October Artsonia Newsletter

Expressions Charter Chat: October from Jenell Novello

8th Grade Sugar Skull Plaster Masks

This Project! There are SO many skills involved when creating and designing a plaster mask and these kids NAILED it. Check out these stand outs!

7th Grade Skull Stamp/Monster Mail Cards

This year Leadership could not sell monster mail so I signed on! Monster Mail is the equivalent of Boo-grams so it was perfect timing cause we were making skill post cards and layered cards. Check out this years handy work! 7th Grade LOVES printing and so do I!

8th Grade New Spin on Sugar Skull Portrait

It's no secret that I get restless. And though I LOVE the art projects that we create every year for the Day of the Dead exhibit, I felt the need for a change. This year I challenged the students to create a half face, which is a more traditional make-up style that signifies how fast life and death can occur. Because of this new challenge, I took away required elements like a top hat or a flower. Next year I will add back all of those requirements now that I feel confident that students can do it all. Check out these amazing half faces!

7th Grade Wide Open Walls Walking Field Trip

We took the 7th grade class, about 90 students, on a 4 mile walk around Sacramento exploring architecture, historical sits and street art. The Wide Open Walls is an annual Street Art Jam that has recently established itself at the heart of Sacramento. Exposing students to this relevant art form that illustrates the culture of Sacramento was very impactful.

Afterschool Drama Club

It's no secret that I am a drama geek. I was bitten years ago when I was encouraged to audition for the Winters Theater Company and performed in the play Let's Murder Marcia. I LOVED IT! Even before that I taught drama explicitly in Expressions when class sizes were much lower (18-20) then they are now. Some favorite plays students performed include Romeo and Juliet, Pirates of Penzance and Grease. Now that class sizes are at 30, I cannot justify spending 9 weeks on a Drama Unit that only 1/3 of the students are really interested in so I have since substituted that unit with more engaging media art units.

Recently some students hit me up to host a Drama Club after school. It seemed like the perfect way to offer Drama to those who are genuinely interested in performance. So Glad They Asked Me! We are 20 students strong and have scheduled our first lunch performance on October 27th. This club seems to meet a need that hasn't been provided in a while and I hope to continue this club for years to come!