5th Grade Printmaking Calaveras 💀 or Sugar Skulls

 For the past few art classes, 5th grade has been working on their printmaking project, and learning about the Mexican holiday, Dia de los muertos. Calaveras, or skulls, are one of the many symbols of this meaningful holiday, and will be the subject matter for this project! We will be learning about the customs of this time and how it celebrates the memory of loved ones, no longer here. There are a lot of colorful decorations such as, candles, flowers, food, photographs, that decorate the "ofrendas" of their loved ones. You will see many calaveras that are covered in designs and color, in the decor, and that is where we're getting our inspiration from. We're also learning about another country's culture in the process, which is one of our art standards! Here is a great website that further describes the customs of this day

Dia De los Muertos facts

Here is the process by which these artworks are created!

Supplies:

You need Sax foam printing plates (we used 4x6"), 
4x6" drawing paper, 
Tru-Ray construction paper
pencil, 
tray, 
Speedball printing ink, 
a brayer,
 and protective paper for your tables
 (because this can get messy!)

Day 1: Talk about Dia de los Muertos and start our calavera drawing. The students will draw their skulls on their 4x6" piece of paper, with the teacher. After they draw their outline, they will add details, such as flowers, hearts, vines, lines, and shapes. I have printouts of sugar skulls for the students to look at. There are so many different designs you can add to your drawing! This sketch will be placed on top of the foam and the students will go over their drawing, to create an imprint onto the foam. 

Here are some super skulls drawn by Mrs. Roger's 5th grade class!

Day 2: Trace the drawing on the foam again, because your marks must be good and deep for them to show up! Once their printmaking foam is ready, they are ready to print. There will be a printing set up on each table, and the students will pull their own prints. Once they get a good one, we'll trim off the edges of the paper, and glue it to a background that they can decorate. 

Here's some awesome student examples!

 Mrs. Stacey is so proud of y'all! 

Here are some great examples from Mrs. Sisco's class!