Zoo Animals

I'm really excited to feature my students on the blog this week! We had a wonderful art experience, and I wanted to share it! We spent the week learning about zoo animals. We learned about the characteristics of each animal group: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and insects. We used the San Diego Zoo website as our resource. It's a wonderful website with lots of pictures and information! Check out the website! San Diego Zoo

To see more of our Zoo Animals Week, visit my student teacher's blog! Candice Luckett did an excellent job of capturing every moment! Fun with Zoo Animals

We learned that many zoo animals come from Africa, so we decided to paint an African sunset scene. We learned about warm colors, shadows, and silhouettes as we painted. We also learned how to use different paint brushes and brush stroke techniques to create each element of the painting. 

My favorite part of this project was the discussion that took place. We discussed why warm colors were the best choice to represent a sunset. We also discussed why black was a good choice for the giraffe and tree. We talked about how the picture made us feel, and the kids gave their opinions about the artwork. One child said, "This is the best art project we have ever done. I feel like a real artist."   

We used yellow, orange, and red (warm colors) to create the sunset. 

We used a stamping technique with a round brush to create the leaves of the tree.

We used a small brush to create the trunk of the tree. The kids noticed that it is in the shape of the letter Y!

We used a small brush to create the giraffe. We outlined first then filled it in. 

 I think the paintings are beautiful!!!