Fall Tree Reflections, 2nd Grade

This was a really simple, but fun lesson. I found this lesson on the Incredible Art Department Website, however, there are many versions of this floating around cyberspace. To begin with, we folded our paper in half and drew a line right at the fold. We then used a light watercolor wash on our papers. The bottom half needed to be blue to make it look like the water. I told the students that the sky could be any color they wish. After this, students used brown tempera to paint the trees. Before the brown paint dried, I had the students fold their paper in half, and print the trees on the bottom half of the paper. Some of my students were amazed and thought this step was magic!. We then painted the leaves. I had them paint the leaves using fall colors and a paint brush. Instead of painting normally, I had them dab the leaves on with the brush. After this, the students folded the paper in half again, and print the leaves.

Some of the students were a little upset that their prints weren't perfect. I tried to explain that reflection are generally a little choppy and imperfect. Next time, I will bring in photos of reflections so they understand this better.