Recycled Material Birds - a work in progress!

We are working on a BIG collaborative unit between grade levels in the art room at Briargrove. Each day of the rotation is studying a different habitat - the desert, arctc tundra, tropical rainforest, deciduous forest, grasslands and wetlands. Every grade level is working to represent a different part of the habitiat. Fourth grade is working on creating the birds for their habitat out of found and recycled materials. Here a few sneak peeks at the works in progress!


Each sculpture is based on a unique, real bird; each is being made by one student. Once the structures are complete, the students will begin working on adding "feathers". More to come...

Earth Art Drawings

As part of our effort to GO GREEN we are concentrating on nature appreciation as the focus of our art units. First grade students learned about the art of Andy Goldsworthy, who works with natural elements such as rocks, sticks, leaves and even snow! Goldsworthy works with these natural elements in their original environment and rearranges them into art forms, called earth art.

For this two-lesson unit, students imagined they were out in nature and pictured what they would find on the ground - rocks, pine cones, flowers, leaves, etc. Then, they created a drawing as if they were Andy Goldsworthy out in nature rearranging these these items. During the previous week, the students had been learning about organic shapes, which are shapes usually found in nature. This was a good tie-in with the concepts of their previous unit. Students also concentrated on making patterns and designs, and using repetition in their artwork.

The steps for this unit are pretty simple, and open-ended. Step 1: Students use Sharpie to create their earth art design. (Part of going green includes not wasting paper to start over just because you "messed up." This is always a challenge for students. During this unit I encouraged them to remember that there are a lot of inconsistencies in nature, and any "mess-up" would just make their drawing more realistic. That helped the students feel confident to embrace the imperfections in their shapes. Step 2: Color in the design using colored pencils. Usually I encourage my students to choose their colors freely. For this unit, however, I asked they try to replicate the colors they would see in nature.

In Ms. Abair's science class, the students are learning about gravel, pebbles, sand and silt, and lots of types of dirt. They are also learning about decomposition - when natural elements fall to the ground and break down and turn into dirt. This worked out great as a reinforcement of the concepts they were exploring in science!

WOW!

Have you checked out the focus for this year's art units? We are GOING GREEN and loving it! I hope you stop by the Briargrove Art Room Green Effort blog to see what we're doing and commend the students for their hard work trying to be environmentally friendly artists! Working with recycled materials has been fun but it sure does make every day even more busy and sometimes chaotic! I have a lot of great student work to share from the past few weeks, but have yet to find time to post it. I will settle down one afternoon soon and get cracking on the blog.

Now, more than ever in my entire life, I really and truly appreciate the phrase "One man's trash is another man's treasure." We sure are collecting some exciting "trash" to use to make our fantastic recycled-material art. If you're a BG student, teacher, or parent - keep the donations coming! You can find out what we're looking for on the Green Art Room blog. Remember there are about 900 students who can't wait to collage, sculpt and create with these unconventional art supplies! Can't wait to show you what we've been working on!

Abstract Composition

Every grade has been working on this short unit on abstract composition the past two weeks. I don't usually do the same unit across the grade levels, but this one is quick and every grade has LOVED it and been very successful. This is our first art unit this year using recycled materials; for this unit we incorporated them as tools for art-making!

There are two simple steps:

1. Arrange a composition by tracing the bottle caps using markers. Students are encouraged to make choices about what size caps they will use, whether the circles will be separate, touching, overlapping, inside or outside, or even going off the page. They can also choose whether or not they will make their composition symmetrical or asymmetrical, or even draw just a partial circle.

2. Add more color, detail, design and pattern to the composition by coloring with construction paper crayons. Students could color inside, outside, around, and on top of the circles, add other lines, shapes and patterns, etc. It's important to encourage the children to push hard with the crayons so that the colors are more vivid.

The only rule is that students did not make anything "recognizable" like a person, place, animal, car, etc. since they were doing an entirely abstract composition.

This unit is great for a number of reasons. One, it ties in with our Eco-friendly art theme for the year, and two, it allows for a LOT of creative self-expression and individual problem-solving. I can't even begin to describe the beautiful variety of the work! The students felt such a sense of ownership over their assignment!

The artwork I'm showing here was created by students K-5th grade! Every grade was super successful!

I modified the unit for grades 3-5 (and some 2nd grade classes) so that the assignment is a little more challenging. We reviewed cool colors (greens, blues and purples) and warm colors (reds, oranges, and yellows.) Then, we discussed how they are opposites of one another and when placed against each other, they have a lot of contrast. In other words, these colors placed next to each other really "POP"! Students were directed to choose the color paper they wanted, and then figure out which color family (warm or cool) that it belongs to. Then, students had to use only colors from the opposite color family. For example, if a student used a blue paper (part of the cool family) then they could only use warm colors on their paper.

We are working on artistic concentration (which means staying on task and working quietly) so that we can get more work done in a short amount of time. The past two weeks, we listened to music during work time (to help us focus on the creative vibe), and practiced silent communication skills. Students were nodding their heads to the beat, and really focused well and used their time wisely! This also challenged the students working with warm or cool colors to figure out whether or not each color on their table was warm or cool without help from me or one another. When the students realized they could solve the problem on their own (by looking up the colors on the color wheel) they felt good about it! Totally engaging, fun and creative! What a wonderful week!

With a Little Extra Time...

... And some pattern tiles, students can create some of the most incredible designs and structures!

    
 
  

Our classroom inherited a big bin of pattern tiles, so now there's enough for many students to grab a handful and build at their table if they finish their work early.  What cool creations... all done in under 10 minutes!!!

What A Fine Line!

Kinder and first grade are examining, inspecting and experimenting with the world of lines this week in a variety of exploration stations. Students are allowed to move freely from station to station throughout the entire class period. As long as they are working on lines, they can spend as much time at whatever table they like!

Drawing Lines:

Students practiced drawing all sorts of different lines.

Straight, curvy, wavy, zig zag, dotted, jagged... and many students' personal favorite, the spiral!

Overlapping lines makes for a very interesting composition! One student cut a wavy line out of the top of her drawing and turned it into a crown!!

Building lines:

Students used their spatial skills to arrange and build lines out of colored tiles.

A long line turned into a caterpillar! Stacking horizontal lines on top of each other created a pyramid! Stacking individual tiles made vertical lines that looked like towers!

Here is a cool 3-D zig-zag line! A curvy line can be used to make a rainbow! Layering tiles to make a line and sorting colors were fun learning activities too!

Cutting Lines:

Students practice using scissors to "draw" lines. When a line is cut from one edge of the paper to the other, a new shape is made!

Cutting a spiral line makes a really cool pop-out shape. Cutting paper with lots of straight lines makes shapes like squares and rectangles.

Many of the shapes we created reminded us of things we see in nature - like mountains, birds, flowers and ocean waves!

Arranging Lines:

Students used yarn to arrange different kinds of lines on the table.

They also practiced cutting to make the lines different lengths. Students realized that they could connect the lines to make letters, too! The lines were also linked together to make shapes and pictures!

One student made a self-portrait. Another student made an alien! And look at this turtle!

Collaboration:

Students worked together to make a large piece of mixed-media art.

Ripping and sticking tape to the paper created cool thick lines, and helped students strengthen their control of their fingers. Layering tape, crayon and sharpie lines was a fun way to collaborate!

Welcome to a Fantastic New Year!

I love the look of a classroom at the beginning of the year - fresh and full of possibilities! I try to keep everything very minimal so that the students and I can build the room up with relevant material as the year goes on. Plus, it helps those students who might be a little over-sensory feel calm and comfy.
Classes have started and we are having a blast! Images coming soon... In the meantime, here is my favorite of the new additions to my classroom - flat file drawers! One drawer for each of my 36 classes! Organization! I love it.

Another exciting thing on the horizon - this year I have decided the Art Room is officially Going Green!!! What could be more exciting, or more relevant, for our students this day and age? Can't wait to share all the great ideas I got this summer. In fact, I have created a special blog for that purpose! Click here for
the Art Room at Briargrove - GREEN EFFORT!
The students and I have already begun brainstorming ways we can practice the 3 R's - reducing, reusing, and recycling - and the whole school's started collecting materials. Ms. Abair, our fantastic new science teacher, is helping the whole school go green by working with community members to bring a recycling program to Briargrove. It's going to be an exciting year!

Art-Room-Friendly Books

First I just want to say thank you to those of you who responded to my last question! I really appreciate your input, and I hope to get even more! I also wanted to let everyone know I have been researching and gathering more ideas and tips on keeping the art room green. I will post these sometime before our school year starts back up in August.

My next question is a fun one - one I bet teachers, parents, and students alike will have no trouble answering:

What are your favorite books for the art room? Whether they're good stories with beautiful illustrations, fictional, fun tales about kid artists or imaginary events, historical accounts of artists and art movements, books on art elements and concepts, or even just great messages about how our students should treat one another - I'd love to know what books are a must-have for you! And for that matter, what are your favorite movies for the art room?

I'll go ahead right now and tell you my all-time favorite: Ish by Peter Reynolds.

It's sweet, authentic, and has a great message about inspiration, encouragement, confidence and self-acceptance. I read it every year to every grade on the first or second day of class. Everyone loves it. I think we've all had experiences at some point in our lives that help us relate to every character in the book. "Ish" has become a regular part of our classroom vocabulary.

Looking forward to your comments (I'm sure we'll have some common favorites!)

Keeping the Art Room Green

What steps can I take to make the art room more "green"? Seems no matter how hard I try to stop the wasting of paper in my room, there is inevitably a LOT of paper waste, among other things. More and more these days I have become increasingly proactive in my personal life about living in a more environmentally friendly way. My husband and I eat organic at home, we often carpool, we use organic soil and fertilizer in our garden, etc, etc, etc.
In my classroom, we have rules in place for hand-washing to limit paper towel and water usage. We have a recycling bin for leftover scraps. I hardly ever let my students start over on a new sheet of paper (which is really a great lesson in creativity and flexibility as well). We incorporate things into our art-making such as newspaper and used cardboard. But it just doesn't quite seem like enough. Please leave some comments - tell us about your ideas for keeping the art room green (you get bonus points if it also help us save money!)

Plans for the Summer, Plans for Next Year

Well the school year is officially over. There were many successes, and there were many challenges. What a busy and joyful year. The art room is all packed up and ready for deep summer cleaning. I can't help but get excited for next year's fresh start, but I am glad to have a break. This summer I can't wait to work on some plans for the upcoming school year, along with opening a new chapter in my painting career. We teachers are so lucky - what other job gives you time to reflect, rest, and prepare for the new term?! I am planning on using my time wisely...
This summer I will use this blog to share my ideas, concerns, questions, reflections, and plans for the upcoming school year in our beloved art room. Briargrove received a grant that allowed us to buy a things like a printing press, a clay slab roller and extruder, a large paper and mat cutter, digital cameras, and, my personal favorite (I"m SO excited!!!) large steel flat files - enough for every class to have their own drawer!!! Can't wait to get working on ideas for using these new additions to my classroom!
Also, next year (which will be my fourth year as an official art teacher) I will be taking on two student teachers. They will each take a half of the fall semester. I'm excited about the opportunity to mentor, and also a little nervous to relinquish some control of my classroom and students. But all in all, I think it's going to be a great experience, and I'm looking forward to it.
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I would also like to ask for your ideas about a few things this summer. Starting with the question posed in my next post (see above!) Looking forward to your input... Hope everyone has LOVELY summer!

End of the Year thoughts

Three students I have worked with closely for the past three years are finishing their last day of fifth grade tomorrow, so I decided to make them a graduation present. These are the first collage/paintings I've done in a quite a few months. I especially love making art when it's going to be a present! Each one is on an 8"x8" canvas, and made with napkins, tissue paper, food wrappers and acrylic paint. (These pictures are kind of dull - the colors are actually much brighter.) We looked up the armadillo today and found out that it is symbolic of self-protection and self-preservation. How appropriate. As they approach the tough world of middle school, I hope all of my graduates will protect and preserve the things about themselves that make them truly good natured, talented, unique individuals. I'm going to miss you fifth graders!!!

On to the summer we go...

Creature Inspirations

I wanted to share the BIG IDEA behind the fourth and fifth grade creature unit. The students started by choosing 3 animals that they relate to in some way - personality, behavior or appearance. They also chose a type of habitat they would want to live in, and listed some physical traits that they would need to live there. Then, they combined their three animals into one new creature, and also incorporated something to help them survive in their chosen habitat. Below, I have featured some of the creatures with the students' writing from their brainstorming worksheets.
You can see all of the creatures created by fourth grade by visiting the special
Fourth Grade Art Gala blog.

I am like a chipmunk because I am really smart for my age.
I am like an eagle because I love to be above everything.
I am like a cardinal because I have very colorful feelings.


I am like a gecko because I am sneaky.
I am like a mustang because I am a fast reader.
I am like a chimpanzee because I am very active and I like hanging.


I am like a mustang because I’m a fast runner.
I am like a lion because I am fierce.
I am like a buffalo because I am strong.


I am like a bass because I like to swim.
I am like a whitetail deer because I’m quick and sneaky.
I am like an eagle because I’m strong and I love to fly on airplanes.


I am like a baby leopard because I am playful.
I am like a parrot because I’m colorful like a bright photograph.
I am like a howler monkey because I can climb incredibly fast.

Amazing Plant Drawings

I just LOVE these drawings! The students have been having SUCH a great time making them!

It's been a wonderful challenge to watch the students solve - how do they draw when they can't "draw?" I don't let the students sketch it out in pencil first. It's easy enough to erase when you can just lift the tape right back off the page!

The cactus was the favorite of many students. Desert plants are my favorites too!

Some students got really ambitious and covered the WHOLE page! I am laminating these before I send them home, so the tape will stay stuck down. The lamination makes them look so professional! (See the post below for more details on how they were made.) What a fun (and clean!) way to wrap up the school year!

At Briargrove Elementary, We KNOW Tape!

The past few months, while preparing our creature sculptures for the fourth grade art gala, we have used a LOT of tape in the art room. The students and I have become tape experts! We know which brands work best for tape sculpture, and which don't. Here's what we learned:

Col-R-Tone System Masking Tape Class Pack (shown below) from Dick Blick was our favorite! It's pretty expensive, though, so depending on how many students you have it might become very pricey... I would estimate that we used 1.5 packs per class. This was also one of the only brands with brown and orange - very popular colors for creature-building. This tape has a matte finish.

Here are some creatures made only with Col-R-Tone tape.

Duck Brand Duct Tape (shown below) was a hit too! We discovered this one at Michaels Arts and Crafts later in the project. It's easy to tear and has the strongest adhesive. It's not too expensive, and covers large areas easily. We found it in about 12 colors. I think that they also sell it at Walmart. There is a cool silver color that the kids love, too. This tape is glossy and has kind of a plastic finish - just like regular duct tape.

Here are some creatures made only with Duck Brand Duct Tape.

Colored Masking Tape, 8-Roll Assortment (shown below) from Sax Arts and Crafts worked very well, too. There's less variety in colors, though. It's not as expensive, and the rolls come with a little more tape. We used that tape when making our collaborative creatures.

Unfortunately, we had to learn the hard way which ones didn't work well!

The Colored Masking Tape Class Pack (shown below) from Dick Blick does not - I repeat - does not work well for sculpture! The ends do not stay stuck down, nor does it stick very well to the newspaper and clear tape under structure of the creatures. I had ordered a few packs of this to get some variety in color, so when we discovered it wasn't going to work, I found another use for it (see this post on drawing with tape.) This tape is crinkly like crepe paper, thinner than the other brands, and has a matte finish.

When building the creatures, we used regular clear scotch tape. This helped us cut down on waisting the more expensive colored tape. We also found a bit of extra clear packing tape. If you can get some of this it really helps reinforce joints to make a more sturdy creature! Here are some of the creatures before the students added colored tape.
The students and I hope you will try building with tape and let us know how it works for you!

Drawing from Observation - with Tape!

Fourth grade started these beautiful observation drawings with tape today. I put a couple potted plants at each table and an assortment of colored masking tape (see the post below to find out what kind!) The students were instructed to use the masking tape on 11"x14" manila paper to draw the plants at their table.

I can't wait to see these finished! What a great learning experience!

More Dream-Scapes

Here are some more examples of the beautiful, complex dream-scapes created by our talented third graders.

Hope to put some of these up on display soon!

Portrait Show Preview

Here is a preview for the upcoming Portrait Show. Look at the incredible variety of student artwork included. It's going to be a fantastic event! Hope to see you at the OPENING RECEPTION tomorrow at Sylvan Rodriguez!

Again, for more information, please visit the new Portrait Show Blog!

Portrait Exhibition

I am so excited to announce the upcoming exhibit: Portrait - From 5 Points of View! Briargrove, along with 4 other West Region elementary schools, has submitted student work for this first-time collaborative show. 18 Briargrove student portraits were selected. We couldn't have done it without the leadership, direction and organization of Mr. Michael Bourquin, the art specialist at Sylvan Rodriguez, Jr. Elementary. The show will be hosted first at Rodriguez April 20th through August 20th, then at the HISD West Region office September 20th through December 15th. The opening reception will be April 23rd, 4-6pm. Please come join us to celebrate our young artists!

For more information about this exciting show, and to see the student work soon to be on display, please visit the

Portrait Show Blog!

Dream-Scapes inspired by Chagall

A few weeks ago, third grade learned how to draw with glue and then how use chalk pastels to make the lines of dried glue appear. While learning about the process, 3rd grade was also exploring the work of Marc Chagall. The students learned about his use of personal icons - such as the Eiffel tower, flying people and the Russian village where he grew up. They also learned how he created works based on memories and dreams.

Students brainstormed and created their own personal icons based on significant persons, places, things, and memories from their own lives. They explored different ways to make icons for the same subject - for example, an icon representing the game of baseball could be a bat, a glove, a hat, a baseball diamond, etc. Students chose at least 6 of their icons to put together to make a dream composition. They lightly sketched their dream in pencil on a large piece of colored construction paper. Then, they used their skills at drawing with glue and coloring with chalk to finish their work.


One hint for teaching this unit: When students are drawing their final dream-scape from their sheet of personal icons, I have them choose where they want the dream to take place first. If they are choosing an indoor setting, I teach them how to draw a simple 3-dimensional room. For an outdoor setting, I remind them about landscapes and recommend the use of a horizon line. Of course, students can compose their dreams any way they want, but I find that if I do not give them these tips, then the icons are often placed randomly around the page - which I call "floating icons".
I am so proud of the 3rd graders - these dreams are so vivid and interesting!

Playful Playgrounds!

I saw this cool unit on The Art Cart. Every year, I teach a kindergarten unit that includes drawing a playground using primary colors. When I saw Ms. Stalker's unit, I felt inspired to incorporate it into mine.
Kindergarten students were each assigned a random letter of the alphabet (I actually have about 30 students per class, so we were able to do every letter of the alphabet, plus a few extra!) They drew it with pencil as large as they could. Then, they added structures and details to turn it into a playground. To make their lines POP, they traced them with Sharpie. To finish, the students colored the playgrounds with oil pastels in primary colors. They were encouraged to mix the primaries to see what they could make. I love the simple compositions. Kinder did a fantastic job with this unit!



The week I began this lesson with kinder, I also began a related unit (unexpectedly) with second grade. I needed to leave sub plans, but didn't feel like using the same ones I usually do. I had leftover paper and black lines from the Piet Mondrian unit, and had just thoroughly enjoyed teaching the playground lesson to kinder. So, I came up with this lesson, which now has expanded into a two-day unit that I implemented with all my second grade classes.

Instead of having the students draw everything out first, I had them collage black paper lines to make one of the initials belonging to their first, middle, or last name. Then, they transformed it into a playground structure by adding more lines and drawing details with Sharpie. This was a little more challenging than the kinder unit, so it fit nicely with second grade. Last, I allowed the students to color their collages any way they wanted with oil pastels.

So fun to see one idea go in so many different directions. It was definately a subject every kid was in to! Thanks to the Art Cart for the great starting point!

Mondrian Collage

First grade is just finishing this fun unit on Piet Mondrian.

To begin, the students glued construction paper lines to create a composition. They could cut or tear their lines, and they had to make sure that the lines intersected. The students were given the choice to simply create shapes or patterns, or they could create an abstract representation of something real.

The next class, students used oil pastels to add color to their compositions. They were only allowed to choose colors from Piet Mondrian's palette (the primary colors and the gray scale.) The students were allowed to color in their composition any way they wanted. Some chose to color in between their lines; some chose to color on their lines; and some chose to draw other shapes and lines all over! Great variety!

Next week, the students will add titles to the work. That is an especially fun part of the unit! The students look at their work and think about what their lines and shape represent. Then, they give it a title to help clue in the viewer to the subject of their composition. I will share some of those when they are complete!

Below are the art examples we looked at during this unit:

The first two are images of works by Mondrian. I also included Caprice in February by Paul Klee and an image of the Pyramid de Louvre as examples of ways that other artists used simple intersecting lines and colors.

4th Grade Art Gala - Preview!

Next week, APRIL 2nd is the 4th Grade Art Gala!!!
For more information on the event, visit Mrs. Gonzalez's art blog. Below is a sneak peek of some of the incredible creatures imagined, designed, and constructed by the forth grade students.

I will post more about how these creatures were created next week. I am so excited, I can't wait for the show!

Experiments with Chalk and Glue

Below are the sample sheets that the 3rd graders worked on before moving on their big pieces (which will be posted here soon as well.) I had them practice drawing with glue a few weeks ago. First, they drew an animal at the top of their page, in pencil. Then, at the bottom of their page, they drew a variety of different lines, just using the glue bottle. Last, they rotated their paper and traced their animal with glue. This week, we are getting ready to add chalk pastels to their larger projects. To get a feel for what chalk is like to work with, they are experimenting with color layering and blending techniques on their sample sheets.

These have just turned out so beautiful that I think I will display them right along with their big project!!!!

1st and Kinder Full Body Self-Portraits

These students are always in motion! I thought it would be fun to give them a self-portrait assignment that would let them express this!

For the past couple weeks we have been talking about symmetry. For this unit, students were asked to draw their bodies in a pose that is NOT symmetrical. To help them get ideas, we practiced dance poses! The students followed these steps:

1. Fold your paper "hot dog style."

2. Draw a light stick figure with pencil that goes from the top to the bottom of the page, lined up on the fold (the line of symmetry.) Make sure each arm and leg does something different!

3. Trade in your pencil for a Sharpie! Pretend the stick figure is the skeleton and use the Sharpie to draw the body over the stick figure.

4. Add details that make the figure even more asymmetrical. Don't forget to make a funny facial expression!

5. Create patterns with different kinds of lines and shapes. On one side use warm colors, and then use cool on the other! Then, color your body any way you want!

Another fun part of this unit was that students had the choice to draw at their tables or on the floor with a clipboard. They were also each given a mirror to use. We were spread out all over the place, and everyone concentrated so hard that the normally noisy art room sounded like the library!

This was a one-day lesson, but I bet it would be fun to expand on into a longer unit!

CENTERS!!!!
This week, kinder is learning a BIG word - symmetrical. And while the word may take them a little while to catch on to, they got the concept pretty quickly!
To introduce this word in my room, we are doing a variety of different centers in which students can have different art experiences involving symmetry.
For example, students may sit at one center and draw a symmetrical butterfly, which they then decorate with a symmetrical pattern. This was THE most popular center - so much so that I actually expanded it two tables.

I think it's important to mention that I didn't give them a pre-drawn butterfly to color in, or have them fold their paper to make the sides the same. We simply went over basic parts of a butterfly when I gave the directions for the center, and then they drew them completely free-hand.
In this center, I wanted the students to work on training their eyes and hands so that they will be able to look carefully at one side of their drawing and make the other the same. These were spectacularly beautiful, and exquisitely detailed! Some students cut them out when they were done.

Another favorite center involved using foam shapes to make symmetrical designs and objects. They made these collages by arranging and gluing their shapes (always remembering our glue rule: "Just a dot, not a lot!") Below, one student made a rocket ship; another made a cool design. Many students made multi-leveled designs by stacking different shapes on top of one another.

We also had a folding and cutting center. At this table, students could fold construction paper scraps and make symmetrical shapes by cutting out of the folded side. Many students already knew how to make hearts that way... but they were amazed at all the random, new shapes they could create! Often, when they unfolded their shape, it would remind them of something. One looked like a dog's head; another, like a bat; and another, like a dress. It was so fun to see the shapes they made and hear what they decided their shape looked like!

At the block center, students created buildings, designs and objects... always remembering to keep them the same on both sides! Check out the symmetrical birds and building with a long road below. So cool! I am amazed by the things children can build with simple shapes. Their imagination is limitless!

Other centers included:
- A table full objects for students to inspect and decide "symmetrical or not?" They held up pencils to determine the object's line of symmetry. They could also draw these objects and add a line of symmetry across the middle to show where the object could be divided to make it the same on both sides.
- A table with mirrors for the students to inspect their own faces to look for symmetry. I actually decided to make this the only table in which students were supposed to do something that was NOT symmetrical. They made facial expressions that were not symmetrical in the mirror, and then drew a large self-portrait of their faces showing that expression.
(This center followed a fun warm-up activity I use when teaching students about symmetry. I have everyone sit in a circle. Then, we take turns making symmetrical facial expressions; after that, we make faces that are NOT symmetrical. It makes everyone crack up, and pay attention! The students understand that if you raise an eyebrow, stick your tongue out to the side, or close an eye that your face no longer looks symmetrical.)
*Note: I often run the centers for two class periods in a row, changing out and introducing one or two new centers the second week. Many students work hard and spend most of one class period in their first center. The second week, we review the concept and directions, and then students can try out centers they did not get to do the week before. The "NOT symmetrical" self-portrait center is introduced the second week.