This piece started at the construction center. After letting it dry for a week, the artist carefully mixed paint to come up with just the right tints and shades.

This small sculpture us made from cardboard and decorated with pastels and yarn.

"He is a scarecrow, I made him with the collage scraps." -kindergartner 

"This 'raptor is funny, because he has a santa hat on! Isn't that silly?" -third grader 

Kindergarten drawing

Persistence

I have to tell you, one of the most exciting things for me, as an art teacher, is to see a student conceive an idea and carry it to fruition. Especially when it takes a great deal of time. A fifth grader started this pillow on the first day of art class. She worked on it steadily for the next SEVEN weeks. I think it's lovely, don't you?

 "I put different things on the paper to make it look the way I wanted. Both sides are sort of matching, but a little different."

"I saw these on the ground when I was at recess, and I got an idea to use them at art."

Because I don't have enough stuffing to satisfy all the pillow makers and stuffed creature creators, I (along with my students), hoard all the tiny scraps of fabric, yarn, and thread. This goes in to a large box and the kids use it to fill their fiber artworks. I supplement this stash with bits of old tee shirts, sheets, socks with too many holes, and any other thing too worn to sew up. The students love to dig through and find bits and pieces for other purposes, though!

This tiny person comes complete with its own pillow  bed and blanket.

 "This dinosaur is so funny, it has a Santa hat on!"

 "I traced different shapes to make a picture. They're dancing"

 "At first I didn't want to paint it, but I like how it looks now. I just wish it could stand all by itself."

 Two second graders devised this chess set 

 The artists that created this were thrilled that they managed to balamce the side walls.

 This is a castle with a moat and drawbridge. (The blue blocks are the water!)

"It's a teeny tiny collage guy, Mrs. Dyer!"