Remembrance Skeleton Collages

Our 7th grade students really dive into this project every year. You see and hear great team building as students reflect on their personal connection and memories they want to be honored and carried out through design within the Skeleton collage. These skeletons will become alive within the exhibit appearing as though they are floating above the arts and crafts below.

Plaster Skull Masks!

I LOVE sculpting with plaster gauze and through the years have made masks, arms, hands and cartoon characters with the students. There is something very unique and personal about the mask making process, especially when one has to rely on the hands of another to create their mask. This personal experience, I think, added to the level of creativity students put forth when designing their skull masks for Dias de Los Muertos!

Embroidered Sugar Skull

The 7th grade Sewing Unit establishes strong life skills that we capitalize on in the 8th grade. Perfect example: the 8th grade students demonstrated mastery creating embroidered radial designs to create Felt Sugar Skull Ornaments. These dazzling skulls will hang from the branches of black trees that will be placed on altars of our Dias de los Muertos Exhibit. LOVE!

Op Art Video

Often times student artwork is left behind in the classroom, forgotten. This year we are taking the time to have kids take images of their artwork so that they have a digital copy of their efforts. For extra credit, Kids can create a 45 second art video using at least 2 pieces from a unit to capture the projects on video as creatively as possible. Here is an example of how one student used creativity to video her 2 favorite op art projects.

Aluminum Tooled Op Art

We start off the 8th grade with an Op Art unit because it is a great way to review the basic elements of art with students. In addition to the elements, the pacing is such that kids get back into the time  management routine of the Expressive Arts classroom. This year we decided to make a very basic project more complex while incorporating texture and form through the use of aluminum tooling. What used to be an elementary of art review turned into a more engaging and challenging project with a whole lotta flash!