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