Bringing the light from Australia to Finland

Projektin toisen osan toteutus viipyi meillä Kokkolassa opettajan työtapaturman ja sitä seuranneen sairausloman takia. Huomasimme, miten henkilösidonnaisia tällaiset projektit ovat. Ulkopuolinen sijainen ei pysty sisäistämään ja teettämään tehtävää niillä neuvoilla, joita opettaja kotoa käsin voi puhelimella tai sähköpostilla antaa. Tämä toisaalta todistaa sitä, että kuvataide on luonteeltaan sitoutumista ja innostumista vaativa pitkä ajatteluaprosessi. Ei mikään irrallinen ja helppo jäljennystehtävä, niin kun usein luullaan. Kuvataide on omien ajatusten näkyväksi tekemistä ja opettajan osa on johdattaa oppilaat tähän ajatteluun.

Luokkani oppilaat saivat arvotussa järjestyksessä valita Jeremyn luokan oppilaiden kuvista itselleen kirjekaverin, jonka muotokuvan he jäljensivät kuultopaperille. Ensimmäisenä tarkastelimme kuvien lapsia ja yritimme arvailla, millaisia he ovat. Tutkimme asentoja, ilmeitä, eleitä ja ulkonäköä. Joitain vastauksia saatiin, kun opettaja suomensi, mitä oppilaat olivat kertoneet itsestään. Muiden muassa Jeremyn luokan kaksoset herättivät kiinnostusta, kun huomattiin, että kuvissa on kaksi täysin samannäköistä tyttöä. Koska Bullin koulun oppilaita oli enemmän, kuin meitä, muutama oppilas halusi tehdä kahdesta oppilaasta kuvan.

Jatkoimme myös valokuvaamisesta ja valokuvista kuvataiteen keinona puhumista ja yritimme etsiä kuvista mahdollisimman paljon sävyjä ja värejä valkoisesta mustaan. Tutkimme kuvien valoja ja varjoja. Ensimmäiseksi oppilaat värittivät vaaleat eli valon kohdat kuvista. Sitä mukaa kun muotokuvat valmistuivat, ne kiinnitettiin luokan ikkunaan, josta tähän aikaan vuodesta tulee muutaman tunnin ajan valoa ulkoa. Päivä Suomessa on nyt todella lyhyt!

Oppilast kirjoittivat ystävilleen australiaan myös pienet kirjeen. Tehtävänä oli keksiä vähintään kolme kysymystä ja kertoa vähintään kolme asiaa itsestään. Tämä oli hyvä harjoitus myös kielen kannalta, koska olemme opetelleet virkkeen rakennetta : iso alkukirjain, verbi ja päättömerkki. Käänsimme kirjeet googlekääntäjän avulla englanniksi. Tulostetun kirjeen sai koristella mielensä mukaan. Valitettavasti Suomessa alkaa huomenna postilakko, joten kirjeet ja kuvat eivät nyt lähde mihinkään. Lähetämme huomenna niistä kuitenkin kuvat sähköpostilla, joten oppilaat näkevät, mitä posti tuo heille ennemmin tai myöhemmin.

Tehtävä oli mielestämme kaikin puolin mielenkiintoinen. Oli ihanaa ajatella, että maailman toisella puolella on samanikäisiä lapsia, jotka odottavat piirroksiamme ja kirjeitämme. Olemme aidosti kiinnostuneita tutustumaan Jeremyn luokkaan ja Australiaan ja elämään siellä. Oppilaat totesivatkin, että oppilaat näyttävät siellä ihan samanlaisilta kuin meillä kesällä. Täällä Kokkolassa onkin nyt marraskuun 10. päivänä ennätysaikaisin hiihtokeli ja paljon lunta. Välituntileikit taitavat nyt olla melko tavalla erilaisia!

Parhain terveisin Auli ja 2a Mäntykankaan koulu, Kokkola

The second Dear You project was delayed in Kokkola due to the accident at the teacher and the subsequent sick leave. We noticed how student-centered such projects are. The substitute teacher was unable to fulfill the assignment without the advice of the teacher. This, on the other hand, proves that Fine Art is a long process of thinking that requires commitment and enthusiasm. Not a loose and easy imitation task, as you often think. Visual art is about making one's own thoughts visible, and it is part of the teacher to guide students in that thinking.

Students in my class were given the chance to choose from a picture of Jeremy's classmates, in a prized order, a letter-buddy, whose portrait they copied on tracing paper. First we looked at the children in the pictures and tried to guess what they were like. We studied their postures, expressions, gestures and appearance. Some answers came when the teacher translated what the students had said about themselves. Among others, Jeremy's class twins aroused interest when it was discovered that there were two girls who looked exactly the same. Because there are more Bulli School students than us, few students wanted to take a picture of the two students.

 We also continued to talk about photography. Photography as a means of fine art and tried to find as many shades and colors as possible from white to black. We examined the lights and shadows of the pictures. First, the students colored the light, or light spots, in the pictures. As the portraits were completed, they were attached to the classroom window, which at this time of the year will be exposed to light for several hours. The day in Finland is now really short!

Students also wrote short letters to their friends in Australia. The task was to come up with at least three questions and tell at least three things about themselves. This was also a good exercise for the language as we learned the structure of the sentence: capitalization, verb and ending. We used google translator to translate the letters into English. You could decorate the printed letter as you wish. Unfortunately, Finland will start a postal strike tomorrow, so now letters and pictures will not go anywhere. However, we will email them tomorrow, so students will see what the mail brings them sooner or later.

We thought the task was interesting in every way. It was wonderful to think that there were children of the same age on the other side of the world waiting for our drawings and letters. We are genuinely interested in getting to know Jeremy's class and Australia and living there. The students said that the students there look exactly like us in the summer. Here in Kokkola, on November 10th, there is a record-breaking ski run and plenty of snow. The break play now seems to be quite different!

 Best regards,
Auli and 2a at Mäntykangas School, Kokkola

The 2nd graders from Mäntykankaan koulun in Kokkola, Finland are making and sharing art with the 1st and 2nd graders from Bulli Public School in Bulli, Australia.

Transposing friends in Kokkola from Bulli

Nell’s transposition of Alisa.

The students here at Bulli Public School were very excited to see pictures of their art buddies (or “pen pals” as they’ve been saying). They were amazed that a lot of the qualities that they wrote about themselves (friendly, creative, funny, brave, etc) where also qualities that their Finnish friends also mentioned. We’re all different but the same !

For Dear You Project 2 we began by discussing what we thought about the person portrayed in the picture, and what emotions that came to mind. Initially common traits were spoken about, like “funny, nice, cool, friendly”. I encouraged them to think deeper, and to analyse what that person might be like if they met them in person. This prompted better responses like “wonderful, shy, helpful, imaginative, compassionate”.

Next, based on the range of transposition methods outlined in the YouTube clip supplied, we chose to trace onto blank paper via back lighting provided by a window. I modelled how to do this, emphasising how important it was to sketch every line and shadow, and not simply draw the outline of the person’s face. After the sketching stage I encouraged them to write down the qualities that they observed from the transposed image, and to add colour via pencils and pastel crayons.

After finishing the artworks, I encouraged them to write a message to their Finnish friends, in an effort to get to know them better. We used google translator to write our questions in Finnish.

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After reflecting on the finished artworks the students observed that the personality traits a person has are the same no matter if the image is a photo, or a sketch. Also students noted that the transposed sketch intensified the emotions or feelings that the picture showed. For example, if a person looked “kind” from observing the photograph, the person looked even more so in the sketch. An interesting revelation for them.

Regards,
Jeremy Gudze 

1/2G Classroom Teacher
Bulli Public School

The 2nd graders from Mäntykankaan koulun in Kokkola, Finland are making and sharing art with the 1st and 2nd graders from Bulli Public School in Bulli, Australia.

Artists from Australia gather for a day of making art!

We began home schooling our 6 year old daughter last year and were thrown into a new area where we have bonded with some wonderful families here in Geelong, Australia. As an artist myself I had been thinking of doing workshops with a small group of the community and Dear You seemed like a great way to begin the journey.

I asked two other families to join us as a pilot (so we could all fit into my house) and we began. The kids were all excited to see each other so they had a run around and catch up - as did us mums – and then we gathered around the table. We began by discussing about ourselves and about what uniqueness means. Many of them wanted to get into the activity and were shy to discuss so after a short discussion we began drawing and each talking while we worked about our travels, the things we like and our body parts. They were all interested in learning more about Ireland, the other group and children. They were not sure exactly what to share but enjoyed the notion of someone far away sending them something.

Next session we will incorporate geography and speak about the country and area our friends are from. Also showing them what our friends have sent them will encourage them to share more about themselves as it all seems much more real. Looking forward to the next meet up and in getting something special in the mail.

Amal Laala

The home schoolers in Geelong, Australia are making and sharing with the homeschoolers in Derreen, Ireland.

One idea leads to another

As the students in Taizhou listened to their friend's soundscapes their ideas started to grow. Here you can see how each mind map is unique and how we all interpret sounds, images, and emotions in different ways. Loving the translation process in these artworks!

Teachers Miss Wu Juehua and Lisa did an amazing job encouraging their students to be as creative, open, and experimental as they can be. Thank you!

The artists in Grade 2 (8-9 years old) at Taizhou Pheonix Primary School in Jiangsu, China are making and sharing art with the artists at Linguajoy (7-10 years old) in Helsinki, Finland.

Upeita taideteoksia Päiväkoti Pihapirttista!

Paketti on saapunut! The package has arrived!

Hello! Beautiful thank you for your artworks, they were great! Here are our responses to your artworks :). Let's keep in touch! Kanelit/Eskarit/ Päiväkoti Pihapirtti.

Monkeys tekivät suoraan taidenäyttelyn ystävänsä taideteoksista!
The Monkeys immediately made an art exhibition of their friends' artworks!

The 6 year old artists at Päiväkoti Pihapirtti in Helsinki, Finland are making and sharing art with the 6 year old artists from Your School in Espoo, Finland.

In winter 2018 Dear You project in Kontula is supported by the Museum of Impossible Forms.

Questions lead to more questions

The Tigers really know how to create a welcoming and artistic environment! They had so many questions and things to share even before we got started with The art of asking questions project! This sort of excitement is the inspiration every artist looks for!

We started the session by first looking at the artworks we received from the Full Moons. WOW!! We talked about what their pictures were communicating and was wondering about all sorts of things about our new friends. The questions started pouring out so we made a long list and then founds ways to put image to the text.

Some wonderful questions and explanations of the Tigers' pictures:
Vanessa asked, "What countries have you been to?" She drew a picture of the world.
Olivia drew a house because she asked, "Where do you live?"
Rishitha asked, "When is your birthday?" In the picture, "there are fireworks and my birthday."
Mikelis asked, "Where do you live?" He said, "I drew the house. I drew a mother house with a wheel on the top of another house."
Nea asked, "What is your favorite food?" She drew a picture of pasta.
Cride asked, "Do you like to go swimming?" and drew a swimming pool.
Achu asked, "Who is your friend?" "I drew a friend who is having a birthday."
Oskari asked, "What is your favorite shirt?" "I drew my favorite shirt!"
Erik asked, "What do you like to play?" "My favorite toy is a castle. It's at home."
Aapo asked, "Do you like shark tornadoes?"
Arn asked, "What is your favorite shirt?"
Renu asked, "What does your room look like?" "It's a picture of my room."
Joann asked, "What is your favorite color?" "Rainbow!"
Anton asked, "What do you like to play?" "What do you do when you are outside?"

We also came up with MORE questions!

What do you watch? What house were you in when you were small? Do you have a tv?

We hope you like our artwork! We like yours a lot!!

Our best,
The Tigers, Arlene, Iveta, and Atefeh

The Tigers from Your School Espoo, Finland are making and sharing with the Full Moons from Moonstone Preschool in Philadelphia, USA. Both groups are 4-5 years old.

I am unique!

Heather Connelly, local artist to Nottingham and Dear You workshop leader, introduces to Class 4 where there new friends abroad live. In China!

Class 4 had a fantastic art workshop thinking all about the topic of what makes them unique and how we are all different. After having completed some homework beforehand about their families, appearance, DNA, likes and dislikes, travel and heritage, the children were ready to explore their ideas in art. Heather showed us some fantastic images of how celebrated artists have created pieces focused on the differences in the human body and the idea of a map to represent uniqueness. The children then discussed how they were all different and how this diversity can be represented in artwork. The children loved comparing their fingerprints, as well as talking about their different heritages and how this influences their daily lives. 

After discussing the ways in which uniqueness and the idea of 'self' could be represented in art, the children then started practising their own ideas. Many children created a pencil drawing of the lines of their hands and their fingerprint. The patterns created on paper were brilliant! One of the children commented, "My fingerprint is completely different from my friend's. That means I'm unique. That's pretty amazing!" I hope it is clear that this uniqueness is expressed in the children's fantastic artwork. 

During this practice stage, many children were fascinated with how lines and simple patterns could be so effective in artwork. They soon realised that art is not a perfect picture with recognisable objects; it could instead be a representation of themselves through basic lines, swirls and strokes of their pencils. The children then used carbon paper to transfer their drawings, which created an interesting texture on the paper. Some pupils loved using the carbon ink to create more texture, which represented their own characteristics! 

Having looked at all of the pieces of artwork, I think it is apparent that Class 4 are a very talented and unique group of children! No piece of artwork is the same, and the little slips of paper tell the story of the artistic process for each child. 

We are all very excited to receive the artwork from our partner school and to complete our next piece of art! 

Many thanks, 
Alice Wilby

The artists in Class 4 (8-9 year olds) at Sneinton C of E St Stephens Primary School in Nottingham, England are making and sharing art with Grade 3 (9-10 year olds) at Taizhou Pheonix Primary School in Jiangsu, China.

Our Shadow Selves from Canada

Unfortunately we had very poor weather with gray skies and rain for much of the time, so were unable to check out our shadows outside. As a result, we created our "shadow selves" by reflecting what we felt and liked on the inside, into a drawing for others to see. We gave our nod to the idea of shadows (e.g., being dark) by drawing with charcoal on the black background. The students really liked the opportunity to explore and draw the things that they liked and that represented them with charcoal. They were very eager and excited to explore both the medium and the topic!

To see the wonderful presentation Kaarina made of the artworks and creative process, please click here.

Kaarina Losey

Kaarina Losey is the 6th grade teacher at Ryerson P.S. in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada.  Her group of artists are making and sharing art with the Päivi Huhtinen and her group of 6th graders from The English School in Helsinki, Finland.

The Tigers shadow play

How are shadows made?  What are they?  How can we play with them?

We first started this Dear You workshop by exploring different ways of creating shadows using natural light and flashlights. The light was shining so beautifully that day in Espoo that we didn't need to try so hard! 

After we got the hang of shadows we then used it to create artwork! Some of us took a more realistic approach and others took a more imaginative and symbolic approach. During the artistic process a few Tigers wanted to turn their creations into shadow puppets!  

At the end of the workshop, we all gathered around and shared thoughts about our own works and what we thought about our fellow artists' creations.

L: V's drawing made me real scared.

Ad: I saw that my shadow looked silvery.

Misk: The shadow of myself.

R: It's the shadow of my hand on the floor.

Ne: I draw what my body looks like with a heart. I like Miska's shadow.

P: My shadow portrait is a story of my family and the jungle. My daddy is 99 and my mommy is 36.

U: Neha's artwork is awesome. I drew the shadow of my hand. My hand controls everything.

V: How was it possible that the pencil shined when we used it on black cardboard? My shadow portrait is a long story about me and some animals.

So much amazing insight!

With love,
The Tigers, Arlene, Toti, and Zeynab

The 4-5 year old Tigers from Your School in Espoo, Finland are making and sharing with the 4-6 year olds in KG2E from Collegiate American School in Dubai, U.A.E. 

Shadowing our shadows in Singapore!

Moving from shadows of constructions to shadows of people was interesting. Shadows that move and shadows from still objects differ. Sometimes objects do not move but their shadows do.

When Arlene shared a sample of a picture of shadows, I pondered how children might think and draw about their shadows . Initally children drew the shadows of their friends at the carpark.. Then they drew shadow images of their friends on the paper. It was tough for friends to keep still. But what was even more challenging was drawing their own shadows. They shared that it was nearly impossible after trying.  Watching a shadow drama on youtube helped children realise that they could actually form different shapes with their body. 

Sometimes the shadows do not look anything like how we expect them to be. E.g. Caitlin formed the shape of a table but the shadow formed under her was different from the shadow that appeared on the side wall. The shadow did not appear like a table on the floor. Sometimes they look abstract and formless but at times they look like something else, decieving our eyes.

This was what children shared:

Jordan: Can you see an elephant spraying water? Can you see a lion eating a Zebra? Can you see a giraffe trying to fight a tiger? Oops! I forgot to draw the tiger!

Xi Wen: Can you see a giraffe? Can you see a dinosaur? Can you see a sea-lion? Can you see a chair and a castle?

Lin Jia Wen: Can you see an elephant eating a carrot? Can you see a Prince and a Princess?

Oliver: Can you see a lion growling?

Leeann: Can you see a panda at the Zoo? Can you see the Prince and Princess too?

Emilia: Can you see a giraffe eating leaves? Can you see a human shadow?

Caitlin: Can you see lines inside each of the shadows? But how can a shadow dance by itself?

Advaith: Can you see armours here? Can you see a dinosaur roaring?

Aahan: Can you see a shadow of a lepoard? Can you see the shadows on my name?

Avinaash: Can you see the shadow of a tiger? Can you see the shadow of a tall building and a house?

Warm Regards,

Rachel

The 3-4 year old artists from EtonHouse Bilingual Pre-school in Singapore are making and sharing art with the 3-4 year old artists from Oakdale Montessori Preschool in Cape Town, South Africa.

Welcome home!

The children loved this assignment! 

How to fold and cut and which way to crease the paper was a great experience for the children. 

The kids love the assignments and your projects inspire them to look for various art work with attention to how that particular art work is made. They think as artists. 

Thank you,
Dance A. Vasileska

The 4th graders from Ryerson Public School in Cambridge, Canada are making and sharing art with the 10 years olds from Kepa School in Karelia, Russia. 

Have a seat in our home!

All the Monkeys were very eager to share what their homes are like. What a welcoming bunch of artists! We described what our homes look like, what kind of textures we can find there, even what kind of smells would be cooking in the kitchen. We got us really inspired was thinking about what part of our home is the most comforting. Using pop-up techniques, collage, and drawing we recreated our favorite part of our home!

Ka: This is my panda lying down on the sofa. The curtains and windows are here. There are two doors at my house. The house is white.

Ol: THis is my teddy bear. I have a sofa, door, and my house is brown.

Aa: I have a tv and a painting on the wall.

No: There is dust in my home. There are chairs and tables.

Cs: I have a couch and my dad and brother are at home. I see the table, bedroom, and my toys.

Iu: I have a table and my dolls, my computer, my toy cat, my pencils, sofa and chair, and fish.

Er: My couch, carpet, and door.

Ak: I have lamps, carpet, sofa and a teddy bear.

Lu: I see the sky and the tv and chairs.

We hope our friends in Dubai like our artwork and welcome to Finland!

With love,
The Monkeys, Arlene, Ben, and Atefeh

The 6 year old Monkeys from Your School in Espoo, Finland are making and sharing with the 4-6 year olds in KG2D from Collegiate American School in Dubai, U.A.E. 

Saying so much through art works!

We received the package from South Africa today – and the kids were so relieved, they have been waiting for so long, they said.

It also took more time than we thought to finish the home´s project.  But the kids loved it so much, some of them put more than their family members on the picture like some zombies (might be an influence from computer games). On most of them you can see that the children are thinking about summer, even cherry-trees (which don´t grow here) are in one garden.

All the best,
Halla and Guðný

The 1st and 2nd graders from Grunnskóli Fjallabyggðar in Siglufjörður, Iceland are making and sharing art with the preschoolers from Oakdale Preschool in Cape Town.

We took a picture today of the kids playground, we have had snow today.

Welcome home! Stories from Singapore

When we realised that the topic on 'Building a Home' has come up again after Lay of the Land, there was a room for doubt about how differently children might react to the same theme with little twist in the provocations. 

Our children gave physical descriptions of their homes by talking about the shapes and surfaces and made comparisons with their peers'. 

During our whole group meeting, children shared about how they could connect all their pop-up homes and make a City not realising that it was the intention of the Author too. 

Interviewing each child based on the suggested questions gave us an insight about individuality in their thinking. Creating a pop-up home encouraged children to think about dimensions in their homes. They loved it.

Your home says so much about you. What is your home like?  Is it in an apartment complex or is it a single building with a garden?  What do the surfaces of your home feel like? Think about others who live in this home. What if you could fold up your home and take it everywhere with you? What parts of your home would you want to carry with you on your travels?

Avinaash: My house has a rectangle roof. There is an automatic door too. There is another door which you need to use the key to open. It is a single building with a garden. The floor usually feels cold. My daddy, Mummy, me and my brother and my Grandmother stay with me. I would love to take my plane room along with me wherever I go. There are many toys in that room.

Jing Ru: My house has a rectangle roof. There is a gate at the garden. There is a staircase near the garden. The staircase will take us to the shoe-rack where we put our shoes. It is a single building with a medium sized garden. My Mummy, Daddy, me and my two aunties stay there. I have a very big dog too. I would like to carry my playroom along with me where ever I go. It makes me feel happy.

Emilia: My home has a dining area and there is where you walk then you see the study room and then you can see my room and then my Mummy’s and Daddy’s room. I have a balcony. I have a tricycle out at the balcony and a small scooter and one balance bike. I live in a condominium where many people stay in one building. There are three swimming pools at my place. My sofa feels soft. My floor feels hard. I would love to bring my room wherever I go because it makes me happy.

Caitlin: My house has lots of pointy things outside. The driveway of the hall is cracking. It is very old. There are rectangular windows on the first floor which are very big. They don’t have grills. You can just unlock it by pulling something up that makes a click sound and slide the window. I feel that my home is bigger than the school but I don’t think so because it only has two levels. I would love to bring my toy room along with me wherever I go because it has many toys. I have got a lot of games to play with you.

Jiang Xi Wen: There are many trees near my house. When I take the lift, I see some lights in the lift. Once the door opens you need to walk to the house with the white door. When you open the door you will see my brother making a tree. He is making a decoration. My mummy, Daddy, brother and sister stay with me. I like to bring my kitchen wherever I go because there is so much fun in there. I can make bubbles in the kitchen by filling a cup with water and adding soap.

Aahan: My home is white and green. I live in a tall building together with other people. It also has other condos. My sofa is soft and the wall is hard. My floor has some kind of rock designs on it. My Mummy, Daddy, brother and aunty stay with me. My friend Etsa visits me sometimes. I like my bedroom the most and would like to take it along wherever I go. I have a bed which opens up. You can find some pillows, blankets and bed-sheets in there.

Oliver: There is one bed for my Papa and Mama and one bed for my sister and a bed for me. I have one big pool and two small swimming pools. My sister likes to play in the toy room. The toys are supposed to be in the living room but they are on my bed. There is a garden next to my home. My floor is smooth and white. I would love to take my toy room wherever I go. I can play the toys. But when it is time for us to go out, we cannot play.

Lin Jia Wen: I live with my Mom, Dad, brother and my aunty. My sofa feels rough. My floor is white. But the floor in my Mummy’s room is brown. My brother’s room and my room are also brown. My house is in a tall building. Other people also stay in the building. There is a car park outside my house. My Mummy parks her car there. I like my room the most. I would like to bring my room wherever I go because my Mummy allows me to draw on my own room wall.

Jordan: My house is like a nature park because there are many flowers and plants growing in my garden. My Mom and uncle grow them. My Daddy, Mummy, sister and aunty stay in my house. I have two pet dogs and one cat. My cat is a good climber. You will see my door and staircase when you enter my house. I have a baby doll in my room. I would like to bring my bike wherever I go.

Advaith: In my living room, the floor has got some square patterns. In my room, the flooring is similar to those in my classroom, wood floor, goldenish brown. The walls are bumpy as though they have mini mountains on the walls. My parents share the home with me. My house is on level three but there are people living above my level. I would love to bring my own bedroom wherever I go because it is so full of toys (although it is not possible).

Julian: My bedroom has powder, body-cream and toys. I also have train tracks and trains. My floor has square patterns and marks on it. My wall is smooth and white. My sofa’s armrest is hard. The back part is also hard. The bottom is cushion and is so soft. My Mummy, Daddy, Grandpa, Grandma, Tita, Oli and Kristin share the home with me. I have a muslin blanket on my bed to smell and fall asleep.

Zhu Yu Hang: My house has a lift. I live on the third floor. I have to take the lift everyday to go back home. My house is grey. There is swimming pool down stairs. There is a toy in my house. It is my favourite. It is a rocket. I take it wherever I go.

Warm Regards,
Rachel & Nan Nan

The 3-4 year old artists from EtonHouse Bilingual Pre-school in Singapore are making and sharing art with the 3-4 year old artists from Oakdale Montessori Preschool in Cape Town, South Africa.

Hearing sounds like walking in the snow

They closed their eyes and to make sure no one was using their eyes, they put their hats over their eyes as you can see on the pictures attached.

Some of them were „hearing“ sound of nature, like wind and walking in the snow, but most of them thought of sounds of machines, washing machine, cars, hammer and also f. ex shouting of their sisters and brothers at home.

They were trying their best – and they could stay quiet while they listened.

Guðný and Halla.

The 1st and 2nd graders from Grunnskóli Fjallabyggðar in Siglufjörður, Iceland are making and sharing art with the preschoolers from Oakdale Preschool in Cape Town.

We are larger than life!

Toti, Zeynab and the Tigers were getting ready to create pop ups! They could not wait to show me and their friends in Dubai the dinosaur helmets they made!

We started the workshop with taking a mental journey to our home. What do you we see in the living room? Which couch do we like to snuggle up on? How does that couch feel? After taking a tour we looked closely at different kinds of texture. We then practiced different drawing techniques on how to create texture.  Putting all of our knowledge together we created our pop-up homes that tried to capture what we like the most in the place we feel at peace.

Nit: A chair I use to relax. All my family can sit on it. It's gray, black and white and it's very smooth.

Neh: I have a sofa in my living room I use to relax and watch tv. It's made of hard cushions. I also have an eating chair.

Raf: I have a soft bed with pillows. My home is very colorful.

Vih: I have a gym room in my home where my mommy keeps my cloths. I have a toy dinosaur that is rough and I play with it.

Ume: My home has a seat in the living room. We eat there. Our seat is big. It's cold and icy, it's blue and yellow. We have pictures of stars, moons, and snowflakes.

Pau: This is my sofa. It's in my living room and it's white. It's a little bit hard and it's made of wood.

Adr: In my home there is a sofa in the middle and there are some decorations on the carpet. The sofa has white, red, green and brown decorations on it. The sofa is made of wood and has comfortable cushions.

Dha: This is my home when I was a baby. The sofa was brought by my mom and dad. And while my big sister was at school I always sat on the sofa with my mommy. The sofa is brown. It was soft and comfortable, but now it's a bit old.

Lil: This is my kitchen where I eat food. There are 2 chairs. One is my sister Elle's and the other one is mine. My chair is made out of wood and some soft material.

Ath: Here is my living room. There is a big tv and black curtains. We sit on the ground and chairs. The ground is soft and brown. I like to sit on the ground to watch tv.

Welcome, friends, to our home!

With love,
The Tigers, Arlene, Toti, and Zeynab

The 4-5 year old Tigers from Your School in Espoo, Finland are making and sharing with the 4-6 year olds in KG2E from Collegiate American School in Dubai, U.A.E. 

How many sounds are there?!?!

The children were surprised at how many different sounds there were! Some children said our world is very noisy and that wouldn't it be sad if we couldn't hear. We wondered if our friends in United Arab Emirates would hear the same sounds.

The 5 and 6 year old artists in Class 1 at Sneinton C of E Primary School in Nottingham, England are making and sharing art with the 4 to 6 years olds in KG2B at Collegiate American School in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Here now. Feeling silly ; )

Some students could actually hear their heartbeat and their blinking and breathing as we tried it the second time... some just got a bit silly after seeing their "now" drawings.

It was a fun experience, but I think I would have preferred to do it in smaller groups of students, so that they maybe wouldn't be as easily influenced by one or two "silly" students.

To view the Lay of the Land presentation click here.

Kaarina :)

Kaarina Losey is the 6th grade teacher at Ryerson P.S. in Cambridge, Ontario, Canada.  Her group of artists are making and sharing art with the Päivi Huhtinen and her group of 6th graders from The English School in Helsinki, Finland.

Sounds around us!

This is how we see the sounds that surround us at different times of the day, month, year, our life. It is interesting to see the children becoming aware of and discovering the surrounding sounds. They talked about sounds they hear at night in their houses. Some of the sounds looked like tornado. They described and wondered about the sound of a falling star. They pictured the sounds at school, the school bus, and the sound of the quiet time before bed to create their triptychs.

Great conversations and lots of fun!

Thank you,
Dance A. Vasileska

Вот так мы видим звуки, которые окружают нас в разное время дня, месяца, года и нашей жизни. Интересно наблюдать, как дети начинают обращать внимание и открывать для себя звуки вокруг. Они говорили о звуках, которые слышат ночью у себя дома. некоторые напоминали торнадо. Они описали и попытались представить себе звук падающей звезды. На триптихах они изобразили звуки в школе, в школьном автобусе и тихие звуки вокруг перед сном. 

Спасибо,
Dance A. Vasileska

The 4th graders from Ryerson Public School in Cambridge, Canada are making and sharing art with the 10 years olds from Kepa School in Karelia, Russia.