Fourth Grade Reduction Prints

Fourth grade has just recently finished up a very involved printmaking project. Students looked at traditional Japanese woodblock printing and made guesses on how the artists were able to print in so many colors.

Students were shown that the artist printed each color in a separate layer, so to create a four colored print the image had to be inked and stamped four times. To simulate the look of a Japanese woodblock print without the woodblock students used styrofoam plates and a reduction printmaking technique. 

Here are some finished reduction prints.

Japanese Bedrooms

Second grade recently finished up making paper bedrooms. As a class we looked at typical Japanese architecture and tried to notice similarities with all the images. Some things students noticed was the appearance of shoji (Japanese sliding screens) and tatmi mats (a type of rug usually made of rice straw).

Students were then asked to design their very own Japanese room, making sure to include the tatami mat and shoji screen. These little dioramas were made entirely from paper! On the last day of the project students were introduced to the ancient art of origami. 

Each student folded his/her own origami chair which they then added to the paper room.