More Reading Materials for Students

Here is another great video:

Alexander Calder's "Circus"




This video is short but very fun. It is a five-minute video of Calder himself working with his sculptures, or as some would say, playing. Students will see a performance of Calder's "Circus," a collection of wire and metal sculptures made by Calder, that were almost like puppets. Every year my 6th graders learn about Calder. We watch an hour-long video and make a mobile in his style. One of the favorite parts of the video we watch is the small section that touches on the circus works. Students will love getting to see the complete production here. Students who choose Calder as their artist would get to reference this video in creating their imitation work for class. One important thing they will learn watching this video is that Calder's wire sculptures were meant to be played with or move in some way. 

Students will get a chance to view this video as 6th graders this year, perhaps, when I teach the Calder lesson in the spring. 7th graders, if they choose Calder, will be encouraged to watch this video during their computer class time or on their own at home. They'll enjoy seeing the circus in action and it will hopefully inform their work on the artist project.

Whitney Museum. (2008, October 23). Alexander Calder performs his "Circus" - Whitney Museum [video file]. Retrieved from http://youtu.be/t6jwnu8Izy0


Check out this website: 

Artcyclopedia.com

This website has an incredible amount of information that is well-organized and suited to all ages. Students will love the easy access to a wide variety of information about art history.  Searchable by artist and title, as well as by art museum, this site is a resource for anyone looking to learn basic information about artists and their works. Students can look up the name of their chosen artist and view a number of his or her works. Short descriptions are included on every page, about the particular work and the artist's life. Additionally students will find a section titled "Art Movements" which gives brief overviews of various styles and periods in art history. This is a great resource for art students of all levels. 

All of the 7th grade students will be encouraged to view this site to gain information for their artist project. They will be able to find answers to fill in their artist info worksheets as well as view the works of those artists. They may even gain some insight into the works themselves. 

(http://www.artcyclopedia.com)

You might like this book: 

Linnea in Monet's Garden

 This book is written from the point-of-view of Linnea, a young girl who goes to Paris on vacation. While there, she visits Monet's garden and learns about Monet as well as about Impressionist art. It includes colorful illustrations and a "scrapbook" look. Reproductions of his work are included as well as photos of the original source locations. It will help students to connect his style to what the places really looked like. Through this, they will gain an understanding of the Impressionist movement. This will be a quick read for older students but it has lovely illustrations and gives good information in a unique way. Students will enjoy the first-person perspective and gain an understanding about Monet through the eyes of the character Linnea.

I have a copy of this book in my classroom for any student who wishes to read it.  If I were to teach a lesson on Monet I would probably like to read selections of this book to my class. Any 7th grader choosing Monet as his or her artist for this unit would be encouraged to read this book independently to get some information for their artist project.

Bjork, C., & Anderson, L. (1992). Linnea in Monet's Garden. (6th Printing ed.). New York: Farrar, Strauss and Giroux.

This article is interesting:  

A Mural's Story

This article tells of a mural that was painted by artist Maurice Sendak. Sendak is most famous for Where the Wild Things Are, but this mural was completed two years before then. Students will enjoy learning a little about an artist and author who is both well-known and well-loved. Also included on this page is a video of Sendak himself. Sendak is most well-known for being an author but he also illustrated his work. Students choosing Sendak as their artist of choice will be encouraged to read many of Sendak's books to gain an understanding of his artistic style.  This article is a way for them to see beyond what Sendak is known for, books, to realize that he was also an artist in his own right. 


I would encourage students to read this article together before we began a project on "Wild Things", a project that I like to do in the fall for Halloween. Any 7th grader who chooses Maurice Sendak as an artist to study for class would be given a link to this article to read on their own during computer time, so they could also view the supporting materials and complete their research. 


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