Middle School


FIFTH GRADE ART
Full year 

This course is designed to give students a broader understanding of cultures and artists from around the world while building upon the foundation of the technical and conceptual skills they learned in the fourth grade. Students will use a wide variety of media while working individually as well as in groups. The students will use artist quality materials as they work in the art and ceramics studios. They will explore art in it's many forms, making connections to art history as well as other areas of study, such as math and science.

SIXTH GRADE ART
Full year 

The focus of this course is to foster an appreciation of the visual arts in a historical context in relation to the present. Students will be exposed to a range of artists and genres throughout history. We will continue the development of 2D and 3D media technique in conjunction with expanding creative expression and ideation from Art 5. Interspersed throughout the year will be interdisciplinary projects in addition to local and national visual arts competitions and programs. The goal is to give students a glimpse of the beginnings and roots of many of the visual arts and to relate some of the assignments to their 6th grade curriculum.

MS DRAWING AND PAINTING

This foundation arts class is an overview of basic drawing techniques and assignments. In it students develop a strong beginning drawing portfolio. They will receive an introduction to color usage and paint using watercolor paints on paper and acrylic paint on canvas. This class serves as a strong basis for Laguna’s Upper School Visual Arts courses.

MS CERAMICS

This course is an introduction to working with clay through hand-building and throwing clay on the potter’s wheel. Students also learn to create animal sculptures and how to glaze their work with high fire glazes and underglazes. Process is encouraged over product, but all students leave the class with a number of quality pieces of art, as well as a solid background in working with clay that will serve as a strong introduction to Laguna’s Upper School Ceramics classes.

MS VIDEO PRODUCTION

Students in Video Production will be introduced to and explore the use of digital video cameras, the non-linear editing program Adobe Premiere Elements 10, and how to interface with a computer. Viewing films and seeing how others have chosen to "tell" their stories is also a part of this course. Organizational skills and time management are key factors to success in this course.
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