Term II Update

Hello 5-8 Art families!

The start of Term II brings great things for all artists, especially the beginning of new projects.

5th grade artists are working on a cuneiform mini-project before heading into Ancient Greece, where artists will focus on learning about Greek gods and goddesses with an emphasis on face proportions and figure drawing.
6th grade artists are finishing up a project titled Islamic Tiles, where they created a mixed media project to simulate radially balanced Islamic artwork. Once this project is complete, students will start looking at textiles and the the influence that trading goods had on the art world. Artists will work on a dynamic weaving project for the remainder of Term II.
7th/8th grade artists just began looking at Lorenzo Ghiberti’s famous artwork Gates of Paradise and are using it as inspiration to create a metal embossed artwork of their choosing that demonstrates the use of space: foreground, middle ground, and background.

 A few reminders for the Art Room: 

• I want to bring to your attention that as every project comes to an end, I upload pictures to the Virtual Art Shows that are located on my website. These slideshows are comprised of exemplary artwork that meets all of the objectives of the project. It is a great tool for students to share their artwork with their family and friends at home since all artwork remains at school until the end of the school year. 
•  There is also a contest page on my website that students can reference to find out information about art contests around the community. We do not always have time in class to create artwork for these contests, which is why I encourage you to work with your child(ren) to make art at home to submit to these contests. They are great opportunities to get artwork shown in the community, and students could also win prizes for their school and/or themselves! I am available to assist with ideas for entries, so if your child is interested, please do not hesitate to send me an email. 
• A sketchbook is a required material for Art! It must come to class with students every time they attend Art. It may be left in the classroom, but must go home on days students have sketchbook homework. Failure to bring their sketchbook to class is failed classroom preparedness, which will result in disciplinary actions for repeat offenders. 
•  I update my Twitter and Instagram more frequently of happenings in the Art Room, including in-progress student artwork, finished artwork, and resources for students. Both you and your child(ren) can follow my accounts to get a digital look into the Art Room. 
• Toward the end of Term I I sent an email home as well as a handout about each Remind class. Please be sure to download the app and enter the class to receive reminder messages about homework - This is a great resource for those students who often forget Art homework assignments, so students are welcomed to join the class as well. 

I look forward to working with your child(ren) throughout Term II on the great art projects ahead of us!

Ms. Strasser

Virtual Art Shows

The 2016-2017 Virtual Art Shows have begun!

As students complete projects, I will take pictures to showcase the best artwork in a digital format. The slideshows can be accessed from any phone, computer, or tablet under the Virtual Art Show tab, so it is a great way to show artwork to friends and family! By the end of the school year, each student will have at least one piece of art on the slideshow.

Enjoy the art show!

FCCS Theatre Group

For those 7th and 8th graders who are a part of Theatre Group - rehearsals will be both Tuesday & Wednesday starting this week. The rehearsals will be over at 4:15. Parents, please be at the school promptly at 4:15 to pick up your child.

Ms. Roper and I are looking forward to seeing this play come to life! More details on show dates are TBA, but keep your calendars open late November/early December.

Elements and Principles Quiz

Students have been reviewing the Elements of Art and Principles of Design so far this year. Classes will be taking a quiz in the upcoming weeks. Students should be using the notes they took in class, as well as the example worksheets they have been completing to study with.

Quiz dates:
5A - 10/4
5B - 10/6
6 - 9/26
Pd 3 - 10/4
Pd 4 - 10/5

FCCS Theatre Club!

Ms. Roper and I are very excited to announce the beginning of FCCS' first official Theatre Club! This club is open to all 7th and 8th grade students and will meet weekly on Tuesdays throughout the school year. Permission slips to join the club are posted outside of the Latin/Chorus room, so please grab one if interested!

We will be engaging in a variety of theatre exercises, as well as preparing for our Winter and Spring plays. Even if you are not interested in acting, we are looking for students who are interested in set design, prop creation, costuming, and advertising. No prior theatre experience is needed!

Permission slips are due back to Ms. Roper this Friday - September 9th. Our first club meeting will be Tuesday, September 13, 3-4 pm. We look forward to working with a group of fun and talented students!

Art Homework

I would like to outline the Art homework policy here so that people can refer back to it throughout the school year.

All 5-8 Art classes will have homework on a weekly basis. Generally the assignments will alternate between sketchbook assignments and readings. Sketchbook assignments should be completed in the sketchbook that students are required to have for class, while reading assignments with questions should be completed on loose leaf paper. Students will receive a paper copy in class on the day it is assigned. If a student is absent on the day homework is assigned, it is their responsibility to come to the art room to retrieve their handout. Homework is also posted on my website on the designated grade's page. This page will contain a link to the assignment, directions, and the due date.

Homework is assigned on the first day a class comes to Art in the week and is due on on that day the following week.* This gives students time during the week and over the weekend to complete their homework, therefore, there is no excuse for homework to not be completed by the due date.

 As middle school students, it is their responsibility to make sure they complete their homework on time. When they are absent, they can conveniently access the assignment from their computer/tablet/smartphone at home. If the students have questions about the homework, they must speak with me or email me before the due date, because I will not accept late homework. Homework must be completed and present in the Art Room on the day homework is due, or it will result in a zero. This means that students may not leave the classroom to get their homework out of their locker or classroom.

*Days with no school will interfere with the homework routine. We will try to keep the same homework pattern as closely as possible, but there may be some weeks where classes have a couple days less or a couple days more to complete their homework.

Happy First Day of School!

Hello & welcome to all new and returning families! I am so excited to be back in school and share my love for all things ART. I use this blog to post homework assignments, as well as additional information for students to use. Each tab at the top of the page will take you to valuable sources that can be accessed easily outside of the classroom. My page is the Virtual Art Show where I will be posting pictures of students' completed artwork!

A Welcome Back packet and syllabus is going home with the students this week. The letter can also be found at the link HERE. The letter is accompanied by a student behavior contract and parent signature that must be signed and returned no later than next week.

If you ever have any questions or concerns, please feel free to contact me. Email is the easiest means for contact since I only have access to my telephone before school.

Thank you,

Ms. Strasser

First Ever FCCS Art Show

I am so happy to announce that FCCS was finally able to put together our first ever Art Show! On Monday, June 13, 2016 Ms. Beverage and I, with the help of lovely volunteers, hung hundreds of pieces of artwork created by all K-8 Art students. With the help of our new gymnasium, we had the perfect location to display all of our students' hard work. Thank you so much for all the families who came out to support the Arts!

Much Ado About Nothing

7th and 8th grade students have been working incredibly hard on their Spring play, Shakespeare's Much Ado About Nothing. Set in modern times, this Shakespearean farce will have you laughing until you cry as you witness Hero and her groom-to-be, Claudio, teaming up with the prince, Don Pedro, to hatch a matchmaking scheme. Their targets are the sharp-witted duo Benedick and Beatrice whose only commonality is a mutual distaste for both love and each other! Meanwhile, the prince's malicious brother, Don John, plots to ruin Hero and Claudio's wedding. Will Hero and Claudio be able to weather this storm of rumor and scandal? Will Benedick and Beatrice fall victim to Cupid's arrow? And the most important question; will Dogberry, the police chief, ever find the perfect doughnut?! 

There will only be three showings of Much Ado About Nothing: Friday, May 27 @ 7 pm, Saturday, May 28 @ noon, and Saturday, May 28 @ 5 pm in the FCCS cafeteria. Tickets must be purchased at school prior to the show. There will be no tickets sold at the door. Tickets are $1 each and must be paid for in exact change. Please see Ms. Roper or myself for ticket sales -- Friday night is completely sold out & Saturday @ 5 pm only has a few tickets left!

Two of our heroes, Benedict & Don Pedro, with the lovely Beatrice

Two of our villains, Conrade & Don John

We Can! Youth Art Competition

A new art contest has been made available to students ages 7-13. This is a great opportunity to get your artwork seen by the public! All of the information is provided below and can also be found on my Contests page in larger form. 

Students can work either alone or in groups to create a window painting that displays the theme We Can ______! Students fill in the blank with how FCCS helps youth in the community. 

In order to participate, students must come to me to fill out a registration form. Registration is due by Friday, May 6!

April Update

Hello families!

Now that the 4th term has started, we are winding down in the Art Room.

5th grade is starting a new project this week on Ancient China's Terracotta Soldiers. We are utilizing one of my favorite art techniques - relief printmaking - to create miniature armies of our own.

6th grade will be finishing up their African masks (a term-long project) in the next two weeks. These masks are seriously looking AWESOME! Students are adding finishing touches by creating designs with paint and additives, like shells, beans, yarn, and raffia.

7th and 8th grade students are so close to completing their multi-step Cubist portraits. Students are using their understanding of color mixing to create tints and shades to try to realistically paint their abstract drawings.

I am looking forward to starting new projects with the 6th and 7th/8th grade classes as May approaches.

Youth Art Month

March is Youth Art Month! To celebrate, each year FCPS holds an exhibit at the Delaplaine. Congratulate the three middle school students chosen to represent FCCS for the YAM exhibit:

Lauren Y. (6th grade)
Samantha F. (7th grade)
Lauren B. (8th grade)

Spring Square 1 Art

Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Dear Parents,

Square 1 Art is back! Each year at FCCS, Art students create a S1A artwork in both the fall and the spring to help raise money for the Art Room. Students will start a S1A drawing in class during the end of February or early March and will complete them at home for homework. There will be a due date for each class (given to students at a later date), but the absolute deadline for this artwork is the morning of Tuesday, March 15, 2016.

I wanted to inform everyone of this assignment early so that you can assist your child(ren) in thinking of an idea for this project. It is important that students put in their best effort because these artworks can be purchased by you or family members.

Some Ideas:

• A summer scene (because the keepsakes will be sent to out in time for summer vacation)
• A self portrait (to remember what your child(ren) looked like during the 2015-2016 school year)
• A pet or favorite animal (for the animal lovers of the world)
• A drawing of something someone would like!

This is a great opportunity for our young artists to see their artwork printed and in return, raises funds so that we can continue to afford materials for the fun and exciting art projects! For more information on Square 1 Art, visit www.square1art.com.

Thank you,

Kacy Strasser

5-8 Art Teacher

Frederick Classical Charter School

Happy New Year!

Welcome back families! I hope everyone had a relaxing Winter Break. I am so excited to be back at school in the New Year so that we can continue making Art!

5th grade students have been learning about Ancient Greece in Art. Due to the Weinberg field trip and the beginning of Winter Break, 5(2) missed two days of Art in December, putting them further behind 5(1). This week 5(1) will begin their second Greek project, while 5(2) will continue their first, the Greek vases. The completed vases from 5(1) are currently on display outside the Art Room, standing on display on the pedestals created by the students based off of the three column types of Greek architecture. Photographs can be seen on my Twitter or Instagram, @MsStrasserArt.

6th grade students have been finishing their practice weavings and beginning on their second, final weaving. I am so pleased by the progress this group has made from the beginning of this project. They are getting the hang of these difficult weaving techniques and are working independently and efficiently. For homework this month students have been looking at art from different African cultures, which ties into their studies with Mr. Kenny. Once weavings are completed in the next couple of weeks, students will be getting a little messy, working with papier-mâché!

 7th and 8th grade students are finishing up with their Gustav Klimt scratch art projects. These young artists have been working diligently to produce such beautiful artworks. Once the scratch art projects are completed, students will begin a multi-step Pablo Picasso-inspired project. I am excited to announce that we will finally bring out the paints, which I know students have been eager to use.

 As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to send me an e-mail. You can follow me on social media for frequent updates on projects and what’s happening in the Art Room! 


Thank you,

Kacy Strasser
kacy.strasser@fcps.org
www.msstrasserart.blogspot.com
@MsStrasserArt