Paint & Five-Year Olds...

I had this neat little lesson planned for the kindergarteners and first graders yesterday. We talked about geometric shapes and how we could overlap them, line them up, and/or ,use them to make an object like a house. Their assignment was pretty simple...fill a piece of paper with their favorite shapes...make big ones and small ones. (believe me, after helping 7th and 8th graders draw their hands all morning - this was a welcomed relief for my brain: )

This part of the assignment went really well. And then I brought out the watercolor palettes. You know what I am talking about - those neat little rectangular palettes with all the colors neatly lined up and, look! there is even a brush nestled in there with all that paint!

OK - This is what I LOVE about this age.....you would've thought I had just handed them a big bowl of candy, a puppy with a bow around its' neck and a Dora the Explorer video.

Now, I expected some messiness, but, apparently, I really underestimated these kids. There was paint EVERYWHERE. The palettes were muddied and you couldn't distinguish the orange from the black. Some kids managed to get paint all over their mouths(? - still trying to figure that one out) and four kids managed to spill the yucky paint water on the floor, four times.

Now this is what is so crazy...I wore a beige hoodie yesterday, with some light brown corduroy pants (bland, I know.) and when I got home and inspected my clothing (which I have found is absolutely necessary in order to tackle stains immediately) I realized that despite paint covering every surface in my art room, none of it managed to get on me.

Comments

pondering_c said…
that sounds so fun!
4:03 PM
Anonymous said…
Hmmm they aren't as neat as your doll students were? I love this story.

I guess we don't need to make the aprons?

Love, Mom
5:37 AM
Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Settling in...

Next month marks our 8th Moved to Kansas City Anniversary. Eight years and I am just now feeling like we are settling in. Life is moving along at a steady clip. I have a love/hate relationship with Facebook, but thank goodness it exists or I would never know anything about anybody. Having a small child seems to suck you into this introverted world where all you (feel) like you do is pick up toys, read Little Golden Books and sing The Wheels On the Bus. But, of course, this is only partially true. As disconnected as I feel to the world outside of my home and the Cancer Center, I am that much more connected to my beautiful son. I am learning to accept that "balance" is a myth. Lately, I've spent a lot of time challenging my notion of health and wellness. Robbie and I joined a gym and I am actually committing time to go. In fact, I even made the large investment to work with a personal trainer. I am trying so incredibly hard to hang up my discomfort and unease about my bod...
Read more

I knew I was forgetting something...

Image
Writing and keeping a journal has always been cathartic for me and I think often, "I should jot that down." The many " thats " that have gone by since last July are almost too numerous to count, and frankly, I've sadly forgotten most of them. I love to write and this blog is testament to that. Unfortunately, my time and energy is limited these days and given my OCD nature, I can't just write a simple little update without revision and editing. I've always wanted to be sure I am saying what I mean and mean what I say...and if I can do it eloquently with a little additional thought, well even better. And that's where I struggle these days. It seems my brain power is more focused on the miles of pages that need to be read for class, remembering to pick my child up from daycare and staying on top of a job that, at times, consumes more of my life than I'd rather admit. Needless to say, I'm busy and taking time to sit, think, ponder and write (gra...
Read more

Gaining wait...

The heaviness of a few extra pounds compares little to the heaviness of grief. I'm feeling quite heavy these days and am impatiently waiting for a lighter spirit. The Daily Cancer Grind makes me weary and a little over a week ago Robbie's cousin lost her precious 4 month old daughter, Kate. Attending the funeral did little to ease the grief, but spending time with Kate's twin sister, her mommy, daddy and other caring relatives helped (a little) in redirecting the anger I was feeling. Am feeling. The grief in that home was palpable. It breathed, rattled the walls. We are losing patients, naturally...the holidays are approaching. I saw it in the funeral industry and the hospice industry and now the cancer care industry. People decline this time of the year. Not that the holidays are depressing enough. It's different this time though. I'm losing friends. Some of these women I see more than my best gal pals. I'm watching their decline and wishing on anything, everyt...
Read more