As summer is coming to a close, we must celebrate the success of our Messiest Art Camps! Here are some summer projects I would like to highlight from our camps and outreach this year.

Trashion Day

Trashion Day was a project used for two camps, Mixed Media Mayhem and Art Explorations. This project allowed students to create outfits out of recycled materials, fabric scraps, and found objects. Not only is this a fun way to get rid of scrap material in your classroom, but it also teaches students the environmental impacts of trash and recycling materials.

Animal Portraits

This project is a great addition to any home. All you need is cardboard, egg cartons, markers, oil pastels, and glue. The animal portraits allowed students to make up their own stories about the animals they created. Each students portrait consisted of a landscape background and an animal dressed in a ‘fancy’ outfit.

Introduction Mobiles

Instead of having my students stand up and introduce themselves at summer camp, we created introduction mobiles instead.  The supplies included paper, yarn, markers, and a hole puncher. I had students write/draw their answers to introductory questions on each piece of paper. Some questions I used were, “How many siblings, pets, and parents do you have?”, “What are your hobbies?”, “What do you wish for?”, and ” Who would you like to be when you grow up?” Students answered these questions by drawing symbols that correlated with the opposed question. The mobiles made it easier for students to open up about their interests and talk about the things they love.

Collaborative Projects

Collaborative projects initiate conversation and team building experience. With this project, our outreach students at Hawk Houston Youth Enrichment Center mixed their own mud paint (consist of mud and paint powder) and beautifully painted a canvas together. I loved this project because all of the students were working to convey a message in this work pertaining to teamwork and friendship. They all managed to complete this canvas that is now hanging at the Hawk Houston Youth Enrichment Center.

I always look forward to working with our outreach partners during the summer. We cherish our partnership with Hawk Houston Youth Enrichment Center and are always thrilled when creating with their students.

Even though the summer festivities are finished here at WMA, we look forward to our school tours and fall classes.