Polystyrene prints with my extra-curricular art class (7-10 group)

For this group of younger students we used polystyrene sheets and acrylic paint. The students engraved a combination of abstract and representational shapes and patterns into the polystyrene with pencils and rolled the paint over the surface. They then pressed paper onto the sheets and used their hands to apply pressure evenly. Some students found that they did not press their pencils hard enough into the polystyrene surface, so corrected their approach and created an extra print. The prints below are some of the more successful examples of the activity.

Lino-cuts with my extra-curricular art class (9-13 group)

Today was the first time I've introduced printmaking activities in my extra-curricular classes and it went really well (phew!) Some of the younger, smaller kids struggled a bit with the lino-cutting tools and needed a bit of help but I found that their simpler work was just as effective as the older kids' work. We started the activity by talking about different ways of printing and how with some printing methods (such as this one), the image is reversed. I got the students to first draw an animal of their choice, based on a pile of print-outs. We then covered the back of the images with oil pastel, placed them over the lino boards and drew over the lines of the animals, imprinting the image onto the lino. I then showed the students how to evenly cover the surface of their boards with ink and put their work through the press. The student really enjoyed rolling the wheel together and were super excited to see the results of their prints. I taught them about editions, and got them to create three prints from the same lino board. 

Children's Extra-curricular Art Classes

Today I got my 7-10 class to create drawings and paintings while listening to Vivaldi's "Five Seasons." At the start of the lesson I got the kids to listen to "Fur Elise" with their eyes closed and think about the different colours, shapes, objects and/or images that come to mind. We then brainstormed as a class our different ideas. My favourite suggestion came from an eight year old girl who said she imagined a mouse running up and down a piano with a cat chasing it. It was really interesting to see some of the ideas they came up with!

Four Seasons: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GRxofEmo3HA

Last week we looked at Picasso and abstract portraits. I instructed the children to first create a portrait of themselves by looking at mirrors. We went through each step of portrait drawing together as a class. I walked around the room and listed the steps needed for each facial part as the children drew. The steps included considerations about proportion and how the actual shape of our facial features often differed to what our brains try and tell us about these shapes. We then talked about the difference between representational art and abstract art as well as primary colours. The students were instructed to use two sets of primary colours.

Picasso's Portraits

Kid's Portraits

Personal Symbols with Year 9s

My example:

Student example:

Professional Practicum Semester 2 - Sea Bowl Designs with Year 7s

Professional Practicum Semester 1

I absolutely loved my first prac. My mentor teacher allocated me her Year 7, 9 and 10 art class. Here are some awesome examples of the clay fish I helped the Year 7s make. The process involved planning the fish, learning how to handle clay, firing in the kiln, under-glazing, colour glazing, more firing and finally adding beads and string to the creations. 

While the clay fish were being fired we moved onto zentangles! We talked about organic and geometric lines and shapes and I encouraged students to use a combination of both in their work.

I also helped my mentor teacher with a project she was designing for Year 6s on open day by cutting stencils of Mona Lisa. We helped the students direct the spray cans correctly and use two different colours.

Below is an example from a project I designed with my Year 9 class. I helped them to create stencils of their favourite singers and spray them onto the opposite wall of the Mona Lisas along with some lyrics. Leading up to the task, we talked a lot about street art and the differences between street art and graffiti. I also introduced image analysis tasks to the class beginning with Banksy.

After School Art Tutoring

Art Major classes - Diploma of Education

This year I completed my Diploma in Education, majoring in Visual Arts. The Visual Arts component of the course offered an opportunity for me to strengthen my skills in a range of art areas including drawing, painting, printmaking and textiles. The class was made up of students from really different creative backgrounds so we were able to teach each other techniques and share classroom ideas. I had the privilege of meeting a great group of people and hope to stay in touch throughout our careers.