Ms. Potts K-5 Art Teacher 🎨

These Solar Printed Arthropods have been a student FAVORITE! ☀️🐛💙 And they’ve quickly become one of my favorite lessons to teach, too!

I’ll admit, I was a little intimidated by cyanotypes. I actually had a kit sitting in my classroom for YEARS before I finally felt brave enough to give it a try. And I am SO glad I did!

My second grade artists started by collecting leaves and using sunlight to create their own cyanotype prints. Then, we learned about the incredible scientific illustrations of Maria Sibylla Merian and practiced drawing arthropods from observation!

This lesson was such a wonderful combination of art, science, experimentation, and discovery! From watching our prints transform in the sunlight to studying the tiny details of insects, there was SO much learning happening along the way.

It definitely took some extra prep (and a little trial and error on my part), but seeing how excited my students were made every bit of it worth it!

Sometimes the lessons that push us outside our comfort zones turn out to be the BEST ones.

#artprocess #artteacher #artteacherlife #iteachart #arted