Teacher Reflections: Notes on Notan

What a great week of art making! In Jr. High, I'm working on an extensive unity on negative space. We started by using words and letters that overlap. In anyplace that overlapped, that space was left blank. Now, we're looking at Notan designs. After looking at several examples that ranged from symmetrical and asymmetrical, geometric and organic, and abstract and non-representational, each student began sketching an idea. Some of the artists are satisfied with trying out the idea. However, other artists felt like challenging themselves by creating images in their design, like the dreamcatcher idea.

In the 5th Grade studio, we are progressing through our Op-Art studies. The artists are creating designs with their Sharpie markers. The final idea I wanted to push was to include some sort of personal narrative into the background of the artwork. I'm not sure how it's going to turn out yet, but I wanted to include some ELA Common Core into the lesson plan.

In the 6th Grade studio, Henna Designs are now being finished. I like this assignment because the growing artists are beginning to gain confidence in their ability. They are typically surprised in what they are able to accomplish.

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