Historical Silhouette: War and Conflict

The Upcycle Unit provided a variety of opportunities for the students to become aware and connect with issues beyond the classroom. The themes that this unit covered included Inequities of the Garment Industry, Global issues related to Pollution and the Water Crisis, similarities between War and Conflict and Capitalism driven by Commercial and Cultural Icons. This unit exemplified how Art can be a perfect venue for students to engage and create as a means to express their understanding real world issues.

Students Rebuild: Water Challenge for Tanzania

During the Upcycle Unit our students took on a global challenge for the non-profit organization called Students Rebuild. Our students rolled paper beads out of magazine pages for a water challenge effort to provide drinking water to Tanzania. Our students, in the course of 5 days, rolled 13,590 beads which will result in 679 people receiving sustainable, clean water for 20 years. We will definitely stay current with this organization and take the next challenge if we are able. GREAT JOB to all of our students!

Ren Fair Revival!

So it's been a couple of years since LE has collaborated on a Renaissance Fair. This was partly due to changes in curriculum, time lines and adjusting to more emphasis on technology. So now that we have settled into a "new grove" I was excited to be a part of bringing back an event that showcased student work. Our Ren Fair had some old and new elements. The old elements included skits and dance. The new elements included an art and technology exhibit. I think it was a great start for us to build upon next year!

Project Runway!

We kicked off our 7th grade "Upcycle" Unit with a recycled outfit challenge. Students got into groups and chose an era piece to recreate using only newspaper and tape. The students had 25 minutes to  design and assemble the newspaper ensemble onto a designated model before he/she strutted their stuff down the catwalk. The 80's era seemed to be the most popular and I was super impressed with all the pleats and bows!

Paper Lantern Tesselations

Legacy Mosaic Art

Our 8th grade class is piloting a tile mosaic project that we have been itching to do for some time now. Luckily, a senior wanted to take on the project so we are able to go through the learning/teaching process with an additional instructor. Our 8th grade class will produce 6- 24"x 36" tile mosaic murals for the LEA hallway. Here are some shots of the beginning stages.

Grease Is the Word!

This years Grease Performances were amazing. We have some very talented and motivated kids that we were able to add 2 more songs to the playlist and create an an additional scene to the Musical. Here are some rehearsal highlights. Way to go class of 2014!

Tessellating Luminary

Years ago we received a large donation of pan-sized parchment paper that has been sitting idle ever since. I stumbled across the paper and brainstormed several ideas that all led to some sort of lamp. Since we were in the middle of creating a Geometric Art Unit, using tessellations as the art form for our lanterns made sense. Here is the process and outcome. We will see how the kids respond!

Here are some student examples: