dot paintings

These are some samples of the dot paintings the 8th graders have completed.  Students choose an animal from the classroom drawing book resourses.  They practice drawing it large on a 9 by12 inch sketch paper, then enlarge it to the 12 by 18 inch black or sand colored paper.  Students choose a color from the small containers of premixed tempera or craft acrylic paint to "dot" the outside edge of their creature with the "wrong" end of a paintbrush.  Then they choose other colors to dot the details and the rest of the body.  After they have filled the body, they are to create a background environment for the animal or a design using shapes and lines until the page is at least 75% filled with dots.