Students in the Write

Second grade artists combined African textile designs with a traditional African folktale, “The Hatseller and the Monkeys.” The border around the illustration was created by combining Kente textile designs from West Africa with our own carefully designed patterns. The paintings on the inside of the project were created after we read the African folktale, “The Hatseller and the Monkeys.” When we created these illustrations, we experimented with a new technique using the idea of batik (a method of dyeing textiles). Drawings were traced on top of a special wax paper leaving a secret wax version of our drawings on the bottom sheet of paper. Then we painted with watercolors. The wax kept the paper white where we traced. We used mixed media—pastels and markers—to finish decorating the details on our pictures.

Examples of this art work will be on display at the Warner Library from March 2nd until the end of April. Students and faculty are looking forward to our visit from the Ishangi Family Dancers and their presentation, “A Journey to Africa,” on March 15th. This performance will be a wonderful culmination to our study of African Art. The art and culture of West Africa will come alive for students as they enjoy the Ishangi family’s program that is rich in stories, dance and music.

Click here to visit our gallery.

Every January, after studying masks from around the world, third grade students each cast, design and decorate three-dimensional masks. In our American culture, we use masks at Halloween. Special protective masks are worn by athletes, doctors and soldiers. In other parts of the world, masks are used for many different reasons. In anticipation of an upcoming visit from the Ishangi Family Dancers from West Africa, students paid particular attention to the mask-making tradition of Africa.

Click here to visit our gallery.

Mrs. Chulla’s class has been very busy learning about attributes in science. They read the book “The Important Book” by Margaret Wise Brown as part of a science lesson on attribute words. The students brainstormed important things about themselves, and then decided which was the most important. Later, each child wrote poems about their attributes following the pattern from “The Important Book.” Today, we are bringing those poems to you. So please, relax, listen, and enjoy!

To hear our first grade students explain their important attributes, click here.

Our “Heart of Writing” writing project was just that…writing that came from our hearts. We wrote about the things that were special and important to us. We did this by going through each step of the writing process. First, we brainstormed what topics would be in our hearts and then selected one topic to write about. We made a first draft of our writing and then revised it by adding a beginning, middle, and end to our stories. We also added details to our writing because we learned details make our work more interesting to read. We then edited our stories and made sure our writing had capitals and periods where they needed to be and made sure there was at least one vowel in every word we wrote. Then we published our work by writing a final copy. Finally, we shared our work with each other and with you!

Click here to hear our first grade students read their Hearts of Writing

Every September third graders begin their year in the art studio by designing and executing Cubist paintings.

Cubism was an early-20th century school of painting and sculpture in which the subject matter is portrayed by geometric forms without realistic detail, stressing abstract form at the expense of other pictorial elements. The Cubist style emphasized the flat, two-dimensional surface of the picture plane and rejected traditional techniques of perspective. Cubist painters used geometric shapes to create abstract paintings. Unlike other styles, abstract art does not concern itself with creating realistic representations of the world.

Cubists used geometric forms in different ways. Robert Delaunay and his spouse Sonia believed that color and shape alone could create beautiful art. They worked together for many years making paintings that looked like fragmented rainbows. In the spirit of the Delaunays, the third grade used templates to create designs filled with overlapping shapes and then colored their work with cake tempera paint and fine nylon brushes.

Along with our discussions of art history and shapes, students were able to develop their understanding of color theory. While painting, each child was challenged to mix his or her own colors discovering firsthand how to make particular shades and hues. Students eagerly shared their discoveries with their classmates and answered each other’s “color questions.”

Click here to visit our gallery.

Fourth grade students in Mrs. Zerafa’s class have been communicating via email with “e-pals” from Willington, England. Ms. O’Brien, technology specialist, established this activity in November with the children writing letters to one another. The third and fourth graders from England then sent pictures of points of interest in their community.

Washington Irving’s fourth grade students took a walking tour of Tarrytown and Sleepy Hollow and photographed historic landmarks and places of interest. In the computer lab, the children researched and recorded the information to be “pod casted” to our friends across the pond. We hope they (and you) will enjoy our final product.

The eight minute full length project (11MB, please allow the project to load)

Click to view a 20 second excerpt (.5 MB)