Adinkra Cloth Printmaking

In honor of Black History Month, my second graders are going to be learning about Adinkra Cloths.  I show the students a PowerPoint about the Adinkra Cloths and how they are made.  We learn that Adinkra clothes are hand printed fabrics that the Ashanti people of Ghana made.  



I ask the students what is a symbol?  We talk about symbols that we see in our everyday life such as the apple for mac computers, A peace Sign, the American Flag etc.  I explain to them that the Ainkra clothes are made up of symbols.  I give them a handout of some of the most commonly used symbols.  





This project involves many concepts and skills such as drawing, Printmaking, Self Portraits, and working with Mixed. Media.  

1. The first step is Printmaking.  

• Students get sketch paper and must make 4 sketches of different symbols.
•   Students then get three  2in x 2in square of styrofoam to make their best three symbols into stamps.  I demonstrate to the students how they are to use their pencil to make indents into the styrofoam.  They need to make it deep enough without going through the styrofoam and making a hole.   
• The students get a 12inx12in piece of tan paper.  They fold it in half to make 16 squares total.  
• I put out printmaking trays (they are slanted with a pit at the bottom for the paint.. this way the rollers can get dipped in the paint and then roll up the ramp to fully cover the roller & get rid of excess paint)  They are given red, blue, green, and yellow.  
• Students roll the paint onto their symbols and stamp them into the boxes pressing hard.  I point out to them that each symbol needs to stay one color OR they need to watch their symbol before switching colors.  
• THe students get black paint and different rollers and plastic forks to add borders around their symbols.

  

African Masks

I have a special education class where the kids range from 8-11 and have an array of disabilities  which makes for quite a challenge.  This lesson interested all of them and the older kids were able to help the younger. I altered this lesson by making a bunch of different shaped masks  the students could choose from and trace.  Depending on the ability of your class, the kids could draw their own to create more variety of masks. 

 I showed them a PowerPoint Presentation showing them all different styles of African Masks  I pointed out the different shapes, animal qualities, and designs that the masks had.  

"I Have a Dream"

In honor of Black History Month, My first graders and I honored Dr. Martin Luther King JR. by celebrating the freedom & equality that we all have today.  We talk about how things used to be and how that would make them feel.  We talk about how Brave Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was.  I show them a great animated movie so that they get an idea of how things used to be.  

Martin had a dream that one day little black boys and girls will be holding hands with little white boys and girls.  

Did his dream come true?  What is your dream?

 

 The students drew themselves achieving their dream in a dream bubble and then they colored in a picture of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  What great goals they have!  

Shoe Monsters

My Little Pre-Kers are so much fun!  This was a very texture-filled project which was great for this class!  For Black History Month we learned about Jan Ernst Matzeliger who invented the Shoe Lasting machine, which connected the upper part of the shoe to the sole, a painstaking process that was usually done by hand. This invention revolutionized the shoe making industry.  

•  We started by taking model magic and rolling it out.  Next I had each student lay their model magic on a piece of newspaper and place it on the floor.  The students pressed their foot into the clay.  THe aids and I helped make sure the kids were pressing their shoe hard enough and getting all of the edges.  THe bottom of shoes make great patterns/designs!  
• THe adults used a knife to cut off the extra clay
• I showed the kids how to make simple shapes out of the clay.. We rolled it into our hands to get balls, I showed them how to twist two colors together, and how to pull it to make it long and skinny for an arm or leg.  
• The Next class the kids glued their dried Monster Bodies to a Piece of rail road board.  This is thicker paper which supports the heaviness of the clay.  
• Today we decorate the Monsters.  Different supplies were placed at each set of desks and the students rotated.  We encouraged the kids to be as silly as possible.  

Look At the Happy Monsters they Created!!

Black History Month Displays

Walls without artwork are always so sad to me so I try to fill up every empty wall I can find in the school!  Here is a paper mural done for our Black History Month Concert.  It really brightens up the dull Cafeteria!  

Here is our school's work being displayed at the Board of Education Building.  I love showing off our talented students!!  

This was a display of all their Black History Month Projects.