from the atelier 1/17/08

It is always amazing to watch how children grow!  Not only in personality, vocabulary, and height. but artistically, too.  One way of capturing growth is by continually offering the same experience, in this case drawing.  Self-portraiture is always a powerful option to offer our children because of it being about what they know and understand the most, themselves.  It is also a way that we can relate to each other and friends -- we all have eyes, ears, noses, etc.  We use self-portraits as a way to help children express ideas about themselves but also to capture their ongoing growth. This year, as a way to celebrate self-portraiture, MPI Preschool & Elementary School is having a show at Kahala Mall to display self-portraits from preschoolers through fifth graders.  At left, you can see one of our three-year-olds drawing from her photograph.  However, we use many different techniques and ideas to make our self-portraits. Our four-year-old class is making their self-portraits out of clay, as shown below, and our kindergartners are actually designing their own projects to represent themselves.  This show will highlight all of the diversity,creativity, and imagination that our students possess as individuals and as a learning community. 

Children will be working on these over the next few weeks.  Check the galleries frequently for updates of your child's work. 

 

In the meantime, the threes are still working with clay and paint in the classroom, while the fours are still working on their boxes (photos in the gallery) and their city project.

I hope that everyone got my memo about gathering materials.  We would love to build up more materials so the children can have more opportunities for assemblage projects. 

In preschool on Fridays this semester, we will have open atelier (open studio).  The threes and fours gather together to talk story and learn about different types of artists and different types of techniques.  After our talk story, children have a chance to try out different techniques or make new ones in the studio.  Because we continue to use paint as a way to express ourselves, I decided today to talk about Monet.  DJ's grandmother was nice enough to bring in books on Monet for us to use.  I encourage parents to bring in inspiring artist books, paintings, etc. or to share a talent for a future Friday; please email me if you'd like to come in.   
Kindergarten

 

Kindergarten will be finishing their 100 years in Manoa photo/drawing/painting projects over the next few weeks and beginning to design their self-portrait projects for the Kahala Mall exhibit.  Next week we will be reflecting on the children's paintings and talking more in depth about artistic choices that the children made. I am uploading the paintings to the galleries as the children finish.