First Grade Art News

First Grade Art Class

from Jamie Pettit, Zilker Art Teacher

This semester First Grade Students will be learning about lines, shapes and symmetry. Students will:
-learn about different kinds of lines, such as thick or thin, as well as line directions, such as diagonal, vertical, or horizontal.
-learn about how artists use lines to show movement and look at lines in fine artworks.
-learn about how artists use different shapes, such as geometric and free form, in their works of art.
-learn all about color, including primary, secondary, warm, cool, tints, shades, and complementary colors.

Students Explore Art
 Throughout this year students will be exploring the great art, artists, and cultures of the world.  Each student will develop skills to understand and appreciate artwork.  We will also participate in hands-on activities and develop critical thinking skills. More and more, the arts are playing a vital role in education and learning.  Unlike many other subject areas, the arts introduce students to ways of thinking that are based on imagination and judgment.  The arts encourage students to think and learn in a variety of ways, helping them to develop increased language and learning skills.  This year your child will begin to see the world through the eyes of an artist and develop critical thinking skills that will last a lifetime.

Artsonia: Zilker’s Online Student Art Museum
We are participating in Artsonia again this year.    You can share your child’s art with distant family members and friends, as well as leave supportive comments in each child’s artist guestbook.  Last names are never shown publicly, and each child has a screen name, so it is a safe and secure site. You can also buy items with your child’s artwork printed on them, and 20% of the revenue is commissioned back to Zilker’s Art Program.  Artsonia is a wonderful way to increase students’ self-esteem and pride while encouraging their participation and appreciation of visual art.   Check it out at www.artsonia.com

Artwork: When does it get sent home?
Grades 2 – 5th typically work on longer projects that take several weeks to complete. Kinder and 1st grades have shorter projects.  I keep artwork for different displays at Zilker, the AISD offices, the district art show, and other venues.  Students will get all of the artwork back after the displays have been taken down.  If you have any questions about grading, or would like to see what your child is working on, please email me or call me and I can set up a time for you to peek “behind the scenes.”  Otherwise, keep a look out in the hallways or for a note home about displays elsewhere! In April, every child will have his or her artwork displayed in the School-Wide Art Show. You can also look at the Zilker Elementary Art Class Blog to see what is happening in Art class at: http://zilkerelementaryart.blogspot.com/

 Welcome Back! Summer was relaxing but I really missed Zilker’s great artists.  This is my seventeenth year teaching art, and fourteenth year here at Zilker. I feel very lucky to be a part of the Zilker Community! Thanks for a great start to the 2014 – 2015 School Year.


Jamie Pettit
Zilker Art Teacher
jamie.pettit@austinisd.org
www.zilkerelementaryart.blogspot.com