Butterfly Wing Oil Pastel

 Description: For this activity, we traced a butterfly wing and then outlined it in Sharpie. After the outside was outlined, we designed a pattern inside the wing. Then we picked either a warm or a cool color and colored the inside of the wings using a gradient of three colors. Next, we shaded the negative space in the wing with black oil pastel. Then we used watercolors to color the background of the wing and added salt to add texture. 

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Extnesion Activity:

For a young grade, they could find this interesting with a lot of different animals. They could use 1/2 of a frog, or a bird, or any animal they want to. Then they can take a 1/2 picture of the animal they were thinking of and show how their personal drawing matches with the real picture of the animal.

Balanced Plate Clay Project

 Description: For this project, we talked about what makes up a balanced plate, and then created three types of food we would put on our balanced plate. I created a carrot, a peach, and a slice of cheese. To create the carrot and peach, we practiced scoring the clay to attach other things to it. We also utilized various clay skills to roll out the clay correctly, practice cutting it out, and use water to smooth out the edges. 

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Extension Activity:

For an older grade, an extension activity that you can do would be for students to create their own animal out of air-dry clay, using different types of clay techniques to put their animal together. 

The Seasons

 Description: For this project, we designed two different landscapes. For mine, I did the spring and the winter. After drawing both of those, we cut them up into even one-inch strips, then cut them out. After they were cut out, we alternated them, going one summer, one winter, etc. Then, on another piece of paper, we accordion-folded the paper. Once the paper was folded, we glued the strips of paper onto the accordion paper. Once the paper is glued on and settled. You can see either setting based on what angle you look at the paper. 

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Extension Activity:

I would use this as part of a genetics science lesson. I would either have the students draw a picture of themselves and of their parents, or I would have them print out a picture. Then they could see how similar they look and help them see genetics in a different light. 

Whoville

 Description: For this project, we created Whovilles from Dr. Seuss's fictional world. We used one-inch pieces of paper, and drew different types of designs on them, and then folded them in a variety of ways to put them on a blank piece if paper and build them off of each other. Making 3D shapes and buildings. 

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Extension Activity:

You could use this as an extension activity where students have to create their own city/town/world, then they have to write a story/paper talking about their project and walking others through their city. Having the students practice telling their story through multiple modalities. 

Print Making

 Description: This was a printmaking lesson where we practiced rolling paint onto a Gelli print and transferring it with stamps and a variety of veggies. Once we made several different types of patterns, we picked our top three options that followed the requirements, cut them out, and placed them on a construction piece of paper and called it our "gallary" We then labeled the pictures with what they were and what we did in them.

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Extension Activity:

I would use this as part of a science lesson and have them grab leaves from outside and print those onto
other pages of paper. I would also introduce shells or other fossil-like material to show how we get some images of fossils and what they look like. 

Galaxy Painting

 Description: For this assignment, we learned about the six types of way you can use watercolor. Practicing each one on a piece of paper to practice them and how they would look when they dried. Then we briefly talked about the different types of constellations in the sky and what exactly a galaxy is. Our goal for the project was to use at least three different types of watercolor strategies and create a galaxy and landscape with it, while also incooperating at at least one constellation in the sky. 

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Extension activity: As an extension activity, I would have us study in science what different locations look like at night,  and depending on the time of the year, what the sky looks like. Then they can create a picture that is based more on a real location and looks similar to what that actual location looks like. 

Perspective Drawing

 Description: For this assignment, we learned about what it means and what it looks like to draw from a different perspective, a bird's-eye view perspective. We started by drawing a dot in the middle and then making at least eight different boxes. The next step was to connect those boxes to the main point, making straight lines and making sure not to cross over the boxes. Applying Sharpie was the next step, making our lines stand out more. After Sharpie, we added a variety of different textures and patterns to the top of the boxes and then used analogous colors to fill in the buildings, showing how buildings look from on top rather than straight on. 

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Extension Activity: For an extension activity, I would incorporate math and have them use specific measurements to build their buildings, and also have them practice drawing them from different perspectives to get more practice in on both the math side and art side. 

Hidden Safari

Description: The Hidden Safari is a fun way to incorporate how colors contrast and react with each other. We started out by making our glasses with red film. Then we moved on to practicing drawing animals upside down to get more practice and confidence with drawing. Then we picked safari animals to draw on our page. After we drew them, we covered them with warm colors in a variety of different shapes to hide the true identity of our picture. Overlapping shapes and shades make seeing the animal almost impossible. Then we had to write down three clues to what our animal was. 

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Extensin Activity: You could use this for a science lesson that focuses on how red film filters differnt wave lengths. Looking at how it makes some colors stand out while making other colors disappear. We would practice with shining a white light through it, then comparing it to other colored film and observing what colors pass through them and which ones get blocked and why.