After being cut out, the children worked to assemble the collage, laying out each petal and pasting the pieces onto the canvas as if they were completing a puzzle.
After preparing the paper using Eric Carle's painting techniques and with the design templates completed for our flower, bee, and butterfly, we were ready to begin the process of transferring these drawings to our painted paper, and then onto the canvas. The PK drawings were copied onto a transparency to be used with an overhead projector. Through this process the images were enlarged and projected onto a large piece of tracing paper. The children worked to trace these images. Natural problem solving occurred as they quickly moved and adjusted their bodies to adjust for the shadow. This process provided both fine and gross motor challenges as students worked to combine whole arm movements with controlled fine motor tracing. During a group discussion, the children agreed that the canvas should be painted blue, as to represent the sky. Students mixed and blended various shades of blue acrylic paint and coated the canvas with large brush strokes. A few mixed in swirls of white and also used the opposite end of the paint brush to make swirls and scratches in the sky. With teacher support, the large traced flower and insects were traced onto the painted sheets of paper. After being cut out, the children worked to assemble the collage, laying out each petal and pasting the pieces onto the canvas as if they were completing a puzzle. This project took over three weeks from beginning to end. As it evolved, and the impact of each step became clearer to the children, their excitement and pride in their work increased. To imagine a flower was not only a journey of collaboration but also an exercise in creating a communal piece of art that required planning, revising, consulting, and cooperating.
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We have fallen in love with Eric Carle and his wonderful stories! Can you blame us? The beautiful illustrations and endearing animal characters make storytime magical. Following our herb and vegetable planting experiences described in our last post, we were eager to try our “green thumbs” at planting seeds. We planted wheat berry seeds in recycled pop bottles to create a vertical hanging garden. Take a peek at how quickly wheatgrass sprouted! We’re busy trimming and measuring the grass. We then asked the children what they noticed about Eric Carle’s illustrations. Some of the comments included: “He mixes his colors up," "He makes scratches in the pictures," and “The sunshines have a face.” We decided to explore the author and illustrator’s process for making pictures in order to create our own Eric Carle inspired spring canvas of a sunflower. This would be a multi-step process. The first step was to learn how to make the paper that the flower would be made of. During Morning Meeting we watched a video on how to make painted colored paper, like Eric Carle, which included mixing bright colors and adding those unique “scratches.” You can watch the how to video here. We read the beloved Eric Carle story, The Tiny Seed, to explore the life cycle of a seed. The children observed similarities in the illustrations to those of other Eric Carle stories we had read, such as Brown Bear, Brown Bear, and A House for Hermit Crab. We gave each child an Eric Carle book and asked them to explore the illustrations and share what they noticed about them. You can see the energy and excitement in the video below. While Eric Carle uses tissue paper, our motor skills are more adept at working with a thicker style of paper, so we chose to paint on white drawing paper. The children observed illustrations of the sunflower from The Tiny Seed, and stated the many colors that they thought made up each part. For example, they noticed the red petals were made using red, yellow, and orange paint. The children next selected these colors from oil pastel paints, a new medium for us. Using a palette, the children worked to make the desired colors. Before the paint had dried, they quickly used a fork, craft stick, or other end of the paint brush to make the “scratches” and mixed lines that Eric Carle so regularly does. We soon had a large stack of colorfully blended paper. Our next step was to draw the sunflower and some insects to serve as the template for our painted paper. Our classroom is full of budding illustrators and we asked a few students who often spend Indoor Exploration time creating art, to draft a sunflower, butterfly, and bee. Each of these three children worked diligently to create their image. To encourage the drafting and revision process, we asked these children if there were aspects of their drawing they thought were the best and aspects that they’d like to improve upon. Using Eric Carle’s illustrations as references, the students remarked on areas they could improve, such as making a wing pointier, or the petals wider. The artists created multiple drafts until they were satisfied with their very best work. Even at a very young age, it is important to emphasize the drafting and revision process as this builds focus, planning, and intentionality. To see more of what this powerful feedback and revision process can look like with young children, view the famous educational clip, Austin’s Butterfly. Next up: the final drafts are ready to be enlarged and transferred to the painted Eric Carle inspired paper. We can’t wait to see the finished product...stay tuned!
As we eased back into school, we were inspired to do some collaborative, cold weather art. We presented a large blank canvas to the children and provoked them to make a “wintery painting” with colors purple, dark blue, white, and light blue. In pairs of two, each child was encouraged to use the paints to cover the canvas. As the children painted, they spoke of the colors they used and how these colors influenced what they painted. As a new group of children came to the table to paint, we explained the narratives their peers before them had shared as they painted. In time, a winter narrative began to evolve. Not too surprisingly, one of our preschoolers’ favorite winter narrative, Frozen, became an underlying theme of the painting. The following day during Morning Meeting, we read the children their dictation from the prior day’s painting, while showing them the canvas. They commented on the colors that were made with the purples, blues and whites mixed together. We encouraged them to make shapes, lines, or patterns for this phase, demonstrating how to use the side of the brush with control. On this day, children were given white and light blue paint for the second layer. On the final day, we decided to add some texture to our painting. Children used liquid water colors and shiny stones to transform a glue mixture into a layer that brought new depth to the painting. Each day as the children worked, they were curious about which parts their peers had painted. They also asked each other questions as they painted, and also commented on what they thought their partner’s painting reminded them of. The intent of this project was to provide a shared experience, as we reunited together after two weeks apart. As we look at the final product, we see a piece of art that is unique to this classroom and to the ten pairs of hands that created it. While some children preferred to work longer on the painting than others, the final product was made with input from each child in the classroom. This has been, and continues to be, the goal of our PK year; to foster a collaborative community in which each individual brings a unique and essential perspective to who we are as a class. See the evolution of this collaborative painting in the time-lapse video below. After spending a great deal of time designing and creating a functional bus to drive around the classroom, we were ready to hit the road! After a few bumps, collisions and tight corners, we asked the children what we could do to help the bus get easily around the classroom. A couple children said, “We need a road!” and “Stop signs!” This led the direction of the next phase of our study. A few children volunteered to help make traffic signs for the road. Using the transportation signs that are in our classroom for provocation, as well as the book, I Read Signs, by Tana Hoben, they worked in the TinkerLab to create signs. A pedestrian walk sign, a stop sign, traffic lights, and a bus stop were designed. Some traffic lights were tradition while others, had speciality lights such as, “a purple light that tells you when the bus needs gas.” These students brought the signs back into the classroom to show their peers. We asked how we could put them up as signs. Some children grabbed large hollow blocks and suggested we tape the signs to the blocks. We did just that. Now it was time for the road. We initially used tape to designate our parking spot for the bus and thought it would be a good idea to do the same for the road. Students worked together to lay out tape as the boundary for the road. The children realized the only way to know how far apart to make the tape from each side was to put the bus in the middle of the road and tape around it. This is a beginning step in measurement. PK children do not yet think to measure the width of the bus and then transfer that width to the road, however, when the width of the bus is visually right on top of the road, they could tape the road around it. We remembered that we had access to some tile floor samples that locked together and were just slightly larger than the width of the bus. The teachers thought these would make a perfect road. In small pairs, the children worked to lay the tile down in between the tape boundaries and lock the road pieces together. The street signs were put out and the bus was ready to roll! We’ve been having a blast driving around the classroom, with passengers hopping on and hopping off. On Thursday, the day had finally come to ride a city bus! We had been counting down all week and couldn’t wait to ride the number 8 Halsted bus. We bundled and buddied up as we traveled down Fulton to Halsted to reach the Halsted and Lake bus stop. Using a bus tracker app, we counted down the minutes, observing that the number of minutes on the app were getting smaller and smaller as the bus got closer and closer. We were happy to see plenty of seats available as we got on to the bus allowing the children to look out the window. We noticed that the seats were blue, just like in the photos we had researched ahead of time. We listened for the Madison stop, and many children reached up to ring the bell! When we arrived at Mariano’s we split into groups to locate bread, hot chocolate, and milk. We knew we needed the bread for that afternoon’s lunch but the hot chocolate and milk were an added treat for our snack after the field trip. We made many shoppers smile as walked around the store on our mission! We met back up at the cashier and unloaded our goods.
We were thrilled to see that the transit gods had smiled upon us as we exited the market and saw the number 8 bus quickly approaching. We headed back to school ready to enjoy some warm cocoa and share our field trip stories with the rest of the Bennett Day students. Upon returning from the Thanksgiving holiday, the PK children have been busy designing and building a bus to transport them around the classroom. The large classroom wardrobe has proved to have dual functionality, as the children discovered it could be pushed around the classroom and ridden inside. After observing the children pretending to ride a bus with their peers, we began asking questions to probe what exactly they knew about buses. The children shared their memories of riding a school bus last month for our field trips to the Children’s Theater and Lincoln Park Zoo. A few told stories of riding the white city buses to a friend’s home. They also expressed questions, such as “How many passengers can fit on a bus?” and “How do the doors open? Maybe there is a special button?” We decided to embark on an investigation of buses, researching with non-fiction books as well as first hand accounts from everyday bus transit riders: Ms. Fitzgerald and Ms. Wadington. Both teachers have been documenting their morning commutes, taking video and photographs of the interior/exterior of buses, bus stop signs, and even asking bus drivers our students’ budding questions. Each morning at Morning Meeting, we share more information and insight on buses. For example, through photographs inside the bus, students observed how passengers signal to the driver that they would like to get off, as well as what is available for standing passengers to hold on to so they do not lose their balance. With all of these features in mind, it was time to turn the wardrobe into a bus. During play and group discussions, the children’s bus schemas have focused mostly on city buses. However, when we began the discussion of how we could turn the wardrobe into something that looked more like a bus, the children unanimously wanted it to look like a school bus. We discussed the plan during Morning Meeting. There was a consensus among the children that this bus should be yellow and have polka dots and stars around it as decoration. We began by covering the exterior of the bus with yellow butcher paper. The children worked in pairs in the TinkerLab to tape the large paper around the bus. This portion of the project was done with very little teacher assistance, allowing the children to problem solve together the needed lengths of paper and tape. Our SK friends stopped by for a visit and to offer some advice and assistance. The next step was to add the polka dots and stars. Using large stencils, each student had an opportunity to paint shapes around the bus. View the time lapse video below to see just how the painting of the PK bus came to be! After the bus was painted it was time to add the finishing touches. From our research we learned that buses have handles for passengers that may need to stand during their ride. The children also insisted that bells be put on the bus so they can signal to the driver when they would like to get off. One student suggested we use jingle bells, and given the timeliness of the holidays, we were able to bring this design idea to life. Now that the bus is ready for transit, the children are eager to create bus stops, roads and street signs to navigate the classroom. This project and investigation has been sparked solely by student interest and ideas. There is intention and purpose built into their careful planning and it is here that meaningful learning exists.
Over the past few weeks we have spent countless hours preparing the classroom environment for our PK students who we eagerly welcomed on Monday. After each piece of furniture was moved, each material placed, we found ourselves coming back to the same question, “Is the space inviting?” This required time, reflection, and getting down on our knees to walk around the classroom and observe through the eyes of a child. In our work with Educational Consultant, Ashley Cadwell last summer, he encouraged us to design a space that brought rich normality to the environment. While one can interpret this in many ways, we understood this to mean a classroom that feels like home. While some standard classroom furniture (a shelf for blocks, cubbies, tables and chairs) is present, these are not the pieces that should draw the child in. A wicker table and chair set, passed down over the years, provides a space to taste the delicious cake that a friend made in the kitchen. A netted curtain sectioning off a cozy nook with soft chairs invites a child to grab a storybook and travel to a new land. Mirrors are placed throughout the classroom, allowing children to watch their creations and investigations unfold. Viewing your tower from multiple angles as you build provides important perspective to the building process. Soft lighting from table lamps in addition to natural sunlight cascading in through northerly windows imparts an uplifting mood for classroom dwellers. Large letters flank the wall overhanging the construction materials. Each letter represents a first initial of a PK student. As our children grow into their 4th year, each child will design and adorn their letter to their choosing on their 4th birthday, breathing life and color into this wall installation. Two cork panels wrap the walls in the classroom, eagerly awaiting documentation of the learning process. Finally, a large bicycle wheel hangs flat from the ceiling over a round table near the art easel. As a base for a chandelier, the wheel will serve as a provocation for creating beautiful materials and design to hang down from the spokes. This is all just the beginning. We are ready for the children to act on this environment and watch as our classroom evolves. |
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June 2015
AuthorsMeg Fitzgerald is the lead teacher and Madeline Wadington is the Apprentice teacher in the PK classroom at Bennett Day School in Chicago, IL. Categories
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