Make Your Mark, prt II

I checked out "Ish" form my local library for the very first time this year and this is the first time year.

It's about Ramon, who feels he can't draw until his sister, Marisol, points out his vase is vase-ish.  Ramon then looses his self doubt and has drawn "ishly" ever since.  

I point out that this means there are no wrongs, but I'm getting blank stares.  Is this really a hard concept?!
We're painting to go along with "Ish."  It's actually going very well, surprisingly well.  I made home mats for all the supplies (they aren't laminated yet, so I'm making another set to laminate) and everything stays on/in it's home spot.

Pretty grungy from 6 class a day for 6 days.

Things aren't moving around the table as much and only two water cups have been knocked over (not big spills though) out of all 36 classes.  I made these during Open House.  I had to stay for on hour one night (we split ours over five days) and I stayed for 1st grade's.  Usually I get a few visitors, not even a handful, but a enough to justify my time.  This year, none.  NOT A ONE.  I don't think it helped that right as parents were released to visit classrooms after the Admins' spiel, there was a five minute downpour.  No one would want to leave the comfort of the awnings to cross over the not even ten foot uncovered, unprotected space to get to my awning and room.  Nope, not a single parent.  I know this because I didn't want to walk around the unprotected corner to MY OWN child's room to talk to his teacher.  Nope, didn't want to do it.  So I spent my hour making anally retentive, OCD mats for my tables for paint supplies.

I may have to make ANOTHER set so that they just say paint.

I'm having the kids do a white crayon resist with our paint.  It's amazing how much thrill they get out of  this "magic" painting technique after a brief "Trust me, it's the best, most fun way to do this project."  I did have a few fuddy duddy first graders who just wouldn't trust me, so they used the black crayon we wrote our names with.  

Not as fun with black crayon

She second guessed herself, and the white makes it pretty cool!

They were much more impressed with my paper than theirs.  Told them so :0P
These are both first graders who trusted me.

 This guy was just so excited to paint for the first time he got a little carried away.  I didn't have most of my now first graders last year, so painting is still pretty new to them.

We're "signing" while we paint to remind us of how to paint in my room and it's a lovely quiet experience (some throw in the little extra reminders):

Swirl, swirl, swish, swish

(NO tap, tap, tap)

From the water to the paint

Rub, Rub, Rub

(NO poke, poke, poke)

From the paint to my paper!

Paint, paint, paint.

*repeat*



I'm making it an anchor chart, it's THAT affective.

One of my 2nd graders did contribute this fun and helpful (?) misunderstanding...
"Ms. Novak?  Squirrel, Squirrel, Fish, Fish with the brush in the water?"  So that'll be the title of the poem and lovely add on graphics to my paintbrush anchor chart.