Phil Hansen: Embrace the Shake

You may have heard of the TED video, Embrace the Shake.  Phil Hansen is an amazing and inspiring artist & speaker. He now has an amazing new website... www.gbaacademy.com . Check it out!  

     

     

HERE IS THE TED TALK VIDEO!

If you have not seen this video...and it doesn't matter if you are an artist or art teacher....it is inspiring!!  

Those attending my session..

                                   

 So those of you attending my session... A Blog People Want To Read 2pm Room 24C...there will be door prizes if you can accomplish a task for me!!  The first three people that bring me a picture of a turtle you've drawn(I have a turtle thing)...and signed....will get the door prizes.  I may also ask some questions that you'd only know if you've kept up with my blog if I do not get my turtle pictures!!  

Blogger Meet & Greet

                           

                     Come meet some of your fav. bloggers at the AOE booth!!!  11 to 12 today!!  

Faber-Castell

             

I love free stuff!! Faber-Castell hooked me up!!  They are even going to send it to Nashville for me!  They know I'll review it on here.....and I'm good with that!  Thank You Faber-Castell!!! Can't wait!

FLIP IT @campbellartsoup

                             

Janine Campbell is AMAZING!! Her presentation was amazing...her enthusiasm is infection!!  Follow her on Twitter @campbellartsoup  or follow her blog at www.janinecampbell.weebly.com Be amazed by what is going in this middle school teacher's art world.

Photobomb Phyl!

                                    

Do you know Phyl?  She is the blogger behind There's a Dragon in My Art Room!  We have been blog buddies for several years now..but have never met...till tonight!  She is as lively & fun as I thought she'd be!!!  What a joy to be able to actually spend some time with great people like Phyl! I love NAEA14!! Stay tuned....much more to come.  Oh...and go to my blog roll to the left & look up Phyl's blog!!

Look Who I Ran Into At The Airport!!

                                    

You never know who you'll run into at the airport on the way to #naea14!?!? Haha it is the always stylish Cassie Stephens! Yes friends...blogger worlds collide! Not that much of a stretch... Cassie and I have known each other for years...and don't live too far apart. There was a whole slew of art teachers from middle TN on our flight!  Gotta love that...well...at least we do, not so sure about all those around us! Hahaha!!  About an hour till we land.....more to come from San Diego!

Vlog

                                                                 

                     Couldn't get the video to post directly from iPad on the Blogspot app?!?!  

                                   So here is the link...and a still image from the video.

                                                       http://youtu.be/mrX8rvzHzUk

                                     

Fun Find!

                               

                          Look what I found.....at BIG LOTS!!  They were only $2.50 each!!! 

                                                             How awesome is that!?!

Blogger Meet & Greet at The AOE booth!!

      

                   Jessica(the queen of AOE) & I at NAEA Fort Worth 

meeting for the first time!  

       

 AOE will be hosting an “Art Ed Blogger Meet and Greet” on Sunday, March 30th from 11:00-12:00 am at our exhibitor booth, 310. This will be an informal event where art ed bloggers will gather and have a chance for you to meet your favorites, ask questions, and connect in person. Some of the bloggers attending are:  Nic from Mini Matisse, Patty from Deep Space Sparkle, Ted from Art with Mr. E(THAT'S ME!), Ian from Art of Apex High and our best dressed blogging buddy,Cassie Stephens. 

 http://www.theartofed.com/2014/03/24/see-you-at-naea-2014

Daddy Art Teacher Party Decor

So we waited on my daughter's birthday party till Frozen came out on DVD.  So birthdays around my house mean daddy has a ton of work to do!!  Sometimes I do the cake....sometimes make the invitations...sometimes make games.....it depends on the year.  I enjoyed my Olaf projects!  Haha!   

         

                                 Olaf goodie bags for all the princesses that attended!

         

                                                          Eli helpin' daddy out!

                                    

                                                         Pin the Nose on the Olaf

                                   

                                        My sweet princess!  She loved every minute of it!

                                    

     My wife made rock candy for the ice. The cake didn't turn out exactly like she wanted..

                                             but it tasted great...and Margaret loved it!

                                   The Happy Birthday was another one of my projects.

Ahhhhh!!! I Lost My Blog Roll!!!

                                   

I now have my own domain name ... www.artwithmre.com ... and in the transitions lost my blog roll/list.  I will be able to add back many from memory, but not all of them.  Please leave me a comment with your blog address.  I have some rules... You don't post....I delete you.  You post things that I think are not solid art education practices/projects & such....I delete you. You smell funny...I delete you! Haha!  

        

                                                Ok peeps...help me get my list back!!

   

 

?!?!Interesting Make Up Day?!?!

So far today I had 6 out of my kindergarten class...and 5 out from my first grade class!!!!  

WOW?!?!!  I figured that many people already had made their plans by the time our district decided this was a good idea?!?!?!   

TOP 10 FRUSTRATIONS WITH ART SUPPLIES

FOR EVERY AWESOME ART SUPPLY OUT THERE...THERE ARE

AWFUL ART SUPPLIES OUT THERE.  

HERE ARE MY FRUSTRATIONS...PET PEEVES!!!

(SOME ARE NAME BRANDS...SOME ARE IN GENERAL.)

 *Once again..this is only my opinion...and my experience.  You may have a wonderful redeeming story about the art supplies I find frustrating!

1) PENCILS - WHAT IN THE WORLD???????  I have found a brand or two that are pretty consistent...but what has happened to the pencil industry?!  Soft cheap wood that won't sharpen properly, lead that is broken all the way through and keeps falling out...erasers that only get marks off because they are part sand paper?!?!?  Come on pencil makers...make me some pencils that will actually last!  

2) COLORED PENCILS - I'm not sure if I should blame the people that make them, the people that ship them, or the people that stock the shelves?!  My students love colored pencils...I love colored pencils, but you know what I don't love?  The fact that they lead falls out faster than the pencil can be sharpened.  

3) WASHABLE GLUE -  The issue....it is washable because it is white water!!!!!!  BLAH!!!  

4)  FISKAR SCISSORS -  WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO YOU!?!?!?!?  You use to be the greatest thing around....no one could beat you.  Now...your cheap plastic & construction make me long for the good ol' days.  I can not tell you how many of my new Fiskar scissors have broken(where the handle attaches to the scissors).  I still have some of the Fiskar scissors from when I started teaching here 13 yrs ago that are still going strong(though a bit rusted).  

5)  CRAYOLA WATERCOLOR (8 color ovals) -  The colors are light...there are air pockets in the colors...and the "pans" of color are very shallow...so it doesn't last long.  

6)  ROSEART CRAYONS - The colors aren't bad...but the texture is very "crumby" & they break in half with very little pressure from little hands.  Also...don't even try to laminate things colored with RoseArt crayons.  

7)  ELECTRIC PENCIL SHARPENERS - I've not had any luck with electric pencil sharpeners in my room.  I gave up on them and have metal hand held sharpeners.  If you have a great brand..please share.  I may be willing to try again.  

8)  MASKING TAPE (EVEN 3M) -  I am an expert tape tearer-offer!!!!   However...masking tape has gotten so cheap...it does not tear evenly.  So having children tear masking tape is surely one of the levels of "the bad place".  Are they really saving that much money by giving us crappy stuff?!?!?!  

9)  RULERS -  Is it just me...or are rulers SUPPOSE to be straight???  What in the world???  Is the Old Crooked Man working at the ruler factory these days??!?!?  

10) FELT - Can sheets of felt not be consistent in thickness?  Why is it...when I order a pack of felt...I can see through some parts of it but not others??  Is it too much to ask to have a consistant piece of felt??  

WHAT ABOUT YOU?? WHAT ARE PRODUCTS YOU ONCE LOVED...BUT NOW HATE(or dislike a good bit)!  HAVE YOU EVER WRITTEN THE COMPANY?  

Clay Cottages

Channeling my inner Thomas Kinkade (GASP)...my fourth graders created clay cottage facades.  They love the projects, but the results can be real hit & miss.  By 4th grade...I have only a few handfuls of students that have been with me since Kindergarten(out of 100 students in 4th).  Some of them have never touched clay before.  That makes for an interesting class.    I thought this group did very well over all...other than them being small.  

?!?!?FIVE?!?!

When did my sweet baby turn into this 5 year old beauty?!?!?!  

It happens so quickly friends...treasure them!!!!!  

TOP 10 ART SUPPLIES FOR THE ELEMENTARY ART ROOM

THIS IS NOT A LIST OF WHAT YOU HAVE TO HAVE TO RUN AN ART ROOM...BECAUSE YOU NEED A WHOLE LOT OF STUFF!!!!  THIS IS JUST A LIST OF PRODUCTS I LOVE!! 

***This top 10 list is my opinion....if you like something else...AWESOME!  Share in the comment section the products you enjoy.  If a parent company of any of these products is known for killing puppies or kicking old people.....please do not yell & scream at how evil I am for supporting such things.  THANK YOU! ***

1)ELMER'S GLUE ALL

Not the washable stuff!!  It is too thin.  Most other brands are also too thin.  This causes the paper to become extremely "wet" and does not "stick" things as well.

2)TACKY GLUE

(Elmer's Craft BOND or ALEENE'S)

For those sculpture & assemblage projects where Elmer's Glue All is just too ridged!!!  

Aleene's in the gold bottle has been around forever...and is a wonderful product that I use in my art room.  Elmer's has come out with a pretty great product too....plus it has the ease of the twist top lid to open & close!!  

3)CRAYOLA CRAYONS

Accept no substitute!! ha ha  I actually do use other brands in my table crayon boxes(I like to have a variety of colors)...but if I were trapped on a desert island with only one box of crayons...it would be Crayola!!!!  

4)CRAYOLA CONSTRUCTION PAPER CRAYONS

Seeing is believing!  I had my doubts when I first got construction paper crayons, but now I can't imagine not having them!!!!  Though I wish there were more color choices....they are so much fun!  

5)PORTFOLIO SERIES OIL PASTELS

Wow...talk about a dreamy product!!!!  Water soluble, amazing colors, creamy consistency....what else do you need from an oil pastel!?!?  Though they are a bit pricey....they are well worth it!  

6)SARGENT ART-TIME TEMPERA PAINT

I'm not a big tempera paint snob...I use just about anything.  However, I do like the look & feel of Sargent's Art-Time.   If I'm able to get it....I do!! 

7)RED HEART YARN 

My first few years of teaching I tried ordering yarn via catalogs, but was never happy with what I received.  I finally gave up, and started buying all my yarn from a big box store.  That way I am able to select the size, color, and weight of yarn I feel will be best for my weaving projects.  I love the Red Heart yarn.  It is affordable...and comes in a ton of colors that the kids love!!  

8)SHARPIE MARKER

You can't go wrong with classic black, but the other colors are great as well!!  I've tried other permanent markers, but Sharpie seems to out live/outlast all the rest! 

9)SCRATCH ART SCRATCH-FOAM

For beginning print making projects...this is a wonderfully easy product to use! You also don't compromise on the print...they images turn out great.  

10)MR. CLEAN MAGIC ERASER

I know that it isn't really an "art" supply...but come on....WE USE THEM ALMOST AS MUCH AS ART SUPPLIES!! ha ha  This product is truly amazing...and has saved my tables.  

SO WHAT PRODUCTS DO YOU LOVE IN YOUR ART ROOM??

Door Decor Day!

                                                    

                        Do to our snow & ice days last week...our Read Me Week activities where moved to this week.

This was one of my favorite books as a child(Spooky Old Tree &  Pokey Little Puppy were the others).  I love getting to read it to my students now!!

Final thoughts on Going Buggy For Art

I tied in a "cause" with my art show this year.  I've never done this before.  Though we only raised $35, this is more than "NOTHING".  I hope if I do this again with another "cause"....it will continue to grow.  

**************************************

I've tried to do an interactive area before...but it was never this successful!  I could not have been happier with how this part of the art show turned out...and would encourage all of you to add this to your show!!  I had parents, grandparents, friends, students, and teachers setting down together and creating bugs for the spider web.  They laughed..talked...shared their creations..IT WAS WONDERFUL!

BEFORE

AFTER

I HOPE YOU ENJOYED MY ART SHOW!!! If you have any questions about doing one at your school...please feel free to e-mail me.  I've been doing this for 13 yrs at my school...and have worked out a lot of kinks over the years.  I'm always trying to make it better & try new things!!!  

Art Show 2014: Part 3

This post contains some of the displays for 2nd & 1st Grade (as well as the K lining the bottom that I spoke about in my last post).  

2ND GRADE

COUPLE CLOSE UPS FROM 2ND

1ST GRADE

CLOSE UPS OF A COUPLE PIECES FROM 1ST

Art Show 2014: Part 2

Here are the images of 3rd & 4th Grade displays.  I have classes of each...but a couple of my pictures just were terrible(lighting issues).  I'm include some close ups of some of the projects so you can get a better idea of what the lessons were about.  

NOTE:  In the following posts about the art show...you will also see big bubble bees & ladybugs with flowers.  I decided to run my kindergarten art along the bottom of the entire show.  It really framed things nicely...and freed up wall space so I could display the other work more effectively.  I loved not feeling like the art was SQUISHED together this year!!!!  When you are hanging about 550 pieces in a limited space..it can be challenging.  

4th Grade

3rd Grade