Wooden Marble Run

 

Sometimes children become emotionally charged during their creative experience and use idiosyncratic language when discussing their work.

Physics, Engineering and Structural Design

Kinetic art is fascinating! Engaging minds and hearts with simple materials like wooden blocks, cardboard and marbles has become a four dimensional staple of our art program since we obtained our first set of wooden blocks from Mr. Fralick. We have expanded our block building work to include ephemeral expansive marble run pieces. Many of our children look forward to creating simple machines and experimenting with gravity, friction and simple structural elements like columns, beams, plates and arches with cardboard and wooden block marble runs. There is just something so cool about working with Newtonian mechanics in the art room. E=mv^2.

New Marble Run Construction Forms

Blocks Paper Scissors Blog Site....

Check out this link for camp updates: www.blockspaperscissorscamp.blogspot.com .

Summer Art Camp Preview

Clark Fralick is the AEAI 2004 Indiana Art Educator of the Year and Clyde Gaw is the AEAI 2005 Indiana Elementary Art Teacher of the Year.

In 2003 Clark and I did a summer art camp at New Palestine Elementary. As I recall, that camp was a pure blast. We took over the music room and the art room with over 60 kids. Lots of creative activity and lots of fun! 

In 2009 I did a solo camp at Indianapolis Public Schools. You can read about it here:

I can guarantee this upcoming camp will include drawing, painting, collage, cardboard construction, sculpture, paper mache, puppetry, jewelry, weaving, textiles and lots of outdoor art activities, weather permitting.

Clark and I, have presented at national and state forums on child centered art education practices and belong to an international group of art teachers who advocate for child centered art education learning experience. Teaching for Artistic Behavior (TAB) has been around since 2001.

2011 Summer Art Camp

More choice based art at the Hancock County Art Show!

The marble runs were a big hit at the County Art Show. Mrs. Hall, the art teacher at Greenfield Central Junior High School, the host of the show, told me her 7th and 8th graders wanted to make marble runs too!

I think the marble runs have provided one of the most satisfying building/construction experiences to our students ever.

Working with gravity, slope and basic attachment techniques has never been more gratifying.

Hancock County Art Show

A patron of the Hancock County student art show, checks out some of the child centered art on display from New Palestine Elementary on the left side of this photo.

NPE Fine Arts Festival Pics

My sincerest thanks to my principal Mr. Kern, my colleague Mrs. Roudebush and our wonderful Fine Arts Festival Volunteers, Mrs. Smith, Mrs. True, Mrs. Mattingly, Mrs. Hockett and Mrs. Martin for helping me to set up this huge show! I estimate there were about six hundred works of art in this exhibit and I could not have done it without these folk's help! My sincerest thanks to all who helped me with set up and take down.

Blocks-Paper-Scissors!

Clark and I will have a great camp at Indy Park's Post Road Park Community Center. My sincerest thanks to Post Road Park Manager Linda Fink for hooking us up!

We hope to have 40-50 attendees pr. week. Our activities will include, but are not limited to: drawing, painting, collage, cardboard construction, block building, puppetry, textiles, jewelry making crafts and photography.

Clark and I have approximately 50 years experience between the two of us working with elementary aged kids. We are hoping to fill the camp with at least 40 participants for each week. Any parents who are interested in providing their kids with a dynamic art education experience, should consider this camp for their children.

Check out this blog for more info on what we have been up to since 2004. Enjoy!

For questions related to the camp, or if you would like to reserve a spot on our participants list, you can send me an email here: campak14@yahoo.com

Art or Engineering?

When do the boundaries between art, sculpture and engineering blur? It happens all the time in choice based art programs. When children engage in interdisciplinary learning activities, there is nothing contrived about their motivation to do so.

There are about two dozen marble runs stored away in the art room...we are bursting at the seams...trying to store all the sculpture and art, getting it ready for our upcoming April 18th Art Show. Can't wait to post pics from that event!
More later....cg