Finishing up work for the art show!

    Today the kindergarteners finished their Keith Harring graffiti trains. Their focus was to trace and cut out wheels for their train cars. I noticed that this was a very difficult task for some of the students. I had to constantly remind the students to go very slow and take their time. I would also have to tell them to stay on the line they drew and turn the paper as they cut. Another task the students had to do was to connect the trains and put designs on the wheels. I thought it was funny that one of the circles I had in front of me I put a smiley face on. I did not notice that this would start a trend because when I looked around the room, all of the students had smiley faces on their wheels! Ms. Helen and I had a little laugh together and I realized why teacher examples can be difficult to have. I see that the students really want to copy what they see and sometimes giving them simple directions with a little bit of freedom will let them be much more creative.

     In the first grade classes the students finished their paintings and had to do some writing. The students had to create a title for the paintings and explain why they named it that. One of my students that I have been closely working with had a really great story. Because his painting was of a home of him, his sister, and mother, I assumed this was a happy picture. He then told me that it was sad and he painted this because his dad was unable to be in the picture. I asked him why and he told me that his dad was in jail and he missed him. So he decided to name his picture  Lonely Without My Dad. I just thought it was so sad and very touching. I also was impressed how many of the students came up with such interesting tittles. I expected the obvious tittles, but the students came up with some really great and meaningful tittles and reasons.


    Once the first graders were done writing they began to learn about caves. This was funny because the students chose very interesting words to describes the caves shown in class. Many of the students called the stalagmites hanging from the celling either drooling or icicles.  It made me laugh because it is obvious the stalagmites are neither of them but the students didn't know the vocabulary words to describe them. Most of the students really got into their watercolor paintings quickly and had some great ideas for making them scary.