I love Cats vs Pickles blind bags! They are so much fun, and their designs are truly inspiring. I felt like there could be a lesson in there, and I really didn’t have to struggle or stretch to hard to find the art focus for the project. THEME! What a great way to discuss themes in art. This is an easy way to introduce the concept to young artists!!
January 31, 2023
January 23, 2023
Have you heard of Scratch Garden?
Have you seen the YouTube channel, Scratch Garden?
IT IS AMAZING!
I was working on patterns with my students, and was looking for some good videos I could share to reinforce the idea (and show the crossover between art/math/science and such). My students LOVED these videos. Take some time and look through the channel to see what you might use in your classroom!
January 10, 2023
A Wonderful Opportunity
The Wednesday night before Christmas, I participated in a service at our church that brought together multiple generations through art and the gospel. Four artists (elementary student, middle school student, me, and a retired person) were asked to create paintings that were our interpretation of Luke 2. They placed our work on stage, and interviewed each of us one at a time. They asked what in the text stood out to us, inspired us, or challenged us & how we represented that within our work. They also asked what stylistic choices we made within our work that helped convey the heart of our art. It was affirming, to me, as a believer & an artist to be a part of this service. The fact that we as artists were given a platform to serve the Lord with our gifts/talents & share the gospel through our work is not something I take for granted. This is not happening in a lot of churches...beyond doing crafts with kids or painting sets for VBS. We ,as believers, need to find the gifts/talents of our people and allow them to use those diverse, amazing, and unique skill sets to build up the body of believers...share God's love, and glorify the Lord. Bakers, automotive, organizers, hair dressers, gardners....can all be done for the glory of the Lord. It's time to view "ministry" as a way of life and not a narrow prescribed job description/role within the church. I loved every work & the words each artist shared. It truly was a blessing.
Talking about my art, choices I made, and the inspiration for it to around 190 people.
Me
Middle School Student
Elementary Student
Retired Art Teacher
January 01, 2023
Happy 2023
Happy New Year! I updated this PicCollage from years past. Trusting the Lord with the year ahead. Blessings to you all.
December 16, 2022
Annual Faculty & Staff Snow People
Every year I provide an opportunity for the faculty/staff to create a snow person, snow globe, or snowball to put on display. It is a wildly popular tradition that comes with a bit of lore. The year I began this...we had a snowstorm, and were out of school for ten days. The teachers believed the snow people brought the snow. So every year we continue on the traditions in hope that we get our max snow days! ha ha This year had AMAZING participation. We also had several teachers working together to make their snow people. I loved the grade level that did Encanto! SO. MUCH. FUN!
For those wanting to do this project at your school in January...GO FOR IT! I pre-make the snow people forms, and place them next to our faculty/staff mailboxes. By doing this...it helps remove some intimidation for those who don't consider themselves creative & lets me control the size of the display (for the most part!?!?).
December 02, 2022
Collaborative Winter Bulletin Board 2022
I do a collaborative bulletin board for winter every year. Here is the link to the post where I shared a lot of past boards >> https://www.artwithmre.com/2022/11/need-some-winter-bulletin-board.html
When I made that post we had not finished up this year's board. I wanted to share it with you. I love how cool & wintery it looks. For those of you wondering how I do this...let me share.
The days before Thanksgiving break I have all my classes make parts to the board. They are told from the start that they will be "gifting" this creation to the school to make it beautiful. I've never had a problem where students negatively reacted to giving their work to the bulletin board. They know it will be on display for three months, and they will get to see it every time they enter the school, go to lunch, related arts, or other times walking through the school. I know I've had teachers in the past tell me they thought there students would not be able to part with their work. I honestly believe if you tell them from the beginning the purpose of the project....they get it & will be totally on board! As the teacher, I cast the vision of what the finished work will look like, and the part the students work will play. I keep the different parts to the board in baskets to stay organized (after they've dried...most pieces are painted or collage). This is a great time to review some skills too!! (cutting, painting, gluing..etc) Also feel free to have some responsible older students help you with assembling the board when all the pieces are complete!
November 28, 2022
The Kindness of a YouTuber!
You never know the difference you can make as an art educator. Joy shares her story here.
Mr. Buddies Booty(Joy)...THANK YOU!!!! THANK YOU!!!!
November 18, 2022
Need Some Winter Bulletin Board Inspiration?
It is that time of year when we start thinking of ideas for new winter themed bulletin board ideas. Here are many of my past boards (I'm currently working on this year's with my students!). This is a great time to do a school wide collaborative project! Every year I have my students create a different component for a large collaborative mural. If I have any left over parts...I usually hang up smaller displays in other parts of the school. The students are always so excited to try to find the part they created! The project range from watercolor, collage, marker, colored pencil, crayon...and everything in between!! You can make this work based on the supplies and space you have available to you at your school!
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November 10, 2022
#turkeyaday22: The First 10 Days
Hello Friends! I'm so sorry I've not been posting much. We've have been dealing with a lot of yuck in my house (all of us were sick in some form or fashion)....and I've just been surviving. I'm having so much fun with this year's turkeys. For the most part, I've been using a variety of alcohol markers. I really love them!!! Twisting turkeys and other animals has also been a fun creative challenge. Hope you enjoy them.
November 07, 2022
TAEA PRESENTATION: TIPS & TRICKS FOR MULTiPLE GRADE LEVEL COLLABORATIVE WORK
This past weekend we had our annual state conference in Memphis,TN. It was a blast. I presented on collaborative art projects with multiple grade levels. As often happens with me....technical difficulties. They did not have the adaptor cord I needed for my computer. I had one...but had left at home. Never assume a location you are presenting at will have the equipment you need. (Lesson learned...again!).
I decided I'd post my power point here. Not that it contains a ton of information. It has questions to ask of yourself & your students when thinking about doing collaborative projects. It also has lots of examples of collaborative projects I've done in the past. If you have questions...please feel free to message me and ask! It isn't as scary, messy, or time consuming as it might seem.
October 31, 2022
#pumpkinaday22: Day 31
I hope you enjoyed this year's pumpkins. It was a bit different from the past, but change is a good thing. I like to continually challenge myself. Join me next month for #turkeyaday22!!! It's a little twisted! ha ha You'll see!
AGAIN & AGAIN WITH THE NONSENSE!
Have you all been following this? Since my other post about Van Gogh's Sunflowers being vandalized, it has happened several more times. Monet's Haystacks, Vermeer's Girl With a Pearl Earing, and one of Toulouse-Lautrec's works.
From what I've read, all of the works are fine (Thank goodness for protective glass!).
Maybe the criminals were targeting work they new was protected...maybe not?!? I just feel there is a better way to promote the cause of saving our planet than these ridiculous stunts.
October 30, 2022
October 28, 2022
October 26, 2022
#turkeyaday22: Day 25 & Day 26
On Day 25, I was feeling Smurfy.
This is my favorite pumpkin!
Some of it might be that yellow green is probably my favorite color. ha ha
October 24, 2022
#turkeyaday22: Day 23 & Day 24
I wanted to play with texture & contrast. I feel these are mildly successful.
October 21, 2022
#turkeyaday22: Day 21 & Day 22
I was trying to do the upper one inspired by chocolate covered cherries. Though it doesn't really resemble that a whole lot...I do like how he turned out. The other one I just enjoyed playing with greens! (my fav color!)
October 20, 2022
#pumpkinaday: Day 20
My sister messaged me and said she wanted my hippy pumpkin, but I didn't really think it was a hippy?!? So I went all in on this one! ha ha I'll be mailing it to her soon!
LAST DAY FOR EARLY BIRD REGISTRATION!!!
Hey all my TN peeps (and those who might want to attend our state conference)...today is the last day for early bird registration!! There is a discount if you sign up early...but after today it goes to full price. I hope you can come to this years conference in Memphis! I'm so excited to see everyone again. Lots of great speakers...classes...and a great time for all! HOPE TO SEE YOU THERE!! Let them know Mr. E sent ya!
https://www.tnarteducation.org/fallconference2022
October 19, 2022
#pumpkinaday: Day 19
Last year I had made a watermelon turkey during #turkeyaday, and I loved that turkey!! I decided to make a watermelon pumpkin!
October 18, 2022
#pumpkinaday22: Day 18
I love doing underwater pictures with my students. I had to make a pumpkin to reflect the many lessons I've taught!
October 17, 2022
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