181 Photos of Chicago & NAEA

Don't worry, I won't post them all.  And I probably got a little carried away.  But before I left I told all my students that I would be gone and where I was going. A sweet little kindergartner asked 'will you take pictures and show them to us when you get back?'  How could I refuse?  Here are a few of the highlights/the condensed version for all of you:

Getting of the train in Chicago--carrying WAY TOO MUCH stuff.

View from our hotel/elevator (we were not at the host hotel).

Craziness in the vendors.  Note: I was so overwhelmed by all the vendors!

Phyl Brown from there's a Dragon in my Art Room and Cassie Stephens from Cassie Stephens blog.
And yes, I was near the back of the room. 

Tiny little view of some of the 5000 art teachers there.
And the lake.

Such an amazingly beautiful lake view, right outside the convention center.

The Artisan Gallery was held in a very ornate and beautiful ballroom at the Hilton.
Also nice that I sold a few Gelli-printed magnets.

Box collaborative art in the lobby outside the vendors.

Oh, Field Museum! Terra cotta warriors!
We drove by it on the shuttle multiple times and
then spent our Sunday there.

I'd only ridden a city bus twice in my life before this.
My fellow passengers didn't look as ecstatic as I do in this photo.

I was totally drooling over these new sketchbooks
that are soon to hit the market from Strathmore,
I can easily name 5-10 students who would LOVE these.

Bill Strickland from Pittsburg--look him up, he's a life changer.

Stuff I made in the vendors when I was feeling overwhelmed
(and my name tag).

Sculpture I saw, liked and photographed on the street.
Totally came in handy later when we were a teeny bit lost and needed some landmarks.

Terra cotta warriors!!!!!  Amazing!

Me +  Herb Alpert sculpture

Taking the bus really pays off! Wandered by this 'Flamingo' walking to our next bus stop.

Getting off the train in KC.

Now, don't you feel like you were there?  It was amazing and draining, educational and exhausting--totally worth it!  In just over two weeks, Missouri Art Education Association's spring conference will be in St. Louis, so I'll be enjoying some more art teacher schmoozing time.  And only 8 more weeks of school! I'm feeling rejuvenated and ready to tackle these next two months with a smile!

2016 Art Show!!!

I have to say, I'm a BIG FAN of having our all-school art show in March (rather than April).  All year, it hangs over my head, but this year, I have the rest of March, all of April and May to just focus on teaching and not 'is this going to be in the art show? Does each student have two quality pieces for the show?'
Here are some pictures from this year's fabulous show:

And yet more photos of our student-led "make art" tables:

I've decided that I'll add more signage next year directing students and parents from the primary side of our building to the intermediate/upper grades.  And probably have kindergarten, first and second grade teachers add something about the "make art" tables in their newsletters, because we didn't get TONS of primary traffic down in the upper grades where the make art tables were.  The third grade helpers kept complaining "no one's coming for us to help!" because they were at the farthest end of the building.

And finally, some shots from our Selfie station:

I feel very grateful that the art show went so smoothly (and it's over before spring break!).  I'm looking forward to Chicago next week and my very first ever NAEA conference!  Happy art teacher'in! (and feel free to ask any questions about the set up/running of the show if something is unclear)