My Odd Anniversary: Nashville Tornado 1998

Your first year of teaching is never "easy".  People have all kinds of stories from their beginnings in education.  Some funny, some embarrassing, and some are just plain cringey.  

My first year of teaching ended in disaster.  This is not an exaggeration.  There literally was a natural disaster.  A tornado(s) went right through Nashville.  Growing up in Appalachia in the middle of the forest, I had no idea a tornado could hit a city.  It can. It did.  I had left 15 min. before it hit, and had been in my classroom till six at night the whole week until the day of the tornado.  Everyone thought I was still in there, and had the police dogs search my portable to see if I was still in there underneath the debris.  I finished the year on a cart and working from the stage of the cafeteria. I learned a lot about myself & what a wonderful community can do in the face of adversity.   

 

Fish Tanks/Perspective

 I've been talking about overlapping and showing "space" in your work with my second graders.  We created fish tanks that had a defined corner to create a bottom, side, and back to the tank.  I was not looking for mastery as this is a new concept to them.  I was just introducing the idea. We used watercolor pencils to finish the work.  

YOU ARE GOING TO NOTICE IN SOME OF THE PICTURES THE VERTICAL LINE IS VERY CURVED.  THAT IS BECAUSE THE PAPER CURLED WHEN IT DRIED & I DIDN'T FLATTEN IT OUT BEFORE SNAPPING THE PICTURE! ha ha

9th ANNUAL ART WITH MR. E SUMMER WORKSHOP

WOULD LOVE FOR YOU TO JOIN US THIS SUMMER!!! 

You will need to check with your district if it will count for your PD hours.  I will provide a certificate that says you completed 18 hrs of PD. 

 

What are you creating?

The kids seem to LOVE dino nuggies!  Don't know what they are? They make chicken nuggets in the shape of dinosaurs.  Yes...it's a thing!! ha ha  There are shirts, earrings, pushies, pillows...a whole dino nuggie industry!  I've wanted to make my own pushies/pillows, but it took awhile to find a fabric I thought would work(Dollar Tree...imagine that!?!).  I made a pattern to the size of the fabric, cut them out, sewed them together, and stuffed them. It went relatively quick, and I had a lot of fun doing it!  A friend saw my post on facebook, and asked if I could make her class (she teaches EE/Special Ed) one.  They like to hold something during share time.  I gladly gave her one of the dino nuggies!  Happy to know it will be loved & used in a school setting!  

What are you creating?

Dandelion Dup

Colors of Kindness has two dups for Dandelion.

The center is the original Dandelion. Top is regular Yellow from a "normal" box of 24.  To the right is Banana Mania. At the bottom is Hello Sunshine. Though I would love Dandelion to return, the two from Colors of Kindness are pretty good. 

Sunday Devotional With Mr. E: The Narrative

This post was originally written Easter of 2016.

Narrative art tells a story.  I love challenging students to create interesting original narratives.  They have to truly think through what their story is, and how to best share it with the viewer.  A narrative is at its best when it considers the setting (environment), characters (people that it involves), and plot (what's happening).  I ask students to periodically stop and share their work with their neighbor.  If their neighbor is unable to convey what is going on in the story, then the artist knows they must reconsider/rethink what they are doing so that they can have their work tell the story more effectively.

But in your hearts revere Christ as Lord.  Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have.  But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.  1 Peter 3: 15-16

Have you ever been asked to share your "testimony"(your faith story)?  For some, the idea of doing such a thing is extremely scary.  Others might think they could do it with ease, but quickly realize when doing so that they lack direction/focus, and are unable to effectively share their journey of faith.  No matter where you find yourself on this spectrum, being able to share your story is an important "tool" that the Lord wants to use in your life & the life of others.  Like the narrative art work I have my students create, you must think through your story and consider how best to share it with others.  You don't want it to sound scripted/canned...but we must be ready in & out of season to give account for our hope!  Writing it down, sharing it with a friend, and thinking upon what you are sharing will allow you to refine it & effectively convey your story   I also feel it will allow you to reflect on God's love & faithfulness in your life. That is a WIN-WIN situation.

The Easter Story is on our hearts & minds right now....
but I want to know how the

 Easter Story has impacted your story!  

Dear Lord...you have blessed me with a story to share.  Thank you for the testimony you have given me.  I know it your story of grace, love, and hope.  Something our world needs to hear.  Allow me to effectively & fearlessly share the reason for my hope.  Help me to glory you through the story of my life.  And may I see that it is not finished, but still unfolding as I go & grow in you.

 Amen

Not Just The Kids...

 This made my heart so happy!! A few weeks ago I taught a lesson on the artist Romero Britto. A para-pro (someone who works with children that need extra assistance) loved the work I shared from Britto, and ordered a new phone case for herself.  She had to share it with me!! 

We are influencing more than the kids! 

Gummy Bear Tints Lesson

 My All School Art Show is sweets themed, and here is one of the lessons I'm doing with my students. 

Op Art/Line Design

OLDY BUT A GOODY

If you want another op art style project with shading....try this one out.  I did switch to using pencil this year instead of sharpie to draw it because I had so many students with anxiety.  Was not worth stressing them out!  All you need is pencil, paper, colored pencils, and patience! 

Op Art Fun!

Op Art is so much fun to study with your students (I'd say 2nd on up!). There are so many interesting works to look through, and so much inspiration to be had.  Think about things you are trying to cover (standards/skills/elements/principles), and focus your lesson in that direction.  It really is so versatile. 

If you need to bounce ideas off of someone, leave me a comment here or find me on my other social media.  I'd be happy to help. 

#turkeyaday23

 I started creating a Turkey-A-Day back in 2016 (I think..possibly earlier?).  Each year I change up how I create the turkeys.  I've done a paper doll turkey with a different outfit each day, class picture turkeys from different decades, art turkeys, media turkeys.....a little bit of everything! This year I created a cityscape and placed a turkey in the city each day.  It got kind of crazy, but it was also a whole lot of fun.

Here is the last day of #turkeyaday23! 

Clay With Large Class Sizes

 Class sizes have been an issue this year.  I know that others have it worse, but a large class size is a large class size.  Students do better in smaller classes...FACT!  We have four 2nd grade classes all at 25 students each.  We have four 4th grade classes now(as of a week ago), but my special area team voted to keep the old schedule to avoid having a split planning time(I did not vote to keep the old schedule), and have the three 4th grade classes at 31, 31, and 29 come to specials.  It is a struggle to restructure lessons and manage supplies when classes are large.  Just 5 to 10 more students than "normal" can really through the balance of a class off.  I have managed to do the coil pot lesson with 2nd grade, but there is more of a "rush" on my end of things in prepping for before class & firing.  I also feel like my flying through clay!!! How do you all handle large class sizes?  What are your biggest classes?(I'm coming at this from an elementary perspective.) 

Pumpkin-A-Day 2023

 I have been doing this for awhile.  During the month of October I create a pumpkin each day.  The "theme" changes each year.  This year I created a Turtle-Pumpkin every day. I mainly used alcohol markers. November I do #turkeyaday, and in February I do #heartaday.  Consider joining the fun. Low pressure & lots of creativity! 

Santa Fe, NM: Georgia O'Keeffe Museum

 If you are in Santa Fe, you have to go see the Georgia O'Keeffe Museum.  Though it was extremely hard to find parking in the area & the museum was unusually loud (I'm use to people not talking loud in museums, but there were almost too many people in the museum when we were there!)...I still recommend going!  I've never seen so many of her works in one place. I also really loved seeing her supplies they had on display.  Be warned though...you have to have a certain "level" of membership in order for it to be reciprocal. Our Frist Museum membership did not help the price at all(know before you go).