This blog is a resource for educators and parents who wish to explore the world of art with the children in their lives. Have fun, create and learn something new--together!
The past couple of days I've spent trying to build some videos for demo purposes. I'm trying to be able to allow my students more independence and autonomy with art room techniques and materials.
Well if you've been following my posts recently, you may have seen this video coming. I've posted videos on using a glue stick and how to use Elmer's glue and here's my final offering: How To Use Hot Glue/How To Use a Hot Glue Gun.
A necessary skill for a middle schooler and for those who have never used a glue gun before. Yeah, there's people out there that DON'T EVEN OWN A HOT GLUE GUN. GASP! I grew up in the 1980's when crafting with glue guns became a thang. I thought everyone had one of these!
If you don't have one, they are super handy. My kids and I use them all the time for projects. They are especially good for building 3D and for those times when you are too impatient to wait for Elmer's Glue to dry.
The past couple of days I've spent trying to build some videos for demo purposes. I'm trying to be able to allow my students more independence and autonomy with art room techniques and materials.
Guys. Last year was brutal in terms of kids using glue. Many kids hadn't had art class in person for a couple of years and Elmer's glue is not something everyone has at home. I get it. Liquid glue is messy.
Flashback to my own kids chanting "Glue! Glue!" as they slowly emptied entire bottles onto their projects. True story.
I had never really used lots of Elmer's with my upper middle schoolers in the past, but now that I am teaching more fifth grade and we are doing projects like collage, Elmer's glue is a big deal. Last year, I had students who didn't know how to open the glue bottles. II'm telling you, they DESTROYED the bottle trying to open them. I even had one class where FOUR STUDENTS completely took the tops off the bottles and just poured the glue onto their projects. Ummmm... Nope!
Ok, I admit, I may have failed to give a complete demo on how to use Elmer's glue, but come on!
Hence my glue slide I project now during collage projects. It helps.
My GLUE Google slide that is projected during times of duress, I mean, gluing. :-)
And my live gluing demos. And these videos.
Dude, I'm covering all the bases when it comes to glue!
Last year I used a variety of Elmer's glue techniques with the students (both my fifth grade and adaptive art students) and we use glue the following ways:
Straight outta the bottle: dots and lines
Glue sponges
Applied with paintbrushes
They all have their merits. See the video for how each is used.
The past couple of days I've spent trying to build some videos for demo purposes. I'm trying to be able to allow my students more independence and autonomy with art room techniques and materials.
I usually demo how to use a glue stick and even though I teach middle school, there are still students who struggle with it. I'm not sure I would make a student sit through the entire video without me jumping in to point something out or show in real life, but it's good to know that I have this video as backup.
Side note: mine is not the first video on youtube that shows how to use a glue stick, so someone else thought a video like this was necessary. Mine is meant for an older student, so no baby talk here.
I've been creating some resources that students can use to learn the basics of art supplies. So many times I do the same demos over and over and it would be nice to be able to quickly refer students to a demo in case they missed it or need additional info.
In a previous post, I explained how my friend Jen pointed me down the road to using the 3-2-1 format for my videos. Once I started thinking of organizing my demos this way, I haven't been able to stop!
Oil pastels are near and dear to my heart. I use them in my own scratch art-inspired work and love how easy they are to use and the bright colors!
This year, I'm teaching an elective class for Grade 8 called, "Choice Based Studio." Students will be able to choose their own projects to work on. This is an expansion of the final Choice project I usually do with grade 8 classes and I'm SUPER EXCITED to be offering students the opportunity to choose their own ART-ventures for an entire semester!
I've been creating some resources that students can use to learn the basics of art supplies. So many times I do the same demos over and over and it would be nice to be able to quickly refer students to a demo in case they missed it or need additional info.
Creating demo videos has been in my mind for several years and now seemed the perfect time to move on it. I was worried I've make the videos too long and that the students would get overwhelmed by the info.
Then along came my friend Jen. She teaches fifth grade at my school and we were sitting on the beach this summer chit-chatting about school and our prep we wanted to get done this summer. I was telling her about my video project and she suggested a 3-2-1 format. She uses this all the time with her students.
I thought about it when I went home and decided to structure my videos in that way. I even created a handout where students could practice the skills in the video and reflect on their learning.
3-2-1 Watercolor Pencils Video and Graphic Organizer