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Bridget Houghton » Staff Profile

Staff Profile

My name is Bridget Houghton and I am thrilled to be your student’s visual arts teacher this year at
Westgate Community School. I am so excited to have the opportunity to be a part of your students’ creative experiences and Artistic Growth. This year will be my fourth year as part of the Westgate Community. I received my BA in Art Education from the University of Wyoming and am pursuing an MA in Art Therapy and Social Emotional Learning. 


Throughout the year, I aim to expose students to a wide range of different artists, art styles, and art mediums such as charcoal drawing, printmaking, and kiln fire clay among others. Through instruction and encouragement, students will talk intellectually about art and discover the beauty in the world around them. They will learn how to use the elements of art and design principles within their work and recognize them in others' work, including their peers. They will also learn about how art has evolved throughout history and explore multicultural art from around the world.

 

Posts

12/9 - 12/13

Good Morning!
 
Happy Wednesday. I hope you all enjoyed your weekend and start to your week! My apologies for the late update, the beginning of this week got away from me. 
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
2nd Grade—This week, we finalized our Pablo Picasso-inspired portraits and will start the process of creating a still-life drawing, focusing on value and shape. I will help the students work with their pencils to "draw what they see." 
 
3rd/4th—This week, we are finalizing our Zentangle Landscapes, using patterns and lines to create a unique landscape image. Students learned about the three parts of a landscape and how to use lines and shapes in varying ways to create a pattern. 
 
5th/6th—This week, we are finalizing our Still life project, focusing on form and dimension through value. Students will be completing this project by this Thursday and will be able to bring home their objects on that day. 
 
7th/8th - This week students will be beginning the planning process for our final project. We are studying the cubist movement and learning how to break an organic object (animals) into geometric shapes. Students will be creating 2 large or 4 small geometric animal portraits for this project, and will be using an unconventional painting method that most have not worked with before. 

12/2 - 12/6

Good Morning!
 
Happy Monday. I hope you all enjoyed your Thanksgiving Week!
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
2nd Grade - This week we will discuss abstract art, using lines, colors, and shapes and how to use them to create an image. We will be studying the work of Wasley Kandinsky and utilizing the relationships between colors and emotions to create our own abstract art. 
 
3rd/4th - This week we are beginning our first big project. Students will be learning about the different parts of a landscape and how to create visual interest using lines and patterns within their landscape drawings. Our final Zentangle Landscapes which will be due Friday, 12/13.
 
5th/6th - This week we are beginning our first big project, Still Life drawings. We started by learning the basics of how to draw/form a still life. Then students will bring in their own objects to draw close-up "zoomed-in" viewpoints of in order to complete 9 small drawings for their final image. This project will be due next Wednesday, 12/11. 
 
7th/8th - This week students will be beginning their final pop art food paintings. Students studied the work of Contemporary Pop Artist Hannah Moore. This project is due this Friday, 12/6.  

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dear Westgate Families,
 
As Thanksgiving approaches, I want to take a moment to express my gratitude for each of you. Working with your children every day is a true gift, and I am thankful for the joy, curiosity, and enthusiasm they bring to our classroom. Their dedication and growth continue to inspire me, and I feel so lucky to be a part of their learning journey.
 
I am also deeply grateful for your partnership and support. Your involvement, encouragement, and trust make such a difference in creating a nurturing and enriching environment for all our students. Together, we are building a wonderful community of learners, and I couldn’t do it without you!
 
During this holiday, I hope you have the chance to relax, reflect, and enjoy time with family and friends. May your Thanksgiving be filled with warmth, love, and countless blessings.
 
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours!
Warm regards,
Ms. H

11/18 - 11/22

Good Morning!
 
Welcome back. I hope you all enjoyed your Weekend. My apologies for the confusion last week; I was off my schedule. This week, K-6 is actually starting their final specials rotation! 
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
2nd Grade - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Ms. Freeland's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. We will then round out our week by talking about lines and patterns, while creating a Farm Landscape demonstrating what we learned. 
 
3rd/4th - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Ms. Rosenblatt's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Using their prior knowledge of the human facial proportions, students will then set to work designing the covers for our sketchbooks, by creating their own original character. 
 
5th/6th - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Mr. McGinnis's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Using their prior knowledge of the human facial proportions, students will then set to work designing the covers for our sketchbooks, by creating their own original character. 
 
7th/8th - This week students are continuing their Second Life Paintings. These will be due this Tuesday (November 19th) at the end of our class period. The students seem to be very excited and invested in this project so I am very excited to see the outcome! We will hold a critique on Wednesday and start our 3rd Painting Project on Thursday. 
 
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact me! Have a fantastic week! 

11/12 - 11/15

Good Morning!
 
Welcome back. I hope you all enjoyed your long weekend. This week K-6 are starting a new specials rotation! 
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
1st Grade - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Mrs. Freeland's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. We will then round out our week by talking about lines and patterns while creating a Farm Landscape demonstrating what we learned. 
 
3rd/4th—I am starting a new rotation. I will now have Ms. Rosenblatt's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure by creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Using their prior knowledge of human facial proportions, students will then set to work designing the covers for our sketchbooks by creating their own original characters. 
 
5th/6th - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Mr. McGinnis's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Using their prior knowledge of the human facial proportions, students will then set to work designing the covers for our sketchbooks, by creating their own original character. 
 
7th/8th - This week students are continuing their Second Life Paintings. These will be due at the end of the week (Friday, November 15th). The students seem to be very excited and invested in this project so I am very excited to see the outcome! 
 
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact me! Have a fantastic week! 

11/4 - 11/8

Good Morning!
 
Happy Monday. I hope you all enjoyed your weekend!
 
This week, I will be attending a conference on Thursday and Friday, so I will have a substitute cover my classroom. 
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
Kinder - This week we will complete our final project - Our Warm and Cool Sunsets. Students will learn about the difference between warm and cool colors and how to identify them. Students will then create a sunset landscape separating the warm colors in the sky and the cool colors in the ocean water. 
 
1st Grade - This week we will create a still-life drawing, focusing on value and shape. I will help the students work with their pencils to "draw what they see". 
 
3rd/4th—This week, we are beginning work on our self-portraits, which we will finish when they return to me in March. 
 
5th/6th—This week, we are completing our second project, neuro doodles. Students will work on calming their minds and letting the artwork tell them what it needs instead of forcing colors, lines, or patterns. 
 
7th/8th - This week students will be beginning the planning process for our Second Life Paintings. Students will study and learn the techniques of impressionist and post-impressionist painters by giving a second life or "modernizing" some famous paintings. 

10/28-11/1

Good Morning!
 
Happy Monday. I hope you all enjoyed your weekend!
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
Kinder - This week we will complete our second project - Color Wheel Umbrellas. Students will learn about the Primary and Secondary Colors and experiment with how the primary colors are used to create the secondary colors. 
 
1st Grade - This week we will discuss abstract art, using lines, colors, and shapes and how to use them to create an image. We will be studying the work of Jaque Miro who is known for the child-like nature of his artwork. 
 
3rd/4th - This week we are continuing/finalizing our first big project. Students will be working on their final zentangle landscape this week, starting with their outline and then moving to filling their shapes with different patterns. Our final Zentangle Landscapes which will be due Friday, 11/1.
 
5th/6th - This week we are finalizing our first big project, Still Life drawings. We started by learning the basics of how to draw/form a still life. Then students will bring in their own objects to draw close-up "zoomed-in" viewpoints of in order to complete 9 small drawings for their final image. This project will be due next Friday, 11/1. 
 
7th/8th - This week students will be finalizing their Fairytale/Folktale watercolor paintings. Students are focusing on the use of color and how to add highlights and shadows without the use of white or black. These are due on Wednesday 10/30 and we will have a full class critique, Thursday 10/31. 

10/14 - 10/18

Good Morning!
 
Welcome back. I hope you all enjoyed your Fall Break. This week K-6 are starting a new specials rotation! 
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
Kinder - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Ms. Lubang's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Then we will round out our week by completing our first project - Our Rainbow Self Portraits. Students will learn about different types of lines and colors to create the background for their self-portraits and attach their faces after our backgrounds are dry. 
 
1st Grade - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Mrs. Koenig's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. We will then round out our week by talking about lines and patterns, while creating a Farm Landscape demonstrating what we learned. 
 
3rd/4th - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Ms. Papiernik's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Using their prior knowledge of the human facial proportions, students will then set to work designing the covers for our sketchbooks, by creating their own original character. 
 
5th/6th - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Mrs. Lounsbury's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Using their prior knowledge of the human facial proportions, students will then set to work designing the covers for our sketchbooks, by creating their own original character. 
 
7th/8th - This week students are starting their new specials rotation for Quarter 2. This quarter will be all about Painting and different materials/techniques we can use to create with paint. This week, students will start with a small assignment to begin their sketchbook covers. Then we will move on to our first project, focusing on the art of Illustration through fairytales and folktales spanning history. 
 
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact me! Have a fantastic week! 

9/23-9/26

Good Morning!
 
Happy Monday. I hope you all enjoyed your weekend! Don't forget about conferences this week. We will have online conferences on Thursday, September 26th from 1 pm-5 pm, and in-person conferences on Friday, September 27th from 8 am-8 pm. I hope to see you there! 
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
Kinder - This week we will complete our final project - Our Warm and Cool Sunsets. Students will learn about the difference between warm and cool colors and how to identify them. Students will then create a sunset landscape separating the warm colors in the sky and the cool colors in the ocean water. 
 
1st Grade - This week we will finalize our abstract line drawings. These drawings are inspired by Jaque Miro, a famous French painter who is known for his more "childish" type artistic style. 
 
3rd/4th - This week we are finalizing our Zentangle Landscapes. They are due by the end of class on Wednesday, September 25th. 
 
5th/6th - This week we are finalizing our 2nd project, Neuro doodles. They will be working on calming their minds and letting the artwork tell them what it needs instead of forcing colors, lines, or patterns. 
 
7th/8th - This week students will be finalizing their scratchboard animals, which are due at the end of class Tuesday, 9/25. We will complete a critique of their work as well as a peer's work, before the end of the quarter. 

9/9-9/13

Good Morning!
 
Happy Monday. I hope you all enjoyed your weekend!
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
Kinder - This week we will be completing our first project - Our Rainbow Self Portraits. Students will learn about different types of lines and colors to create the background for their self-portraits and attach their faces after our backgrounds are dry. This will show up as 2 grades in the grade book: 1 for their background, and one for their self-portrait. 
 
1st Grade - This week we will be talking about shapes and how to use them to create an image. We will be studying the work of Mary Blair and how she was able to introduce new ways of using color within Walt Disney Studios and how we can use those colors to create our castles! This is inspired by the vivid colors and designs of the "It's a Small World" ride at Walt Disney World that was created by Mrs. Mary Blair.
 
3rd/4th - This week we are beginning our first big project. We will be starting the week off with some sketchbook work, learning and practicing patterns and landscape proportions. We will then begin to work on our final Zentangle Landscapes which will be due next Tuesday, 9/17.
 
5th/6th - This week we are beginning our first big project, Still Life drawings. We will start by learning the basics of how to draw/form a still life. Then students will bring in their own objects to draw close-up "zoomed-in" viewpoints of in order to complete 9 small drawings for their final image. This project will be due next Tuesday, 9/17. 
 
7th/8th - This week students will be finalizing their fantasy cityscapes, which are due at the end of class Monday, 9/9. We will complete a critique of their work as well as a peer's work, before moving on to our final project of the quarter, Animal Texture Scratchboard Drawings. 

New Rotation

Good Morning!
 
Welcome back. I hope you all enjoyed your Labor Day weekend. This week K-6 are starting a new specials rotation! 
 
What's on the Docket for this week?
 
Kinder - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Mr. Baker's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Then we will round out our week by completing our first project - Our Rainbow Self Portraits. Students will learn about different types of lines and colors to create the background for their self-portraits and attach their faces after our backgrounds are dry. 
 
1st Grade - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Mrs. Hamilton's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. We will then round out our week by talking about lines and patterns, while creating a Farm Landscape demonstrating what we learned. 
 
3rd/4th - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Ms. Small's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Using their prior knowledge of the human facial proportions, students will then set to work designing the covers for our sketchbooks, by creating their own original character. 
 
5th/6th - Starting a new rotation. I will now have Mrs. Calder's Advocacy class. We will start off our art adventure creating our contributions to the school mural inspired by Thank You X, an LA-based street artist. Using their prior knowledge of the human facial proportions, students will then set to work designing the covers for our sketchbooks, by creating their own original character. 
 
7th/8th - This week students will be finalizing their fantasy cityscapes. Last week we focused on the planning process, learning one-point and two-point perspective and how to create a city using those methods. We are now finalizing these, and they will be due next Monday, September 9th. 

Week 3 - 8/19-8/23

Good Morning Everyone,
 
Happy Tuesday! 
 
What is going on in art this week:
 
7/8 Drawing - We are spending the week working on our final drafts of our Historical Figure portraits which will be shaded with text. These text portraits challenge the students to think about the shadows and highlights within their reference image and how they can use words and typography to enhance their chosen portrait. 
 
5/6 Art - This week students are using their time to finalize their Still Life drawings. Students are working from objects that they chose from home, and 'zooming in' on different aspects of the objects to show more close-up details instead of only focusing on the object as a whole. 
 
3/4 Art - 3rd and 4th grade are also coming to the end of their first project, focusing on Landscapes and patterns using outlines and zentangles. Students received a reference image of a landscape and they are using that reference image to find the shapes within their landscape to fill with varying complexities of zentangle patterns 
 
2nd Grade - My second-grade students focused on lines and patterns this week, creating their own Farm Landscape. Towards the end of the week, we will focus on shape and color, finding our unique take on a self-portrait. 
 
Kindergarten - Starting the week off strong, we are finalizing the self-portraits we learned about and worked on last week. For the remainder of the week, we are looking back at our rainbow and starting to learn our color wheel and put together some of our color families and how they work with each other. 
 
If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to reach out. Have a fantastic rest of your week! 

WELCOME BACK!!!!

Westgate Students and Parents, 
 
Welcome back to another exciting school year! I hope you all had a wonderful and restful summer break, filled with fun and creativity. My name is Ms. H, and I am thrilled to be your art teacher this year!
 
As we begin this new journey, I am looking forward to the artistic adventures that lie ahead. Art is not just about creating beautiful pieces to share with friends and family; it's about expressing yourself, exploring your imagination, and learning to see the world from different perspectives. This year we will delve into various mediums and techniques, from drawing and painting to sculpture and digital art. 
 
Our art classroom will be a space of creativity, innovation, and respect. I encourage each student to bring their unique voice and vision to their work. Mistakes are a natural part of the learning process, and in our classroom, they are embraced as opportunities to grow and discover new possibilities. 
 
I look forward to seeing all the amazing art we can create together this year! Let's make this a year filled with inspiration, creativity, and joy!
 
Warm Regards, 
Ms. H

1/29-2/2

Happy Wednesday. My apologies for the late post. This is the final week for our first rotation for K-6 so it has been high energy in the art room.

This week in Art:

7/8 – Soap Carving – This week, students are transitioning from additive sculptural methods to subtractive sculptural methods. They studied the works of Michelangelo and how he used large marble blocks to carve out his sculptures. Students had the choice of picking a plant/animal native to Colorado or creating an abstract design for their soap carving. After finishing their sketches, students will be provided with a pencil, toothpick, paperclip, and a plastic butter knife to carve their soap into their desired design.

5/6 – Character Creation Illustration – Students started designing their own characters last week, giving them a backstory and physical appearance. This week they will create a watercolor illustration of their character, using emphasis through colors, lines, shapes, size, or location within their painting. In their Language Arts class, they will create a short story to accompany their paintings of the character they imagined.   

3/4 – Cubism Objects – Students studied the works of Pablo Picasso and how he would combine different views of the same object to create one singular image. Students have brought in objects to draw for their project and have drawn these objects in their sketchbooks to practice. Students will then paint one object and cut it up, rearranging the pieces to complete their final cubist art pieces.

Kindergarten – Warm and Cool sunset – Students will be focusing on the warm and cool colors, using them to create a sunset over the ocean using Quick Stix paint sticks. We will also be finalizing our clay by painting them with watercolors.

1/2 – Self Portraits – Students are completing their final art project for the year which is a self-portrait. Self-portraits are a great way to measure a student’s artistic progress year to year. This year we are inspired by the artwork of Yali Ziv, a portrait artist from Israel. And to finish off, we will be painting our pottery on Friday.

1/22-1/26

Happy Monday! I hope you had a fun and restful weekend.

This week in Art:

7/8 – Cardboard Lanterns – Last week, students began the construction of their first larger project, using cardboard and tissue paper to create a lantern. This week students will be finalizing these lanterns and conducting a self-critique, thinking about the process they took, how they think it turned out, and contemplating different ways they could recreate this project if they were to try it again. Later this week they will be transitioning into their second project which will be focusing less on details and more on a simplified form.  

5/6 – Clay Story Books - Last week, students began their kiln fire clay project through their planning process and starting the base of their project. This week students will be finalizing details on their projects and leaving them to dry before our first kiln firing this weekend. Towards the end of the week, students will be starting the planning process for their painting project and completing that next week while we wait to be able to glaze our clay creations.  

3/4 – Clay Boxes - Last week, students began their kiln fire clay project through their planning process and starting the base of their project. This week students will be finalizing details on their projects and leaving them to dry before our first kiln firing this weekend. Towards the end of the week, students will be starting the planning process for their painting project and completing that next week while we wait to be able to glaze our clay creations.  

Kindergarten – Clay Patterned Drop Bowls - Last week, students began their kiln fire clay project by learning where clay comes from and how we can use it to create all sorts of things. This week students will be using different clay tools to create marks and details on their projects, before “dropping” them into plastic bowl molds and leaving them to dry before our first kiln firing this weekend. Towards the end of the week, students will be learning about ways to create three-dimensional effects without a three-dimensional medium while we wait to be able to glaze our clay creations.  

1/2 – Clay Coil Bowls - Last week, students began their kiln fire clay project by learning where clay comes from and how to use it to create all sorts of things. They were able to start their coil bowls last Friday and will be finishing them this week in class before leaving them to dry before our first kiln firing this weekend. Towards the end of the week, students will be learning about ways to create three-dimensional effects without a three-dimensional medium and completing their second sculpture while we wait to be able to glaze our clay creations.  

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Name
Bridget Houghton
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Art Teacher
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