Hearts and Smarts: Block Printing #1, Collagraphs, & 21st Century Grant

My school is a Title I school. We won this AMAZING grant (half a million $ over 5 years!) that provides funds to pay teachers and other volunteers to lead kids in before and after school clubs, to help bridge the gap between parents that can afford to give their kids a variety of experiences, and those that cannot.

Here is a link with more info on the grant if you think your school could qualify: 21st Century Grant

I decided to lead an Art Club and a computer coding club. Our kids are lucky to get PE and Music classes taught by separate knowledgable teachers, but don't have Art classes yet, so I thought that my club would be a great opportunity for them.

The grant also provides the funds for clubs to get amazing supplies... which as someone who loves art, had me salivating instantly. Think of all the materials and supplies that we could get to do some really cool stuff!!!!!

This summer in our summer camp, I did some block printing with kids on styrofoam in grades 1-6.

The kids etched a drawing into a piece of styrofoam, and used it to print. I loved this, because kids could roll their own ink, and print with multiple hues simply by cutting out shapes from their styrofoam image.

This year in Art Club, my 4-6 graders are starting with a collagraph poster. They chose a quote that they liked, and drew/cut the letters out of foam. They then glued them on to cardboard to make a stamp. You can use a mirror to have kids check their image to make sure their letters are arranged correctly.

Then, you have the kids roll printing ink on them, and stamp on to paper. We haven't finished them yet for stamping, but I will post the pictures when they are all done!

Keep Calm and Mine On! (All the kids are MineCraft OBSESSED)