Beginning of a New School Year

We are now a couple of weeks into our new school year.  For me it has been the busiest start of school that I have ever had, but it is also so exciting.  I have worried so much about how a new class of Kindergartners would handle coming into a choice-based classroom.  Would they be able to handle the freedom of choice or am I going to have to plan several activities to divide up their time.  To my surprise, the kindergartners are handling all the freedom and responsibility of choice like pros.  Even on the very first day of school they were completely engaged in their work.  (Usually I have to have 5 different activities just to keep them busy and working.)  They ran our usual schedule of an Art Talk at the beginning of class, moving on to work on our own artwork, and then finally sharing their artwork with the class just like my older students.  It just goes to show how when they make their own choices they remain more engaged in their activities.

For the first two weeks of classes all my students have been discussing how our choice-based art program works, the class rules, and our Tiger Pride Goals (Respect, Responsibility, and Best Effort).  1st graders and 2nd graders worked on portfolios.  I really want the students to examine their own work and reflect on how they did, write artist statements, and examine their artwork over a period of time.  I think it will be really good for them to see their growth and self-assess their work.

Last week we moved on to discuss the different drawing materials that are available in the art room.  All my classes really got into experimenting with the materials to see how they work.  It has been a lot of fun to see what they create.

Kindergarten kept on with the theme of discovery this week using drawing materials while my other classes reviewed Portraits.

Here is a glimpse at the fabulous pictures that my students are creating this year......