Meet the Masters!

Meet the Masters is a great art program that the PTA has introduced to our school this year. Every other month the students are able to learn about well-known artists of the past and the different styles of art. So far they have learned about Winslow Homer, Pablo Picasso, and Vincent Van Gogh.
Winslow Homer American 1836-1901
American Native School painter Winslow Homer showed us through his art what life in the United States was like in the late 1800's. His superb mastery of value (light and dark) produced beautiful works of art through woodblock prints, watercolor, and oils.

Art Activity Emphasis: Value (light and dark) Techniques
Media: Torn Paper and Detail.

Pablo Picasso Spanish 1881-1973
The genius of Picasso allowed a review of the art elements introduced this year--line, shape, color, value, balance, and texture. The children investigated Picasso's varied styles and were able to trace the transformation of this artist during his different periods of art.

Art Activity Emphasis: Cubist Compositions
Media: Cut Paper, Chalk

Vincent van Gogh Dutch 1853-1890
The results of van Gogh's unhappy and tragic life are beautiful, expressive paintings of a world that did not accept or understand him.

Art Activity Emphasis: Texture
Media: Oil Pastel on black construction paper.

These are some fun art projects and the students really look forward to them. I want to thank my art moms who take the time to plan and prep and come in and teach these activities to my students. Thank You So Much!

Happy Halloween!

Halloween is always an exciting time for the students and they were really looking forward to this day. We had a fun Halloween Party planned, but first we had to make it through a spelling test, vocabulary test, math lesson, writing assignment, and the sharing of their Halloween stories that they wrote! The students didn't seem to mind the work because they new of the fun that was going to happen after lunch; the School Parade and the Halloween Party!

Nearly all students that showed up to class this day, wore their Halloween costumes! It was a lot of fun, and while out on Bus Duty, I had a hard time recognizing some of the students because their faces were painted and their hair was WILD & C-R-A-Z-Y CRAZY!

WORK! WORK! WORK!

LET THE GAMES BEGIN!

Pumpkin Bowling:

Doughnuts on a String:

Ping-Pong EYEBALL Toss:


Creepy Stories to Tell in the Dark:

I want to thank my mom helpers for volunteering your time in helping make this day fun and memorable for the students. Thanks so much! I appreciate all that you do.

Field Trip to Staheli Farm

The entire fourth grade got to visit Staheli Farm. They learned about bees, soil, how long it takes to make a pizza (growing the vegetables), farm safety, and taking care of cows and what we use them for. They also got to pet a few of the animals in the petting zoo, they seemed to really enjoy that.

The Bee Keeper:

Soil Trivia:

Pizza Clock:

Petting Zoo:

Vocabulary Hats!

As a fourth grade, we decided to have the students choose one of thier vocabulary words of the year, that they dont' know, and have to design a hat that matches the definition of that word. We then had a little parade through the fourth grade classrooms for the students to show off their creations. It was a fun activity and the students got real creative with their hats.

Journey Through the Water Cycle

Part of the fourth grade core curriculum is learning about the Water Cycle. After three days of learning about the water cycle, the students became a water droplet and went on their own journey through the water cycle. There were nine stations set up around the room that were places where a drop of water would end up. The stations were: animal, plant, river, lake, ocean, groundwater, soil, clouds, and snow. At each station the students rolled dice and depending on the number they rolled would determine that water cycle process they went through and what station they would rotate to next. There was a colored bead that represented each station that the students collected, and after about ten minutes of journeying through the water cycle, the students gathered their information and wrote a story about their journey. No journey was the same, and often times the students stayed in one station for multiple turns, representing that it may take a long time for water to evaporate from the ocean but it eventually will because the water cycle never ends. Ask your students about this activity and their own journey through the water cycle.