Art with Mrs. O'Neill

Here are some more pictures! 2nd grade learned about Asian art. We created Gyotaku Fish prints, Chinese dragons, warm & cool colored Koi, and Moon lanterns. I use the Legend of the dragons gate story to teach students about the symbols behind koi fish in Asia. This is a wonderful story and students love anything that has to do with Dragons!

We have been working on an architecture unit in 2nd grade based on the book Roberto the Insect Architect.   We did a lot of brainstorming about the types of buildings needed in a community and then students created a collage. I loved their creativity on the buildings!  This project also made a great display on a bulletin board!

Second graders study Asian culture for our big art night in May. So, we are creating these beautiful Asian scrolls. First I show students examples of scrolls, then we practice Chinese brush painting techniques before creating the actual scroll. Finishing touches are added with light chalk, a strip of decorative paper on the top and bottom, and a piece of ribbon to hang. The kids love this one!

Second grade has been reading the snowy day & they have created these beautiful mixed media collages based on the story. This is always a very successful lesson. Students color a chalk background, then use dabbing techniques with a sponge & white paint (this gives a similar effect to the stories illustrations). The next class is spent adding an art tissue collage of a snowy day scene.

Second graders have been working on 3 dimensional animals & their habitats. They have had a great time with this project. I gave them patterns to trace with a choice of 4 different animals. Explained how to fold the paper & cut to make a symmetrical animal. Then we used another lesson to create the animals habitat.