Second Graders Art Auction Project

Here is my example for the second graders art auction project. As I have mentioned in the past, I always create the project first to make it easier to teach the process. 

These pieces are done on a 6" x 6" watercolor paper. I used painter tape to mask off the birch trees. I think this will be the hardest part of the process for the second grade students. I'm cutting the tape pieces, but they will still have to peal it off and press it down smoothly so that the paint doesn't flow underneath.

The next part is painting the background colors with watercolor, letting that dry and then pulling off the tape. I used a watery blue paint to create the shadows on the tree and the birch lines. In the night version of the painting I put dots of acrylic white paint to make stars.

I'm planning on mounting the two finished pieces side by side from each student on a black board. I don't plan to frame each piece, I'll leave that up to the winner. 

Choosing Projects for the Art Auction

Choosing projects for my upcoming April Art Auction has been challenging. I want the projects to be more than just fingerprints or a poster of multiple student pieces. I want kids to create pieces that I'd put on my wall in my home.

3rd-5th Grade Project

I have a huge skills gap between kindergartners and fifth graders, so I've kept that in mind during my search. My Third-Fifth grade students will be doing an acrylic painting of Koi Fish, individually. It is a painting that teaches them how to layer paint, and will span across three class periods. It is also a great lesson on composition and arranging a painting. Here is an example of the piece they will recreate with their own personal flare.

The Second grade piece, which I will post a sample of after I've completed it, will be a watercolor of birch trees. I've seen this done on multiple sites and can't wait to see how it goes. The students will do two paintings. One painting with be with the lighting at night, and one at sunrise. Each student will have both of their pieces mounted side by side and auctioned off that way.

The First graders will be creating Mondrian-inspired pieces, using primary colors. Again they will be small pieces so that I can mount three students per mat board (won't that create some bidding wars, tee hee.)

One of my Kindergarten classes will be painting a 2-D tea cup. Using crayon and watercolors, they will have the freedom to design their tea cup with shapes and colors. I will be stacking five tea cups on each other and mounting them on one mat board.

My other Kindergarten class will be doing flowers and vases (2-D) using watercolors and acrylics. I'll be taking the flower bloom of five students and creating a 2-D bouquet and choosing five of the best vases to hold them.

I'll be creating samples of each of these pieces and post them as I go. Now that I've decided what will go into the auction, I will be creating a supply list and calendar for myself. It will be one thing to have the students create all the beautiful pieces, it will be another for me to pull it all together and mount them professionally.

We are already planning a week of preview in our school's entrance before the auction to get the parents and children excited. One concern I have is deciding whether every child gets to be a part of the auction or only the best artists. It is difficult to be that kind of judge, even if that is part of life, but I won't need to make that decision until much later.