As we wrap up the second quarter of school, I like to take the time to talk with the students about the skills and abilities that I expect to improve and grow as we work our way through the school year. We have been talking about our fine motor skills and how the art room is a place to practice and strengthen those skills. I'm not sure if many of them had really thought about the projects that we do as muscle control exercises. I compared art class to gym, describing how they only get an accurate foul shot in basketball by practicing over and over, teaching their muscles what to do to be successful most of the time. The same thing happens in art class. Many of them can't believe that I draw a circle on the board that is pretty close to being perfectly round and even. They always ask me, "How'd you do that?" I've trained my muscles to know how to successfully draw a round and even circle by practicing the successful motion over and over, for many, many years now.
We've started a lesson in both fourth and fifth grade that I think helps my students slow down and really think about the lines and shapes they are making, as well has strengthening their creative decision making. There is an art "movement" that seems to be spreading sometimes called Zentangles or Zen-doodles. Basically, it's the process of using line, shape, pattern, and contrast to develop interesting and complex designs. I have collected a few example packets for my students to look at for inspiration or even follow step by step as they develop their own "tangles" and designs.
We spent one class period practicing our Zentangles inside the shape of circles throughout their drawing paper. The next class period we used a letter, and filled the negative space of the paper with their tangles. Below is my finished example that I showed them when I demonstrated this lesson.
We've started a lesson in both fourth and fifth grade that I think helps my students slow down and really think about the lines and shapes they are making, as well has strengthening their creative decision making. There is an art "movement" that seems to be spreading sometimes called Zentangles or Zen-doodles. Basically, it's the process of using line, shape, pattern, and contrast to develop interesting and complex designs. I have collected a few example packets for my students to look at for inspiration or even follow step by step as they develop their own "tangles" and designs.
We spent one class period practicing our Zentangles inside the shape of circles throughout their drawing paper. The next class period we used a letter, and filled the negative space of the paper with their tangles. Below is my finished example that I showed them when I demonstrated this lesson.
To create the outline of the letter the students traced a stencil. I have many bulletin board letters that I've collected. They are great for successful lettering in art projects. The students then filled the negative space around the letter with the tangle designs.
Here's where the "Zen" part of the Zentangles came in. My students were so focused on what they were creating. Today I even handed out a "Character Counts" ticket to my fourth grade class, because the past two art classes have been amazing. Their entire mind and body is focused on what they were doing. I was able to turn on some instrumental music while they worked and not a single student broke from the focus they were giving their project. It was AWESOME! That's the kind of work environment I've been striving for all year!