Students learn art of paper cutting

VERNON — Each grade level began the school year with a review of good scissors safety and gluing techniques. The sequential lessons also included cultural and art historical references.
Grade 2 'Minion Cousins'The students learned how to cut rounded shapes, turning their paper rather than the scissors. Students learned how to make an accordion fold for the legs and how to cut 2 shapes at a time. Cartoons were compared to the realism of Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa”.
Grade 3 'Sunflowers'The students studied the sunflowers of Vincent Van Gogh. The sunflower as a symbol of peace was created in honor of the Week of Respect. The students learned how to create multiples of 6. They created organic shapes from geometric ones.
Grade 4 'Matisse Paper Cut Outs'Henri Matisse’s “Beasts of the Sea” paper cut out panels inspired this artwork. The students used complementary (opposites on the color wheel) to cut negative and positive organic sea plant life. They used black paper to cut silhouettes of marine life and white paper to symbolize the waves of the sea.