Eyeballs on the Overhead

Did you know that students can be so excited about art class that they spontaneously applaud? Neither did I! But this past Wednesday, I did a repeat of one of our favorite classes from last year with our youngest students—kindergartenerss, first and second graders.

The lesson is all about color. I took six transparent cups, filled them with water and set them on top of an overhead projector. When the projector was turned on, the light shone through the cups onto the wall. Adding food coloring into the cups turned them the color we wanted, slowly and dramatically. Let me tell you, when we started mixing those primary colors (red, blue and yellow) to get the secondary colors (green, orange and purple), the room came alive.

The kindergarteners oooo’d and ahhhh’d as each color was dripped in. The first graders cheered and kept comparing them to eyeballs. You’ll have to ask them why. My favorite reaction was the second graders, who applauded as soon as they walked in the room and recognized the lesson. Isn’t that great?

Teaching art to your children is a blessing.