Third grade students cut out textures and patterns from magazines to create a City Collage.

Art Lesson Video: City Collages

PowerPoint: City Collages

Supplies:

• 9″ x 12″ paper
• Magazines
• Scissors
• Glue sticks
• Scrap paper to use as glue mats

 

One of the things I have learned this year with our six day rotation schedule is to embrace the madness! It doesn’t matter how hard I try to get all of my classes back to the same spot in the schedule, something will always come up and throw us off. Engaging, one day art projects have become my go-to solution.

I needed a project that was simple enough that my students could finish it in one class period, but challenging enough that they wouldn’t be bored. I decided to go with a collage project that focused on using patterns and texture.

After the first rotation, I realized I needed to emphasize what patterns and textures would look like. I chose a page from a magazine that had examples of what would and wouldn’t work. The most common misconception was that they were supposed to cut out pictures or words.

They really enjoyed looking through the magazines to find interesting patterns and textures. We had a lot of fun conversations and some students were sharing and exchanging pages they had found. There were a few kiddos who needed an initial boost to get started. For them, I went through and pointed out 3-5 patterns or textures that they could choose.

I made a really big deal about “flippy flappies.” When a students brought me their artwork to turn it in, I showed them how to bend it slightly. Any “flippy flappies” that stuck out needed to be glued down more. (When Showcase time came, I was so glad I had done this. Their artwork stayed much more secure in the hallway.)

If I had needed to, I could have extended this to a two day project. Some classes only had a handful that didn’t finish, but in other classes there were 7-10 who needed more time. Several of the students who needed more time were really invested in the project and spent almost their whole Center’s Day finishing it!