5th Grade Acoma Pottery

Acoma Pottery

5th graders studied the traditional pottery of the Pueblo Native Americans in Art. They learned that the Pueblo create Folk Art, which is art that is past down and learned from generation to generation. Students learned about a few types of Pueblo Pottery called Black on Black Pottery, Storyteller Pottery and Acoma Pottery. They also learned about 3 famous Pueblo Potters Maria Martinez, Lucy Lewis, and Helen Cordero. They used Acoma Pottery as inspiration for their own pottery. The word "Acoma" is from the Acoma and Spanish word Acoma, or Acú, which means "the place that always was" or "People of the White Rock". Acoma pottery dates back to more than 1,000 years ago. Local clay that is dug up at a nearby site is essential to Acoma pottery. The clay is formed into vessels and dried, painted using only black glaze and fired. Geometric patterns are traditional designs and are applied with the spike of a yucca plant. Using clay 5th graders practiced making different styles and shapes of pottery, each student created a collection of 3-5 pieces. Once the pottery was fired and made hard students looked at Acoma Pottery designs and painted patterns and designs with black and clear glaze. The glazed pottery then had to be fired a second time for the glaze to turn into the final black and clear glaze.