Hurricane Sandy - Grade 2

Often art reflects that which is occurring in the world around us.  Recently, hear in the Northeast we experienced a powerful force of nature, that being Hurricane Sandy.  I used this experience to introduce my students to the Japanese artist Hokusai and his painting  The Great Wave.  These young artists are in second grade and we talk repeatedly about line and how it is used to express emotion.  We discussed how powerful and strong the waves in the ocean were during this horrible hurricane.  The students used their paint brushes and the color blue to interpret what they thought the waves must have looked like during the storm.  We talked about the strong wind and how it swept up the water. We used white paint and sponged it onto the water.  

During week two the students cut up their painted papers to create the forms that would represent the waves of water.  The results were quite powerful and their work is a visual reminder of the force and fury of mother nature!