updates
Read what has been happening the past year in the art room.
Winter 2019
We have been involved in some very exciting art making!
- PreK students across the street from Hastings at the new Westborough Early Childhood Center (WECC) have been creating unique name plaques.
- Kindergarteners have been learning about organic shapes and the difference between shapes and lines.
- First Graders have been learning about how artists like Miro use shape and line to create Surreal and abstract art.
- Second graders have been creating colorful emotion monsters and translating their creations into 3d form in sculpture.
- Third Graders have been creating their impressive un drafting their Victorian House pictures and have been learning new Architectural terms for the parts of a building.
- Fourth Graders have been creating elaborate 3D forms from flat paper.
- Fifth Graders have been learning about contour line and texture in a shoe drawing.
- Sixth Graders have been using watercolor to create fantastical galaxy skies and serene still lives.
Fall 2018
We have finished reviewing the routines and expectations in the art room and are ready for some art making!
- PreK students have been creating pinatas and using stamps and textures on kiln clay to create unique name plaques.
- Kindergarteners have been learning about Frank Stella and how to create Abstract Art using color and shape.
- First Graders have been using repeating lines to fill in pumpkins, and mixing all of their own secondary colors!.
- Second graders have been creating colorful emotion monsters and translating their creations into 3d form in sculpture.
- Third Graders have begun drafting their Victorian House pictures and have been learning new Architectural terms for the parts of a building.
- Fourth Graders have been creating 2D forms from paper.
- Fifth Graders have been learning about contour line and texture in a show drawing.
- Sixth Graders have been using watercolor to create fantastical galaxy skies and serene still lives.
Spring 2018
We love color, painting, and building sculptures. As Summer approaches, we are doing a lot of all of these things!
- PreK students have been learning about flowers and creating murals in the playground.
- Kindergarteners have been painting rubber ducks based on the story of 10 Little Rubber Ducks, by Eric Carle. (hear it read here by Mrs. Conlin.)
- First Graders have been painting Japanese Cherry blossoms with bamboo brushes.
- Second graders have been working on Chinese Calligraphy, and European Dragons with castles.
- Third Graders have been creating robot sculptures out of recycled materials.
- Fourth Graders have been working on watercolor portraits.
- Fifth Graders have been working on Artist Trading Cards and have begun working on collages made from recycled children's books.
- Sixth Graders have been working on a month long portrait study in which they creating multiple faces and pick one for a final portrait.
With snow comes some of my favorite projects-winter art!
- Kindergarteners have been finishing their "Winter Selfies. We discussed what we wear in the Winter and why it is important to stay warm.
- First Graders have been working on creating textured papers and "Mouth Monsters!" for Dental Hygiene month.
- Second graders have been working on finishing their symmetrical paper cuttings.
- Third Graders just finished their 3D cardboard dwellings.
- Mill Pond Students have been finishing their Vintage Circus Posters, Narrative Illustrations, and Printmaking.
January 2018
All grades have been up to some exciting stuff in the past few months!
- Kindergarteners have been working on their "Winter Selfies. We discussed what we wear in the Winter and why it is important to stay warm.
- First Graders have been learning about the artist Miro and making art that is "Abstract" and "Surreal." We will soon be learning new painting techniques for use in an "Immigration Journey" project we will be collaborating on with the ELL teachers.
- Second graders have been working on showing negative space through symmetrical cutting in the style of the Pennsylvania Dutch.
- Third Graders have been learning about Opt. Art. (Optical Illusion Art) and the Still lifes of Cezanne.
- Mill Pond Students have been creating Skeleton sketches, Narrative Illustrations, and 3D paper sculptures.
I am now teaching at Mill Pond and Hastings schools. I will miss Fales Elementary but am excited to work with the older 4th-6th grade students, most of whom I taught in elementary school! At Mill Pond we have begun our new year showing our creativity by creating small "pocket picture" drawings that we hung up on the walls.
- Kindergarteners have begun learning "careful kindergarten coloring," in the lines, like a "number 3." We will soon paint pictures like the art Frank Stella.
- First Graders have been learning their repeating lines and will soon create work inspired by the artist Miro.
- Second and Third Graders are creating their art class Sketchbooks. All of the art students in our Westborough schools make elementary or middle school sketchbooks. They are a place for students to make notes about famous artists, practice drawing techniques, and learn about the Elements and Principles of Art. Students will sketch unique ideas with new art materials and revise their work as they plan, alter, and share their work in this book.
This is the last push towards the end of the school year! In celebration of Youth Art Month, the district held our annual town-wide art exhibit at the High School. It was a joy to see so many wonderful pieces of art from all around our district!
Spring 2017
The snow has melted! Round two of Clay Day is happening and students are very excited! Spring is here and we are very busy.
- Kindergarteners are working on spring collages and bears. We are having so much fun trying out chalk pastels and salt watercolor techniques.
- 1st grade students are working on Wayne Thiebaud cakes in chalk pastels.
- 2nd grade students have been finishing up chinese Dragons and will be starting European drawings.
- 3rd grade students finished up their Picasso inspired Cubism pictures, acrylic painted apples on canvas, and are starting to use the iPads for self directed project days.
Students have been working hard on exploring new mediums. Kindergarteners have been making Matisse collages and First graders are working on line pictures in the style of Miro with marker, and Wayne Thiebaud inspired three-tiered cakes with pastels. Second grade students are working on the theme of Chinese dragons in honor of Chinese New Year and are interpreting the theme in a few ways. We are making drawings with marker and pastels, symmetrical paper dragon masks, and expressive ceramic dragons. Third graders are doing some exciting work on canvas boards. the Fales parent group was generous to help fund canvas boards for the whole grade, and we are busy making beautiful paintings. So far we have created amazing Romero Britto inspired tempera paint self portraits!
Winter 2017 As the cold months roll in, we are beginning to work hard on learning and using the principles of art. Kindergarten is creating winter self portraits and penguins. First graders are learning about an artist named Miro and how to create Abstract and Surrealist art. In Second grade we have begun creating beautiful Navajo Indian inspired weavings and Acoma Indian inspired pottery. Classes are beginning to earn "clay day" so in 3rd Grade we learned about different facial expressions and have begun creating faces out of clay.
Fall 2016 I am super excited to start a new school year! We have lots of fun art activities to look forward to.
Spring 2016 We are happy to ring in a new year with some great art projects! I have added a new grade to our Artsonia gallery, which now displays work from 2nd and 3rd graders from Fales and Hastings. Ms. McGrath over at Mill Pond has also added a few grades to our Artsonia gallery, including 5th and 6th! Last year's 3rd graders still have their Artsonia accounts active, although we have not added any work to their accounts. Since we are now displaying work from multiple grades, our hope to have the students galleries feature multiple years of artwork.
Spring 2015 First grade students just completed their AAA Northeast's annual Traffic Safety Message Contest posters, and soon the Northeast community will take part in the judging process. Visit the AAA website between May 4-11th, 2015 and vote for your favorite poster!
Winter 2014 This has started out as an exciting year! The Artsonia online art gallery we started to showcase our final projects is going strong. At last check, we are ranked in the 30's out of hundreds in all of Massachusetts participating schools! We have more than 300 fans, including parents and family friends of students. We have uploaded more than 200 pieces of art and have had more than 1,400 visitors to our Artsonia gallery. On the fundraising side of it, we have raised more than $75 for our art room supplies. We are beginning with Third Graders but by the looks of it, we might need to expand it to other grades! Most classes have earned their 10 class stickers needed to have a Clay Day just in time for holiday break. We have made ornaments, bowls, frames, and pots. We have learned to use textures on clay and different hand building techniques. We can't wait to bring them home!
Fall 2014 This will be an an exciting year! I have new students, and newly married, I have a new name! There are so many students at Fales and Hastings now that we have added an additional art teacher. Her name is Ms. McGrath, and she and I will both be working at both schools. We will both be posting updates on our art room sites, and an exciting project that we are collaborating on is a separate online art gallery. We are going to start uploading the art of our 3rd graders to an Artsonia online art gallery. If it goes well we may expand it to other grades. I can't wait for this year!
-Mrs. Conlin (formerly Ms. Robles)