Chinese Dragons

This was our second Asian inspired art lesson. To begin with, we talked about the differences between Chinese Dragons and western dragons.  Chinese dragons are a symbol of strength, importance, and power while western dragons often symbolize negative forces.  Western dragons typically have wings, while Chinese  dragons do not.

I gave the students several "how to draw a dragon" handouts with varying levels of difficulty.  Of course, these we just to get them started and I encouraged them to add their own creative details.  

Many students were intimidated by this project at the beginning and though drawing a dragon was too difficult. However, once they got started ( with some gentle nudging) they realized that it was not as hard as they thought. 

This was our last project before winter break and many of the dragons are incomplete.  Hopefully, students will find some motivation to finish them when we get back...

These were drawn with sharpie and colored with watercolor.  Chalk Pastel was suggested for the background (this got a little messy!)

Tie Died Chinese Banners

The pictures do not do these banners justice! Each and every one of my 150+ students created a wonderful piece of art.  I plan to hang as many as possible from the ceiling of our classroom (when I can find the time!). Of all the projects we have done so far, the students as a whole took a lot of pride in these works.

This was a lesson in Chinese Caligraphy.  Again, another power point to provide background information. We discusesed the differences between English writing and Chinese writing. We also watched a YouTube video and students were able to see esteemed calligraphers in action.

I translated all of the students names into Chinese using an online name generator. They were all quite thrilled to see their names in Chinese.  I also provided an additional handout with other Chinese characters and their meanings.  Some students chose to draw these.  Once they practiced a little in their sketch books, they were given a piece of 9"x24" dippity dye paper and some India ink to paint their characters.  They let these dry for a day and then they sprayed them with liquid watercolor.  I provided primary colors.  The final step was adding the black construction paper (3.5"x12 folded in half lengthwise and string)

Students definetly gained an appreciation for Asian Art!