Grade 1 Paint Explorations

Through the exploration of the viscous, fluid qualities of tempera paint, 1st graders learned how they could create a variety of lines and brushstrokes with their paintbrushes, as well as how they might mix a variety of colors using the primary and secondary colors. They started by looking at “The Mellow Pad” by American painter, Stuart Davis. After identifying a variety of lines they know (long, short, wavy, zig zag, etc.), students considered how they might make their own compositions using various black lines. 

After composing their abstract paintings in black line, they spent the following classes learning about color and how they might match and combine specific colors to make new colors inside their black line shapes. 

Finally, students learned about contemporary artist Elizabeth Murray and considered how they might use lines in a variety of colors to create contrasting patterns on top of the existing shapes.

Please enjoy these beautiful abstract paintings by our First Grade Artists!

Audrey, 1 Sharkey

Joey, 1 Sharkey

Mei, 1 Red

Yamiley, 1 Red

Benjamin, 1 Red

Rafael, 1 Red

Clara, 1 Red

Saniya, 1 Andrade

First Grade Line Monsters

Students in first grade began this project by learning about lines. We read "Lines That Wiggle" by Candace Whitman and "Harold and the Purple Crayon" by Crockett Johnson. We identified various types of lines (straight, curvy, zig zag, bumpy, horizontal, vertical, diagonal, etc.) as we looked at paintings by Sol Lewitt and Stuart Davis, who used lots of lines in their work.

Sol Lewitt

Stuart Davis

After this, students practiced creating a variety of lines by making a drawing of their choosing using all of the lines we learned.
Next class, we read the story "Where the Wild Things Are" by Maurice Sendak. We imagined "if we had our own monster, what might it look like?" We discussed big parts (head, neck, body, arms, legs, wings, tail, etc.) that the body might have as well as small parts (eyes, mouth, nose, ears, eyebrows, horns, etc.). Students spent a class drawing the big and small parts for their monsters in pencil.

After this, students learned about texture (or the way things feel). We identified different textures we could spot in the art studio and on ourselves (bumpy on the bottom of our shoes, fuzzy inside a sweatshirt, smooth floors, etc.). Students learned how they might use a variety of lines to re-present various textures on their monsters.

Students continued creating these beautiful line drawings of monsters by tracing all of their lines with Sharpie, cutting their monsters out and pasting them onto colored paper. Lastly, students spent a couple of classes painting their monsters with tempera cakes. Please enjoy these friendly and fierce Line Monsters!

Mei, 1R

Uriel, 1R

Denise, 1R

MJ, 1R

Zoey, 1R

Kathleen, 1R