Elementary school art show

For the past 4 years, the school has hosted an art show where all of the projects are made of recycled/repurposed/waste materials.  This year, it was a tight squeeze getting things done in time with the teacher's "work to rule" but it did happen after all.  I thought I would share some of the favourites.

First, some of the class projects:

 The grade 2 class made this wooden sculpture from scrap wood.  Each student took a turn attaching a piece at a time until it was finished.  From one side, it looked like a castle, from one side - a treehouse, and from one side - a sailboat. 

The kindergarten class contributed this wall art - it's made of some of their old art work, construction paper scraps from other classes and other bits that were in a box of scrap paper.  Most adults really loved this - I heard one say she would like to do something like this in her living room all in blues and greens.

The special needs class made these awesome puppets.  These were one of the biggest hits of the show.  The heads are made of leftovers from casts (the school is across the street from a hospital) that aren't used any more.

 For years I have been trying to get teachers to use the art show as part of their curriculum - not just art.  This year, the grade 5 teacher decided that the students should build models as part of their "Ancient Egypt" unit.  I love the pyramid in the bottom right corner made of brightly coloured cereal boxes...and you can't read the sign, but it says it is made by "Hunter the Great".  So awesome.

And for individual projects, some absolute gems:

This apple made from 2L bottles was brilliant! Grade 3 student I believe.

One of  the teachers made this paper sculpture from leftovers.  We can always count on her for a great origami project.

My nephew made this cardboard mounted deer head.  Lovely.

This one was intriguing.  It was a paper honeycomb sculpture inside the branch and hanging all around it were little bees made from greeting cards.  Everybody touched it.

And of course I have to include my boys' projects...S made the woven rug on the right.  It is made from cut up T-shirts and took him quite a while.  He keeps it ON his bed, so the cat will go sleep on it.

N made the felted mat and ball on the left.  We went to an open house at an alpaca farm last spring and he was horrified that they throw out the leg fiber when they shear them.  They gladly gave him a bag full which he felted, in the tub, with his bathing suit on, into this mat for the cat.  The cat loves it and it is keeping so much cat fur off our area rug.  There are plans for more of these.  The sad thing is that during the art show, he caught a group of kids trying to rip the yellow 'circles' off the top - hence, the kinda sad state which you may or may not see in the picture.

So, all told, the art show was a success.  We had more participation than ever before (I was so busy I only got pictures of a few of the projects) and there is even already talk about what to do next year.

Linking up with: Creative Friday at Natural Suburbia
Fiber Arts Friday at Wisdom begins in wonder because the boys' projects are all about fiber!
Ecokids Tuesday at Like Mama - Like Daughter  because this fits the hop so exactly.
homemade monday at Frugal by Choice - Cheap by Necessity