Raccoons

Our fist graders learned about different kinds of paint when we created raccoons! First we read "The Kissing Hand" to get inspired to create raccoons!  Then we drew the outline of the body using basic shapes.  We talked about techniques and strategies for creating smooth lines with thick tempera paint. These strategies include: lots of paint on the brush, pull the brush towards yourself without picking the brush up until you run out of paint. For good craftsmanship we practiced painting the "sides first and then the middle." We also used "lawnmower lines" to smooth out the lines and cover all the white spaces.

After the grey paint dried, we cut white circles from squares by cutting the corners off.  We also did a double cut (fold the rectangle in half first) to get two eyes that were exactly the same! We outlined with black tempera paint and added stripes.  Finally, we talked about the difference between thick tempera paint and thin transparent watercolor paint for the background.

Learning Goals: I can...
- Create circles from squares
- Paint smooth lines
- Tell the difference between watercolor paint and tempera paint
- Use good craftsmanship when adding color