"Jazz Trains" in perspective

I love New York City!   Born in Brooklyn, New York I spent 11 short years there before moving to Las Vegas.  The city is so rich in culture and the arts! Being that I am a New Yorker and will always be one no matter what- teaching on Harlem Renaissance comes natural to me.

I start with a discussion on how my students live in Las Vegas -vs- New York City.  I show a presentation on Harlem city life in the 1920's, define "Renaissance" and listen to Duke Ellington! Being that I teach this movement to several grades I will show you the various grade level projects.  The first is "Jazz Train" in perspective taught to 3rd grade art students.  For this project, Romare (Romy) Bearden's artwork is shown.  We talk about how he would draw inspiration from the sound and movement of the train behind his house.  Many Harlem Renaissance jazz artists also drew inspiration from the movement and sound of the train. The "train" or railroad is very significant in the Harlem Renaissance movement as it signifies movement from the South to the East creating a new free life! If time allows I will show them,"Visual Jazz" a movie on Romy Bearden. 

My students really enjoy learning about this movement and especially love listening to the jazz music while creating their train!

Watercolor Tropical Fish

For this lesson, third grade art students viewed  Mayan Reef  on youtube to sketch tropical fish.  After the video, students chose the fish that they wanted to draw and watercolor.  Watercolor techniques were reviewed and used in the paintings.

O'Keeffe Colored Glue Flowers

A fun way that I introduced my third grade art students to Georgia O'Keeffe is by creating "Macro" flowers using colored glue and watercolors.  Some are very literal and some abstract!

"Mushroom in the Rain"

Mushroom in the Rain is a story about an ant that finds shelter from the rain under a very minuscule mushroom. The ant reluctantly allows a butterfly, mouse, sparrow, and rabbit under the mushroom. A downpour of rain raises a question to the ant - "I could barely fit under this mushroom, now there is a butterfly, mouse, sparrow and rabbit under the mushroom?" They soon discover what happens to a "Mushroom in the Rain. Students find it fascinating to learn about the growth of mushrooms!

I especially like this book for the colorful illustrations which show: depth, pattern, color, line, movement, composition, shape, overlapping,  and perspective.  

For this third grade art lesson, we look in detail at pages of the book showing large, overlapping mushrooms with vivid colors. We discuss overlapping, shape, pattern and color.  Students are encouraged to use a composition that shows several shapes, sizes and overlapping mushrooms
 -vs- mushrooms lined up as soldiers.  They create a preliminary drawing on the back of their black construction paper using white colored pencil.  As I check their work, I ask them," did you overlap the mushrooms, use pattern and shape?"  A final drawing is followed by soft pastels and a tortillion to blend the pastels.  Kneaded erasers work well to clean up fingerprints around the mushrooms.  A quick spray of hair spray and they are ready to hang!

Degas Dancers

Who says boys don't like to draw ballerinas? Surprisingly they do!  While on a study of the Impressionist Artists, Edgar Degas Dancers are the focus.  The bright colors & fluid lines of Degas dancers are so inspirational for my students.  I begin by reading," Degas and the Little Dancer," by Laurence Anholt.  We discuss the beautiful artwork that is shown in the book.  

Degas and the Little Dancer

Before the lesson I chose different colors of construction paper that will enhance their final drawing.  Copies of Degas Dancers are placed on the table for the students to copy.  Students will use a white colored pencil for the contour drawing then, trace over the lines using Elmer's clear glue.  After the glue is dry (usually by the next class) they will use soft pastels to color in and blend.  This project turns out stunning! 

"JaZZ Trains"

I love New York City! Born in Brooklyn, New York I spent 10 short years there before moving to Las Vegas.  The city is so rich in culture and the arts!  Being that I am a New Yorker  (and will always be) teaching on the Harlem Renaissance Movement comes natural to me.
I start with a discussion on how my students live in Las Vegas -vs- New Yorkers.  A presentation on Harlem city life in the 1920's is shown.  Renaissance-a movement or period of vigorous artistic and intellectual activity (defined by Merriam Webster's Dictionary) is discussed.  Jazz Music by Duke Ellington is played.  Being that I teach this movement to several grades, I will show you various grade level projects.  
The first is ,"JaZZ Trains" drawn in perspective taught to my 3rd grade art students. For this project, Romare (Romy) Bearden's artwork is shown.  If time permits, I will show," Visual Jazz" an art film about Romy Bearden, jazz music and Faith Ringgold.  
The students are taught about the inspiration behind Romy Bearden's artwork.  Romy Bearden drew inspiration early on from a train that would pass behind his home.  His artwork reflects the movement and sound of the trains. The "Train" & "Railroad" is very significant in the Harlem Renaissance movement as it signified FREEDOM.
My students really enjoy learning about this movement and listening to jazz music while creating their train.