Self Portrait Assemblages in Motion

Recently, Kindergarten artists created self portrait assemblages! We learned that a self portrait is when a you create an artwork, like a drawing or painting, of yourself. Only you can create your own self portrait. We also thought about what our bodies look like when we are doing our favorite physical activities. We shared ideas by having students act out different activities to see what their bodies look like when they are running, jumping, dancing, swimming, practicing ballet, doing karate, playing hockey and more. 

Next, students used cut cardboard shapes and glued them together to create their bodies, arranging their arms and legs to show what their bodies look like when they are doing their favorite activities. 

During the following class, we added clothing to our self portrait assemblages. There were many different materials to choose from at the materials table, including paper, fabric, metallic paper, felt, foam and buttons. 

Students chose different materials to add to their self portrait to give their clothing different colors, patterns and textures. Many students thought about what kind of clothing they wear during their favorite activity, to help select materials. Some students wear a uniform or special outfit for their activity, such as karate or gymnastics. 

During our last class, we discussed the different parts of our face and students added their facial features, as well as their hair. Students chose different colors of paper for their skin tone, since we all have different skin colors. Students could add their facial features using paper or draw them with pencil and Sharpie markers. Students added yarn for hair, choosing colors that were closest to their hair color. 

After everyone was done, we shared our self portrait assemblages with the class. We noticed that there were such a wide variety of activities represented! We also worked on being respectful of each other's work. Here are some examples of our self portrait assemblages:

Andrew, Kindergarten (Bolton)
"Leaping"

Aria, Kindergarten (Beatty)
"Ballet"

Casey, Kindergarten (Tan)
"Hockey"

Everett, Kindergarten (Segreve)
"Jumping"

Hadley, Kindergarten (Segreve)
"Ballet"

James, Kindergarten (Segreve)
"Running"

Lily, Kindergarten (Mattson)
"Ballet"

Lilyana, Kindergarten (Mattson)
"Jumping"

Louis, Kindergarten (Bolton)
"Flying"

Talia, Kindergarten (Beatty)
"Split"

Thanish, Kindergarten (Tan)
"Stretching"

Alessandra, Kindergarten (Tan)
"Jumping Jacks"

Lola, Kindergarten (Segreve)
"Ballet"