade – Life cycles
Second grade – Animal Habitats
Third grade – Plant life
Fourth/Fifth grade – Planetary science
I am already thinking of crazy plans for these topics. I’ll go out with a bang for sure. 🙂
New posts coming soon!
Posted on: February 24, 2010
I have been getting behind on my lesson plan posting – this pace is exhausting, but I have no one but myself to blame.
Many more lesson plans to come; if you are a new visitor to this blog come back in early March for fun and interesting creative reuse ideas! -K
2/8/10 Update
Posted on: February 9, 2010
Everything is rolling right along! In January, I worked 120 hours at the school for a total of 412 hours at school and about 520 hours total. It is a lot more work to write, set up and teach 5 separate lessons a week instead of the 3 I was doing before, but it makes so much sense in terms of supporting the curriculum at each grade level and the kids are really enjoying it.
I am beginning to plan a Family Art Night for mid May, so that will be a good cap to a year well spent. On 2/17 I am going to miss a class for the first time due to speaking about creative reuse at a conference of Head Start teachers, and on 3/15 I will miss the whole day since I am presenting at the Oregon Green Schools conference all day. I am excited to share what I am doing and to learn from all the other teachers who will be there.
Update: January!
Posted on: January 8, 2010
I volunteered 51 hours in December (down a few from the norm since I took a week off before break to visit my family), for a total of 292 hours in the classroom, and about 438 hours total. I spend a lot of time gathering materials, writing lesson plans, scouring SCRAP for supplies, writing letters to businesses to ask for things, and setting up displays at various locations.
I really like the 5 grade levels all working on different art themes, integrated into their curriculum. It makes for more interesting teaching and I can see it resonates with the kids a little more. I’m glad I made a push for the elements of art at the beginning of the year, but this feels more like a “groove” if that makes any sense.
I wrote the Dreaming Zebra Foundation here in Portland to ask for some brayers, more white glue, and stamp pads for upcoming projects. They said yes to everything, so I’m excited to try printmaking with the kids in early March.
Woodstock Ace Hardware, Home Depot on 82nd, and Bi-Mart on Woodstock all made generous donations during the holiday season. I made a glass jar candle holder with every student, and we wrapped the presents and made cute cards so they could all take something handmade home to give their families for the holidays. Bi-Mart donated tealights so all the kids could give a candle in their candle holders, and Ace and Home Depot donated frosted glass spray to finish off the jars in style. I didn’t post the lesson plan or take photos since it was fairly exhausting, so here’s a link to get the idea if you want to try it:
For Kindergarten- Third grade:
http://www.highlightskids.com/Express/Crafts/Decorations/C0998_tableLantern.asp
For Fourth and Fifth Graders:
http://www.zimbio.com/member/WeddingSavvy/articles/1984385/DIY+Luminaries+Votive+Holders
Back for the second trimester!
Posted on: December 30, 2009
Okay, after a wee break, I am back and ready for more art, more kids, and more trash becoming treasure.
This trimester, each grade level’s art unit corresponds with something else that is already part of the curriculum to help support standards that are already being taught during class. I gave teachers a list of options culled from each grade level’s year long plan, and then picked the most popular topic for each grade. Fourth and fifth grade classes are all mixed at this particular school, so their unit will be the same.
Kindergarten: Plants (science)
First grade: Families (social studies)
Second grade: Letter writing (literacy – and it’s mail related, not forming text)
Third grade: Measurement (math)
Fourth/fifth grade: Colonial America/Revolutionary War (social studies)
Now to plan art lessons that touch on these ideas, along with incorporating creative reuse…
Update 11/27/09
Posted on: November 26, 2009
November was busy, and I wrapped up the lessons about 7 elements of art. All classes had at least 7 lessons focusing on the basic elements of art, and some had extra lessons delving into certain concepts more deeply.
My in-school volunteering hours topped 79 this month, for a total of 241 hours so far (that doesn’t include time spent gathering materials, asking for donations, writing lesson plans etc.)
Week 9 Update
Posted on: November 8, 2009
So far, so good. I’d like to thank Georgie’s clay and Art Media on 82nd in Portland for donating clay for projects later in the year, and the Mill End Store for donating several yards of fabric so we can work on a quilt.
My current total number of hours spent volunteering (just time spent in the school, not gathering materials, writing lesson plans at home or anything else): 162 hours, as of 10/31/09
I looked at all the year long curriculum plans across all the grade levels, made lists of potential unit topics for the second trimester, and have asked each teacher to turn in their top choices this week. I’m trying to piggyback art onto another topic to support the content the teachers are already teaching in their classrooms. Then I can start making plans and collecting materials for the next chunk of the school year.
Students and staff continue to be excited about art and supportive of the program I’m cobbling together, so it’s great to feel like it’s “working”. I will do a second assessment soon, so I can see what ideas have changed or blossomed since the beginning of the year.
Also, the school has Student Recognition assemblies several times during the year, and they
I recognized 4 students for their creativity; I look forward to recognizing many more.
allowed me to create and distribute a few special art awards recognizing specific students and their creativity. The kids I chose to receive the certificates seemed very pleased, and many students expressed hope that maybe they could be chosen next time!
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