Getting ready for 1st grade texture collage extravaganza

Thanks to the amazing parents at Murch, mixed media projects like these are much more fun. 90% of the items in this mixed media collage project are donated by Murch families.

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Prek artists practice using scissors and cutting free-form shapes

Scissor skills are essential to all young students. Ability to use your hands to cut the shapes you desire are very useful in art. Children who excell in cutting also excell in penmanship and all other small motor skills. I encourage all families to practice cutting at home......if left-handed, please make sure you order left-handed scissors from amazon.com.

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5th graders drew their enlarged insect part sketches on transparencies as a beginning to our stencils-they will be used to create an abstract mural for the art room

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2nd graders explore watercoloring wet-on wet and wet-on-dry

This is an image from my Elmo 'projector' ....Last year the HSA bought the art room an Elmo projector allowing me the ability to share enlarged images of my live demonstrations on a huge screen. This has truly revolutionized the way I run my class. Thank yuo HSA!!

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Mark Your Calendars! Free Arts Festival in DC-Sep. 10 and 11th

Festival: Arts on Foot

(click here to go directly to site)

Date: Saturday, September 10, 2011 through Sunday,September 11, 2011
Location: Penn Quarter Neighborhood and the Koshland Science Museum
Time: 11:00 AM to 6:00 PM
Cost: Admission to the festival is free

Celebrate the annual Arts on Foot Festival with hands-on activities at the Koshland Science Museum's tent!

Explore the Penn Quarter Neighborhood during this highly-anticipated annual festival that highlights the cultural organizations, restaurants, and other attractions of one of Washington, DC's hottest neighborhoods. During the festival, stop by the Koshland Science Museum's tent for hands-on science activities. Learn about energy efficiency with an activity to test and compare how different light bulbs work. Engage in conversation and share ideas for your community.

The first 25 visitors each day to the Koshland Science Museum's tent will receive a pass for free admission to the museum. Door prizes will be given throughout the day. Follow #koshland on Twitter for the latest announcements during the festival.

Arts on Foot 2011 is the 19th annual celebration of the arts in downtown's Penn Quarter. The festival takes place in various locations throughout the neighborhood, with the hub of the festival located at 7th & F Streets, NW.

For more information about the festival and schedule of events, visit www.artsonfoot.org. Please contact the Koshland Science Museum at 202-334-1201 or ksm@nas.edu with questions

For entire program click here.

Just Signed Up for a FREE Educators' Night Out at the Corcoran

I am very excited about this event. Can't wait to bring back all I learned into the classroom.

Educators' Evening

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2011

FREE; Pre-registration required

Area educators are invited to a special evening to celebrate 30 Americans. This event includes guided exhibition tours, a presentation by artist Noah Davis, performances by Jolley Sound Experience Jazz Trio and spoken word poet Messiah, as well as refreshments and an exciting door prize. Each participant receives a tote bag with the 30 Americans educator’s resource packet. If you are an art educator and want to sign up, click here.

Davis is a young African-American painter schooled at The Cooper Union and currently residing in Los Angeles. Noah Davis creates a uniquely personal narrative in his psychologically charged paintings by sourcing imagery from found photographs, art history and autobiographical events. At once a storyteller, a surrealist and an astute social commentator, he often represents the quiet, forgotten moments in American history. Davis paints in an idiosyncratically classical manner, using traditional compositions and painterly techniques to evoke a world of nostalgia, memory and personal obsession. His works may reference racial, social or political issues, but always obliquely, depicting how these issues come to bear on our daily activities and inner lives. Click here to go to site of origin

Sign up for Family ART programs at the Corcoran...

I'm going to be taking my little ones to this event. Thought I'd pass it along to other Murch parents. Hope to see you there!

Family Programs at the Corcoran Gallery

Join us the third Saturday of every month for themed, 90-minute workshops designed especially for kids and families! Family workshops begin in the galleries with an interactive tour followed by an artist-led activity in our art studios. Take home your own work of art inspired by your visit to the Gallery.

Workshops are limited to children 5-7 or 8-12 and their adult companions. Re-entry to the collection after the workshop is permitted. Workshop fees can be applied toward a family membership. Space is limited and advanced registration is requried.

All workshops are $8 per child, Corcoran members at the family level and above and $10 per child, public. Adult companions do not need to purchase a ticket for the workshop and re-entry to the collection after the workshop is permitted.

Click here to go directly to site to register.

Look what they have scheduled next:

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 10:30 A.M.–NOON

Family Workshop - Ages 5–7 (I'm taking my 4 year old though...sh!!!)

$8 members/$10 non-members

Explore mixed-media paintings embedded with interesting objects and personal meaning in our special exhibition Chris Martin: Painting Big. After the tour, create your own painting that incorporates found objects and personal mementos. Please bring several flat, personal items such as favorite photos, CDs, or objects that can be incorporated into a two-dimensional artwork.

All workshops are $8 per child, Corcoran members at the family level and above and $10 per child, public. Adult companions do not need to purchase a ticket for the workshop and re-entry to the collection after the workshop is permitted. Link to this specific page click HERE.

Also, if you want to go to Chris Martin's lecture at the Corcoran go here.

Just signed up for a FREE workshop at The Corcoran! I LOVE DC

Educator Workshops

Exploring Personal and Communal Identity through Art

Sep 2011

4:30 PM - 8:00 PM

Explore concepts of identity by focusing on selected art works in the Corcoran’s renowned collection. Educators of all grade levels learn to consider how works of art and art-making can enhance one’s understanding of life, self, our historic past, and current times. Participants engage in a hands-on activity and receive practical classroom resources.

Image Credit: Richard Norris Brooke, A Pastoral Visit, 1881, oil on canvas, 47-3/4 x 65-3/4 in., Museum Purchase, Gallery Fund, 81.8

Ms. Cutelis starts off the year by introducing young artists to her own work.

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Shared my own art with the kids today...they got to compose their own collages.

Some kids overlapped their pieces, some created patterns, some chose to make a border composition. We discussed how artists make choices based on own likes, and intetests.

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Shared my own art with the kids today...they got to compose their own collages.

Some kids overlapped their pieces, some created patterns, some chose to make a border composition. We discussed how artists make choices based on own likes, and intetests.

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Spending all day at my District-wide DCPS art teacher professional development .....Amazing experience

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NEEDED IN ART ROOM- Large clear glass jars or vases

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26 Free binders in the art room

I have about 26 binders to give away in the art room....please come and take them....hate throwing things away.

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Get your cameras ready k-5th!!! School Garden Photo Contest

Lisa Burke, a Murch mom and Murch Garden Leaders posted a new message on the digest

and I thought I'd pass along this message:

K-12 School Garden Photo Contest

DC School Garden Week is Sept. 26 to Oct. 1. There will be Murch events related to Garden Week. In the mean time, get your cameras ready and come to Murch!! For new families, the garden is on the higher part of the playground, way in the back, by the fence.

School Garden Photo Contest!

In celebration of School Garden Week 2011, D.C. Schoolyard Greening and community partners are sponsoring the 5th annual student photo contest. Any D.C. K-12 student may submit a garden-related photograph to be judged by the following panel of garden and photography experts:

Kathy Jentz – Editor/Publisher of Washington Gardener Magazine

Winning entries will be eligible for prizes and will be on display during School Garden Week 2011 and online.

Check back for the 2011 entry form.

See last year’s winners here.

Here is a link: http://www.dcschoolyardgreening.org/dcschoolgardenweek.html

Ms. Cutelis' collage obsession

I have been obsessed with these Fiskars squeeze punchers for a while now. I must have about 20 of them now and love making collages with them with my kids. This past week they were on sale at 40% off at Michael's and I again, bought a few to add to my growing collection. You too can enjoy these at home....here is a list of what you will need.....

First, you will need a few punchers. (They are found at Michael's...they are about 12-16$...make sure you take a 40% off coupon below)....I always google for the coupon online and print them before I go to the store.

Then, I get all the catalogues, magazines I have been getting in the mail and sit on the rug with my kids. They love punching just as much as I do...

Then you will need a gallery wrapped canvas...."gallery wrapped" just means that the staples are in the back.....I buy a 7 set 12x12 canvases at 19$. Again, use your coupon.

Last, you will need a flat brush and glossy Mod Podge glue. The glue will be used as a glue and a sealant. Meaning this will go under and over your cutouts...

Now is when the fun begins.....below are some of the creations I've done this past year....

Michaels Printable Coupon: Click here to get the most recent coupon.

Supplies needed for Art at Murch this September

Hey wonderful Murch Families.....I can't wait to see you all again and also meet some of my new families. Below is a list of supplies your child will need to bring with them in the fall in terms of Art education at Murch.

1. An old, no-longer-needed t-shirt: This will be used as smocks and help kid's clothes stay paint-free. These shirts will live in each child's cubby or locker and kids will come to art wearing their art 'smocks'.

2. 1 Composition book: for journaling and I will try to keep these in art class this year, so that all kids have them when we're using them.

3. Three sponges: I am trying to be 'green' by using a sponge system for the kids to clean up. Last year, this saved us hundreds of tubs of wipes, so I think this is THE best method, and the kids love washing the tables after class. I prefer the sponges with the scrubby attached, but I am not picky.

My new/used art education book came in the mail today ....Observation Drawing With Children by Nancy Smith

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Teaching Children to Paint- Nancy Smith (Ideas for the home)

I am on page 32 of Experience & Art by Nancy Smith. In my 13 years of teaching (6 of which have been teaching visual art) I have always instinctively known these concepts and ideas. Yet, I feel that too often we assume everyone else knows what is best practice in the teaching of art in these areas and that is not true. This book is so incredibly thoughtful and comprehensive as to the steps children go through in learning how to paint.

Here are some ideas I walked away with while reading this book this week and hope that in sharing them with you, you'd find a way to make them part of your home interactions as well.

* Lessons directed at children must be focused on significant experiences in their lives. If this is not the case, the creation of meaning will be weak.

* Fundamental aim of art education is to 'help children increase their capacity to create meaning and make sense of themselves and the world around them.'

* Children go through a process in learning how to paint that is directly associated with experience with the medium. If they do not get exposure in painting, even as an adult they must go through the same experiential learning processes to go through the 'early development goals.'

* ' We must not view children's work as failed adult work.' Too often we evaluate children's work based on how successfully they are able to create a likeness to something. 'Our task is to understand the child's thought and purpose and to view the work accordingly.'

* At first, children might pile the paint on top of one another or make marks unintentionally. Soon they begin to mix colors with control and make lines and shapes built from past experiences. As a teacher of art, when kids paint their paper over and over again, I often will suggest a new paper to allow them to continue their exploration.

* Using words like, 'how beautiful' or 'you have made a pretty picture' are not relevant comments and have no meaning to the children. Instead you can comment on the child's motor activity while painting OR the 'resulting visual aspects of the work'. Example, "how did you move your arm to make that mark?" OR "How did you make the brush make those mark?".

* Teach children to use a few colors and wash their brush to change colors. They may mix colors on their paper though. There is a 'great sense of power' when a child realizes that mixing two colors make a new color.

Words of wisdom on how to respond to your child's art work

I said I would keep you updated on my summer reading in all books about art education with children. The book I am currently reading is called The Art of Teaching Art to Children by Nancy Beal.

Today on the subject of how to talk to children about their art.

'How an adult responds to a child's artwork is extremely significant" -Nancy Beal

I have always been very thoughtful of my words when responding to a child's work. The advice given in this book and one I agree with strongly is to always give back specific process-based feedback to children about their work INSTEAD of declarative statements about its value to you....here are some examples of what to do and not to do:

DON'T SAY: "That looks very pretty?"

INSTEAD DO SAY: I noticed you used lots of hearts in your work.

DON'T SAY: Can you tell me about your work?

INSTEAD DO SAY: Let's look at this. Where did you make the lines/shapes?

DON'T SAY: wow, you must love that color.

INSTEAD DO SAY: That crayon moves fast round and round.

DON'T SAY: That red there looks cute

INSTEAD DO SAY: You used red on both ends of the paper.

Notice you are simply stating what you notice in terms of color, shapes, colors and lines. If you add verbal judgements to the work you are looking at, your shared ideas may take the child's mind off their own path. In simply stating what you notice in terms of color, shape, colors and lines, you are making the child aware of their physical movements in relation to their work. If you simply give a blanket statement such as, "that's very pretty", remember that perhaps the child's aim was not to make it look pretty at all, or to even to 'please' you with their work. In making such statements laden with judgements (even if positive) you add this requirement to their work and they may or may not know how to 'please you' the same way in the future.

It's important that art with children be about 'children stating how they themselves want to approach their work, bring their own personal responses to questions the teacher has raised. And the teacher (or grown up) by accepting what they are doing -reaffirm their individuality and their right to express their individuality. "

Getting ready for summer and a few last words

Hello wonderful families,

I am getting my classroom ready for summer and packing all my supplies Monday. If for any reason your child did not get back a work from the art show, please come by Monday. I do not throw work out and will keep all items secure during the summer and for the coming months, so please do remember to come by and pick up work. I tried my best to send all work home, but in the bustle of the last few days, that might have not happened.

I have ordered various art education related books for my summer reading, so please check back here often for thoughts and ideas I will be posting all summer long, based on my readings and own experiments here at home with my two little ones.

Don't hesitate to send me JPGs of your own child's summertime art adventures. I will gladly post them as a way to keep us all connected wherever we are. In my own personal art journey I am working hard at getting my finished works out there in the public eye. I just finished a series of pieces about the relationship between nature and nurture; an issue that occupies a lot of my time and energy. You can see images of these pieces at my online art store on etsy.

I have loads of ideas for next year. One of them involves reaching out into the community and working with local artists. The other involves a more comprehensive and extensive use of technology to create art. Last, and most importantly, I aim to make all units personally relevant and meaningful to each child I come in contact with. Creative and innovative thinking has the potential to change the world by changing the way we see ourselves and the world. With all my reading and research this summer I hope to come in September armed with some new tools to make all these lofty goals possible.

Please keep in touch this summer. See you all soon.

Another first grade class detail their birds (Bergin)

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Artists in first grade detail their air vehicles using detail brushes (Werner)

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Kindergarten kids in Fitzpatrick's class finally putting their pinatas to the test....

Some kids expressed wanting to take the injured pinatas home...I will keep them in the class until Monday if interested.

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Remember, the afterschool art class ended last Friday

Please remember the afternoon art class ended last week on our tenth week. Please email or call school if you have any questions.

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Mathur's 4th graders are painting their buildings this week

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Prek children in Ms. Sarah Seltzer's room create lava-filled volcanoes as a final project in their paper sculpting unit

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Thank you Ms.Lisa, Lilly's mom for bringing smores and a fake flame to our last afterschool art class

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Miles shows off his work...a face paper sculpture (Bogan)

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1st Graders use toilet paper tubes and cardboard to design flying machines.

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2nd Graders begin placing paper 'tiles' to their dessert mosaics

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Pk kids in Ms.E.Stewart's class ended their paper sculpting unit by making volcanos.

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Kindergarten kids in Ms. Fitzpatrick's class are making pinatas...please bring in candy June 3rd!

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Kindergarten artists in Mr. Welsh's class created paper sculptures of faces

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Play set to Little Red Riding Hood Vandalized

Monday during parent teacher conferences the set for Little Red Riding Hood was vandalized. The 'trees' were knocked down, the 'closet' was ripped, and items were thrown about. If you know the people responsible please email custerandevans@aol.com or miriam.cutelis@yahoo.com.

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3rd Grade students (Friedman) using metallic watercolors to paint their aboriginal animal designs

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Scissor skills is one of the skills we work on on art....make sure you do lots of cutting this summer prek

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4th graders will be looking at the work of Judith S. King this afternoon

We will be needing varied decorative papers and textured fabrics in case you are getting rid of some soon.

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Artist Olivia from Ms.Lipshie's class explores creating a simple mosaic to kick off our Mosaic unit

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My studio got a makeover today

Since I did not have parent-teacher conferences, I worked on my room for 7 hours.....thanks to Regina Holliday for helping me with the kiln problem and building my new shelves.

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Got help with my shelves!

Murch Parent and local artist,Regina Holliday came over today to help me in my room...not only did she singlehandedly built 3 shelves in record time but she also dragged my broken kiln to the trash, piece by piece. Thank you Regina....and Isaac ( her son).....for all your help. also thank you HSA for the shelves. Picture above is of Isaac testing out the shelves.

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