The Demise of the Cotton Ball Bunny

Sherry SnowdenNAEA Conference – Seattle 2011

Things to consider when teaching art to wee ones…

• They know if you are having fun…and they expect to have fun…so it better be fun !

• Do not underestimate what they can do…

• Lead them to observe, they see much more than we see…

• They can express themselves better than we can…let their art do the talking…

• Scribbles are very important…they lead to great things…

Patterned Bunnies PK - 4

PK 4 Patterned Bunnies

A Beautiful Day to be a Bunny

PK - 3 & 4 Texture Collages

“This feels soft, this is squishy, this is fluffy”…

Give a child 2 straight pieces of pipe cleaner…what do you get ?

A “T” for Texture!

PK – 3Snow Flurry…

Drag tempera paint with a cardboard swatch onto a dark background

Cardboard and

tempera paint to stamp…Snowflakes

Textured Mittens from shapes/swatches of fabric on a Snow Flurry Background

Nocturnal Animals…Eyes in the NightPK 3 First Named Scribbles…

Nocturnal Animals…Eyes in the nightPK 3 First Named Scribbles…

A Great Day in PK 3 observing….

Tilford the

Great Dane

A Very BIG Dog !

The Eyes Have it….

So does the tongue…

“O” is for Octopus…and there is “Commotion in the Ocean” PK-4

Zoo Animals on Parade PK 4

Tigers, and alligators, and zebras, Oh. My!

“V” is for Vegetables PK 4Discussing and drawing shapes and colors of vegetables

observed in the classroom

Adding water to the water soluble oil pastels for a painters touch!

Snowmen at Night PK 4

Valuable Snowmen K &1st

Symmetry…K and 1st

Preparing papers Scumbling with a plastic card…

Trace around symmetrical shape onto backside of prepared paper, cut out shape.

Creating Special Heart Cards for Special People

Butterfly Studies K & 1st

Cropping with View Finders to observe details of shape, line, texture, color…

Coloring in with Oil Pastels

Results are Abstract Masterpieces

Directly Observing the Perfect Tree… K & 1st

Closely observing and drawing Trees…

Painting the trees in tempera, adding white for form…

Adding Highlights & snow in the forks of the tree

Variations of A Winter Tree

From a Sunny Day in the Texas Hill Country to a Cold Snowy Day…Brrrrrr

Direct Observation of “Paper-whites” K & 1st

Line…Shape…Color…Masterpiece!

A World of Color, Composition and Wonder…2nd & 3rd

Creating the Picture Plane

From Preliminary Sketches to Colorful Compositions from Bright Imaginations

An autumn leaf from grandma’s house becomes inspiration for

direct observation…5th Grade

Printing with Snap Blocks 5th Gr.

One Plate…Many Options

Very Specials Thanks to…

• Young artists at St. Stephens Episcopal School, Wimberley Texas, whom I adore!

• Eloiese Krabbenhoft at Texas State University-San Marcos who was so very kind to insure the monster-sized images were downsized.

• All my friends and colleagues at SSES and TSU campus communities who support my passion for teaching art in so many kind and generous ways.

Snap Blocks

• Snap Blocks• Mitchell D. Harmon• President• Midwestern Plastic Products INC.• 2205 Forte Court• Maryland Heights, MO 63043• 800.229.7861 314.770.2211 Fax• www.mppsnapblocks.com