It’s hard to believe the holidays are upon us. We have so much to accomplish before the holiday break.
During the month of December classes will continue exploring various cultures and journey to continents around the world. As students improve their critiquing and observational skills, they are applying the Elements and Principles of art and design to their own creations. It is encouraging to hear the students expressing their love of art through journal activities and group discussions.
Juniors completed their Native American Tee-Pee landscape and are moving into a unit about Winter.
Seniors are studying about the abstract artist Wassily Kandisky and interpreting his Concentric Circles painting.
First Grade will be creating beautiful tin ornaments inspired by the characters from the Nutcracker. Students will learn how to work with this medium, applying pressure to manipulate the tooling foil.
Did you ever wonder why Masks are so important to the people of Africa? Ask any Second Grader and they can tell you. Students will complete these colorful masks with pastels while working on their blending techniques.
Third/Fourth Graders continue working on their Dream-catchers and are learning about the traditions and culture of the many Native American tribes.
Fifth Graders continue their unit on Hopi Kachinas. Each student will write a story about their Kachina and the lesson it teaches children. They will then design and sculpt Kachinas from traditional Clay. This unit will be enjoyed by all, as the Fifth Graders will go from class to class to present their Kachinas and read their stories to the students at Rohan Woods.
The Cuna Indians of the San Blas Islands will be the focus for Sixth Grade. They are creating beautifully colorful reproductions of traditional Molas. A Mola is made of many rectangular pieces of fabric of different colors sewn together. Each layer of fabric is carefully cut and stitched by hand to allow different colors to show through. Molas depict many things- nature, animals, flowers and daily life. Once their initial sketch is created, the Sixth Graders will delicately cut colorful construction paper to make their Mola come to life.
Traditions and celebrations are something we all have experienced no matter where we live or our background. It is wonderful listening to the memories you have made with your families and the joy the children express sharing them with us.
Jennifer Burkert
Art Specialist