Dragon's Gate (K-2nd Grades)

2008 Copyright Joseph R. McAuliffe
Carp leaping over Dragon's Gate

For the past two Mind Move Make classes, our Kindergarten-2nd grade artists have been inspired by a Chinese folktale in which a determined carp fish transforms into a powerful dragon.  In China, the carp is a symbol of endurance, perseverance, and strength.  The folktale is centered around a brave little carp who swims upstream along a river that flows down a legendary mountain.  The river's current is very strong; it is a difficult path to follow.  There are many waterfalls along the way that the tiny fish must traverse.  In the end, the river leads to Dragon's Gate.  There is one last waterfall that the courageous carp must jump over to meet its final goal.  As the carp leaps into the air, it can feel its body changing into that of a mighty dragon.

The Chinese have a saying that goes, "The carp has leapt through the Dragon's Gate".   This is used for students who pass their university exams.  It is also used to describe anyone who works diligently towards a goal and succeeds beyond their wildest dreams!  In traditional Chinese and Japanese artwork, both the carp (or koi) and the dragon are depicted often.

Both our movement work and our visual artwork have been driven by this story.  The students have imagined their skin transforming into the scales of the carp.  We thought about what the cold water of the river would feel like rushing against our skin.  I asked if any of the children had hiked up a large hill or maybe even a mountain and everyone's hand went up.  I asked them to imagine what it would be like to try SWIMMING up a mountain!  What a difficult task!

During our first class, the students used black ink to draw their carp fish.  I reminded them of the techniques we already learned in using the ink to create a painting.  During our second class, we used pencil and permanent markers to create a dragon image.  Eventually we will incorporate color into both artworks.

Movement-wise, during our next class the students will work together to create a performative piece telling the story of the carp becoming the dragon.  I will provide a few simple props to help them along, though the use of these will be optional.  Their goal will be to somehow, through movement, show the mountain, the river, the carp, and the dragon.  It will be fun to see what they come up with!  I'd like to give them a few classes to complete this performative piece and maybe show it to their parents during our last class!

Here are a few of the koi or carp paintings:

Kindergarten artist

Kindergarten artist

Second grade artist

Second grade artist

And here are a few of the dragon drawings:

Kindergarten artist

Kindergarten artist

Second grade artist

Kindergarten artist

Second grade artist

Second grade artist

Becoming a Tree (K-2nd Grades)

Kindergarten artist

We begin every Mind Move Make class with two minutes of mindful breathing.  Before the start of each class I have at least two students ask if they can be the mindfulness leader for the day.  The students have embraced this role; they look forward to leading the rest of the class in our initial mindfulness practice.  Hooray!  

Before all of my lovely kindergarten through second grade students arrived for this class I put each child's painting on a yoga mat.  When they entered the classroom I directed them to find their painting and take a seat.  I asked the students to visualize the tree they created in an immense forest.  We pretended to look up and see the branches of all the trees in our imaginary forest against the blue sky.  I asked the students if the trees were separate or if they were all connected.  We agreed that each tree is it's own separate entity, but that the branches of the trees overlap, touch, and connect in many ways.

I explained that tree roots are usually as wide if not wider than the span of their branches.  In that way, the root system kind of echoes the shape of the tree underground.  So in a dense forest, the roots of different trees criss-cross and overlap underground while the branches do the same thing in the sky.  Usually the trunks of the trees remain separate, but the roots and the branches touch the other surrounding trees.

I asked each student to imagine him or herself as a tree in the forest.  How are we separate from one another?  How do we connect with others around us?  The children were very responsive and interested in discussing this!  We talked about how our words, feelings, and actions touch the people around us.  One student described this in a wonderful way.  She said that our feelings "bump up against" one another.  Another student said that this reminded her of the idea of empathy.  We agreed that we can each choose to put out positive actions, words, and feelings into the world, or we can choose to do the opposite.

After that I had each child stand in Tadasana with both feet firmly planted in the ground.  We imagined becoming the trees we created.  Our skin became rough like bark and our legs fused together into a trunk.  Our arms became long, wide branches and we felt our fingers extend longer and longer into the sky.  Hair became leaves.  We imagined what types of animals lived in our branches.  I asked, "What would it feel like to have a squirrel scurry up your trunk?  What would it feel like if a bird built a nest in your hair?".

During the art part of our class, each student drew him or herself becoming a tree.  Here are a few of the results!

Kindergarten artist

Kindergarten artist

I also gave the students fabric and bamboo from my garden to complete their sumi-e tree paintings.  The results are beautiful.  

Second grade artist

Kindergarten artist

Kindergarten artist

Kindergarten artist

Second grade artist

Second grade artist

Kindergarten artist

      

Warrior-Painters (K-2nd Grades)

We started this class practicing mindful listening and focusing on the things we could hear OUTSIDE the art classroom.  I opened the doors to the room to let the sounds from the hallway drift in.  After one minute of using our ears to detect every noise possible, I asked the students to identify what they heard.

Here are some of the responses:

"Doors closing"  

"Voices"  

"A chair scraping across the floor"  

"Laughter"

"The crinkling of a piece of paper"

It is incredible what we notice when really focused on the present moment.

We've been looking at Japanese Sumi-e painting.  I've read that many Samurai swordsmen practiced Sumi-e painting because the strokes used were similar to the strokes used in swordsmanship.  Also, the calm needed in creating a beautiful piece of artwork was also needed on the battlefield.  I talked with the students about the contrast between these two things; painting is a peaceful act while fighting a battle is full of violence.

In honor of the Samurai warrior-painters, during our movement work we focused on the warrior poses in yoga.  We talked about how in yoga, much of the "battle" is about becoming your personal best self.  I shared the word "namaste" which is a respectful greeting in Hindu custom.  I like to explain Namaste to children as "the best parts in me honor the best parts in you".  This is very connected to finding our best selves, and looking for the best things in other people.

After moving through many of the warrior poses we were ready to start making art!  I introduced the art concept of tinting a color.  In order to create our cherry blossoms, we tinted red to make various shades of pink.  The students observed photographs and other Sumi-e artworks to paint the blossoms on their trees, though many students were still busy using the ink to create the branches.  It will be fun to see these when they are finished!

Sumi-e Painting (K-2nd Grades)

Sumi-e artwork

Today was our first class of Mind Move Make for Session 3!  We have a few new students, so I decided to go back to the basics of mindfulness.  No matter if you've been practicing mindfulness for 20 years or 20 minutes, it is helpful to return to the roots.

I had several returning students to help me explain mindful bodies, mindful breathing, and the anchor spot.  It was amazing to hear the students talk about these ideas in their own words to their peers.  Our new students caught on fast and participated in a full, beautiful way.  We simply focused on mindful breathing for two minutes, concentrating on how our bodies were feeling, and using the anchor spot.

After that, I introduced the students to Sumi-e, a Japanese painting technique using black ink.  Sumi-e artists are not as interested in replicating the way an object looks as they are in capturing the spirit or the essence of the object.  Nature is the dominant theme of Sumi-e artwork.  Interestingly, Samurai swordsmen practiced this form of painting because the brush strokes used were similar to the strokes of the sword.  And the calm needed in creating a work of art was also needed on the battle field.

I asked if anyone noticed the blooming trees and flowers that were beginning to emerge throughout the Portland area.  Our paintings are meant to be a celebration of the annual coming of Spring.  I showed many pictures of the cherry blossoms around Portland, as well as Sumi-e artwork depicting cherry blossoms.

For the movement part of our class, I asked the students to come to seed posture and imagine they were each the tiny seed of a cherry tree.  They imagined being under the soil of the earth, and feeling the damp rain soaking through the layers of dirt.  Then they began to move their arms forward in child's pose, imagining their arms and fingers were tiny roots beginning to grow.  Eventually these little seeds poked through the earth and began to grow taller and taller.  Though our feet remained planted in the earth-floor, our leaves and limbs moved and swayed in the imaginary wind and the rain that I concocted for them.  Eventually, we made our way to tree pose.

In beginning of the art portion of class, I encouraged everyone to experiment with the black ink that was new to most of them.  In order to get a variety of tones, from deep black to light grey, water must be mixed with the ink.  The students used palettes to combine different values of grey and had fun creating freeform lines and shapes on their paper.

If they had time, some students had the opportunity to select a photograph of a cherry blossom artwork to emulate.  It was fun watching them translate their painting experimentation into the painting of a tree.  I explained that next week they would receive special paper to create a final ink painting!

In My Heart (K-2nd Grades)

During our previous Mind Move Make class, the students started a self-portrait drawing after being inspired by the book In My Heart by author Molly Bang.  In the drawing they created themselves, but filled the area where their hearts would be with portraits of all the people in the world who are most important to them.  At the beginning of this class, I placed each drawing on a yoga mat.  I asked the children to sit where they saw their drawing.  After practicing two minutes of mindful breathing, I asked the students to think why they are thankful for each person in their drawing.  Then we shared one thing we are grateful for for each person.  One boy mentioned that he is thankful that his mom snuggles with him every morning.  Another student said she is grateful to her pet bunny because it makes her feel calm and loved when she is petting it.  It was great to hear the students reflect on why they appreciate the people they love the most in the world.

After moving through many different yoga poses, we worked hard to finish our self-portrait drawings!  Many students still had a lot of drawing to do, and some children were ready to add color.  The students got to choose between several different art media for the color portion of this work.  We taped the two pieces of paper together, one for the head and one for the body.  This was (unbelievably!) our last class for Session 2, so everyone took the drawings home at the end of the class.  Sometimes one hour doesn't seem long enough to get everything completed, but these determined artists worked hard and most of them finished by the end of class.

Here are pictures a few more In My Heart-inspired drawings!

A Kindergarten artist hard at work!

The work of another Kindergarten artist.

And here are pictures of the completed assemblage artworks, inspired by Alexander Calder:

Second grade artist

Kindergarten artist

Kindergarten artist

Kindergarten artist

Second grade artist

Second grade artist

Gratitude (K-2nd Grades)

During this week's Mind Move Make class we talked about gratitude!  I asked the students if anyone knew what the word gratitude meant, and we had many thoughtful answers.  Then I had everyone close their eyes and think about at least three things that they are grateful for.  I asked them to imagine all the things and people that they are grateful for surrounding them.  After that, we shared the things for which we are most grateful.  Several students were happy that they had a house to live in.  One student was thankful that he could hear and see.  Many students were thankful for their pets.

Then I asked them to think of smaller things, perhaps things they experience everyday, that they are thankful for.  As an example, I mentioned that I'm thankful for hearing my two-year-old's laughter and seeing things growing in my garden.  One student mentioned being thankful for the ability to run through the playground.  Another student talked about sliding down the slide at recess.

During the movement part of our class we played Musical Mats again!  The game is like musical chairs, but we use the yoga mats and no one has to sit out.  During the time the students were moving from mat to mat I instructed them to move in a specific way.  They leapt like frogs, lumbered like bears, and walked with a cane as if they were 100 years old.  When the music stopped each student scurried to a mat and I gave them a yoga pose to try.

Before beginning the art portion of the class I read the book In My Heart by Molly Bang.  It is the story of a parent's love for her child.  The book talks about how no matter what she is doing,  the mother keeps her little boy in her heart.  She is never alone because her child is always with her.

The students used the self-portraits they started during another Mind Move Make class and added a larger paper to create their bodies.  They drew the people they love the most in their own hearts.  Here are some examples of the drawings so far.  Next week we will complete them and incorporate color!:

Emotional Intelligence (K-2nd Grades)

Developing emotional intelligence is important in all human beings.  Doctors and scientists are beginning to discover that a person's emotional IQ is a larger determining factor of success and happiness than his or her IQ in terms of intelligence.  Here is an article from Johns Hopkins University discussing emotional intelligence in children.  It also gives parents tips on developing this important life skill in their children.

Today during Mind Move Make we worked on expanding this vital part of being human by bringing more awareness to our emotions.  I invited one student to come up to the front of the room and explained that he was going to act out an emotion that I whispered in his ear; kind of like playing emotional charades!  The other children were supposed to guess what emotion was being acted out.  A second grader volunteered and I whispered "angry" into his ear.  He turned to me and said, "I don't feel angry very often so I don't think I can act that one out."  Wow!  Instead he acted out embarrassed, and he did a great job.  I asked three more students to act out various emotions, and the remaining students guessed what they were.  Part of emotional intelligence is being able to identify what another human being is feeling and to be able to react in an appropriate way.  It is also important to be able to identify these feelings within ourselves.

During the movement part of our class we played a new game: Musical Mats!  It is kind of like musical chairs accept no one has to sit out.  I played the singing bowl and the students walked, hopped, or danced from mat to mat until I rang the bell.  Then each child scurried to the mat that was closest to him or her, and I announced a yoga pose to try.  Musical Mats was a fun way to keep the energy high and keep the students moving in between poses.

Art-wise, today we revisited the work of Alexander Calder and the idea of assemblage (see more information about this here!).  I put out many more recycled materials for the students to work with, and they began to design the background for their artwork.  All the materials for this project were obtained from Scrap in downtown Portland, an invaluable resource for affordable reused materials of all sorts.  Here are some examples of the students' works in progress!

Animal Eyes (K-2nd Grades)

Artist Alexander Calder with two of his wire sculptures

Today we explored mindfulness and our sense of sight!  We cultivated focus and attention through the power of our eyes.  In yoga, we call the visual focal point drishti.

To help with this I gave each child a rock to place at the top of the yoga mat.  I explained that I wanted the students to try to keep their eyes focused on the rock for one minute.  Of course they could blink as many times as they needed to, but the gaze should remain on the rock!  This helps them concentrate on one object, which also helps with keeping the mind focused.  If their eyes wandered somewhere else, I asked them to gently bring their gaze back to the rock.  They did a great job developing focus and attention!

Next, we talked about different animals that have really good eyesight.  I asked them to name a few, and the children mentioned eagles, lions, and owls.  Then we pretended that we had an animal's eyes!  The students could either stay on their yoga mat or walk slowly through the art room taking in as much visual information as possible, trying to notice small things they might have never seen before using their new animal eyes.  I think they enjoyed imagining to have the eyes of a tiger or a hawk while seeing the art room with a different perspective!

I asked them if they noticed anything new, and everyone raised a hand.  One girl observed the specific way the lights attached to the ceiling with wires.  A boy saw a yellow box that he never knew was there.  I asked if they would like to have animal eyesight all the time, and most of the children were excited about this idea.  Though one girl said she thought it would be tiring to see, take in, and notice things that intensely all the time.

After moving our bodies with a few yoga postures, I introduced the students to the artist Alexander Calder, specifically his sculptural work with wire.  You can find out more about "Sandy" Calder here.  I explained that they would be creating a relief sculpture assemblage using many, many different materials.  We started constructing a self-portrait based on the detailed drawings that we created last class.  During this class we only outlined the shape of the face, neck, and shoulders but these works will continue to develop and change as more objects are added!

Here are a few more inspirational sculptural wire works by Alexander Calder:

Generosity (K-2nd Grades)

I started this class by asking if anyone has practiced mindfulness outside of our time together during Mind Move Make.  Several students raised their hands.  One girl shared that she used mindfulness in the car that morning on the way to school.  Another girl used mindful breathing when she thought her tooth was going to fall out.  A boy said he used mindfulness in the mall over the weekend.  It was wonderful to hear that many of the children are using the tools we're learning in class in their daily lives!

After that, I asked if anyone knew what it meant to be generous.  Almost every student raised his or her hand and had an idea about what generosity is.  "When was the last time someone was generous with you, and how did their generosity make you feel?" I asked.  Everyone agreed that it feels good when others show generosity towards us.  I also asked them to think of a time that they were generous with someone else, and how that made them feel.  Being generous makes other people around us feel happy, which is usually contagious and the happiness is passed on to us!

During almost every class, we practice several sun salutations.  The children raise their arms into the air, and I ask them to imagine that they are grasping the sun between their hands.  At the end, I have them bring the sun down to their hearts.  Just about every class, one Kindergartener says, "Now my heart is on fire!" with a huge smile on her face.

Art-wise, today we created very detailed self-portraits using mirrors.  Our Central Idea for this class is Exploring Magnificent Me, and we are continuing to do this through mindfulness, movement, and art.  We talked about what it means to observe, and how artists use observation all the time.  I asked the children to try and show every eyelash, every freckle in this self-portrait; to really spend time observing even the smallest details.  We will use these drawings as a map to create a self-portrait relief sculpture using many different materials.