Our First Days in the Art Room: K-2

As the new school year begins, there are a lot of new things to learn- new faces and names, new classrooms with new routines, and old familiar classrooms with some new features! This year in Art we spent our first days learning the routines of the room and becoming familiar with all there is to do around the room. When students finish a project early they have many options available to them to continue to spark their imaginations and help them express their ideas while exploring a variety of materials independently.

Every student made a simple sketchbook to keep in Art where they can draw whatever they want, and even write or collage in. There are tubs and buckets full of art prints and photographs to use as inspiration for their drawings, as well as a collection of items that can be used to assemble a still life at their tables. (We are just beginning to work on Still Life in 1 and 2 grades, so this center will be opened soon.) I have added clipboards to the tools available for students to use so that they can draw anywhere in the room they like. 

A favorite among many is this Scrap Bin- a collection of scrap papers that inspire amazing projects, from large scale collages to small paper creations that encourage play outside of the school. The blocks center is also one of the most visited centers in the room. This year we are elevating the blocks center by dubbing it the Architecture and Construction Center. I am encouraging students to draw their creations in their sketchbooks so that they have a record of what they built. Soon to come will be weekly building challenges that students will be encouraged to do when using that center.

2nd Grade also has access to the Weaving Center, where there are about 30 looms with weavings being worked on collaboratively by students in different classes. Where one students leaves off at the end of a class, another will continue. When the weavings are complete we will take them off the looms and display them in the art room and around the school.

These are just some of the options open to students when they finish early. Students have been having a great time exploring the many opportunities available to them in the art room!