September and Portfolios

September is SO busy! Not only is it the start of work/school, which includes getting back into the swing of things, curriculum nights and lesson planning, but it is also our anniversary month and a serious amount of birthdays. I'm talking birthdays galore! No joke. Which means birthday parties, presents, decorating and cooking.  And of course other things that just come your way each month.  This year that included getting sick, making art, friends having babies (more birthdays!) cleaning out a room for a special surprise, and planning an art opening. (More about the special surprise and art opening soon...) This year I have also changed the grades I teach and have become a middle school adviser, which has been great! Overall it has been a hectic and wild start to the year, but a good one.

The first lesson of the year for me is creating a portfolio, no matter what the age.  This helps us establish routines, explore different materials and gives us a place to keep 2-D work for the rest of the year.

The overarching them for 6th grade is Identity, and in English they began studying the origin of their name.  In art, we transformed the letters of our name to help express parts of our identity. It was a quick lesson that got them engaged and thinking about what makes them special.

Karuna

Leah

George

Can you tell what these three are interested in?  What makes them special?