January 2012

Students have been working on Catholic Icon paintings this month--look for them on display in the classroom windows. 8th Grade--crosses; 7th Grade--crosses, sacred hearts; 6th Grade--Christ Pantocrators; 5th Grade--St. Theresa; 4th Grade--Mary, St. Anne, St. Michael; 3rd Grade--Sacred Heart of Jesus; 2nd Grade--Dove; 1st Grade--Mary; Kinder--Christian Fish. Art Club--created the paper lanterns you see decorating the ramada area for Open House and Catholic Schools Week.

ART CLUB now open to 6th Graders in addition to 7th and 8th Grade students. Tuesdays after school from 3-4:30 p.m. Come when you can! We are currently working on lanterns to decorate the ramada area during Open House. Come earn some service hours!

NATIONAL JUNIOR ART HONOR SOCIETY status may be earned by 7th and 8th graders who show exceptional dedication to their artwork and are faithful participants in Art Club, including Art Club service projects. Copy and paste this link to check out St. Theresa students who have artwork in the National Junior Art Honor Society online gallery: http://www.artsonia.com/museum/collections/detail.asp?coll=96

December, 2012 We have two winners in the Rosary Sunday Poster Contest: Lucy Leivian in Mrs. Nicol's lkindergarten class and Joey Chapman in Mrs. Debus' first grade. They will be attending a pizza party with Bishop Olmsted. Only 24 students were chosen throughout the diocese. Congratulations Lucy and Joey!

If you would like to earn volunteer hours by helping with art displays or St. Theresa's art web page,please click here:

September 2011

We began the year by looking at the designs Native Americans used on their pottery and weaving and created drawings of pottery using various types of lines. You will see samples of student work in the Art Bulletin Board outside the school office.

Megan McRae, an Art Education major from University of Northern Iowa, is completing part of her student teaching requirements here at St. Theresa and will be with us until October 13th. She has started students on some exciting activities: 8th Grade: relief printmaking, 7th Grade: sand painting, 6th grade: Calavera printmaking, 4th and 5th Grade: Amate bark painting, 3rd grade: desert scene paper mosaics, 1st and 2nd grade: oil pastel/watercolor resist drawings. Megan hopes to get a job teaching art to elementary school students in Arizona after she graduates in December.

August 2011

Welcome St. Theresa students and parents! I hope you all had a great summer and are ready to make art! I am looking forward to a great 2011-12 school year which will include improving our drawing skills, learning how to paint using watercolors and tempera paint, experimenting with pastels, printmaking, collage, and clay sculpture. We will be learning about famous artists and art in history and culture, with a special emphasis on Arizona artists in conjunction with Arizona’s 100th birthday in 2012. St. Theresa's art curriculum is based upon the Diocese of Phoenix's Fine Arts Standards which include the elements and principles of design (line, color, shape, texture, etc.) as well as the relevancy of art to the Catholic faith.

SKETCHBOOKS--Grades 2 through 6

Students are asked to bring sketchbooks with them to art class this year. At first I said this was optional, but I have decided to require all students in grades two through six to have them. We will use sketchbooks for the following purposes: 1) drawing warm-up after arriving in class, 2) journal for drawing lessons, and 3) rough draft drawings for projects. Having a journal will enable students to see their drawing progress from the beginning of the year to the end. I realize most parents have already purchased school supplies for their children, so whenever you have a chance to purchase will be fine.

Sketchbooks may be purchased in a variety of styles and prices—I would suggest an inexpensive 50 or 70-sheet pad, either 8 x 10 or 9 x 12 inch size, plain sheets (not lined). Spiral bound (top or side) is preferable, although a little more expensive. Walgreens and Target has a 70-sheet, 8 1/2 x 11 inch style available for around $4.00. While art classes begin on Monday, August 15, it will not be necessary to have the sketchbooks until the second week of classes. I will provide paper for students until they obtain their sketchbooks.

~ARTSONIA~

Your child’s artwork will be photographed and showcased on St. Theresa’s online art gallery at www.artsonia.com. Artsonia is the world’s largest online student art museum. The artwork is compiled into individual portfolios for each child, which will accumulate as long as the child is a student at St. Theresa. Parents must sign a permission slip before we publish their child's artwork on the site. The permission will cover the entire tenure of your child at St. Theresa, so if you are new to the school or your child in is Kindergarten, look for the slips in your child's Tuesday envelope soon. Go to www.artsonia.com and enter St. Theresa Catholic School to reach our site, or click on the link at the bottom of this page.

~Art Bulletin Board~ Thanks to a donation from the PTO, we have a bulletin board across from the school office which is used to showcase STCS student artwork. Look for it the next time you are on campus.