Identity

IdentityThe Art of Self-Expression

CurriculumGrades 2, 3, and 4Jennifer Wein

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Jennifer Wein

IdentityThe Art of Self-Expression

Table of Contents

Philosophy StatementCurriculum Goals

National Level of

Education

Title I: Improving the Academic Achievement of thedisadvantagedGoals 2000: Educate America ActNo Child Left Behind Act: 2003National Art Education StandardsNational Constraints

State Level of Education

Massachusetts Visual Arts StandardsMassachusetts Arts Curriculum FrameworkComprehensive Assessment System (MCAS)

Massachusetts StateCharacteristicsMassachusetts State Constraints

Local Level of Education

The City of Belmont, Massachusetts Belmont Public SchoolsMETCOMary Lee Burbank Elementary SchoolW.L. Chenery Middle School

Art Curriculum Focus

Rationale StatementScope and Sequence

Grade 2 Units:

The Art of MasksWho Am I? – Self-PortraitsSymmetrical CreaturesTextural Animal Pets

Grade 3 Units:

Warm Sun and Too Cool Moon- A study of warm and cool colors with Vincent Van GoghSymbolic Self-PortraitsCubism-Abstracting theOrdinaryArchitecture-Clay Dream House

Grade 4 Units and

Lessons:

Narrative Comic StripsPicasso Style Self-PortraitsFigure DrawingPointillist Landscapes

Appendix:

Glossary of Art TermsElements of ArtPrinciples of Design BibliographyWebsites

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Philosophy Statement

“The arts must be at the heart of every child’s learning experience if they are to have a chance to dream and to create, to have beliefs, to carry a sense of cultural identity.”

James D Wolfensohn, former chairman of The Kennedy Center

Art in all its’ media is a process of the creation and expression of identities. The identity of an artist is not only in his anatomical body, the artist’s identity is also in his or her entire body of work; his or her identity is spread over his or her entire area of influence. Unique in their ways, children are intensely individual, as is their art. Art can be a powerful means of communication by visually conveying experiences, emotions, and ideas that aren’t easily verbalized. Students inevitably gain confidence, self- awareness, and an overall well being as they learn to value their personal responses and inimitable individualities. The artistic nature is most often intuitive, unique, and perceptive in an intense way. Much of art isprogressive, the creators themselves striving for betterment.

The ideas underlying a person’s identity are numerous and complex. Through the art making process students will be able to investigate ideas within the larger scope of identity. Exploring different techniques in portraiture, story-telling, “dream-scapes,” symbols, and so on, students will define their own geographical, social, and sartorial boundaries enabling them to establish a sense of empowerment and self-reliance that most young people strive for.

Art teachers play an important role in commencing visual creativity by creating. A successful curriculum should provide students with a broad exposure to art history, aesthetics, criticism, and cultural diversity. Art activities should address needs that are directly related to the emotional, psychological, and intellectual development of the learner. It is important to provide students with visual stimuli and information necessary to develop and enhance their creativity as well as their aesthetic perceptions about the world around them. The art room may be the only place for students to discover and express their unique individualities and emotions thereby providing a sense of belonging and identity. A highly qualified teacher must not only obtain artistic skill, but also possess the ability to challenge students and retain their interest. An art teacher must instruct, inspire, direct, facilitate, and foster the lifelong process of creative intervention. There needs to be a flow between the head and heart, so that all of these forces work together. Much of the process is unconscious; the expression is the concept in action. Art appeals to the emotions as well as the mind, to both the artist and the viewer. One cannot necessarily separate the emotional from the cognitive. Individualism and intellectualism co-exist in art and while many see the world as black and white, the truth is, much of the world is grey. An oxymoron indeed.

Jennifer Wein

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Curriculum Goals

1. Students should have the ability to perceive and understand relationships among the elements and principles of design as they appear in the natural and environment, as they influence mental images, and as they appear in works of art.

2. Students should develop an interest and appreciation of the visual arts through the study of cultures and historical periods in which they are created.

3. Students should develop a working knowledge of the language of art and an understanding of the relationship of the visual arts to other fields of knowledge.

4. They should think and act creatively by solving problems and by responding with originality, flexibility, fluency, and imagination.

5. Students should develop creative thinking and critical analysis in the area of the visual arts.

6. Students should develop the technical skills for using art mediums as a means of personal expression and communication.

7. Students should recognize the interdependence of the fine arts with other areas of the curriculum.

8. Students should develop social, cognitive, intellectual, motor, and language skills through developmentally appropriate art experiences in a range of materials.

9. Students should use and relate the fine arts contributions of all cultures past and present, with a vision of the future.

“In the end I do not distinguish science and art except as methods…Art is the representation, science is the explanation of the same reality.”--1974

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National Level

Title I: Improving the Academic Achievement of the disadvantaged

The purpose of this title is to ensure that all children have a fair, equal, and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and reach, at a minimum, proficiency on challenging state academ-ic achievement standards and state academic assessments. This purpose can be accomplished by:

1. Ensuring that high-quality academic assessments, account-ability systems, teacher preparation and training, curriculum, and instructional materials are aligned with challenging state academic standards so that students, teachers, parents, and administrators can measure progress against common expectations for student academic achievement;

2. Meeting the educational needs of low-achieving children in our nation’s highest poverty schools, limited English proficient children, migratory children, children with disabilities, Indian children, ne-glected or delinquent children, and young children in need of read-ing assistance;

3. Closing the achievement gap between high- and low-performing children, especially the achievement gaps between minority and non-minority students, and between disadvantaged children and their more advantaged peers;

4. Holding schools, districts and states accountable for improv-

ing the academic achievement of all students, and identifying and turning around low-performing schools that have failed to provide a high-quality education to their students, while providing alternatives to students in such schools to enable the students to receive a high-quality education;

5. Distributing and targeting resources sufficiently to make a differ-ence to districts and schools where needs are greatest;6. Improving and strengthening accountability, teaching, and learn-ing by using state assessment systems designed to ensure that students are meeting challenging state academic achievement and content standards and increasing achievement overall, but espe-cially for the disadvantaged;

7. Providing greater decision-making authority and flexibility to schools and teachers in exchange for greater responsibility for stu-dent performance;

8. Providing children an enriched and accelerated educational program, including the use of school wide programs for additional services that increase the amount and quality of instructional time;

9. Promoting school wide reform and ensuring the access of chil-dren to effective, scientifically-based instructional strategies and challenging academic content;

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10. Significantly elevating the quality of instruction by providing staff in participating schools with substantial opportunities for profes-sional development

11. Coordinating services under all parts of this title with each other, with other educational services and, to the extent feasible, with other agencies providing services to youth, children, and families; and

12. Affording parents substantial and meaningful opportunities to participate in the education of their children.

Title I supports roles for schools, districts, and states. Schools are provided much more flexibility and responsibility for determining how to spend their Title I resources, and many more schools are now able to combine more of their resources to support comprehen-sive reform through school wide programs. Districts play a critical role through providing technical assistance, coordination of services, and high-quality professional development. States anchor the program by developing challenging academic standards and aligned assessments, linking Title I, with their over-all education reform efforts, and still ensuring proper and efficient administration and use of Title I funds.

In 2006-07, Washington State received $176 million dollars to be used to provide services to 286 local school districts through locally

designed intervention programs. These programs provide additional educational support and instruction for struggling students in read-ing, math and language arts.

Schools, which have 40% or more of their students who qualify for free and reduced lunches, may become “school wide” programs. After a year of rigorous planning and research on best practices to promote learning, a school may combine state and federal dollars to design a comprehensive plan to raise the achievement of all stu-dents.

The Department of Education also allocates additional Title I funds to assist schools which were not meeting their state’s standards. This “School Improvement” grant was issued to 30 Title I districts.

Title I: Improving the Academic Achievement of the disadvantaged

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Goals 2000: Educate America Act

“The search for roots and beginnings is really the quest for continua-tions. For how can human beings know where they are going unless they know where they have been?”- William Fleming, Arts and Ideas, 1980

In late 1989, President Bush and the Nation’s Governors met in Virginia for a bipartisan “Education Summit.” At this summit, the groundwork was laid for the National Education Goals, which are all part of the Goals 2000 Education Program. Under the Bush adminis-tration, the program was called “America 2000.”

The goals were not to be used for political gain or as a hollow promise. They were the centerpiece for education reform in both the Bush and Clinton Administrations. They serve as a nationwide pact by which we can measure the output of our educational systems throughout America.The passing of the GOALS 2000: Educate America Act on March 31 of 1994 allowed the federal government a new role in its support for education. It established a framework to identify academic stan-dards, provide support to help students meet those standards, and measure student progress. The act established the National Educa-tion Standards and Improvement Council to examine and certify na-tional and state content, student performance, opportunity-to-learn standards, and assessment systems voluntarily submitted by states.

National Education Goals

1. Every child will start school ready to learn.

2. The high school graduation rate will increase to at least 90 per-cent.

3. American students will leave grades 4, 8, and 12 having demon-strated competency over challenging subject matter including Eng-lish, mathematics, science, foreign languages, civics and govern-ment, economics, art, history, and geography; and every school in America will ensure that all students learn to use their minds well, so they may be prepared for responsible citizenship, further learning, and productive employment in our nation’s modern economy.

4. The nation’s teaching force will have access to programs for the continued improvement of their professional skills needed to instruct and prepare all American students for the next century.

5. U.S. students will be first in the world in science and mathemat-ics achievement.

6. Every adult American will be literate and will possess the knowl-edge and skills necessary to compete in a global economy and exercise rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

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Goals 2000: Educate America Act

7. Every school in the United States will be free of drugs, violence, and the unauthorized presence of firearms and alcohol and will offer a disciplined environment conducive to learning.

8. Every school will promote partnerships that will increase parental involvement and participation in promoting the social, emotional, and academic growth of children.

“Art is a selective re-creation of reality according to an artist’s metaphysical value-judgments. An artist recreates those aspects of reality which represent his fundamental view of man’s nature.”- Ayn Rand

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No Child Left Behind Act: 2003

“These reforms express my deep belief in our public schools and their mission to build the mind and character of every child, from every background, in every part of America.”-President George W. Bush

“Five years ago, we rose above partisan differences to pass the No Child Left Behind Act, preserving local control, raising standards, and holding those schools accountable for results.... Now the task is to build on the success, without watering down standards, without taking control from local communities, and without backsliding and calling it reform.”-President George W. Bush

With President Bush’s signing of the No Child Left Behind Act in 2002, Americans united behind the idea that “every child can learn.” Now, as Congress begins to reauthorize the law, we take the next step to ensure that every child does learn.

In his State of the Union Address, President Bush discussed his plans for the law’s reauthorization. Building On Results: A Blueprint for Strengthening the No Child Left Behind Act is designed to pro-vide additional tools to our schools and educators to help America’s students read and do math at grade level by 2014.

We know what works: high standards, accountability, more choices for parents, and sound, proven methods of instruction. These prin-

ciples have yielded real and sustainable results. Under No Child Left Behind, our students have made strong academic progress, particularly in the earlier grades. Reading and math scores are at all-time highs and achievement gaps are closing.

The No Child Left Behind Act has evolved from idea to law to a way of life. It’s the foundation upon which we must build, and the time to act is now. To strengthen the law, the President proposes to:

1. Strengthen efforts to close the achievement gap through high standards, accountability, and more options for parents.

2. Give states flexibility to better measure individual student prog-ress, target resources to students most in need, and improve as-sessments for students with disabilities and limited English profi-ciency.

3. Prepare high school students for success by promoting rigorous and advanced coursework and providing new resources for schools serving low-income students.

4. Provide greater resources for teachers to further close the achievement gap through improved math and science instruction, intensive aid for struggling students, continuation of Reading First, and rewards for great progress in challenging environments.

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5. Offer additional tools to help local educators turn around chroni-cally under performing schools and empower parents with informa-tion and options.

Highlights of Building on Results:

Every Child Performing at or Above Grade Level by 2014

Accountability—States will be held accountable for ensuring that all students can read and do math at grade level by 2014. They will disaggregate test scores, participate in the National Assessment of Educational Progress (NAEP), and report state and NAEP results to parents on the same report card.

Flexibility for Innovation and Improvement

Growth Models—States will be able to use growth models to measure individual progress towards grade-level proficiency by 2014, as long as they have robust data systems and well-estab-lished assessments, and set annual goals based on proficiency, not on students’ backgrounds.Prioritized Support for Schools—States will be able to focus more federal resources, interventions, and technical assistance on schools with the greatest needs, such as those identified for im-provement or corrective action.

Flexibility—States will be able to prioritize their school improve-ment activities based on the specific needs and successes of the school. To help states and districts tailor programs for their needs, 100 percent of specified federal funds may be moved among pro-grams.

Students With Disabilities—Allows states to tailor assessments to small groups of students with disabilities with modified or alter-nate achievement standards as long as they are of high technical quality and promote challenging instruction.

English Language Learners—Schools will be recognized by state accountability systems for making significant progress in teaching limited English proficient (LEP) children critical English language skills.

Safe Schools—In order to create safe and healthy learning envi-ronments, states will be given funds to provide districts with training, technical assistance, and information on best practices. In addition, the Safe and Drug-Free Schools grant program will be consolidated and focused.

Challenging Our Students and Preparing Them to

Succeed

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Graduation Rates—All 50 Governors have agreed to use a more accurate graduation rate. By 2011-12, this school-level data must be disaggregated and reported in state accountability calculations.

Rigorous Coursework—By 2010-11, states must develop course-level academic standards for English and mathematics that prepare high school students to succeed in college and the global workplace. By 2012-13, states will administer assessments aligned to these standards for two years of English and mathematics and publicly report the extent to which all students are on track to enter college or the workplace fully prepared.

Advanced Classes—More teachers will be trained to lead Advanced Placement and International Baccalaureate classes. In addition, Academic Competitiveness Grants will continue to provide financial incentives for students to take a rigorous course of study in high school and college.

High School Students—Federal Title I funds will be substantially increased to serve low-income high school students. Funding for low-income elementary and middle schools will be protected.

Adjunct Teacher Corps—Talented and qualified profession-als from math, science, and technology fields will be encouraged to teach middle and high school courses, especially in low-income

schools.

Helping Teachers Close the Achievement Gap

Teacher Incentive Fund—The Fund will help states and dis-tricts reward teachers and principals who make progress in raising student achievement levels or closing achievement gaps, as well as educators who choose to serve in the neediest schools.

Math Achievement—To improve math achievement, the Presi-dent’s Math Now for Elementary School Students and Math Now for Middle School Students programs will provide competitive grants to train teachers in proven instructional methods, including upcoming findings of the National Math Panel.

Science Achievement—Beginning in 2008-09, disaggregated results from science assessments will factor into state accountability calculations, with grade-level proficiency expected for all students in science by 2019-20.

Reading Achievement—The Striving Readers program, which provides intensive intervention to students in grades 6-12 who are struggling to reach grade level in reading / language arts, will be ex-panded to reach more students. We will continue to invest in Read-ing First, the largest, most successful early reading initiative ever


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undertaken in this country.

Rural School Districts—New teachers in small, rural school districts will have additional time to meet Highly Qualified Teacher requirements. Larger rural districts will have the flexibility to use fed-eral funds that are currently available to only the smallest districts. Finally, larger per-child Supplemental Educational Services (SES) amounts will be provided for qualified rural students.

Strengthening Public Schools and Empowering Parents

School Improvement Fund—Funds will be targeted to ensure improvement in some of the nation’s most challenging schools. School Improvement Grants will support implementation of the schools’ improvement plans and will assist states’ efforts to closely monitor and review those plans while providing technical assistance to turn around low-performing schools.

Promise Scholarships—Public schools that go into restructuring status will be required to offer private school choice, intensive tutor-ing, or inter-district public school choice through Promise Scholar-ships to low-income students in grades 3-12. Federal funds will follow the child to his or her new school, to be supplemented by a federal scholarship of $2,500.

Opportunity Scholarships—This new program will support local efforts to expand public and private school choice options within a set geographic area. Modeled after the Washington, D.C. choice program that the federal government has funded since 2004, it would enable students to attend a private school through a locally designed scholarship program. Families could also seek additional tutoring for their children.

Staffing Freedom at the Most Troubled Schools— Schools that are required to be restructured will be able to remove limitations on teacher transfers from their collective bargaining agreements, similar to contract revisions permitted under bankruptcy law, so that the school leadership is able to put the most effective staff in place.

Charter Schools—The federal charter school program will sup-port all viable charter applications that improve academic out-comes. In addition, local decisions to convert schools identified for restructuring into charter schools will be allowed, even if the total number of charter schools would then surpass a state’s charter cap.

Supplemental Educational Services (SES)—Tutoring and after-school instruction will be offered to all low-income students who attend a school in improvement status from the first year for-ward, one year earlier than before. In addition, districts will be asked to spend all relevant federal funds or risk their forfeiture, eliminating


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the disincentive to support SES and choice programs.

Four Main Pillars

Stronger Accountability for Results

Under No Child Left Behind, states are working to close the achieve-ment gap and make sure all students, including those who are disadvantaged, achieve academic proficiency. Annual state and school district report cards inform parents and communities about state and school progress. Schools that do not make progress must provide supplemental services, such as free tutoring or after-school assistance; take corrective actions; and, if still not making adequate yearly progress after five years, make dramatic changes to the way the school is run.

More Freedom for States and Communities

Under No Child Left Behind, states and school districts have un-precedented flexibility in how they use federal education funds. For example, it is possible for most school districts to transfer up to 50 percent of the federal formula grant funds they receive under the Im-proving Teacher Quality State Grants, Educational Technology, Inno-vative Programs, and Safe and Drug-Free Schools programs to any one of these programs, or to their Title I program, without separate

approval. This allows districts to use funds for their particular needs, such as hiring new teachers, increasing teacher pay, and improving teacher training and professional development.

Proven Education Methods

No Child Left Behind puts emphasis on determining which educa-tional programs and practices have been proven effective through rigorous scientific research. Federal funding is targeted to support these programs and teaching methods that work to improve stu-dent learning and achievement. In reading, for example, No Child Left Behind supports scientifically based instruction programs in the early grades under the Reading First program and in preschool under the Early Reading First program.

More Choices for Parents

Parents of children in low-performing schools have new options under No Child Left Behind. In schools that do not meet state stan-dards for at least two consecutive years, parents may transfer their children to a better-performing public school, including a public charter school, within their district. The district must provide trans-portation, using Title I funds if necessary. Students from low-income families in schools that fail to meet state standards for at least three years are eligible to receive supplemental educational services,


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including tutoring, after-school services, and summer school. Also, students who attend a persistently dangerous school or are the vic-tim of a violent crime while in their school have the option to attend a safe school within their district.

Controversy

NCLB has been highly controversial. Many critics believe it is in conflict with the Tenth Amendment, which limits the nation’s powers to those specifically granted to it by the Constitution. Additionally, some believe that the Act’s system of penalties and incentives cre-ate motivation for schools to manipulate test results, exclude low-performing students, and re-classify drop-outs as transfers. Other criticisms include lack of adequate funding and a narrowing of the curriculum.


“Under No Child Left Behind, the federal government will invest in educational practices that work—that research evidence has shown to be effective in improving student performance.”

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National Art Education Standards

Visual Arts (K-4)

These standards provide a framework for helping students learn the characteristics of the visual arts by using a wide range of subject matter, symbols, meaningful images, and visual expressions, to reflect their ideas, feelings, and emotions; and to evaluate the merits of their efforts. The standards address these objectives in ways that promote acquisition of and fluency in new ways of thinking, work-ing, communicating, reasoning, and investigating. They emphasize student acquisition of the most important and enduring ideas, con-cepts, issues, dilemmas, and knowledge offered by the visual arts. They develop new techniques, approaches, and habits for applying knowledge and skills in the visual arts to the world beyond school.

The visual arts are extremely rich. They range from drawing, paint-ing, sculpture, and design, to architecture, film, video, and folk arts. They involve a wide variety of tools, techniques, and processes. The standards are structured to recognize that many elements from this broad array can be used to accomplish specific educational objec-tives. For example, drawing can be used as the basis for creative activity, historical and cultural investigation, or analysis, as can any other fields within the visual arts. The standards present educational goals. It is the responsibility of practitioners to choose appropriately from this rich array of content and processes to fulfill these goals in specific circumstances and to develop the curriculum.

To meet the standards, students must learn vocabularies and con-cepts associated with various types of work in the visual arts and must exhibit their competence at various levels in visual, oral, and written form. In Kindergarten-Grade 4, young children experiment enthusiastically with art materials and investigate the ideas pre-sented to them through visual arts instruction. They exhibit a sense of joy and excitement as they make and share their artwork with others. Creation is at the heart of this instruction. Students learn to work with various tools, processes, and media. They learn to coordi-nate their hands and minds in explorations of the visual world. They learn to make choices that enhance communication of their ideas. Their natural inquisitiveness is promoted, and they learn the value of perseverance.

As they move from kindergarten through the early grades, students develop skills of observation, and they learn to examine the ob-jects and events of their lives. At the same time, they grow in their ability to describe, interpret, evaluate, and respond to work in the visual arts. Through examination of their own work and that of other people, times, and places, students learn to unravel the essence of artwork and to appraise its purpose and value. Through these efforts, students begin to understand the meaning and impact of the visual world in which they live.

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NA-VA.K-4.1 Understanding and applying media, tech-

niques, and processes

Achievement Standard:• Students know the differences between materials, techniques, and processes

• Students describe how different materials, techniques, and processes cause different responses

• Students use different media, techniques, and processes to communicate ideas, experiences, and stories

• Students use art materials and tools in a safe and responsible manner

NA-VA.K-4.2 Using knowledge of structures and func-

tions

Achievement Standard:• Students know the differences among visual characteristics and purposes of art in order to convey ideas

• Students describe how different expressive features and organizational principles cause different responses

• Students use visual structures and functions of art to communicate ideas

NA-VA.K-4.3 Choosing and evaluating a range of subject

matter, symbols, and ideas

Achievement Standard:• Students explore and understand prospective content for works of art

• Students select and use subject matter, symbols, and ideas to communicate meaning

NA-VA.K-4.4 Understanding the visual arts in relation to

history and cultures

Achievement Standard:• Students know that the visual arts have both a history and specific relationships to various cultures

• Students identify specific works of art as belonging to particular cultures, times, and places

• Students demonstrate how history, culture, and the visual arts can influence each other in making and studying works of art


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NA-VA.K-4.5 Reflecting upon and assessing the charac-

teristics and merits of their work and the work of

others

Achievement Standard:• Students understand there are various purposes for creating works of visual art

• Students describe how people’s experiences influence the development of specific artworks

• Students understand there are different responses to spe cific artworks

NA-VA.K-4.6 Making connections between visual arts

and other disciplines

Achievement Standard:• Students understand and use similarities and differences between characteristics of the visual arts and other arts disciplines

• Students identify connections between the visual arts and other disciplines in the curriculum

Visual Arts (5-8)

Students in grades 5-8 continue to need a framework that aids them in learning the characteristics of the visual arts by using a wide range of subject matter, symbols, meaningful images, and visual expressions. They grow ever more sophisticated in their need to use the visual arts to reflect their feelings and emotions and in their abili-ties to evaluate the merits of their efforts. These standards provide that framework in a way that promotes the students’ thinking, work-ing, communicating, reasoning, and investigating skills and pro-vides for their growing familiarity with the ideas, concepts, issues, dilemmas, and knowledge important in the visual arts. As students gain this knowledge and these skills, they gain in their ability to apply the knowledge and skills in the visual arts to their widening personal worlds.

These standards present educational goals. It is the responsibility of practitioners to choose among the array of possibilities offered by the visual arts to accomplish specific educational objectives in specific circumstances. The visual arts offer the richness of drawing and painting, sculpture, and design; architecture, film, and video; and folk arts -- all of these can be used to help students achieve the standards. For example, students could create works in the me-dium of videotape, engage in historical and cultural investigations of the medium, and take part in analyzing works of art produced on videotape. The visual arts also involve varied tools, techniques, and processes -- all of which can play a role in students’ achieving the


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standards, as well.To meet the standards, students must learn vocabularies and con-cepts associated with various types of work in the visual arts. As they develop increasing fluency in visual, oral, and written commu-nication, they must exhibit their greater artistic competence through all of these avenues.In grades 5-8, students’ visual expressions become more individu-alistic and imaginative. The problem-solving activities inherent in art making help them develop cognitive, affective, and psychomotor skills. They select and transform ideas, discriminate, synthesize and appraise, and they apply these skills to their expanding knowledge of the visual arts and to their own creative work. Students under-stand that making and responding to works of visual art are inextri-cably interwoven and that perception, analysis, and critical judg-ment are inherent to both.

Their own art making becomes infused with a variety of images and approaches. They learn that preferences of others may differ from their own. Students refine the questions that they ask in response to artworks. This leads them to an appreciation of multiple artistic solutions and interpretations. Study of historical and cultural con-texts gives students insights into the role played by the visual arts in human achievement. As they consider examples of visual art works within historical contexts, students gain a deeper appreciation of their own values, of the values of other people, and the connection


of the visual arts to universal human needs, values, and beliefs. They understand that the art of a culture is influenced by aesthetic ideas as well as by social, political, economic, and other factors. Through these efforts, students develop an understanding of the meaning and import of the visual world in which they live.

NA-VA.5-8.1 Understanding and applying media, tech-

niques, and processes

Achievement Standard:• Students select media, techniques, and processes; analyze what makes them effective or not effective in communicating ideas; and reflect upon the effectiveness of their choices

• Students intentionally take advantage of the qualities and characteristics of art media, techniques, and processes to enhance communication of their experiences and ideas

NA-VA.5-8.2 Using knowledge of structures and func-

tions

Achievement Standard:• Students generalize about the effects of visual structures and functions and reflect upon these effects in their own work

• Students employ organizational structures and analyze what

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makes them effective or not effective in the communication of ideas

• Students select and use the qualities of structures and func tions of art to improve communication of their ideas

NA-VA.5-8.3 Choosing and evaluating a range of subject

matter, symbols, and ideas

Achievement Standard:• Students integrate visual, spatial, and temporal concepts with content to communicate intended meaning in their artworks

• Students use subjects, themes, and symbols that demon strate knowledge of contexts, values, and aesthetics that communicate intended meaning in artworks

NA-VA.5-8.4 Understanding the visual arts in relation to

history and cultures

Achievement Standard:• Students know and compare the characteristics of artworks in various eras and cultures

• Students describe and place a variety of art objects in his torical and cultural contexts

• Students analyze, describe, and demonstrate how factors of time and place (such as climate, resources, ideas, and technology) influence visual characteristics that give mean ing and value to a work of art

NA-VA.5-8.5 Reflecting upon and assessing the charac-

teristics and merits of their work and the work of

others

Achievement Standard:• Students compare multiple purposes for creating works of art

• Students analyze contemporary and historic meanings in specific artworks through cultural and aesthetic inquiry

• Students describe and compare a variety of individual re sponses to their own artworks and to artworks from various eras and cultures

NA-VA.5-8.6 Making connections between visual arts


Achievement Standard:• Students compare the characteristics of works in two or more art forms that share similar subject matter, historical periods, or cultural context

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• Students describe ways in which the principles and subject matter of other disciplines taught in the school are interrelated with the visual arts

Visual Arts (9-12)

In grades 9-12, students extend their study of the visual arts. They continue to use a wide range of subject matter, symbols, meaningful images, and visual expressions. They grow more sophisticated in their employment of the visual arts to reflect their feelings emotions and continue to expand their abilities to evaluate the merits of their efforts. These standards provide a framework for that study in a way that promotes the maturing students’ thinking, working, communicat-ing, reasoning, and investigating skills. The standards also provide for their growing familiarity with the ideas, concepts, issues, dilem-mas, and knowledge important in the visual arts. As students gain this knowledge and these skills, they gain in their ability to apply knowledge and skills in the visual arts to their widening personal worlds.

The visual arts range from the folk arts, drawing, and painting, to sculpture and design, from architecture to film and video -- and any of these can be used to help students meet the educational goals embodied in these standards. For example, graphic design (or any other field within the visual arts) can be used as the basis

for creative activity, historical and cultural investigations, or analy-sis throughout the standards. The visual arts involve varied tools, techniques, and processes all of which also provide opportunities for working toward the standards. It is the responsibility of practitio-ners to choose from among the array of possibilities offered by the visual arts to accomplish specific educational objectives in specific circumstances.

To meet the standards, students must learn vocabularies and con-cepts associated with various types of work in the visual arts. As they develop greater fluency in communicating in visual, oral, and written form, they must exhibit greater artistic competence through all of these avenues.

In grades 9-12, students develop deeper and more profound works of visual art that reflect the maturation of their creative and prob-lem-solving skills. Students understand the multifaceted interplay of different media, styles, forms, techniques, and processes in the creation of their work.Students develop increasing abilities to pose insightful questions about contexts, processes, and criteria for evaluation. They use these questions to examine works in light of various analytical meth-ods and to express sophisticated ideas about visual relationships using precise terminology. They can evaluate artistic character and aesthetic qualities in works of art, nature, and human-made environ-


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ments. They can reflect on the nature of human involvement in art as a viewer, creator, and participant.

Students understand the relationships among art forms and be-tween their own work and that of others. They are able to relate understandings about the historical and cultural contexts of art to situations in contemporary life. They have a broad and in-depth un-derstanding of the meaning and import of the visual world in which they live.

NA-VA.9-12.1 Understanding and applying media,

techniques, and processes

Achievement Standard, Proficient:• Students apply media, techniques, and processes with sufficient skill, confidence, and sensitivity that their inten tions are carried out in their artworks

• Students conceive and create works of visual art that demonstrate an understanding of how the communication of their ideas relates to the media, techniques, and process es they use

Achievement Standard, Advanced:• Students communicate ideas regularly at a high level of effectiveness in at least one visual arts medium

• Students initiate, define, and solve challenging visual arts problems independently using intellectual skills such as analysis, synthesis, and evaluation

NA-VA.9-12.2 Using knowledge of structures and

functions

Achievement Standard, Proficient:• Students demonstrate the ability to form and defend judg ments about the characteristics and structures to accom plish commercial, personal, communal, or other purposes of art

• Students evaluate the effectiveness of artworks in terms of organizational structures and functions

• Students create artworks that use organizational principles and functions to solve specific visual arts problems

Achievement Standard, Advanced:• Students demonstrate the ability to compare two or more perspectives about the use of organizational principles and functions in artwork and to defend personal evaluations of these perspectives

• Students create multiple solutions to specific visual arts


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problems that demonstrate competence in producing effective rela-tionships between structural choices and artistic functions

NA-VA.9-12.3 Choosing and evaluating a range of sub-

ject matter, symbols, and ideas

Achievement Standard, Proficient:• Students reflect on how artworks differ visually, spatially, temporally, and functionally, and describe how these are related to history and culture

• Students apply subjects, symbols, and ideas in their art works and use the skills gained to solve problems in daily life

Achievement Standard, Advanced:• Students describe the origins of specific images and ideas and explain why they are of value in their artwork and in the work of others

• Students evaluate and defend the validity of sources for content and the manner in which subject matter, symbols, and images are used in the students’ works and in signifi cant works by others

NA-VA.9-12.4 Understanding the visual arts in relation

to history and cultures

Achievement Standard, Proficient:• Students differentiate among a variety of historical and cul tural contexts in terms of characteristics and purposes of works of art

• Students describe the function and explore the meaning of specific art objects within varied cultures, times, and places

• Students analyze relationships of works of art to one another in terms of history, aesthetics, and culture, justifying conclu sions made in the analysis and using such conclusions to inform their own art making

Achievement Standard, Advanced:• Students analyze and interpret artworks for relationships among form, context, purposes, and critical models, show ing understanding of the work of critics, historians, aestheti cians, and artists

• Students analyze common characteristics of visual arts evident across time and among cultural/ethnic groups to formulate analyses, evaluations, and interpretations of meaning


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NA-VA.9-12.5 Reflecting upon and assessing the char-

acteristics and merits of their work and the work of

others

Achievement Standard, Proficient:• Students identify intentions of those creating artworks, explore the implications of various purposes, and justify their analyses of purposes in particular works

• Students describe meanings of artworks by analyzing how specific works are created and how they relate to historical and cultural contexts

• Students reflect analytically on various interpretations as a means for understanding and evaluating works of visual art

Achievement Standard, Advanced:• Students correlate responses to works of visual art with various techniques for communicating meanings, ideas, attitudes, views, and intentions

NA-VA.9-12.6 Making connections between visual arts


Achievement Standard, Proficient:• Students compare the materials, technologies, media, and processes of the visual arts with those of other arts


disciplines as they are used in creation and types of analysis

• Students compare characteristics of visual arts within a particular historical period or style with ideas, issues, or themes in the humanities or sciences

Achievement Standard, Advanced:• Students synthesize the creative and analytical principles and techniques of the visual arts and selected other arts disciplines, the humanities, or the sciences

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National Constraints

In order to achieve the National Goals the following constraints MUST, SHOULD, and COULD be considered:

MUST consider:

• The environment of all schools must be conducive to learning • Financial support must be available on a National level to provide the highest quality accessible education for all stu dents

• Assessment toward progress of National Goals must be enforced in order to insure that educational standards are being met

• National involvement in Civil Rights cases must be a priority

• The National level must not decide which grade levels are tested

• The National level must not control pay over each states’ teachers

SHOULD consider:

• Meals should be provided for all students despite their income

• National funding should be provided for drug and substance abuse prevention programs, as well as crisis interven tion counselors

COULD consider:

• To award educators and children with: National recognition, i.e. encourage media to focus on educational highlights and achieve ments of students, and continue National teachers’ awards

• To create a National Arts day in every school where visiting artists introduce age appropriate materials and techniques to students in grades K-12

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State Level: Massachusetts

Massachusetts Visual Arts Standards:

1. Media, Materials, and Techniques. Students will demon-strate knowledge of the media, materials, and techniques unique to the visual arts.

2. Elements and Principles of Design. Students will demon-strate knowledge of the elements and principles of design.

3. Observation, Abstraction, Invention, and Expression. Students will demonstrate their powers of observation, abstrac-tion, invention, and expression in a variety of media, materials, and techniques.

4. Drafting, Revising, and Exhibiting. Students will demon-strate knowledge of the processes of creating and exhibiting their own artwork: drafts, critique, self-assessment, refinement, and exhibit preparation.

5. Critical Response. Students will describe and analyze their own work and the work of others using appropriate visual arts vo-cabulary. When appropriate, students will connect their analysis to interpretation and evaluation.

6. Purposes of the Arts. Students will describe the purposes for which works of dance, music, theatre, visual arts, and architecture were and are created, and, when appropriate, interpret their mean-ings.

7. Roles of Artists in Communities. Students will describe the roles of artists, patrons, cultural organizations, and arts institutions in societies of the past and present.

8. Concepts of Style, Stylistic Influence, and Stylistic Change. Students will demonstrate their understanding of styles, stylistic influence, and stylistic change by identifying when and where art works were created, and by analyzing characteristic features of art works from various historical periods, cultures, and genres.

9. Inventions, Technologies and the Arts. Students will describe and analyze how performing and visual artists use and have used materials, inventions, and technologies in their work.

10. Interdisciplinary Connections. Students will apply their knowledge of the arts to the study of English language arts, foreign languages, health, history and social science, mathematics, and science and technology/engineering.

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Massachusetts Arts Curriculum Framework:

PreK–12 Standard 1: Methods, Materials, and Tech-

niques

Students will demonstrate knowledge of the methods, materials, and techniques unique to the visual arts.

By the end of grade 4, students will:

1.1 Use a variety of materials and media, for example, crayons, chalk, paint, clay, various kinds of papers, textiles, and yarns, and understand how to use them to produce different visual effects

1.2 Create artwork in a variety of two-dimensional (2D) and three-di mensional (3D) media, for example: 2D – drawing, painting, collage, printmaking, weaving; 3D – plastic (mal leable) materials such as clay and paper, wood, or found objects for assemblage and construction

1.3 Learn and use appropriate vocabulary related to methods, materials, and techniques

1.4 Learn to take care of materials and tools and to use them safely


1.5 Expand the repertoire of 2D and 3D art processes, techniques, and materials with a focus on the range of ef fects possible within each medium, such as: 2D – transparent and opaque media, wet, dry, stippled, blended, wash effects; relief printmaking effects; 3D – mobile and stabile forms, carved, molded, and constructed forms

1.6 Create artwork that demonstrates an awareness of the range and purpose of tools such as pens, brushes, markers, cameras, tools and equipment for printmaking and sculpture, and computers

1.7 Use the appropriate vocabulary related to the methods, materials, and techniques students have learned and used in grades PreK–8

1.8 Maintain the workspace, materials, and tools responsibly and safely

By the end of basic study in grades 9-12, students will:

1.9 Demonstrate the ability to create 2D and 3D works that

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show knowledge of unique characteristics of particular me dia, materials, and tools

1.10 Use electronic technology for reference and for creating original work

1.11 Explore a single subject through a series of works, varying the medium or technique For example, a student makes a drawing, woodcut, and painting of a still life, landscape, or figure

1.12 Describe and apply procedures to ensure safety and proper maintenance of the workspace, materials, and tools

By the end of extended study in grades 9-12, students will:

1.13 Make reasonable choices of 2D and 3D media, materials, tools, and techniques to achieve desired effects in specific projects. For example, students select a medium for its expressive qualities or structural properties.

1.14 Demonstrate a mastery of tools and techniques in one medium

1.15 Describe and apply procedures for the safe and proper

maintenance of the workspace, materials, and tools; identify potential health hazards associated with materials and techniques, and possible substitutes for hazardous materials

PreK-12 Standard 2: Elements and Principles of Design

Students will demonstrate knowledge of the elements and principles of design.


2.1 For color, explore and experiment with the use of color in dry and wet media

• Identify primary and secondary colors and gradations of black, white and gray in the environment and artwork

• Explore how color can convey mood and emotion

• For example, students mix light and dark values of colors or predict the results of overlapping and blending primary colors.

2.2 For line, explore the use of line in 2D and 3D works• Identify a wide variety of types of lines in the environment


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and in artwork

• For example, students take a walk around the school and note jagged, straight, curved, thick, and thin lines.

2.3 For texture, explore the use of textures in 2D and 3D works

• Identify a wide variety of types of textures, for example, smooth, rough, and bumpy, in the environment and in art work

• Create representations of textures in drawings, paintings, rubbings, or relief

2.4 For shape and form, explore the use of shapes and forms in 2D and 3D works

• Identify simple shapes of different sizes, for example, circles, squares, triangles, and forms, for example, spheres, cones, cubes, in the environment and in artwork

2.5 For pattern and symmetry, explore the use of patterns and symmetrical shapes in 2D and 3D works

• Identify patterns and symmetrical forms and shapes in the

environment and artwork.

• Explain and demonstrate ways in which patterns and symmetrical shapes may be made

• For example, a student folds and cuts paper to achieve symmetry, or makes printed patterns.

2.6 For space and composition, explore composition by creating artwork with a center of interest, repetition, and/or balance

• Demonstrate an understanding of foreground, middle ground, and background

• Define and identify occurrences of balance, rhythm, repetition, variety, and emphasis


2.7 For color, use and be able to identify hues, values, intermediate shades, tints, tones, complementary, analogous, and monochromatic colors

• Demonstrate awareness of color by painting objective


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studies from life and free-form abstractions that employ relative properties of color

2.8 For line, use and be able to identify various types of line, for example in contour drawings, calligraphy, freehand studies from observation, memory, and imagination, and schematic studies

2.9 For texture, use and be able to differentiate between surface texture and the illusion of texture (visual texture)

2.10 For shape, form, and pattern, use and be able to identify an expanding and increasingly sophisticated array of shapes and forms, such as organic, geometric, positive and negative, or varieties of symmetry

• Create complex patterns, for example, reversed shapes and tessellation

2.11 For space and composition, create unified 2D and 3D compositions that demonstrate an understanding of balance, repetition, rhythm, scale, proportion, unity, harmony, and emphasis. Create 2D compositions that give the illusion of 3D space and volume

By the end of basic study in grades 9-12, students will:2.12 Apply knowledge of color theory to a project focusing on the use of complementary colors. Be able to use values of colors in wet and dry media to create the illusion of 3D form on a 2D surface

2.13 Use color, line, texture, shape, and form in 2D and 3D work and identify the use of these elements in the compositions of others

• Examples include: line as edge treatment and in patterns; color temperature, mass and volume as functions of color, size, perspective; negative space; visual and surface extures

2.14 Review systems of visualizing information and depicting space and volume, for example, scale and vanishing point, linear, atmospheric, and isometric perspective; and create works using these systems

2.15 Create artwork that demonstrates understanding of the elements and principles of design in establishing a point of view, a sense of space, or a mood



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2.16 Create artwork that demonstrates a purposeful use of the elements and principles of design to convey meaning and emotion

2. 17 Create artwork that demonstrates facility in selective use of elements and principles of design to establish a personal style

PreK-12 Standard 3: Observation, Abstraction, Interven-

tion, and Expression

Students will demonstrate their powers of observation, abstrac-tion, invention, and expression in a variety of media, materials, and techniques.


3.1 Create 2D and 3D artwork from direct observation

• For example, students draw a still life of flowers or fruit, action studies of their classmates in sports poses, or sketches of the class pet having a snack or a nap.

3.2 Create 2D and 3D expressive artwork that explores abstraction

• For example, a student simplifies an image by making decisions about essential colors, lines, or textures.

3.3 Create 2D and 3D artwork from memory or imagination to tell a story or embody an idea or fantasy

• For example, students draw members of a family from memory; illustrate a character in a folktale or play; build a clay model of an ideal place to play; or make images that convey ideas such as friendship.


3.4 Create 2D and 3D representational artwork from direct observaton in order to develop skills of perception, discrimination, physical coordination, and memory of detail

3.5 Create symbolic artwork by substituting symbols for objects, relationships, or ideas

3.6 Create artwork that employs the use of free form symbolic imagery that demonstrates personal invention, and/or conveys ideas and emotions

• For example, students create works that convey paired


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concepts such as conflict and cooperation, happiness and grief, or excitement and repose.

3.7 Create artwork that shows knowledge of the ways in which architects, craftsmen, and designers develop abstract symbols by simplifying elements of the environment


3.8 Create representational 2D artwork from direct observation and from memory that convincingly portrays 3D space and the objects and people within that space

3.9 Create 2D and 3D artwork that explores the abstraction of ideas and representations

• For example, students make images that represent abstract concepts such as respect for human rights, empathy, solitude, community, justice, or injustice.

3.10 Create 2D and 3D images that are original, convey a distinct point of view, and communicate ideas

3.11 Demonstrate the ability to portray emotions and personality through the rendering of physical characteristics in 2D and

3D work

• For example, a student creates an expressive, yet recognizable, portrait or self-portrait in drawing, painting, sculpture, printmaking, film, photography, or computer graphics.

3.12 Demonstrate the ability to use representation, abstraction, or symbolism to create 2D and 3D artwork that conveys a personal point of view about issues and ideas

• For example, students create visual metaphors for topics such as memories of childhood, feelings about growing up, or hopes for the future.

PreK-12 Standard 4: Drafting, Revising, and Exhibiting

Students will demonstrate knowledge of the processes of creating and exhibiting their own artwork: drafts, critique, self-assessment, refinement, and exhibit preparation.


4.1 Select a work or works created during the year and discuss them with a parent, classmate, or teacher, explaining how the work was made, and why it was chosen for discussion


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• For example, a first grader chooses a painting and tells how she mixed the colors, and talks about the decisions she made.

4.2 Select works for exhibition and work as a group to create a display

4.3 As a class, develop and use criteria for informal classroom discussions about art


4.4 Produce work that shows an understanding of the concept of craftsmanship

4.5 Demonstrate the ability to describe preliminary concepts verbally; to visualize concepts in clear schematic layouts; and to organize and complete projects

4.6 Demonstrate the ability to articulate criteria for artistic work, describe personal style, assess and reflect on work orally and in writing, and to revise work based on criteria developed in the classroom

4.7 Maintain a portfolio of sketches and finished work

4.8 Create and prepare artwork for group or individual public exhibitions


4.9 Demonstrate the ability to conceptualize, organize, and complete long-term projects, alone and in group settings

• Conceptualize: plan, generate ideas, make preliminary sketches, participate in discussions, imagine outcomes, and set goals;

• Organize: choose materials and techniques to attain the desired look and feel; maintain work space and personal schedule; review progress of work with others; and revise work appropriately;

• Complete: prepare work for presentation or exhibition

4.10 Demonstrate the ability to develop an idea through multiple stages, responding to criticism and self-assessment

4.11 Maintain a portfolio of artwork that demonstrates a progression of ideas and skills over time


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4.12 Choose and prepare artwork for exhibition, and be able to discuss their choices

4.13 Create a presentation portfolio that includes work in several media and that demonstrates a progression of ideas and preliminary and finished work in each medium

4.14 Demonstrate an ability to see their own personal style and discriminate among historical and contemporary styles

4.15 Demonstrate the ability to draw from other disciplines in the creation of a body of work

4.16 Organize and present an exhibit of a body of their own work to others

PreK-12 Standard 5: Critical Response

Students will describe and analyze their own work and the work of others using appropriate visual arts vocabulary. When appropriate, students will connect their analysis to interpretation and evaluation.


5.1 In the course of making and viewing art, learn ways of discussing it, such as by making a list of all of the images

seen in an artwork (visual inventory); and identifying kinds of color, line, texture, shapes, and forms in the work

5.2 Classify artworks into general categories, such as painting, printmaking, collage, sculpture, pottery, textiles, architecture, photography, and film

5.3 Describe similarities and differences in works, and present personal responses to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design elements in artworks

5.4 (Grades 3 and 4) Explain strengths and weaknesses in their own work, and share comments constructively and supportively within the group


5.5 Demonstrate the ability to recognize and describe the visual, spatial, and tactile characteristics of their own work and that of others

5.6 Demonstrate the ability to describe the kinds of imagery used to represent subject matter and ideas, for example, literal representation, simplification, abstraction, or symbolism


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5.7 Demonstrate a fundamental awareness of architectural styles and the ways that these have influenced painting and sculpture


5.8 Demonstrate the ability to compare and contrast two or more works of art, orally and in writing, using appropriate vocabulary

5.9 Use published sources, either traditional or electronic, to re search a body of work or an artist, and present findings in written or oral form

5.10 Critique their own work, the work of peers, and the work of professional artists, and demonstrate an understanding of the formal, cultural, and historical contexts of the work


5.11 Analyze a body of work, or the work of one artist, explaining its meaning and impact on society, symbolism, and visual metaphor


5.12 Demonstrate an understanding how societal influences and prejudices may affect viewers’ ways of perceiving works of art

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Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS)

The Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System (MCAS) is designed to meet the requirements of the Education Reform Law of 1993. This law specifies that the testing program must

• test all public school students in Massachusetts, including students with disabilities and limited English proficient students;

• measure performance based on the Massachusetts Curriculum Framework learning standards;

• report on the performance of individual students, schools, and districts.

As required by the Education Reform Law, students must pass the grade 10 tests in English Language Arts (ELA) and Mathematics as one condition of eligibility for a high school diploma (in addition to fulfilling local requirements).

In addition, the MCAS program is used to hold schools and districts accountable, on a yearly basis, for the progress they have made to-ward the objective of the No Child Left Behind Law that all students be proficient in Reading and Mathematics by 2014.

What is tested on MCAS?

The MCAS tests are based on the learning standards in the Massachusetts Curriculum Frameworks. MCAS tests are administered in the following content areas:

• English Language Arts

• Mathematics

• Science and Technology/Engineering

• History and Social Science

What types of questions appear on MCAS tests, and

how are student responses scored?

Four types of questions are used on MCAS tests:

• Multiple-choice questions are included on all MCAS tests except the ELA Composition and require students to select the correct answer from a list of four options. Responses to multiple-choice questions are machine scored.

• Short-answer questions are included only on Mathematics

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tests and require students to generate a brief response, usually a numerical solution or a brief statement. Responses to short-an-swer questions are scored on a scale of 0-1 points by one scorer at grades 3-8 and by two scorers independently at grade 10.

• Open-response questions are included on all MCAS tests except the ELA Composition and require students to generate, rather than recognize, a response. Students create a one- or two-paragraph response in writing or in the form of a narrative or a chart, table, diagram, illustration, or graph, as appropriate. Students can respond correctly using a variety of strategies and approaches. Responses to open-response questions are scored using a scoring guide, or rubric, for each question. The scoring guides indicate what knowledge and skills students must demonstrate to earn 1, 2, 3, or 4 score points. Students earn 1 or 2 points for grade 3 Mathematics open-response questions. Answers to open-response questions are not scored for spelling, punctuation, or grammar. Responses are scored by one scorer at grades 3-8. Grade 10 ELA and Mathematics tests and high school Science and Technology/Engineering tests are scored by two scorers independently.

• Writing prompts are included only on ELA Composition

tests and require students to respond by creating a written composition. The student compositions are scored independently by two scorers for o Topic development, based on a six-score point scale, with students receiving from 2 to 12 points (the sum of scores from each of the two scorers)

o Standard English conventions, based on a four-point scale, with students receiving from 2 to 8 points (the sum of the scores from each of the two scorers).

How are test results reported?

Results are reported for individual students, schools, and districts according to four performance levels defined by the Board of Edu-cation:

• Advanced (grades 4-10)/Above Proficient (grade 3)

• Proficient (grades 3-10)

• Needs Improvement (grades 3-10)


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• Warning (grades 3-8)/Failing (grades 9 and 10)

How are test results used?

Improvements in teaching and learning parents, students, and educators use the results to:

• Follow student progress

• Identify strengths, weaknesses, and gaps in curriculum and instruction

• Fine-tune curriculum alignment with the statewide standards

• Gather diagnostic information that can be used to improve student performance

• Identify students who may need additional support services/ remediation

School and district accountability

As required by the Education Reform Law, the Board of Education established a rating system and standards for improving student academic performance that schools and districts must meet. In

addition, under No Child Left Behind the Department reports on the Annual Yearly Progress of students in schools and districts based on MCAS results.

Student accountability

Students are required to pass the MCAS grade 10 tests in English Language Arts and Mathematics and, beginning with the class of 2010, one high school test in Biology, Chemistry, Introductory Phys-ics, or Technology/Engineering, and fulfill all local requirements, to be eligible for a high school diploma. Students are given multiple opportunities, if necessary, to pass the tests. Students also must meet local requirements for high school graduation (for example, completion of required coursework).Is a ranking of districts and towns by MCAS scores available?The Massachusetts Department of Education does NOT rank cities or towns based on MCAS scores. Often local media use statewide results to create their own rankings. However, this practice is not encouraged or endorsed by the Department of Education.

Are all students required to participate?

As mandated by the Education Reform Law of 1993, all students educated with public funds are required to participate in the MCAS tests administered in their grades, including the following:


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• Students with disabilities

• Students with limited English proficiency [exception: LEP students in their first year of enrollment in U.S. schools are not required to participate in MCAS English Language Arts tests]

• Students receiving publicly funded education in

• Charter schools

• Educational collaborative

• Approved and unapproved private special education schools within and outside Massachusetts

• Institutional settings

• “Sole-source-of-care placements”

• Students in the custody of the Department of Social Services

• Students in the custody of the Department of Youth Services Home-schooled students are not enrolled in the public

school system; therefore, they are not required nor entitled by law to participate in MCAS.

Can parents refuse their child’s participation in MCAS

tests?

Parents may not legally refuse their child’s participation in MCAS tests. Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 76, Sections 2 and 4, establish penalties for truancy as well as for inducing unlawful absence of a minor from school. In addition, school discipline codes generally define local rules for school attendance and penalties for unauthorized absence from school or from a required part of the school day.

How do students with disabilities participate in MCAS

tests?

The student’s IEP Team or 504 team must determine annually how a student with disabilities will participate in MCAS in each subject scheduled for assessment. This information must be documented in the student’s IEP and should be documented in the student’s 504 Plan. The team may determine that the student can take the stan-dard test with or without accommodations or may be eligible to take the MCAS Alternate Assessment. Guidelines to assist IEP Teams and 504 teams in making decisions regarding how each student will


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participate in MCAS tests are available in the Requirements for the Participation of Students with Disabilities in MCAS.

How do students with limited English proficiency par-

ticipate in MCAS tests?

All limited English proficient students must participate in all MCAS tests scheduled for their grades regardless of the number of years they have been in the U.S. The only exception is for LEP students who are in their first year of enrollment in U.S. schools. These stu-dents are not required to participate in English Language Arts tests. Any student who currently is or has been an LEP student may use an approved bilingual word-to-word dictionary on MCAS tests.

Spanish-speaking LEP students in grade 10 who have been enrolled in schools in the continental U.S. for fewer than three years may take the English/Spanish version of the Mathematics test if they can read and write at or near grade level in Spanish. Students may write their answers in English or Spanish. All students must take the English Language Arts tests in English.

In addition to participating in MCAS, limited English proficient stu-dents must annually take the Massachusetts English Proficiency As-sessment (MEPA) tests in reading, writing, speaking, and listening.


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Massachusetts State Characteristics

“I shall enter on no encomium upon Massachusetts; she needs none. There she is. Behold her, and judge for yourselves. There is her history; the world knows it by heart. The past, at least, is secure. There is Boston and Concord and Lexington and Bunker Hill; and there they will remain forever.”- Daniel Webster

Population

The commonwealth of Massachusetts is the most populous of the New England states. The bulk of its population resides in the Bos-ton Metro area; the western area of the state is primarily rural. The 2005 estimate for Massachusetts’ population was 6,398,743. With a land area of 7,840 square miles, its population density is approxi-mately 816.2 persons per square mile.

Government

The head of Massachusetts’ executive branch is its governor; cur-rently the position is held by Deval Patrick.

The state legislature is composed of a Senate with 40 members and a House of Representatives with 160 members.

The highest court in the state is the Supreme Judicial Court, which consists of a chief justice and six associate justices. Trials are held

in departments and divisions of a unified Trial Court; these depart-ments are the District, Housing, Juvenile, Land, and Probate Courts. The highest department of the Trial Court is the Superior Court.

Education

The Old Deluder Satan Act, passed in 1647, required towns with over 50 families to appoint a grammar teacher or establish a school. This Act is often viewed as the first step toward compulsory educa-tion in the United States.

Massachusetts has 389 school districts and a total of 1,875 public schools serving 968,661 students.

Economy

In 2004, per capita personal income was $42,102, making it the second highest in the country behind Connecticut.

Agricultural outputs are seafood, nursery stock, dairy products, cranberries, tobacco, and vegetables. Industrial outputs are ma-chinery, electrical and electronic equipment, scientific instruments, printing, and publishing. Sectors important to the economy include higher education, health care, financial services, and tourism.

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Massachusetts State Constraints

In order to achieve the Massachusetts State Standards, the following constraints MUST, SHOULD, and COULD be considered:

MUST consider:

• Assessing students and schools in order to determine if the state standards are being met

• If all schools in the State of Massachusetts are equally funded • Which elementary, middle, and high school grades the State of Massachusetts requires to be tested

• The State of Massachusetts must certify any teacher who wishes to work in the public schools

SHOULD consider:

• Providing enrichment programs in the arts for all interested students

• Enlisting an age appropriate art history course for elementary and high school students

• Supporting continued professional development for all teachers

COULD consider:

• The State of Massachusetts diverse landscape, history, and architecture when implementing lesson plans

• Massachusetts is a state that has four seasons a year, therefore, the school schedule could change based on the seasons

• Involving state governmental figures, famous sports and entertainment idols in art classes to emphasize the importance of art

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Local Level- City of Belm

ont

The City of Belmont

History

Settlement in the area that now includes Belmont began in 1630, when Sir Richard Saltonstall and approximately 40 families sepa-rated from the first settlers of the Massachusetts Bay Colony and moved inland to start an agricultural community. Originally called Pequosette after the local Indian tribe, the name of the new town soon changed to Watertown. In 1638, by order of the General Court, Watertown paid the Pequosette Indians the sum of 13 pounds, 7 shillings and 6 pence for the land.

The original settlement spread inland extensively into the present towns of Watertown, Waltham, Weston, Lincoln, and parts of Cam-bridge and Belmont. In 1738, Waltham seceded from Watertown, and the future Belmont was now part of three towns.

In 1805, Frederick Tudor began cutting ice on Fresh Pond. As his business grew, he decided to build a railroad from his wharves in Charlestown to Fresh Pond. This line was built about 1843.

With the railroad so near, the citizens of Waltham clamored to have it extended to their village, which was granted, and the line ran through what was to become the Town of Belmont. The railroad made the purely agricultural community available for residences of well-to-do Bostonians. Settlements centered around Wellington

Station (now Belmont Center), Waverley Station, and Hill’s crossing station.

Those settlements grew into villages, but local government arrange-ments were annoying because citizens had to go to Watertown, Waltham, or West Cambridge (now Arlington) to vote and attend town meetings. A group of about 1,000 people joined together in the early 1850’s and announced their desire to form a separate town. One of the most enthusiastic advocates was John Perkins Cushing, the largest taxpayer of the proposed town, who gave generously and openly to the incorporation expense on the condition that it be named after his 200-acre estate “Belmont.”

The towns of Watertown, Waltham, and West Cambridge fought the proposed creation of a new town, but in the end the battle was won and on March 18, 1859 the Town of Belmont was born. Of the then total area of 5 square miles, 2.26 were taken from Watertown, 0.67 from Waltham, and 2.82 from West Cambridge. The population was 1,175 of whom 170 were registered voters and 325 were school chil-dren. The new town was a widespread collection of fruit farms and market gardens. Produce from Belmont farms was sold at Faneuil Hall market. Specialties included celery, tomatoes, cucumbers, ber-ries, and small fruits. In fact, “Belmont” became a term of distinction indicating quality and large size.

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The original town included a part of present day Cambridge includ-ing half of Fresh Pond. Because of a controversy over a slaughter-house erected in Belmont on the banks of the pond, which was the drinking water supply for Cambridge, 0.89 square mile of Belmont was annexed in 1880 to that city.

This left Belmont with a total area of 4.676 square miles. Minor adjustments due to various Route 2 widenings makes the total area 4.655 square miles today.

In the 1900’s, the large number of artists, authors, educators, physi-cians, and scientists moving to the town doubled its population. As a result, the farming community disappeared. Belmont today, with a population of 25,349, is almost entirely residential and is known as “The Town of Homes.”

Geography

Belmont Massachusetts, is a pleasant, residential suburb, which has unexpectedly achieved international notoriety as the childhood home of the bride of the Crown Prince of Japan. Belmont is a quiet community on the western suburban corridor of Boston, situated on the divide between the watersheds of the Charles and the Mystic Rivers.

The town was largely agricultural until the early 19th century when the turnpike and railroad linked the area to Boston, stimulating the creation of several large suburban estates. A Belmont farmer was the first to import and breed Holstein cows, and historians note that the conservatories on an estate in Belmont sparked the first use of hothouses to grow fruit and vegetables commercially. This was done so successfully that huge Belmont market gardens under glass pro-duced enough fruit to make the town first in the country in the value of its fruit products and second in the country for vegetables during some years in the 19th century.

Facts

Gov Type: Town Government

Incorporated: 1859 as a Town

Aliases: Belmont, Hill Crossing, Waverley

Neighbors: Arlington, Boston, Brookline, Cambridge, Lexington, Lincoln, Medford, Newton, Somerville, Waltham, Watertown, Win-chester

County: Middlesex County

The City of Belmont

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Congressman: Edward J. Markey

Senators: Edward M. Kennedy, John F. Kerry

Land Size: 4.59 square milesPopulation: 24,194 people. (75th in Massachusetts.)

Pop/Land: 5,271.02 people per square mile. (18th in Massachu-setts.)

ZIP Codes: 02478, 02479

Longitude: -71.17917

Latitude: 42.39583

Demographics

As of the census, Belmont occupies 24,194 people, 9,732 house-holds, and 6,452 families residing in the town. The population density was 5,190.2 people per square mile (2,004.6/km²). There were 9,980 housing units at an average density of 2,141.0/sq mi (826.9/km²). The racial makeup of the town was 91.19% White,

The City of Belmont

8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 33.7% were non-families. 25.9% of all households were made up of individuals and 11.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.45 and the aver-age family size was 3.01.

In the town the population was spread out with 22.7% under the age of 18, 4.5% from 18 to 24, 31.0% from 25 to 44, 25.1% from 45 to 64, and 16.7% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 40 years. For every 100 females there were 87.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 82.8 males.

The median income for a household in the town was $80,295, and the median income for a family was $95,057. Males had a median income of $64,579 versus $45,505 for females. The per capita in-come for the town was $42,485. About 3.6% of families and 4.4% of the population were below the poverty line, including 3.9% of those under age 18 and 5.3% of those age 65 or over.

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Belmont Public Schools

Mission Statement

With a commitment to teaching and learning, the Belmont Pub-lic Schools strive to nurture the intellectual, social, and personal development of each student and to create a dynamic community of lifelong learners who contribute to the common good and are of service to others.

The Vision Statement provided below describes the desired state of the Belmont Public Schools in the next three to five years. The Vision is an expression of possibility, yet based enough in reality to be plausible. Its purpose is to inspire those involved and interested individuals to help the Vision become a reality. The Vision provides the basis from which the school system determines priorities and establishes targets for performance.

Vision Statement

Upon entering the Belmont Public Schools, each student becomes a part of a vital learning community where he or she establishes connections with people of different backgrounds, is excited by new ideas and new ways of thinking, and develops a broad range of skills useful for living.

In the classroom students learn to ask questions, solve problems,

obtain information, seek meaning and develop the self confidence to make sound decisions. As learners they explore the many ways in which people find meaning in their lives and in the world around them.

Belmont students find individual effort encouraged, excellence ex-pected, and diverse accomplishments appreciated. They discover personal strengths, passionate interests, and deeply felt convictions through their work in the classroom, on the athletic field, in the arts, and in service to the community.

Students openly and responsibly express their ideas, feelings, and concerns. They listen respectfully to the ideas, feelings, and con-cerns of others; and they appreciate the need to cooperate and collaborate to advance learning. Students demonstrate a respect for diversity and for the contributions of others.

Upon graduating from Belmont High School, students are well prepared for the next stages of life. Students have a solid foundation in the study of literature, history, science, mathematics, languages, and the arts and have developed the thinking and communication skills on which all learning depends. Students have the resources and knowledge to maintain a healthy lifestyle, develop meaningful and constructive relations, and manage the constant changes they will face throughout life.

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School staff are caring and compassionate individuals who provide a supportive and nurturing environment for learners. They under-stand the ways in which children grow as learners and can intervene strategically in that process. They hold high expectations for all stu-dents in their care and communicate closely with parents to ensure student success.

Belmont Public School teachers are highly qualified professionals who know the content they teach, understand the complexity of the classroom, and employ a wide variety of instructional strategies to meet the learning needs of their students.

Teachers and administrators are committed to continuous improve-ment and growth in their students, themselves, and their colleagues. They lead active professional lives and take time to reflect on their practice. They seek opportunities for professional growth and share with one another what they have learned.

The Belmont Public schools enjoy meaningful partnerships and make every effort to establish strong lines of communication with parents and the community. Parents participate in their children’s learning and extend the work of the classroom into the home. Par-ents contribute to the life of the school and collaborate with teach-ers and administrators to establish a climate where children value learning. The community provides input, becomes involved with the

schools, and is knowledgeable about the successes and needs of the school system.

The Belmont School Committee as well as school administrators collaborate with town officials and town departments to utilize resources and information to benefit the entire community. The schools participate in town events, share facilities, and work coop-eratively on funding issues. The schools also seek alternate sources of funding and creative solutions to providing resources. Funding for the Belmont Public Schools is adequate, sustainable, and predict-able, and provides for program growth and development, meets the needs of all students, and fulfills the educational expectations of the community.

Strategic Planning Efforts and Goal-Setting

The Belmont Public Schools, with the participation and involvement of the community and local officials, participate in a comprehensive strategic planning process every five years. The resulting strategic plan carefully establishes the goals and priorities of the system with concrete objectives and anticipated outcomes in six major areas:

• Curriculum, Instruction, and Assessment

• Student Life


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• School Management and Leadership

• Human Resource Development

• Communications and Community Relations

• Facilities and Financial Planning and Management

The plan guides School Committee policy, School Department initia-tives, and budget decisions at the same time that it provides stan-dards for assessing performance. Student achievements represent the ultimate measure of the value of our planning.

Visual Arts

The Belmont Public Schools has a long standing tradition of offering an outstanding program in the visual arts. The program is consis-tently recognized for its excellence by major art colleges across the country. Student artwork has won national recognition by Scholastic Arts. The program is staffed by twelve high qualified art educators.The visual arts curriculum of the Belmont Public Schools has been designed to provide students with rich opportunities in developing skills and knowledge in both creating art and responding to art. The program also promotes awareness and understanding of the con-nections between visual art and other arts and disciplines through

the study of the arts of other cultures and historical periods. Through our curriculum, students also come to understand the purpose of the arts as a means of personal expression, as well as its role in our daily lives.

The goals for the visual arts program are consistent with the National Standards for Visual Art, as well as with the standards articulated in the Massachusetts Arts Curriculum Framework.

The visual art curriculum of the Belmont Public Schools has been designed to provide students with opportunities to develop skills and knowledge in both creating art and responding to art. The pro-gram also promotes awareness and understanding of the connec-tions between visual art and other arts and disciplines through the study of the arts of other cultures and historical periods.

The benchmarks for the art program are consistent with the National Standards for Visual Art as well as the standards presented in the Massachusetts Arts Curriculum Framework and are derived from the following goals of the Belmont Public Schools art program:

• Students will understand the characteristics of art materials and develop basic skills in using and controlling art materials, tools, techniques, and processes;


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• Students will develop the ability to perceive and understand the visual elements (line, color, shape, value, texture, form), apply these in their own artwork and develop the ability to see and describe their environment and artworks in terms of these elements;

• Students will develop an understanding of the basic principles of design, apply these principles in their own artwork and recognize these qualities in the artwork of others;

• Students will use creative processes to create artwork which expresses an understanding of themselves, their feelings, and their world;

• Students will be able to reflect upon and evaluate artwork; and

• Students will demonstrate awareness of the connections between visual art and other arts and disciplines including a knowledge of the historical and cultural context of visual art.


The Goal of Belmont Public Schools:

“To contribute to and support the intellectual, social and personal development of students so they ac-tively and productively participate in and contribute to the life of the school and the greater community.”

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METCO

Scope and Content Abstract:

The records of the Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity, Incorporated (METCO, Inc.) date from 1961-2005. They document the central administration’s efforts to provide the city of Boston and the Boston suburbs with a voluntary school desegregation program. The documentation includes the records of directors and other administrators; Board of Directors correspondence, reports, and meeting minutes; financial material including grant proposals; trans-portation bids, documentation of vendor activities and relations, and records pertaining to the management of the Transportation Depart-ment; public relations material; records relating to school depart-ments and curricula; student records; and audio-visual material.

Historical Abstract:

Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity, Incorporated (METCO, Inc.) is a private nonprofit organization founded in 1966 to eliminate racial imbalance by busing children from Boston and Springfield to suburban public schools in 38 suburban communities. The program was created more than three decades ago by edu-cational collaborators, parents, and suburban citizens from metro-politan Boston and Boston’s suburbs as a voluntary desegregation program. Its mission is “to provide, through professional leadership and voluntary citizen action, the development and promotion of

quality integrated educational opportunities for urban and suburban students in the greater Boston community and to work toward the expansion of a collaborative education program with the Boston and suburban school systems.” As of 2005, the program places more than 3,400 of Boston’s minority students (African American, Asian, and Hispanic) into suburban schools. METCO, Inc. is funded by the Massachusetts Legislature as a result of the Racial Imbalance Act. It is the nation’s oldest voluntary school desegregation program.

Arrangement:

Organized into 6 series: 1. Administration; 2. Placement; 3. Cur-riculum; 4. Student and Family Support Services; 5. School District Support Services; and 6. Transportation.

Subjects and Contributors:

Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity (Boston, Mass.)Metco Program (Mass.)

African Americans--Education--Massachusetts--Boston.Boston (Mass.)--Race relations.Busing for school integration--Massachusetts--Boston--History.School integration--Massachusetts.Segregation in education.

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Mary Lee Burbank Elementary School

History

Mary Lee Burbank was born in Paducah Kentucky on November 2, 1850. She had three sisters and three brothers. Miss Burbank began teaching at the Belmont High School (which is now the Welling-ton Elementary School) in 1879. She saw the high school develop from a small two-room school house with a handful of students to a large school built in 1917 on School Street with 933 students. Miss Burbank taught under 8 principals. She was very helpful with her students. For example, one of her students wrote this about her in one of his letters, “I shall always be grateful for the evenings after schoolwork was done that she devoted to helping me prepare for the M.I.T. examinations.”

Miss Burbank retired in 1921 after 42 years of teaching. Some

people even wanted to name a street in Mary Lee Burbank’s honor.The Committee named the school “for a woman whose character and long record of distinguished service as a teacher merits the esteem and gratitude of all Belmont.”

Therefore, when our school was built in 1931, it was named the Mary Lee Burbank School.

The Mary Lee Burbank School was built because the other Belmont elementary schools were very crowded. The Kendall, Daniel Butler, Payson Park, Chenery, Winslow Homer and Roger Wellington were the other schools. Before there was a Burbank School, many Bur-bank students attended the Winslow Homer School.The land to build the Burbank School was farm land and cost $35,000 in 1928. The school was built in 1931 and had 17 rooms. Mr. George E. Robinson was the architect and built the school in the Colonial Revised style.When the school opened in 1931, there were many differences from what we have today.

There were two classes at each grade, kindergarten to grade six.

Burbank Today

The subjects all grades have are reading, writing, spelling, math,

Mary Lee Burbank School266 School Street

Belmont, MA 02478617-993-5500

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science, geography, social studies, art, music and gym. Some stu-dents take Spanish or French before school. We have lots of books in our library and we go every week.

We have 11 computers in the computer lab and at least one Power Macintosh computer in every classroom. The computer programs are about math, science, reading, geography, thinking, graphing and more. Lots of writing gets published on the computer and then gets made into books by parents or teachers. We have one internet connection in the library.We have extra programs like poets and artists [music and art] who come to the school, and a play about the environment. The PTA helps pay for special programs. Every class goes on one field trip.There are people like Dr. Carrol who does science experiments with every class. Also, lots of parents come and volunteer in the school. They help in classroom, the computer lab, the library and some-times come just to read to a class or show things from their travels to classes that are studying a country.

Parents come to the school to see what we are learning. Every grade has morning open house activities and students show parents their work or do a presentation.

Core Statement

Love of Learning

• Showing interest and excitment about school projects and extending learning outside school• Developing, sharing and challenging abilities and talents• Respecting and fostering different styles of learning• Recognizing effort and achievement by individuals and groups• Taking risks as learners and using mistakes as opportunities to earn

Respect

• Demonstrating the 3Rs (Rights, Responsibility, Respect)• Showing respect for each other and our environment• Working together and cooperating with each other• Celebrating all kinds of differences and similarities• Taking pride in our work

Well Being

• Respecting individual safety and safety of others• Seeking help when needed• Expressing, listening, caring and honoring ideas• Demonstrating social responsibility

Mary Lee Burbank Elementary School

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W.L. Chenery Middle School

Chenery Middle School95 Washington St,

Belmont, MA 02478-2862(617) 993-5800

History

The Chenery Middle School serves approximately 1,110 students in grades five through eight. The fifth and sixth grades constitute the Lower School and the seventh and eighth grades from the Upper School. There are 85 teachers and 35 support staff at the middle school. The Chenery Middle School opened in 1997 in a new, three-story, state-of-the-art facility arranged around a courtyard and includes a 700-seat auditorium, 450-seat cafeteria, integrated media center, two computer labs, band and chorus rooms, several commu-nity rooms, and fully networked technology equipped classrooms. Outside are basketball courts, tennis courts, a baseball field, and other grassy playing fields newly build by the Belmont Recreation Department.

Fifth grade students learn in self-contained classrooms with one

teacher for English,social studies, science, and math. Fifth graders also take art, general music, physical education, exploratory for-eign language (Spanish and French), and computer keyboarding. Instruction in instrumental and choral music is an optional program.

The sixth grade students are organized in a team structure of two teachers per team with each teacher responsible for two learning areas. One teacher covers English and social studies, and another teaches math and science. There are approximately 50 students on each team. At the end of fifth grade, students choose Spanish, French, Chinese or Latin to study for the next three years. Sixth grade students study foreign language every other day alternating with a skills and reading course. Art, physical education, technology education, and health complete the program of studies.

Seventh and eighth grade students are organized in five-teacher team structure with approximately 100 students per team. Separate instructors teach math, science, English, social studies, and foreign language (Spanish, French or Latin). Seventh and eighth graders also take art, physical education, technology education, health, and computer.

All sixth, seventh and eighth grade students have the opportunity to participate in a music performing group (band, orchestra, or chorus) as part of their class offerings. Students who do not choose to

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participate on one of these ensembles enroll in a general music elective for a full year.

Students move from self-contained classrooms in fifth grade to a full-teacher rotation by the seventh and eight grade. Classrooms and teams are heterogeneously grouped.

In addition to the regularly scheduled classes, the curriculum in-cludes these highlights:

• A week for fifth graders at overnight environmental camp;

• Community service projects for sixth graders;

• A science and English project for seventh graders on observing and recording natural history an the physical environment; and

• Participation in National History Day for 8th graders.

Parents may elect to have their middle school-aged child attend a structured after-school program for a fee. This program allows time for students to do their homework and participate in other activities.

Students may participate in a variety of extracurricular activities and

clubs including theater arts, student council, school newspaper, yearbook, math team, after-school sports, computer club, Science Olympiad, ecology club, chess club, and numerous instrumental and choral ensembles. The school also has an organized student government with elected positions.

The Chenery Middle School sponsors interscholastic teams for sev-enth and eight grade boys and girls in cross-country and basketball.

Core Values

The Chenery community shares a set of common values. These CORE VALUES help guide your decisions and interactions both at school and outside of school. Throughout the year, we will be dis-cussing these values so that everyone has a clear understanding of what they mean and how we show that Chenery Cares.

Chenery CARES:

• Cooperation• Acceptance• Respect• Effort• Service

W.L. Chenery Middle School

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Curriculum

Focus

Rationale Statement

Introduction

“Diversity, generally understood and embraced, is not casual liberal tolerance of anything and everything not yourself. It is not polite accommodation. Instead, diversity is, in action, the sometimes painful awareness that other people, other races, other voices, other habits of mind, have as much integrity of being, as much claim on the world as you do…And I urge you, amid all the differences present to the eye and mind, to reach out to create the bond that…will protect us all. We are meant to be here together.”--William M. Chase, The Language of Action

Art is a universal language that cuts across racial, social, educational, and economic barriers while enhancing cultural appreciation and self-awareness. Integrating the mind, body, and spirit, art provides opportunities for self-expression enabling children to represent ideas and thoughts in a visual form. Art is also a process of responding to the world by expressing personal views; exploring new ways of perceiving; investigating past, present, and future worlds; and using one’s imaginations to think, discover, invent, and express new ideas. As children develop and respond to images, it is the teacher’s role to give the knowledge and ability to communicate ideas along with the tools to explore and discover one’s identity. In today’s technical-global society, a comprehensive

visual arts program that teaches and develops communication isessential. The units and lessons taught within a curriculum should include visual, verbal and written; problem-solving through individual thinking and group interaction; critical thinking skills such as analyzing, synthesizing, and evaluating; appreciation of cultural diversity through the study of history and works of various ethnic groups; self-esteem through the knowledge of a job well done; lifelong skills through techniques, processes and principles learned; and, finally, the intrinsic value of art, which provides benefitsavailable through no other means.

The fight to have the visual arts considered a core subject in schools has been an ongoing battle that is best appreciated in relation to previous curriculums lacking the arts altogether. The peak has yet to be reached, making the challenges ahead important for educators to articulate. Integrating the visual arts to support the acquisition of knowledge in core curricular areas such as math, social studies, language arts, and science, has proven beneficial in overall achievement. Educators have begun to recognize the value of interdisciplinary coursework and team teaching to provide greater depth of learning and more motivation for original thinking andproblem solving by students. Unfortunately, the battle to maintain the visual arts as a core subject is revisited when economicconditions impose constraints. In an article written by Douglas Herbert, Finding the Will and the Way to Make the Arts a Core

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Subject: Thirty Years of Mixed Progress, he explains the struggles the visual arts encountered in the 1980’s and reflects on theimprovements necessary for the visual arts to be considered:

“The resulting report in 1988, Toward Civilization, found the arts in education in triple jeopardy: First, they wereconsidered a “frill,” not a basic alongside math, reading, and science. Second, in the pre-standards era of the ‘80s, there was no common agreement across school districts, much less states, as to what students should know and be able to do in the arts. And third, where the arts were taught, there was usually an exclusive focus on producing and performing, when a more comprehensive approach would better ensure arts literacy for students.

The report proposed four “Cs” to provide a balanced arts curriculum: civilization—understanding the role of the arts in history and the multiple cultures that constitute American civilization; creativity—acquiring the sequential skills and habits of mind of arts disciplines and forms to create a personal vision through the arts; communication— learning the “languages” of the arts in order to express ideas and emotions in words, images, sounds, and move-ment; and choice—among products of the arts to make criti-cal assessments of what one reads, sees, and hears.”

Research shows art education has the power to improve student achievement, get troubled youth involved in schools, and prepare students to be lifelong learners. Without art education or an arts opportunity for every child, many children would be left behind. After the No Child Left Behind Act was passed in 2001, leaving the visual arts out of any academic curriculum would be neglectful and certainly inexcusable.

The Importance of Art Education

Art improves children’s motivation, encourages self- discipline, and increases open-mindedness. Motivation is a fundamental component in keeping children interested in education. Integrating art in a core curriculum enhances a child’s experience and encourages them to stretch the limits of their imaginations to create new problem solving skills and critical thinking. Participation in the arts makes education more interesting, therefore motivating children to stay in school. Providing students with developmental lessons and the tools to discover one’s identity will not only allow them toexplore aspects of themselves and their classmates, but will increase confidence in their abilities, recognize differences in others, and inevitably work to develop an accepting attitude towards cultural diversity. These are important attributes for life long success and for becoming a contributing citizen to society. Friedrich Froebel, (1782-1852) the originator of Kindergarten, believed that

Rationale Statement

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humans are essentially productive, creative, and that fulfillment comes from developing these in harmony with God and the world. As a result, Froebel encouraged the creation of educational environ-ments that involved practical work and the direct use of materials used to motivate learners.

“The purpose of education is to encourage and guide man as a conscious, thinking and perceiving being in such a way that he becomes a pure and perfect representation of that divine inner law through his own personal choice; educa-tion must show him the ways and meanings of attaining that goal.”- Friedrich Froebel 1826 Die Nenschenerziehung

The units and lessons taught within this curriculum will allow students to make personal choices aboutt his or her artwork while also learning the fundamentals of drawing, painting and sculpture. When speaking about Lois Mailou Jones and Romare Beardon, Hooks says, “When they no longer focused exclusively on European traditions and drew upon the cultural legacy of the African-American experiences, they fully discovered their artistic identity”. OnceBeardon and Jones had learned aesthetics and traditional art they used the base they had learned and made their artwork their own. They infused it with their own culture, race and personal history. This curriculum consists of a series of lessons, each with a different focus on an aspect of life that influences identity. These

aspects will include each student’s environment, culture, traditions, family, friends, experiences, physical appearance, fear, dreams, and aspirations.

Art as a Journey

“I think that only daring speculation can lead us further and not accumulation of facts.”- Albert Einstein

Art offers insight into the culture and thinking of mankind. It is meant for appreciation amongst communities and experiences in the lives of common people. The visual art’s is part of the human experience, and the inherent value comes from experiences in daily life. All areas of a child’s development are enhanced by the essential value of art that lies in the aesthetic experience. Consciousness and reflection focused on the art making process are keys to imagination and transformation. Through this process, children should be able to express their feelings and perceptions as they find their own voices. The following quote summarizes the belief that the arts stimulate genuine learning:

“. . . We need ourselves to tell stories and allow the young to tell their stories, to draw them, to dance them, to shape some of the stuff of their lives. We want them to tap their image stores, to remain in touch with their memories. I

Rationale Statement

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believe that, when consciousness is opened to theappearances and to the sounds of things, when children are encouraged not simply to perform correctly, todemonstrate sets of skills or competencies, but to perceive and name dimensions of their lived worlds, they are far more likely to pose the questions in which authentic learning begins.” – Maxine Greene, 2001

Teaching is a field of inquiry that is constantly evolving with changes in the student body, technology and society in general. Art teachers must possess the foresight to recognize and be able to adapt to these changes. An effective teacher must have a mastered understanding of the subject being taught as well as an underlying knowledge and experience in the field that is kept up to date by engaging in research and continuous study. An exceptional teacher is a facilitator that helps students make connections between their experiences and the subject matter. The role of an art teacher is to open the doors to lead students on a never-ending journey to self-exploration. Throughout this journey, children should continually create new possibilities and challenge traditional boundaries by producing artwork and exploring master artists throughout art history. Theory and practice in the visual arts are dynamic, ever changing, and connect many areas of study and human experiences through individual and collaborative production and interpretation. Children should be able to explore new ways

of expressing ideas to help make the visual arts one of the most interesting and challenging areas of learning and experience. The art making process is part of the journey that requires a high level of cognitive activity that is both intellectual and affective. Engagement in the arts promotes a sense of identity and makes a unique contribution to the lifelong learning of each student. Teachers should provide students with the opportunity to develop a critical and intensely personal view of them in relation to the world. Upon completion of this curriculum, children should be far along on their journey for self-exploration. They will have obtained the knowledge and skill to independently launch the next voyage of discovery on their journeys.

Art as Communication

Peggy Albers, in “Literacy in the Arts,” believes “if we want children to represent meaning visually, musically, and/or dramatically, along with their written texts—in other words, to create a semioticsystem—we have a responsibility to teach them how to create meaning in many sign systems.” Art teachers have the opportunity to expand the minds of children while allowing them to express themselves and communicate ideas. With the increasing numbers of special-needs students, educators must be able to adapt lessons that are open-ended enough for each student. Introducing works of master artists, students should gain the ability to think critically

Rationale Statement

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about their interpretations and be able to find success. Viewing artwork can inspire communication and can be used the same way as written text can expand a child’s knowledge of the world. Art provides a window into how children interpret their understanding of images and knowledge of the world.

“Painting is a way of communicating vision and experience sothatitreachesbeyondasinglemomentintime.Whatfillsour hearts and spills over must be shared.” -- Stormy Bailey

Through the visual arts, children can communicate knowledge, skill, and attitude. Encouraging dialogue in the classroom, students should be able to grow and gain self-esteem through instructive criticism and praise from fellow classmates. Art is the key to self-expression and personal identity. A child’s identity is formed by family, history, social, and economical factors. It is not simply based on environment, but rather both nature and nurture. Every human goes through identity formation. Through this phase, one begins to identify with things that bring them closer to people and others that can drive them apart. If a child expresses a part of their own identity that a classmate may share or can relate to, they will be much more passionate about that piece of artwork. Through art, students are able to communicate with themselves and each other. Deconstructing stereotypes and exploring one’s identity, children gain a greater sense of self and what makes them unique. An art

teacher’s role is to teach lessons that enable learners to express a piece of themselves in their artwork. Art is the perfect catalyst for this because art has no race or gender; it is a realm where every imposed boundary could be erased.

Conclusion

Every child has innate creativity and inherent empathy; two pillars on which human achievement and global security is found. It is the art teacher who must re-evaluate the goals of education and create lessons adaptable to children of the twenty-first century. The visual arts foster common interests and values that are more important today than in the past. Children should be guided along a never-ending journey to communicate and identify with themselves and each other. Ernest L. Boyer, President of the Carnegie Foundation For Advancement of Teachers expressed his feelings in a message he had for young people before his death:

“Let them remember that there is a meaning beyond absurdity. Let them be sure that every little deed counts, that every word has power, and that we can-very one-do our share to redeem the world in spite of all absurdities and all frustrations and all disappointments. And above all, remember that the meaning of life is to build a life as if it were a work of art.”

Rationale Statement

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Scope and Sequence: Grade 2

Media/ Technique Vocabulary/ Artists Interdisciplinary connection

Unit TitleGrade 2

Unit 1

Unit 2

Unit 3

Unit 4

The Art of Masks

Who Am I? Self-Portraits

Symmetrical Creatures

Textural Animal Pets

Painting: Acrylic Collaging: Mixed Media

Drawing: Pencil and Oil Pastels

Sculpture: Model Magic Clay

Painting: Acrylic

Drawing: Oil Pastels Painting: Watercolors

-Primary Colors-Secondary Colors

-Texture-Repetition

-Imagination-Maurice Sendak’s, Where

The Wild Things Are

-Portrait-Self-Portrait

-Identity-Features

-Perspective-Background

-Various self-portraits throughout art history

-Symmetry-Line of Symmetry

-Balance-Oil Pastel Resist

-Sculpture-Sculptor-Armature-Texture

-Realism Vs. Abstract-Various animal sculptors throughout

art history

-Enhances creativity and can be applied to English literature as well as creative writing

-Enables individualism through art

-Allows students to focus on spacial perspective while expressing their mood and unique personalities

-Symmetry is a concept used in math

- Creative, imaginitive, and unique artwork is fundamental to obtaining individualism and leadership traits

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- Students appreciation of diversity and details in animals as well as that of fellow classmates


Media/ Technique Vocabulary/ ArtistsInterdisciplinary

connectionUnit TitleGrade 3

Unit 1

Unit 2

Unit 3

Unit 4

Warm Sun and Too Cool Moon- A study of warm

and cool colors with Vincent Van Gogh

Symbolic Self-Portraits

Cubism- Abstracting the

Ordinary

Architecture- Clay Dream House

Painting: Watercolors and Oil Pastels

Drawing: Pencil, Color Pencils, Oil Pastels

Sculpture: Ceramics

Mixed Media: Pencil, Color Pencils,

Sharpie Markers,and Watercolors

-Warm Colors-Cool Colors

-Watercolor Resist-Expression/ Mood

-Various paintings by Vincent Van Gogh

-Symbolism-Self-Portrait-Proportion

-Background-Foreground-Composition-Expression

-Various portrait artists throughout art history

-Cubism-Abstract

-Geometric Shapes-Still-life

-Overlapping-Repetition

-Cubist work by Picasso and Braque

-Sculpture-Architect

-Slab-Slip

-Score-Firing-Coil-Kiln

-Understanding how color effects mood and how it can be used to communicate is an important skill for a person to have.

-Expands abstract thinking and conceptual abilities.

-Students should be able to think “outside the box” and look at things from different perspectives with-out having any preconceptions

- Gain individual expression -Problem solving-Decision making abilities - Better understanding of spatial qualities

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-Connects what students think and feel while increasing the level of artistic expression

-Taps into the psychological knowledge base and encourages student to draw upon their introspective knowledge.


Media/ Technique Vocabulary/ Artists Interdisciplinary connectionUnit TitleGrade 4

Unit 1

Unit 2

Unit 3

Unit 4

Narrative Comic Strips

Picasso Style Self-Portraits

Figure Drawing

Pointillist Landscapes

Drawing: Pencil, Sharpie Markers, Markers

Drawing: Oil Pastels, Sharpie Markers, Markers,

Collage: Colored Paper, Mixed Media

Painting: Tempera Paint, Q-Tips

Drawing: pencil, Black Sharpie Marker

Painting: Watercolors

-Animation-Character-Frames-Gesture

-Sequence-Plot

-Setting-Perspective

-Cubism-Self-Portrait-Symbolism

-Profile-Picasso

-Figure-Gesture-Contour-Pattern

-Repetition-Foreground

-Middleground-Background

-Contrast-Works of Henri Matisse

-Optical Illusion-Landscape

-Impressionism-Overlapping

-Space-Texture

-Works of Geourges Seurat

-Students tell narratives through illustration using vocabulary that is essential in writing.

-By representing the child’s interest through por-traiture, it will help to distinguish their unique personalities from their classmates

-By understanding different approaches to por-traiture, students will be able to apply this idea to other aspects in life

- Pattern and repetition is a concept often used in math

-By drawing the human figure students beome perceptive and gain observational skills

People are faced with visual challenges every day. Pointillism creates an optical illusion by placing small dots of color next to each other.

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Grade 2 Units

The Art of Masks

Who Am I? – Self-Portraits

Symmetrical Creatures

Textural Animal Pets

Unit: The Art of Masks

Unit:

Title: The Art of MasksGrade: 2Length of Unit: 6 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.3: Students should be able to identify the elements of art (line, color, shape/form, texture, value, space) in the environment and in works of art, emphasizing line, color, and shape. They will be able to process, analyze, and respond to sensory information through language and skill. MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.2: Students should be able to demonstrate beginning skill in the use of tools and processes, such as the use of scissors, glue, and paper in the creation of a three-dimensional construction.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.7: Students should be able to create a three-dimensional form, such as a real or imaginary “wild thing.”

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 4.1: Students should be able to talk about their artwork, using appropriate art vocabulary (primary colors, secondary colors, color, shape, texture, collage, abstract).

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Instructional Concepts:

”I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagi-nation is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world, stimulating progress, giving birth to evolution.”- Albert Einstein

• Texture- When something has a certain feel such as rough, smooth, bumpy, or soft.• Mixing can change color.• Texture can be used to create surface variety.• Texture can add detail to an object.• Balance can be achieved through the arrangement of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form within a composition.• Unity can be achieved through the repetition of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form in a composition.• Imagination and working from memory enables children to develop their creativity.• Introducing children to art helps to develop their visual awareness and provides a springboard for personal image making.• Narrative strategies help student artists develop ideas related to duration and alternative possibilities.

Lessons:

Lesson one:The teacher will read out loud the book, “Where the Wild Things Are.” Art often makes people introspective and triggers an array of thoughts and emotions. The class will explore how the lines, color, and texture in the book create movement. The teacher will tell students that they get to use their artistic ability to make masks and become “wild things.” The teacher will display and talk about the different styles of masks ranging from playful Halloween masks, to ornate African masks created by renowned artists. The class will review primary and secondary colors. The teacher will demonstrate how to paint a paper plate one solid color using acrylic paint for the base of the mask using a primary or secondary color and allow time for students to do this.

Lesson Two:The teacher will demonstrate and allow students to cut eye and mouth holes in their painted paper plates. Students will then draw pencil sketches of their “wild thing” and share their ideas with the class. They will tell what kind of “wild thing” they are becoming and why they chose to do this.

Lesson Three:A discussion on texture will take place. Students will think about

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what their “wild thing” will feel like if they were able to touch it. A zip lock bag filled with a wide assortment of materials will be placed at each table. Students will be asked for suggestions on the different possibilities that can be created and a teacher demonstration will take place. Ex: eyelashes created from paper, hair from yarn, big ears from paper, etc. Students will be given time to work on their masks.

Lesson Four:A new zip lock bag will be filled with a different assortment ofmaterials and will again be placed at each table. Another class discussion and teacher demonstration will take place while students raise their hands suggesting various possibilities that may be created with the new array of decorative art supplies. They will learn the appropriate way to attach things together and will have class time to continue working on their masks.

Lesson Five:Students will be given the opportunity to add final touches to their masks. Students will attach popsicle sticks on the back of their masks in order to hold it up to their faces. Glitter will be introduced as an option to be included as a last detail for the masks.

Lesson six: Students will take turns coming in front of the classroom to talk

about their “wild thing” and the steps they took in making it. A class review on the art vocabulary and artistic elements incorporated in the project will be conducted. Materials and Resources:

• Paper plates• Red, yellow, and blue acrylic paint• Paint brushes• Newspaper• Water• Cups for water• Paper towels• Scissors• Glue sticks• Construction paper/tissue paper/metallic paper• Magazines• Feathers, glitter, beads, gems, googly eyes• Stapler (for teachers use only)• Yarn• Popsicle sticks • Maurice Sendak’s, Where The Wild Thing Are• Personal exemplar with each step for the mask masking procedure• Exemplar containing different styles of masks ranging from

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playful Halloween masks, to ornate African masks created byrenowned artists.

Assessment:

Students will be individually assessed based on: • Completion of a mask that represents a “wild thing.”• The usage of most of the supplied materials.• An understanding of what the word “texture means.”

Questions to Ask:

Topic quesTions:• Have you ever imagined yourself as someone or something else?• What are some of the things you imagined becoming? • Do you think it’s possible for you to be who or what you imagined?• What do you think the monster in the book would feel like if you touched it?• Everyone touch your shirt. What is its texture?

AssociATion quesTions:• When do you see people wearing masks?• Why do people wear masks?

visuALizATion quesTions:• What are some possibilities of masks we can make in art?• What do you think the provided string can be used for?• What can feathers be used for?

TrAnsiTion quesTions:• What is the first thing you are going to do when you get to your table?• Can someone repeat the instructions for me?

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Unit: Who am I? -Self-Portraits

Unit:

Title: Who am I? -Self-PortraitsGrade: 2Length of Unit: 4 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standards 5 and 8: Students should understand how self-portraits tell about the artist by looking at a variety of fa-mous self-portraits throughout history. MACF Pre-K-12 Standards 2 and 6: Students should know the rela-tionship between portraiture and expression as well as the different elements of portrait making.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 4: Students should know the art making processes necessary to draw a portrait.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1: Students should be able to produce/construct an object that enables personal voices.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3: Students should be able to talk about their portrait and explain its relevance to the assignment.


“I paint self-portraits because I am so often alone, because I am the person I know best.” – Frida Kahlo

“Every portrait that is painted with feeling is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter.” –Oscar Wilde

“All art is self-portrait.”-Leonardo Da-Vinci

“Might not a painter’s choice of lines and colors give an indication of his character, whether it is noble or common . . .” -January 1885 to friend Emile Schuffenecker

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“It is the face of an outlaw . . . with an inner nobility and gentleness . . . I offer an image, a portrait of myself to all wretched victims of society.” -October 1888 to Vincent van Gogh

“In art, the state of one’s soul is of the greatest importance. One therefore has to take great care of it, if one intends to create some-thing great and permanent.” -1889 to Danish painter J. F. Willumsen

• Work from general to specific. • Proper proportions and placement from the start.• Measuring and observing to establish the station point.• Tone and value can be used to add dimension.• Facial expression can imply a mood.• Color can be used for emphasis in a composition.• Texture can be used to create surface variety.• Texture can add detail to an object.• Background space can be distinguished from the base line.• Space can be achieved through the variation of size, shape, and placement.• Form can be identified by the use of surrounding objects in the environment.• Form can be described in relation to parts of a whole.• Balance can be achieved through the arrangement of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form within a composition.• Emphasis can be achieved through outlining.

• Unity can be achieved through the repetition of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form in a composition.• Rhythm can be achieved by varying the size of line, color, texture, shape, and form.• Variety can be achieved through a change in tone or value.• Looking in a mirror helps students to observe individual features.• Introducing students to works of master artists helps to develop their visual awareness and provides a springboard for personal image making.• Drawing from observation helps students develop perceptive skills such as those used to define edges, and background and object shapes and spaces.

Lessons:

Lesson one:The teacher will begin the lesson by introducing self-portraits cre-ated by various portrait artists throughout history. The class will also discuss a range of artistic approaches for self-portrait’s and how to apply these techniques to their artwork. Ex: expression, color, background etc. Without using a mirror, students will create 3-4 thumbnail sketches of themselves including facial expression and background.

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Lesson Two:A lesson will be taught on measuring placement and how to draw facial features. Students will take turns coming to the board to as a class portrait is created. The teacher will make corrections using a red marker in order to demonstrate the proper way to draw a face along with it’s specific features and elements. The final product will be left on the board throughout the project for students to use as a reference throughout the project.

Lesson Three:Students will use mirrors and pencils to draw their self-portraits. They will fill up the entire sheet of paper including a background as well as a facial expression to tell a story about them. As the students continue to work on their drawings, the teacher will walk around the room helping those who need individual instruction on measuring and drawing proper placements and proportions along with ways to incorporate the background.

Lesson Four:The teacher will introduce oil pastels to the class. Students will add color to their self-portraits using oil pastels to create mood and add expression. They will take turns sharing their self-portraits with the class and will be able to learn more about their fellow peers. The class will review the art vocabulary and concepts learned through-out the lesson.

Materials and Resources:

• Drawing Paper• Pencil• Eraser• Oil Pastels• Mirror• Works of famous self-portraits throughout art history

Assessment:

Students will be individually assessed based on:

• Resemblance of portrait to the artist• Incorporated Background• Facial expression• Completed product• Ability to speak about/justify the final product

Questions to Ask:

Topic quesTions:• What is a self-portrait? • What are some different techniques we can use to make a self -portrait?


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• How does the choice of medium affect a self-portrait?

AssociATion quesTions:• What can portraiture tell about a person?

Looking AT The exempLAr:• Where did the artist choose to locate himself?• Who can pick out a self-portrait with a background telling you about where the artist is from? • Who can pick out a self-portrait that has a distinct facial expression that lets you know how the artist is feeling?

visuALizATion quesTions:• How does the artists’ choice of color (or lack there of) affect the overall mood of a drawing?• What does line quality do to a portrait?• Does it make a difference if the sitter is located in an environment?


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Unit: Symmetrical Creatures

Unit:

Unit Title: Symmetrical CreaturesGrade: 2Length of Unit: 5 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.3: Students will learn and use appropriate vocabulary related to methods, materials, and techniques involved in symmetry.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.5: For pattern and symmetry, students will explore the use of patterns and symmetrical shapes in 2D and 3D works. They will be able to identify patterns and symmetrical forms and shapes in the environment and artwork. They should be able to explain and demonstrate ways in which patterns andsymmetrical shapes may be made. MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.3: Students will create 2D symmetrical creature from memory or imagination to tell a story or embody an idea or fantasy.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Students will be able to describe similarities and differences in works, and present personal

responses to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design elements in artworks.


“Guided only by their feeling for symmetry, simplicity, and generality, andanindefinablesenseofthefitnessofthings,creativemathema-ticians now, as in the past, are inspired by the art of mathematics rather than by any prospect of ultimate usefulness.” - E. T. Bell

“And despite the fact that the basis of this mathematical way of thinking in art is in reason, its dynamic content is able to launch us onastralflightswhichsoarintounknownandstillunchartedregionsof the imagination.” -Max Bill

• Color can be used for emphasis in a composition.• Balance can be achieved through the arrangement of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form within a composition.• Symmetry is achieved by allowing everything to be the same on both sides.• The Line of Symmetry is the line directly in the center of the paper.• Emphasis can be achieved through outlining.• Previsualization and working from memory and imagination helps children develop their schema for drawing.

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• Introducing children to art develops their visual awareness and provides a springboard for personal image making.

Lessons:

Lesson one:The teacher will introduce a lesson on symmetry. The students will be asked to identify familiar objects that are considered sym-metrical. The teacher will show exemplars containing symmetrical artwork and students will be asked to identify the lines of symmetry. A second exemplar with symmetrical creatures will be displayed and students will be asked questions about what they see and whether they can notice something that may be hidden. They will notice a name written vertically down the line of symmetry and is seen symmetrically on both sides creating a creature like image. A step-by-step demonstration of the project will take place. Students will watch a piece of paper being folded vertically down the center. Using a pencil, they will write their first name in large letters across one side of the paper allowing the line of symmetry to act as a line on a piece of writing paper. They must make sure the edges of the letters touch each other. Students will be given ample time to work on the lesson.

Lesson Two:Students will trace over their names that were written in pencil using

a black oil pastel. They must be sure to press extra hard so that enough oil pastel will be able to rub onto the opposite side to make their creature look symmetrical. Next, they will fold their paper back in half. They will take a popsicle stick and rub hard on the back of the paper until they are able to see a symmetrical image of their name on both sides of the line of symmetry. They will then open up their paper and trace over their name with the black oil pastel to make it darker and more visible. A class discussion on theirsymmetrical creatures will take place.

Lesson Three:Students will be introduced to watercolors and the techniques involved. They will be told that when they choose a color on one side it must be the same on the other side for it to be perfectly sym-metrical. They will learn about oil pastel resist and a teacher demon-stration will occur. Students will be allowed class time to paint their symmetrical creatures.

Lesson Four:Students will continue to paint their symmetrical creatures and a dis-cussion about their artwork will take place. The teacher will review art concepts and vocabulary learned throughout the lesson.

Lesson Five:The symmetrical creatures will be dry and the class will be ready for

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a critique. Students will take turns coming to the front of the class-room to present their artwork. They will tell what type of creature they created and distinguish how everything is symmetrical on both sides. A class discussion on the art vocabulary learned throughout the lesson will occur.

Resources and Materials:

• 11”x17” drawing paper• Pencils• Black oil-pastel• Popsicle stick• Watercolors• Cup of Water• Brushes• Newspaper• Paper towel• Exemplar of symmetrical creatures• Symmetrical objects

Assessment:


• Completion of a symmetrical creature

• Understanding of the word, “symmetrical” by making sure everything is exactly the same on both sides• Ability to discuss their work and the work of others

Questions to Ask:

• What is symmetry? • What is the line of symmetry and where is it? • What are some objects that are symmetrical?


“From all that I have seen I am more than ever convinced that art must communicate, it must represent, it must describe and express people, their lives and times.”- Raphael Soyer

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Unit:

Unit Title: Textural Animal PetsGrade: 2Length of Unit: 6 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.2: Students will create artwork in three-dimensional (3D) Media. They will be able to describe and apply knowledge of the elements of art and principles of design as they relate to sculpture.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.3: Students will learn and useappropriate vocabulary related to methods, materials, and techniques. (For example: architecture, contour, medium, mixed media, symbol)

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.4: Students will learn to take care of materials and tools and to use them safely.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.4: For shape and form, students will explore the use of shapes and forms in 3D work. They will iden-tify simple shapes of different sizes, for example, circles, squares, triangles, and forms, for example, spheres, cones, cubes, in the

environment and in artwork.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.3: Students will create 3D artwork from memory or imagination to tell a story or embody an idea or fantasy. They will observe,select, and utilize a variety of ideas and subject matter in creating a work of art.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 4.1: Students will be able to select the sculpture and discuss it with a parent, classmate, or teacher, explaining how the work was made, and why it was chosen fordiscussion. They will learn to appreciate visual art as a vehicle of human expression.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 4.2: Students will be able to select work for exhibition and work as a group to create a display. They should be able to demonstrate respect for personal artwork and artwork of others.


“There are three forms of visual art: Painting is art to look at, sculp-ture is art you can walk around, and architecture is art you can walk through”- Dan Rice

Unit: Textural Animal Pets

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“As picture teaches the coloring, so sculpture the anatomy of form.” -Ralph Waldo Emerson

vocAbuLAry:Sculpture- An artwork created in 3-Dimensional formSculptor- The artist who is creating the sculptureArmature-the skeleton of a sculptureTexture-The way something feels or looks like it would feel

• Texture can be used to create surface variety.• Texture can add detail to an object.• Form can be described in relation to parts of a whole.• Details can be created with the use of tools. • Sculptures must be looked at from all different angles.

Lessons:

Lesson one:The teacher will introduce the lesson with a wide variety of animals with all sorts of features and skin. The closer the students observe the images, the more details they will notice. Some of the photographs included are close ups of sea turtle shells, skin, and toes. A wide variety of photos and magazine images of animals are available for students to choose from. It is suggested that for this project, animals with lots of details and texture will work best. Art

vocabulary is introduced and written on the board. Students will have time to sketch their animals in pencil.

Lesson Two:The teacher will demonstrate how to build an armature for the animal using only newspaper, foil, and masking tape. Class discussion on sculpture will take place and students will have time to create their armatures.

Lesson Three:Students will be introduced to model magic clay. They will be told how fast the clay will dry and therefore may only have two class periods to include detail and texture. At the end of class, students must tightly wrap their sculptures in plastic to prevent it from drying out. Students will have time to begin working on their sculptures. As the students work, the teacher will walking around the room en-couraging as much detail as possible.

Lesson Four:A brief demonstration on how to create texture and detail with clay will take place at the beginning of class. Students will continue to work in clay to create their animals. Eyes should be molded with the clay tools provided.


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Lesson Five: After the clay is completely dry, the teacher will demonstrate how to block out the eyes with masking tape before the painting process. An introduction to acrylic paint will be presented. Students will be using a limited pallet of color based on their specific animals. The teacher will demonstrate techniques on how to paint texture in order to allow the paint to cover the surface of the clay as well as the tiny grooves created. Metallic paints will be available for students to use. The paint is transparent and will highlight the sculptures for a bronze or aluminum look.

Lesson six:After the paint is dry, the teacher will display all the sculptures in the back of the classroom. As the students walk into the room, they will be told to sit in a circle around the artwork. A class critique will take place and students will be given the opportunity to discuss their artwork as well as that of others. The class will also review the vocabulary and techniques learned throughout the lesson.


• Model Magic sculpting material 4-8oz. per student• Wooden base w/ a 3/8” hole drilled in it• Dowel rod 3/8” diameter, approx. 4 inches long• Newspaper

• Foil• Masking-tape• Tools to create texture- (toothpicks, marker caps, clay modeling tools)• Acrylic Paint• Brushes• Water• Paper• Pencil• Magazine and photos of animals• Teacher exemplar of close-up photographs of animals

Assessment:

Students will be individually assessed based on a rubric that includes:

• A completed animal that includes texture and detail and has been both sculpted and painted to the best of the child’s ability.• A willingness to experiment and take risks with the medium.• An understanding of the art vocabulary and concepts that have been taught• Care of provided materials.• Effort and participation in class critique and discussions.


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Grade 3 Units

Warm Sun and Too Cool Moon- A study of warm and cool colors with Vincent Van Gogh

Symbolic Self-Portraits

Cubism-Abstracting the Ordinary

Architecture-Clay Dream House

Unit: Warm Sun and Too Cool Moon- A study of warm and cool colors with Vincent Van Gogh

Unit:

Unit Title: Warm Sun and Too Cool Moon- A study of warm and cool colors with Vincent Van GoghGrade: 3Length of Unit: 6 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.3: Students will learn and use appropriate vocabulary related to methods, materials, and techniques.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.1: For color, students will explore and experiment with the use of color in dry and wet media. Students will be able to identify primary and secondary colors and gradations of black, white and gray in the environment and artwork. Students will explore how color can convey mood and emotion. For example, students mix light and dark values of colors or predict the results of overlapping and blending primary colors.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.15: Students will create artwork that demonstrates understanding of the elements and principles ofdesign in establishing a point of view, a sense of space, or a mood.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Describe similarities and differences in works, and present personal responses to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design elements in artworks


“To exaggerate the fairness of hair, I come even to orange tones, chromes and pale yellow ... I make a plain background of the rich-est, intensest blue that I can contrive, and by this simple combina-tion of the bright head against the rich blue background, I get a mysterious effect, like a star in the depths of an azure sky.”- (Letter to Theo van Gogh, 11 August 1888)

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• Van Gogh, Olive Trees with Yellow Sky and Sun (1889) – warm colors• Van Gogh, Wheatfield and Mountains (1889)- cool colors• Watercolor resist -is a technique used to block paint to produce designs in painting. • Complementary colors/ opposite colors- colors on the opposite side of the color wheel. o Warm colors- red, orange, yellow o Cool colors- green, blue, violet

Lessons:

Lesson one:Students will be introduced to the works of Vincent Van Gogh. They will learn about the different palettes he used in his paintings to cre-ate mood. Students will learn about warm and cool colors and how they affect a work of art. A teacher exemplar of the project as well as a demonstration will be presented and students will be able to ask questions and/or make comments. Each student will be given a piece of white square watercolor paper and a pencil. They will decide if they want to make a warm sun or a cool moon. Students will be instructed to make a large circle in the middle of the page. Lesson Two:Students will be introduced to a variety of ways of how to draw eyes,

nose, and mouths that convey different moods. (The students that chose a sun will be shown how to make rays outside the circle.) Students will be given class time to do this in pencil.

Lesson Three:Students will be introduced to oil-pastels and will understand that if they are making a warm sun they should only be using the red, orange, and yellow oil-pastels to outline their pencil drawing. If they are making a cool moon they should only be using the green, blue, and purple oil-pastels to outline their pencil drawings. The teacher will explain the idea of an oil-pastel resist and that during the next art class, students will be creating the temperature of their warm suns and cool moons using watercolors. Students will be given class time to outline their pencil drawings in oil-pastels and to press hard for good coverage.

Lesson Four:Students will be introduced to watercolors and the techniques involved. The teacher will reinforce the idea of creating temperature and using a limited palette to create warm suns and cool moons. Students will be told to apply the paint singularly and allow the colors to mix by themselves. Van Gogh applied his colors side-by-side.


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Lesson Five:Students will continue to paint their warm suns and cool moons. Students that are making warm suns will be told to paint a cool color as the background and students making cool moons will be told to paint a warm color as the background. The contrast of colors will allow the suns and moons to pop out of the page.

Lesson six:After the warm suns and cool moons are completely dry, the teacher will hang the artwork on the classroom wall for a critique. Students will have the opportunity to talk about their work and the choices they made as well as the work of others. The class will also review the art vocabulary and concept learned throughout the lesson.


• Newspaper to cover tables• White watercolor paper (10”x10”)• Pencil• Oil-Pastels• Watercolors• Paper towels• Container of water• Works of Vincent Van Gogh: Van Gogh, Olive Trees with Yellow Sky and Sun (1889) – warm colors Van Gogh,WheatfieldandMountains, (1889) – cool colors

Assessment:


• Appropriate use of warm and cool colors and demonstrated technique of wax resist with the various media used. • Understanding the difference between warm and cool colors. • Student’s ability to discuss how they feel about their work and how color affected the different drawings.


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• Ability to answer: o How did we make our paintings today? o What different things did we have to do? o Can you list them in order?

Questions to Ask:

• What colors would you use to paint a night scene?• What colors would you use to show light?• What are happy colors to you?• What colors make you feel sad?• Questions on Van Gogh’s paintings: o What colors does he use? o How do you think he felt?


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Unit: Symbolic Self-Portraits

Unit:

Unit Title: Symbolic Self-PortraitsGrade: 3 Length of Unit: 5 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.15: Students will create artwork that demonstrates understanding of the elements and principles of de-sign in establishing a point of view, a sense of space, or a mood.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.11: Students will be able to demonstrate the ability to portray emotions and personality through the rendering of physical characteristics in 2D work. Students will draw an expressive, yet recognizable, self-portrait.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.12: Students will be able to demonstrate the ability to use representation, abstraction, or symbolism to cre-ate 2D artwork that conveys a personal point of view about issues and ideas. Students will create visual metaphors for topics such as memories of childhood, feelings about growing up, or hopes for the future.


“I paint self-portraits because I am so often alone, because I am the person I know best.” - Frida Kahlo

“Every portrait that is painted with feeling is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter.” -Oscar Wilde

“All art is self-portrait.”-Leonardo Da-Vinci

“Might not a painter’s choice of lines and colors give an indication of his character, whether it is noble or common . . .” -January 1885 to friend Emile Schuffenecker

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“It is the face of an outlaw . . . with an inner nobility and gentleness . . . I offer an image, a portrait of myself to all wretched victims of society.” -October 1888 to Vincent van Gogh

“In art, the state of one’s soul is of the greatest importance. One therefore has to take great care of it, if one intends to create some-thing great and permanent.” -1889 to Danish painter J. F. Willumsen

• Work from general to specific • Proper proportions and placement are created from the start• Measure and observe in order to establish the station point• Tone and value can be used to add dimension • Facial expression can imply a mood• Color can be used for emphasis in a composition.• Texture can be used to create surface variety.• Texture can add detail to an object.• Background space can be distinguished from the base line.• Space can be achieved through the variation of size, shape, and placement.• Form can be identified by the use of surrounding objects in the environment.• Form can be described in relation to parts of a whole.• Balance can be achieved through the arrangement of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form within a composition.• Emphasis can be achieved through outlining.

• Unity can be achieved through the repetition of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form in a composition.• Rhythm can be achieved by varying the size of line, color, texture, shape, and form.• Variety can be achieved through a change in tone or value.• Looking in a mirror helps students to observe individual features• Introducing students to works of master artists helps to develop their visual awareness and provides a springboard for personal image making.• Drawing from observation helps students develop perceptive skills such as those used to define edges, and background and object shapes and spaces.

Lessons:

Lesson one:Students will be introduced to Self-Portraits by looking at the work of famous artists throughout history. A teacher exemplar with various self-portraits will be presented and guiding questions will be asked. Students will also learn about symbolism and how master artists have used symbols in their artwork. Students will be handed writing paper and a pencil and will be told to write down five words that speak about themselves or their interests. They will have to find away to incorporate these words into their self-portraits. Without


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teaching the students about proportion and individual facial fea-tures, I will hand out mirrors and a piece of drawing paper to each student and let them draw a self-portrait (they will be able to look back at their first self portraits and see an improvement.)

Lesson Two:The teacher will review how to draw facial features and talk about proper placement and proportion. Students will learn about filling up the space of the page and will be forced to think about incorpo-rating a foreground, middle ground, and background. The teacher will hand out a large sheet of drawing paper and a mirror to each student as well as the five words the students wrote down. Students will be instructed to draw their faces and shoulders large on the page. They must include a background and create an environment. Most importantly, students must think about how they can incorpo-rate the five words to create a symbolic self-portrait. Students will have the rest of class to begin their final symbolic self-portraits in pencil.

Lesson Three:Students will continue working on drawing their symbolic self -por-traits. The teacher will walk around the room helping students draw proper facial features and helping individuals to brainstorm ideas for symbols in their drawings. At the end of class, the teacher will hold up a students’ portrait that includes symbols in the background

as well as a large self-portrait to help guide those who are having difficulty.

Lesson Four:After students have completed their symbolic self-portraits in pencil, the teacher will introduce color pencils and the techniques involved. Students will then be able to complete their drawings using color pencils.

Lesson Five:Students will be given the class period to work on finishing their symbolic self-portraits in color. As the students finish, the teacher will hang the portraits on the wall and the remainder of class will be left for a class critique. Students will be able to share their self-por-traits, the symbols they chose, and how they opted to incorporate the symbols into their artwork. Students will be able to learn more about themselves and their individualities and that of their fellow classmates.


• Drawing paper• Writing paper• Pencil• Eraser


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• Mirror• Color Pencils• Works of various self-portraits throughout art history

Assessment:


• Resemblance of portrait to the artist• Five written words that speak about the artist• Use of symbolism within the drawing• Incorporated a background, middle ground, and foreground to create space and an environment• Completed product• Ability to speak about/justify the final product

Questions to Ask:

Topic quesTions:• What is a self-portrait? • What are some different techniques we can use to make a self -portrait? • How does the choice of medium affect a self-portrait?

AssociATion quesTions:• What can portraiture tell about a person? Look at the exemplar:• Where did the artist choose to locate himself?• Who can pick out a self-portrait that includes a symbol or object that tells you a little about the artist and his/her lifestyle? • Who can pick out a self-portrait that has a distinct facial expression that lets you know how the artist is feeling?

visuALizATion quesTions:• How does the artists’ choice of color (or lack there of) affect the overall mood of a drawing?• What does line quality do to a portrait?• Does it make a difference if the sitter is located in an environment?

TrAnsiTion quesTions:• What kind of symbols can you include in your self-portrait?• How can you define yourself through a portrait making? • How are you different than your classmates?


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Unit:

Unit Title: Cubism-Abstracting the OrdinaryGrade: 3Length of Unit: 6 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.13: Students will use color, line, texture, shape, and form in 2D work while identifying the use of these elements in their compositions. Examples include: line as edge treatment and in patterns; color temperature, mass and volume as functions of color, size, perspective; negative space; visual and surface textures.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.2: Students will create 2D expressive artwork that explores abstraction. For example, a studentsimplifies an image by making decisions about essential colors, lines, or textures.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.9: Students will create artwork thatexplores the abstraction of ideas and representations. They will make abstract images that represent a concept.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.12: Students will demonstrate the ability

Unit: Cubism-Abstracting the Ordinary

to use representation, abstraction, or symbolism to create 2D art-work that conveys a personal point of view about issues and ideas.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Students will be able to describe similarities and differences in works, and present personal responses to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design elements in artworks.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.11: Students will be able to analyze the work of cubist artists and explain its meaning and impact on society, symbolism, and visual metaphors within.


“Out of limitations, new forms emerge”- Georges Braque

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“The goal I proposed myself in making cubism? To paint and noth-ing more... with a method linked only to my thought... Neither the good nor the true; neither the useful nor the useless.”- Pablo Picasso

“Cubism is like standing at a certain point on a mountain and look-ing around. If you go higher, things will look different; if you go lower, again they will look different. It is a point of view.”- Jacques Lipchitz

• Mixed media can be used to change surface quality and depth.• Formal elements can be used to create forms in cubism. • Line can be thick, thin, or curved.• Line can be used to invent forms.• Color can be changed by mixing.• Color can be used for emphasis in a composition.• Texture can be used to create surface variety.• Texture can add detail to an object.• Space can be achieved through the variation of size, shape, and placement.• Balance can be achieved through the arrangement of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form within a composition.• Emphasis can be achieved through outlining.• Unity can be achieved through the repetition of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form in a composition.• Rhythm can be achieved by varying the size of line, color,

texture, shape, and form.• Introducing students to the elements and principles of design and how the Cubists used color, line, and shape to develop their work opens up another realm of creative exploration. • While introducing children to art, it helps to develop their visual awareness and provides a springboard for personal image making.• Drawing from observation helps students develop perceptive skills such as those used to define edges, and background and object shapes and spaces.

Lessons:

Lesson one: The students will be introduced to the worldly influences on Cubist art and reflect upon ways Braque and Picasso have used angles, lines, and shapes to portray their subject. The teacher will display examples of cubist artwork created by Braque and Picasso while asking guiding questions about these works. There will be a still-life set up in the center of each table in the classroom that will be set up prior to each class. The teacher will show an exemplar of the com-pleted project and emphasize the importance of finding and creat-ing geometric shapes in the still life. The teacher will demonstrate the assignment by drawing the same still life from three different


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angles. After drawing it once, the teacher will rotate positions two more times as she draws the still life overlapping each other to cre-ate an abstract drawing. It is important for students to understand that after overlapping and drawing the still life three times from different angles, the drawings will no longer look like the still life at their table. The teacher will hand out 18”x24” white drawing paper and pencils to each student. The students will have enough time to draw the still life at their tables from one angle.

Lesson Two:Before the student artwork is passed back, the teacher will instruct the students to stand up and shift two seats to the right of them. Students will now be looking at the same still life from a second angle. The teacher will review the assignment and remind students about cubism, abstraction, and the idea of creating geometric shapes as opposed to focusing on detail and realism while drawing the still life. The artwork will be handed back to the students and they will be given approximately fifteen to twenty minutes to overlap the still life from the second angle onto the first. The teacher will then instruct students to put their pencils down, stand up, and rotate two more seats to the right. They will then overlap the still life for the third time for another fifteen to twenty minutes. The drawings will not appear as objects in a still life but rather an abstraction of geometric shapes similar to that of Braque and Picasso. The artwork will be collected and there will be a class discussion on vocabulary and

ideas relevant to the assignment.

Lesson Three:The teacher will introduce color pencils and the techniques in-volved. She will demonstrate how to find the shapes in the pencil drawings they have created by overlapping the same still life three times. Students will be instructed to color each shape using a dif-ferent colored pencil. Colors may be repeated but not if the two shapes are touching each other. The students will also be told not to color the backgrounds of their drawing using color pencils be-cause that is the next step to the project.

Lesson Four:Students will have time to finish coloring the shapes in their draw-ings. The students will be given the option of outlining the geometric shapes with a black thin sharpie marker.

Lesson Five:After, the students have finished drawing and coloring their cubist still life, they will be ready to think about incorporating the back-ground. The teacher will introduce collage and how it relates to cubism and abstraction. The students will be supplied with news-paper, scissors, and glue-sticks. The teacher will conduct a dem-onstration on how to collage the newspaper as the background. Emphasis will be placed the on overlapping and cutting appropriate


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shapes and sizes in relation to the background and crevices being filled.

Lesson six:Students will be given time to complete their cubist still life draw-ings. As students finish up working, the teacher will hang com-pleted artwork in the back of the classroom. A critique will take place and students will be able to talk about their artwork and that of their classmates. Students will raise their hand to point out specific drawings they find successful and explain why. Each student will discuss their process and the challenges involved in making their artwork. The class will also review the art vocabulary and concepts they learned throughout the lesson.


• 18”x24” drawing paper• Pencils• Color Pencils • Still life objects• Black thin Sharpie-markers (optional)• Newspaper• Scissors• Glue-sticks• Braque, Woman with a Guitar, 1913

• Picasso, Violin and Grapes, 1912• Teacher exemplar of the lesson

Assessment:


• Understanding of how Cubism affected the world of modern art.• Understanding of abstract vs. realistic • Execution of the same still life drawn from three different perspectives overlapping each other forming an abstraction and a comprehension of process and structure.• The student’s ability to talk about and justify their artwork.• The student’s day to day effort and classroom working

Questions to Ask:

Topic quesTions:• What does it mean if something is abstracted?• How do Braque and Picasso create representational forms out of their abstractions?


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AssociATion quesTions:• What kinds of shapes do you see in the paintings created by Braque and Picasso?• Why would an artist choose to abstract a subject?

visuALizATion quesTions:• What are some ways you can abstract an ordinary still life?• How can you manipulate the still life to make it your own order and reasoning?


TrAnsiTion quesTions: • How do you think your choice of color and medium will affect the three dimensionality of the drawing?

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Unit: Architecture- Clay Dream House

Unit:

Unit Title: Architecture- Clay Dream HouseGrade: 3Length of Unit: 4 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.2: Students will use clay to create three-dimensional (3D) artwork for assemblage and construction.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.3: Students will learn and use appropriate vocabulary related to methods, materials, and tech-niques.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.4: Students will learn to take care of materials and tools and to use them safely.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.4: For shape and form, students will explore the use of shapes and forms in 3D works. They will be able to identify simple shapes of different sizes, for example, circles, squares, triangles, and forms, for example, spheres, cones, cubes, in the environment and in artwork.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.3: Students will create 3D artwork from

memory or imagination to tell a story or embody an idea or fantasy.MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.2: Students will be able to classify art-works into a general category, such as painting, printmaking, collage, sculpture, pottery, textiles, architecture, photography, and film.


“Architecture is a art when one consciously or unconsciously cre-ates aesthetic emotion in the atmosphere and when this environ-ment produces well being.”- Luis Barragan

“Architecture is a visual art, and the buildings speak for them-selves.”- Julia Morgan

• Space can be achieved through the variation of size, shape, and placement.• Form can be identified by the use of surrounding objects in the environment.• Form can be described in relation to parts of a whole.

vocAbuLAry:Architect: A person who designs and makes plans for buildingsSculpture: A three-dimensional work of art Slip: Liquid clay used to attach two pieces together

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Score: A technique used in sculpture by making marks on the clay before attaching two pieces togetherSlab: A flat, rolled out piece of clayCoil: A rope of clay, rolled out with your handKiln: A machine used to heat clay to make in permanent. It is over 2000 degrees hot.Firing: The process used to heat clay in order to make it permanent

Lessons:

Lesson one:Students will be introduced to architecture as a means of art. The teacher will explain how architects are people who create designs and makes plans for buildings such as houses, schools, restaurants, and offices. The teacher will tell students to pretend to be archi-tects and design their own dream houses using pencil that they will later build in clay. Exemplars including different techniques will be shown but the houses do not have to be realistic. The remainder of class will be allotted to students creating three different sketches of their dream houses. Before the end of class, the teacher will remind students that they will be introduced to clay during the next class period.

Lesson Two:The teacher will introduce students to clay and the elements it en-

tails. A demonstration will be presented on how to make the dream houses using slab construction. They will also learn how to prop-erly attach two pieces of clay and techniques for adding decora-tions using coils and by carving with the provided tools. Students will be guided with architectural elements such as windows, roofs, doors, etc that they must include when building their dream houses. Students will have time to work on their clay projects. Before class ends, the teacher will demonstrate the proper way to wrap and store the clay pieces so that they will stay moist throughout the project.

Lesson Three: The teacher will demonstrate an optional technique to make board templates for the side of the houses that can be applied with guide sticks and the slabs of clay provided. Other demonstrations on how to build architectural elements will be presented as well. Students will have time to work on their clay projects.

Lesson Four: After the clay houses are completed and have been fired in the kiln, the teacher will present a lesson on how to paint the dream houses using glaze. The students will have the class period to do this. They will be allowed to paint their pieces using imaginary and creative colors. At the end of class, there will be a critique and ev-eryone will be able to talk about his or her work. The art vocabulary and concepts learned throughout the lesson will be reviewed.


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• Drawing paper• Pencils• Clay• Slip• Clay tools• Rolling pins• Tag board (optional)• Plastic bags• Glaze• Brushes• Teacher exemplars of the project • List of architectural elements

Assessment:


• Several pencil sketches of the desired dream house prior to sculpting with clay.• A completed clay house containing several architectural elements discussed in class and proper application of glaze.

• Proper attachment of clay and followed directions through out the project.• Responsible wok ethic by cleaning and storing materials correctly.• Understanding the art vocabulary introduced and ability to talk about the work.


We cannot express the light in nature because we have not the sun. We can only express the light we have in ourselves.- Arthur Dove

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Grade 4 Units and Lessons

Narrative Comic Strips

Picasso Style Self-Portraits

Figure Drawing

Pointillist Landscapes

Unit: Narrative Comic Strips

Unit:

Unit Title: Narrative Comic StripsGrade: 4Length of Unit: 6 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.1: Students will be able to use a variety of materials and media, for example: pencil, permanent marker, and watercolors and understand how to use them to produce different visual effects.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.3: Students will learn the appropriate vocabulary related to methods, materials, and techniques to com-municate ideas, experiences, and stories.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.6: For space and composition, students will be able to explore composition by creating artwork with a center of interest, repetition, and/or balance. Students will describe how different expressive features and organizational principles cause different responses. Students will use visual structures and functions of art to communicate ideas.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Students will be able to describe

similarities and differences in works, and present personalresponses to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design elements in artworks. Students will understand and use similarities and differences between characteristics of the visual arts and other arts disciplines. Students will identify connections between the visual arts and other disciplines in the curriculum.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.4: Students will be able to explain strengths and weaknesses in their own work, and share comments constructively and supportively within the group.

“True, comics are a popular art, and yes, I believe their primary obligation is to entertain, but comics can go beyond that, and when theydo,theymovefromsillinesstosignificance.”- Bill Watterson

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“Comics are capable of being anything the mind can imagine. I consider it a great privilege to be a cartoonist. I love my work, and I am grateful for the incredible forum I have to express my thoughts. People give me their attention for a few seconds every day, and I take that as an honor and a responsibility. I try to give readers the best strip I’m capable of doing.”- Bill Watterson

• Choose and use one point of view.• Choose and use at least 5 literary styles.• Frames must be sequential and summarize an idea or scene.• Each comic strip frame should include at least four different types of shapes and contain a background.• Each comic strip frame should include at least two different types of lines.• Each comic strip frame should contain complete sentences and/or thoughts.• There should be connections between frame meanings, words, and illustrations.• Comic characters do not have to be people. They can be imaginary, cartoons, super-heroes, animals, etc.• Previsualizing and working from memory and imagination helps children develop their schema for drawing.

• Introducing children to the work of other comic artists helps to develop their visual awareness and provides a spring board for their own narratives.• Narrative strategies help student artists develop ideas related to duration and changes in time.

Lessons:

Lesson one:An introduction to comic strips and comic artists will be presented. Students will learn about different comic artists and common approaches in visually telling a story using frames, sequencing, and characters as well as the different media involved. They will learn narrative strategies often learned in writing class, such as stories must include characters, plot, setting, beginning, middle, and an end. As a class, a story will be created to prompt a possible idea for a comic strip. Students do not have to use the class story when writing their comic strips. Other options will be suggested and written on the board. Students may choose to create their own ideas for a story. The teacher will share an exemplar of a comic strip. The teacher will pass out white drawing paper to each student. They will be able to follow along in making a step-by-step demonstration on how to draw a comic character in motion. Next, the teacher will hand out rough draft comic strip paper for students to brainstorm story ideas and character choices for their comic


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strips. All work will be collected and handed out during the next class.

Lesson Two:The teacher will remind students about the requirements of the project and introduce more ideas they may choose to include. The students will receive a handout that includes a checklist to keep them organized throughout the project. The checklist has three main categories: Brainstorming and planning, Final comic strip, and Cover page. The teacher will hand back work and students will have the remainder of class to complete their rough drafts us-ing a pencil. Throughout the class, students will be able to share their comic ideas and talk about their work. Upon observation, the teacher will point out positive traits to motivate other students. At the end of class, the teacher will tell students they should be ready to start their final copies at the beginning of next class. A paper clip will be handed to each student to attach the checklist along with all paper used for brainstorming and rough drafts to be collected.

Lesson Three:The teacher will hand out final comic strip paper along with student work from the previous class. Students will follow along with the teacher as the second section on the checklist is read aloud. They will be working on creating their comic frames in pencil and more paper will be provided as needed. As the pencil drawings get com-

pleted and approved by the teacher, a thin black sharpie marker will be handed out to trace over the comic strips.

Lesson Four:After tracing over the comic strips in sharpie marker, students will be able to use markers to add color to their comics. The teacher will introduce different approaches to including color in comic strips and students will have time to do so. At the end of class, more students who haven’t shared their comic ideas will be able to talk about their work.

Lesson Five:The teacher will introduce how to create a cover page for the comic strips. The student will be told that they are both the author and illustrator of their comics and must include that information on their covers. They must create a title and draw their characters very large on the page. Student work and materials will be handed out and they will have time to finish their comic strips and begin working on their cover page.

Lesson six:The comic strips and cover pages will be completed by the end of class. Each student will have the opportunity to come in front of the classroom to share his or her comics with the class.


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• Rough draft comic strip paper 4”x13”• Final draft comic strip paper• Drawing paper for character demonstration• Pencils• Rulers for measuring comic frames• Black Thin Sharpie markers• Color markers• Various comic books• Sample comic strips• Common comic book facial expressions and gesture poses

Assessment:


• Completion of a comic strip that tells a story and is sequential in order.• Proper use of frames.• At least one character in the story.• Ability to share the comic strip with the class and talk about ideas


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Lessons: Narrative Comic Strips

Brainstorming-Illustrating a story

Relationship to the Unit:

This lesson introduces students to an alternative approach to story telling through the creative arts.

Relationship to Life:

In society, people communicate ideas through various mediums such as words, symbols, and illustrations. When looking at comic strips, it is evident that each has a different style, point of view, set-ting, plot, and summary, communicated not only through words, but also through illustrations. Creating a story as a class triggers the creative mind and helps students understand the process in order to be able to think independently.

Problem/Activity Statement:

Today we are going to create a story as class. Next you will create your own 6-8 frame comic strip based on the class story, or you may choose one of the following:• Pretend you are a spider. Describe and draw what you would see.• Draw a scene describing the happiest day of your life.

• Draw a scene describing the silliest thing you’ll never forget.• Draw a scene of your life at age 30.• Draw a scene from your favorite daydream.• Another story you may have in mind.

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.3: Students will learn and be able to use appropriate vocabulary related to methods, materials, andtechniques to communicate ideas, experiences, and stories.

Objectives:

• Students will identify the connections between using comic strips and writing a paper in order to get a story across.• Students will use their imaginations to brainstorm ideas for a scene through illustration and text.


• Paper• Rough Draft Comic Strip Paper• Pencils• Rulers• Various Comic Books

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• Exemplar with character and story suggestions

Motivation:

As a class, we will create a narrative that includes a character, plot, setting, beginning, middle, and an end. This will prompt a possible idea for a comic strip. The teacher will do a step-by step demon-stration with the class as they create a possible idea for a character.

Topic quesTions:• Who can give me an example of a setting in a story?• What does the word perspective mean?

AssociATion quesTions:• Who has read a comic book before?• What is the difference between writing a comic book and writing a book report?

wriTing A cLAss nArrATive:• Who can name a character, give it a name• What is this character doing? /Where is he/she/it going?• What happens along the way?• How does the story end?

• If you were to make a comic strip using this class narrative, how many frames would you need to have to tell the story?

visuALizATion quesTions:• What does a comic bubble mean?• Are all the frames a square? What other shapes have artists used for their frames?• Do the characters have to be people?

TrAnsiTion quesTions:• What is the first thing you are going to do when you start the project?• Does anyone have anyone have any other questions?

Procedure:

1. The teacher will introduce the lesson and write the class narrative on the board.2. The teacher will demonstrate step-by step ways to draw a character in motion. Students will follow each step on a practice sheet of drawing paper. Various comical facial expressions will be demonstrated as well.3. The teacher will hand out practice drawing paper for students to follow along with the character demonstration. The teacher will also pass out rough draft comic strip paper.



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Rulers and pencils will be placed inside the bins that the table monitors will be instructed to get for their respective table.4. The students will work on brainstorming and planning their comic strips. They must decide the amount of frames they need to tell their story, characters, events, etc.5. At the end of class, each student will be handed a paper clip to attach all papers they are working on to be collected and redistributed during the next class.

Evaluation:

Students should have a story idea for their comic strips. They should know how many frames they are going to create, the event that is going to occur, and what their characters are going to look like. They should also have an understanding on comic art as a means of visual storytelling along with the vocabulary and concepts introduced in class.



“Art today is a new kind of instrument, an instrument for modifying consciousness and organizing new modes of sensibility . . . . Artists have had to become self-conscious aestheticians:continually challenging their means, their materials and methods.”--Susan Sontag (1933-), American writer. Against Interpretation.

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Rough Draft-Composition

Relationship to Unit:

Students will consider the composition in their individual comic strips. They will begin to adapt their knowledge of comic strips to create their own work of art based on the stories and the characters they have planned out. Students will receive a detailed check list to help them stay organized throughout the project.


Students will have to construct frames for their comic strips that break occuring events into a logical sequence. Recalling events as well as sharing and creating stories are essential human activities. Learning to stay organized by following a check list is a helpful approach to completing tasks in every day life.


Now that everyone has the comic ideas all planned out, the class is ready to begin creating frames and illustrating story ideas. You may choose to hold your paper vertically or horizontally. Frames do not have to be squares or rectangles and characters do not have to be people. You are the artist and can make these decisions for

yourself. Remember to include speech bubbles when a charac-ter is talking, thinking bubbles when a character is thinking, and a background that acts as a setting for the story in each frame that is created.

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.6: For space and composition, students will explore composition by creating artwork with a center of inter-est, repetition, and/or balance. Students will describe how different expressive features and organizational principles cause different responses. Students will use visual structures and functions of art to communicate ideas.

Objectives:

• Students will demonstrate an understanding of frames in order to create a comic strip.• Students will tell a story through illustration and text.• Students will understand and be able to demonstrate how different expressive features of illustrations and organizational principles of comic strip frames cause different responses.


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Rough Draft-Composition


• Rough draft comic strip paper• Pencils• Rulers• Check list• Brainstorming sketches from the previous class

Motivation:

• What kind of frames do real comic artists use? • If something makes a noise, how does the artist visually communicate it?

The teacher will share real comic books and various approaches to creating interesting compositions.

Procedure:

1. The students will receive a handout that includes a check list to keep them organized throughout the project. The teacher will review the requirements written on the handout

and review everything that must be included in the comic strips. The brainstorming sketches will be redistributed to the class.2. The students will spend the class period working on their compositions and creating their comic strips using pencils.3. The teacher will call on two students to share their comic strips in progress with the class. The teacher will point out positive approaches the students have chosen and will allow other classmates to comment and make suggestions.4. Students will use a paper clip to attach their checklists along with their rough drafts to be collected and redistributed in the next art class.

Evaluation:

Students should have a rough draft that contains the basiccomposition for their comic strips. It should include frames, characters, a setting, and a point of view. Students should be able to talk about and justify their story, characters, and unique approaches. All students should be ready to begin the final draft.


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Final Draft-Emphasis and Color


Relationship to unit:

This lesson will allow students create a professional looking comic strip on fine quality paper. They will be able to master their rough drafts into a work of art. They will be introduced to new art mediums often used by comic artists and will be able to add emphasis and details to their comic strips.


Students will work to achieve professional quality work. Students should strive to achieve their very best in anything they do. Students will also work with color to create emphasis in certain areas of their comic strips. Understanding and acknowledging em-phasis on detail is an important characteristic for a person to have.


Today we are going to work on the final drafts of the Narrative Comic Strips. After you finish illustrating everything using a pencil, you may use a thin black sharpie marker to add emphasis to your artwork. We will then paint with watercolors to illuminate our comic-

strips and to help distinguish characters and frames.

Goals:


MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Students will be able to describe similarities and differences in works, and present personal respons-es to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design elements in artworks. Students will understand and use similarities and differences between characteristics of the visual arts and other arts disciplines. Students will identify connections between the visual arts and other disciplines in the curriculum.

Objectives:

Students will understand the proper use of mediums to create comic strips. They will also be able to create emphasis and acknowledge areas of significance and hierarchy in their artwork using color and sharpie marker.

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• Final draft comic strip paper• Pencils• Rulers• Black thin sharpie markers• Watercolors• Paintbrushes• Cups for water• Check list• Rough drafts for student reference

Motivation:

• What are some things you want to be sure the viewer notices when they read your comic strip? How can you achieve that?• It is important that your characters stay consistent throughout the comic strip.• The teacher will demonstrate how to create a wash using watercolors.

Procedure:

1. The teacher will refer to the, “final draft” section on the check list. 2. The students will receive final draft paper and begin illustrating their comic strips.3. When students finish drawing everything in pencil, they will raise their hands for a teacher to approve their work. Upon approval, they will be handed a thin black sharpie marker to add emphasis by outlining the pencil marks. 4. Next, the teacher will demonstrate how to apply color by using watercolors. The importance of emphasis and detail in artwork, specifically the comic strips will be reviewed. Students may create a wash for minimal color and less emphasis on a particular area, or they may choose to include less water, making the paint more vibrant and noticeable. 5. All artwork will be placed on the drying rack.

Evaluation:

Students should have a completed final draft that includes:• A preliminary pencil drawing and emphasis wth a sharpie.• The use of watercolors to create consistent background settings as well as characters.

Final Draft-Emphasis and Color

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Relationship to the unit:

This lesson allows students to create a cover page for their comic strips to reemphasize the idea that comic strips are a visual ap-proach to storytelling and must contain a title, author, and illustrator. This lesson also allows students to talk about their comic strips and share them with the class.

Relationship to life:

Creating a cover page that includes a title, author, and illustrator, allows students to gain recognition for their hard work. It isimportant for students to acknowledge their well-earned achieve-ments. It is also imperative that students be able to talk about their artwork and share unique ideas. Storytelling and public speaking are fundamental characteristics a person should have.


Today we are going to create covers for our comic strips. Next, we will all take turns listening and sharing our comic strips with the class.

Cover Page and Storytelling Goals:


MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Students will be able to describe similarities and differences in works, and present personal respons-es to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design elements in artworks.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.4: Students will be able to explain strengths and weaknesses in their own work, and share comments constructively and supportively within the group.

Objectives:

• Students will create a cover for their comic strips that contain a title, an image, and their names for both the author and the illustrator. They will understand the significance of a cover page in storytelling and the techniques many comic artists use.• Students will be able to participate in sharing comic strips with the class.

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Cover Page and Storytelling


• Paper for the cover page• Pencils• Black sharpie markers• Watercolors• Cups for water• Paintbrushes• Check list• Exemplars of various comic book covers and approaches to creating them.

Motivation:

Students will be shown various comic book covers and the techniques comic artists use to create them. The teacher will discuss the importance of hierarchy on the cover and how the title should be the biggest and brightest on the page.

Procedure:

1. The teacher will refer to the last section on the check list that reads, “Cover Page.” She will show the students

various comic book covers and give a demonstration on a wide range of artistic approaches.

2. The students will be told to create a title for their comic strips. They must include their name and class. It is important for students to remember that they are both the author and the illustrator. Students should be creative in designing the cover page. They will be told to incorporate the characters they created and to be sure to draw large on the page. 3. Students will use pencil, black sharpie markers, and water colors to create their cover pages in a similar technique they used to create their comic strips.4. Students will take turns coming to the front of the classroom to share their comic strips with the class.

Evaluation:

• Students should have a completed cover page that includes a title as well as their name as both the author and the illustrator. There should be an image of the characters they incorporated in their comic strips on the cover page as well.• Students will also be evaluated on their ability to share their comic strips with the class.

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Unit: Picasso Style Self-Portraits

Unit:

Unit Title: Picasso Style Self-PortraitsGrade: 4Length of Unit: 6 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.1: Students will be able to use a variety of materials and media, for example: pencil, permanent marker, oil pastels, colored paper, collage material, and understand how to use them to produce different visual effects.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.2: Students will create artwork in a vari-ety of two-dimensional (2D) media for assemblage and construction.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.2: Students will create 2D expressive artwork that explores abstraction. For example, a student simpli-fies an image by making decisions about essential colors, lines, or textures.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.6: Students will create artwork that employs the use of free form symbolic imagery that demonstrates personal invention, and/or conveys ideas and emotions.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 4.3: As a class, students will develop and use criteria for informal classroom discussions about art.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Students will be able to describe similarities and differences in works, and present personal respons-es to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design elements in artworks.


“Everything you can imagine is real.”- Pablo Picaso

“Are we to paint what’s on the face, what’s inside the face, or what’s behind it?- Pablo Picasso

“When I was a child, my mother said to me, ‘If you become a soldier, you’ll be a general. If you become a monk you’ll end up as the pope.’ Instead I became a painter and wound up as Picasso.”- Pablo Picasso

• Rhythm can be achieved by varying the size of line, color, texture, shape, and form.• Variety can be achieved through a change in tone or value.• Line can be used to invent forms.

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• Line variation can be used to portray personality (zigzag- energetic, straight-calm, etc.)• Measuring and observing helps establish a station point.• An eye is not shaped like a football. All eyes are different shapes.• By looking in a mirror and using a pencil to measure, count the amount of eye lengths are across your face. (about 5) Mark out the eye lengths on their paper lightly and then lightly draw their eye in the right spot.• For the nose, count how many eye lengths down your nose is and how far out it goes by using the eyes as a measuring stick. • For the mouth, look in the mirror for the dips and shadows. Draw the lines that show how far out the mouth goes and how far below the nose. • Symbolism is used to represent personal interests.• Several viewpoints can be drawn at the same time to create abstraction.• Everyone’s artwork should look different because no two people have the same features and personalities• It is important to think independently!

Lessons:

Lesson one:The teacher will introduce the class to the abstract work of Pablo Picasso during the Cubist movement in art history. Students will understand his intentions and why he chose to abstract his portraits. Self-portraits and the proper placement of features will be reviewed from the lesson on drawing realistic self-portraits. The teacher will emphasize that that understanding how to draw something realistically is fundamental to abstracting it. The human brain has to be trained to observe because the verbal brain is usually dominant. The teacher will discuss symbolism through abstraction and ways to include symbols in portraiture. When drawing a face, several view-points can be created at the same time. The teacher will demonstrate the first step of the project by folding a sheet of drawing paper vertically down the center. On one side of the crease, a facial profile will be drawn using a mirror and including symbols that represent personality traits or interests. On the other side of the crease, the remainder of the face will be drawn realistically from the frontal perspective. The teacher will hand out rough draft drawing paper, mirrors, and pencils for students to begin observing their faces and brainstorming symbols.

Lesson Two:The teacher will briefly review the Picasso Style Self-Portrait assignment and allow approximately fifteen minutes for students to finish their rough drafts. Final draft paper will be handed out and


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students will begin folding their paper vertically down the center and drawing their profiles on the left side. The teacher will walk around the room helping students with observational and conceptualissues.

Lesson Three:Students will continue working on drawing their symbolic profile perspectives on one side of the paper and realistic frontal perspectives on the other side. At the end of class, the teacher will select one student to share their portrait. The teacher will also announce that the class will be further abstracting the self-portraits by adding a variety of mediums. Tomorrow we will begin painting our symbolic profiles using watercolors.

Lesson Four:The teacher will introduce watercolors and the elements entailed. Student artwork along with watercolor supplies will be passed out. Students will spend the rest of the class working on painting their symbolic profiles on the left side of their paper.

Lesson Five:The teacher will introduce oil pastels along blending and color techniques involved with the medium. The students will spend the rest of the class period working in oil pastel on the right side of the drawing to create the realistic frontal perspective.

Lesson six: The students will use scissors and glue-sticks to cut out their Picasso Style Self-Portraits and glue it on a sheet of colored paper. There will be a class critique and students will be able to discuss their artwork and the work of others. They will explain the symbols they included and justify their color choices.


• Rough draft drawing paper• Final draft drawing paper• Mirrors• Pencils• Watercolors• Water• Cups• Paintbrushes • Newspaper• Oil pastels• Scissors• Glue-sticks • Colored paper• Cubist self-portraits by Pablo Picasso• Exemplar on drawing features for self-portraits• Exemplar of the project


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Assessment:


• A completed Picasso Style Self-Portrait that includes a symbolic facial profile and a realistic frontal perspective using both watercolors and oil pastels.• The ability to follow instructions • The use of symbols and abstraction• An understanding of the art vocabulary and art concepts learned throughout the lesson• Consistent effort that includes quiet working and participation during each class.• Ability to talk about and justify artwork


The artist is a receptacle for emotions that come from all over the place; from the sky, from the earth, from a scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from a spider’s web.- Pablo Picasso

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Lessons: Picasso Style Self-Portraits

Planning and Constructing- Abstract Vs. Realistic


This lesson introduces students to an unconventional approach to creating self-portraits. It also allows students to explore the elements and principles of design utilized in cubist abstractions by looking at the work of cubist artist, Pablo Picasso who used portraiture to express his culture, emotions, interests, and identity.


Students will be given the opportunity to expand their abstractthinking along with their conceptual abilities. Cubism was a response to the Impressionists’ light and romanticized scenes that originally opposed the conventions of the Salon. Students need to think of their own order and reasoning while making decisions in every day life. The reason the cubist movement has impacted the art world so greatly is because it challenged the long standing order and reason of art concepts. It is important for students to be able to think “outside the box” and look at things from different perspectives without having any preconceptions. It is important for students to make a connection between what they think and what they feel while increasing their level of artistic expression. This means tapping

into their psychological knowledge base and encouraging student to draw upon their introspective knowledge to add symbolism and abstraction to their self-portraits.


Today we are going to create Picasso Style Self-Portraits by looking in a mirror and drawing several view-points at the same time! The left half of your drawing will be a side profile view that includes symbols and is abstracted. The right side of your drawing will be a frontal view that is realistic and directly observed when looking in the mirror.

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.12: Students will demonstrate the ability to use representation, abstraction, and symbolism to create 2D artwork that conveys a personal point of view about an idea.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.2: Students will create 2D expressive artwork that explores abstraction. For example, a studentsimplifies an image by making decisions about essential colors, lines, or textures.

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Objectives:

• Students will think of symbols that represent their interests and/or activities they enjoy. • Students will draw their face in profile on one side of a piece of paper. The remainder of their face will be drawn from a frontal view.


• Drawing paper• Pencils• Mirrors• Cubist self-portraits by Pablo Picasso• Exemplar on drawing features for self-portraits• Exemplar of the project

Motivation:

The teacher will show an exemplar consisting of various self-por-traits created by Picasso that include visual symbols and abstrac-tions giving an implication of his interests.

Topic quesTions:• What is a self-portrait? • What are some different techniques we can use to make a self -portrait? • What does it mean if something is abstract?• What does abstraction do to a self-portrait?

AssociATion quesTions:• What can portraiture tell about a person? • Look at the exemplar:• What do the symbols tell you about Picasso?

visuALizATion quesTions:• How does the artists’ choice of color affect the mood of the painting?

TrAnsiTion quesTions:• What kind of symbols can you include in the profile of your self-portrait?



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• How can you define yourself through a portrait making? • How are you different than your classmates?

Procedure:

1. The teacher will introduce students to the abstract work of Pablo Picasso during the Cubist movement in art history. They will understand his intentions and why he chose to abstract his portraits. Self-portraits and the proper placement of features will be reviewed from the lesson on drawing realistic self-portraits. The teacher will emphasize that that understanding how to draw something realistically is fundamental to abstracting it. The teacher will discuss symbolism through abstraction and ways to include symbols in portraiture. 2. The teacher will hand out white drawing paper, pencils, and a mirror to each student. Students will follow along with the teacher as she demonstrates and instructs students to fold their paper vertically down the center.3. On one side of the crease, a facial profile will be drawn using the mirror and including symbols that represent personality traits or interests. On the other side of the crease, the remainder of the face will be drawn realistically

from the frontal perspective.4. Students will work on making both sides of their faces large on the page. The teacher will walk around the room helping students with proportional and conceptual issues as they proceed to work.5. Student’s work will be collected and redistributed at the end of class.

Evaluation:

• Students should have thought out symbols that speak about themselves and/or activities of interest.• Students should have a drawing that consists of a fold down the center with an abstracted profile view of a symbolic self-portrait on the left side and a realistic frontal view of their face on the right side. • Students should understand and apply the art vocabulary and concepts learned in the lesson.



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Color



This lesson allows students to use watercolors and oil pastels to add color and expression to their Picasso Style Self-Portraits. They will learn about different techniques and artistic approaches involved with the mediums similar to that of Cubist artists throughout art history.


Students must think about color choices that best reflect the abstract symbolism they chose to portray. They must differentiate abstract colors vs. realistic colors on each side of their drawing. Making decisions containing to color and mood are skills a person should have in every day life.


Today we will be using color to add expression and personality to our Picasso Style Self –Portraits. We will use watercolors on the left side to paint the abstracted symbolic profile views. Oil Pastels will be used on the right side to make the frontal views look realistic.

The background will be included in the next art lesson so do not worry about adding color.

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.1: Students will be able to use a variety of materials and media, for example: pencil, permanent marker, oil pastels, colored paper, collage material, and understand how to use them to produce different visual effects.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.2: Students will create 2D expressive artwork that explores abstraction. For example, a student simplifies an image by making decisions about essential colors, lines, or textures.


Objectives:

• Students will understand various mixing and wash techniques involved watercolors and blending techniques with that of oil pastels. They will understand oil pastel resist.

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Color

• Students should be able to apply color as a means of creative expression.


• Picasso Style Self-Portrait drawings from the previous lesson• Watercolors• Cups of water• Newspaper• Oil pastels• Teaching exemplars

Motivation:

• How can color choices make a portrait look abstract?• Does Picasso use one color or does he mix several different colors?• What does this do to Picasso’s paintings?

Procedure:

1. The teacher will demonstrate various techniques using color as a means of creative expression. She will introduce watercolors and oil pastels and explain how working with

a variety of materials help to abstract an image. Exemplars will be shown that reinforce and give suggestions for possible ideas.2. The teacher will pass back the Picasso Style Self-Portrait drawings from the previous lesson. 3. Class monitors will be instructed on how to distribute materials.4. Students will spend the class working to add color as a means of self-expression. 5. At the end of class, student work will be placed on the drying rack and will be redistributed during the next lesson.6. The teacher will announce that students will be incorporating the background during the next art class and a class critique will be taking place.

Evaluation:

• Students should have a completed Picasso Style-Self Portrait that includes an abstracted profile view containing symbols on the left side and a realistic frontal view on the right side. They left side should be abstracted using watercolors and the right side should be rendered with oil pastels to create a realistic style.• Students should demonstrate an understanding of the various techniques and vocabulary discussed in class.

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Incorporating Background and Class Critique


This lesson allows students to incorporate the backgrounds of their Picasso Style Self-Portraits. The inclusion of another medium tocreate a background further reinforces the idea of cubist abstraction through the art making process. This lesson also allows students to share their portraits with the class and give feedback to their classmates.


Students have learned many new art vocabulary terms and concepts. Being able to apply the knowledge they are taught is an important skill for a person to have. Incorporating the background


Today we are going to incorporate the backgrounds of our Picasso Style Self-Portraits. We are going to collage our faces onto a sheet of colored paper to further abstract our drawings. We will then be ready to share our portraits with the class.

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.2: Students will create artwork in avariety of two-dimensional (2D) media for assemblage and construction.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 4.3: As a class, students will develop and use criteria for informal classroom discussions about art.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Students will be able to describe similarities and differences in works, and present personal responses to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design elements in artworks.

Objectives:

• Students will use scissors and glue to cut out their self- portrait and paste it onto a sheet of colored paper that further enhances their artwork.• Students should be able to make the connection between mixed media and cubist abstractions.• Students should be able to participate in a class critique discussing their artwork and that of their classmates.

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Incorporating Background and Class Critique


• Picasso Style Self-Portrait drawings• Scissors• Glue-sticks • Colored paper• Exemplar of the project

Motivation:

• What kind of background does Picasso create in his portraits?• What do you think cubist artists did to make their artwork look abstract?• How did they achieve this?• What is a good way to decide the best choice of colored paper for your self-portrait?• How can you make your face look like it’s “popping” out of the page?

Procedure:

1. The teacher will ask guiding questions and demonstrate the

procedure for incorporating the background.2. The teacher will put scissors and glue-sticks inside the table bins and the class monitors will distribute them. The teacher will distribute the self-portrait drawings and allow students to choose a sheet of colored paper as their background.3. Students will use scissors and glue-sticks to carefully cut out their face and paste it onto the colored paper.4. As the students finish, the teacher will hang the drawings in the back of the classroom. The remainder of class will consist of a critique and all students will participate in sharing their artwork. They will explain the symbols they chose to abstract as well as their strengths and weaknesses in their drawings.

Evaluation:

• Students should have a completed Picasso Style Self-Portrait that is cut and glued onto a sheet of colored paper that further enhances their drawings.• Students should demonstrate an understanding of the art vocabulary and concepts learned throughout the lesson.• Students should be able to talk about their artwork and participate in critique by giving constructive feedback to their classmates.

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Unit: Figure Drawing

Unit:

Unit: Figure DrawingGrade: 4Length of Unit: 5 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:


MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.4: For shape and form, students will explore the use of shapes and forms in 2D works. They will identify simple shapes of different sizes in the environment and in artwork.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.5: For pattern, students will explore the use of patterns in 2D works. They will identify patterns in the environment and artwork.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.6: For space and composition, students will explore composition by creating artwork with a center of interest, repetition, and/or balance. They will demonstrate an understanding of foreground, middle ground, and background and will be able to define and identify occurrences of balance, rhythm,

repetition, variety, and emphasis.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.8: For line, students will use and be able to identify various types of line, specifically in contour drawings and freehand studies from observation, memory, and imagination, and schematic studies.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.1: Students will be able to create 2D artwork from direct observation. MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.5: Students should be able to demon-strate the ability to recognize and describe the visual, spatial, and tactile characteristics of their own work and that of others.


“Drawing is like making an expressive gesture with the advantage of permanence.” -Henri Matisse

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“Drawing is not an exercise of particular dexterity, but above all a means of expressing intimate feelings and moods.” -Henri Matisse

• Line can be thick, thin, or curved.• Line can be used to invent forms.• Contour lines surround and define the edges of a subject, giving it shape and volume.• Pattern: The repetition of any thing — shapes, lines, or colors — also called a motif, in a design; as such it is one of the principles of design.• Repetition: A way of combining elements of art so that the same elements are used over and over again. Thus, a certain color or shape might be used several times in the same picture. Repetition also can contribute to movement and rhythm in a work of art.• Color can be used for emphasis in a composition.• Texture can be used to create surface variety.• Texture can add detail to an object.• Background space can be distinguished from the baseline.• Drawing from observation helps students develop perceptive skills such as those used to define edges, and background and object shapes and spaces.

Lessons:

Lesson one:The teacher will introduce figure drawings created by master artists throughout art history. A wide range of figures will be presented ranging from seated, standing, reclined, as well as gestures of figures in motion. Students will learn about contour lines as well as measuring proportions using a pencil. The students will take turns modeling in the center of the room as their classmates practice drawing gesture and contour drawings.

Lesson Two:The teacher will introduce the class to artist, Henri Matisse and his, The Purple Robe. The students will observe his use of color repeti-tion and how it allows the eye to follow that color throughout the painting. The students will observe Matisse’s use of patterns in the foreground, background, dress, robe, and vase. He only used two colors for each pattern. The teacher will hand out a large sheet of watercolor paper to the class. A student will be selected to model for the class while standing on a desk in front of the room. Using a pencil, the students will have time to create a contour drawing of the model. The drawing should touch the top and bottom of the paper.

Lesson Three:Students will use a thin black sharpie marker to outline their figure contour drawings. The teacher will demonstrate how to draw a line separating the floor and the wall with the black sharpie marker and

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students will follow instructions. The students will then add patterns to the figure in their drawings, the floor, and the wall.

Lesson Four:The teacher will introduce watercolors before passing back the drawings to the class. Using thick and thin paintbrushes, students will have to choose two contrasting colors to paint each pattern they created for the figure, foreground, and the background.

Lesson Five:Students will have time to finish painting their artwork. Students will raise their hands to answer the teacher’s questions reviewing the art vocabulary and concepts learned throughout the lesson. Students will talk about their art making process and their products as well as that of their classmates.


• Large drawing paper• Large Watercolor paper• Pencils• Black thin sharpie markers• Watercolors• Cups for water• Thick and thin paintbrushes

• Newspaper• Henri Matisse’s, The Purple Robe• Figure Drawings by various artists throughout art history• Exemplar on how to draw the human figure

Assessment:


• A completed figure drawing that has been painted with watercolors, outlined in sharpie marker, and contains patterns, repetition, foreground, middle-ground, and a background.• Quiet and cooperative working during each class.• Ability to talk about and justify artwork• Demonstration of a solid understanding of the art vocabulary and concepts learned throughout the lesson.

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Lessons: Figure Drawing

Introduction to Figure Drawing


This lesson introduces students to a variety of figure drawings produced by master artists throughout art history, particularly Henri Matisse’s, The Purple Robe. It also teaches observational skills and gesture drawings with various techniques pertaining to line, form, space, and pattern making.


Drawing from the human model is research that helps one to better understand the human form and its movements. Understanding the human form and being able to identify attitudes and movements enhances a person’s perceptivity. It is true that children should be able to measure spatial proportions not only in the fine arts, but understanding how to visually communicate that knowledge into a work of art makes for a true intellectual.


Today we are going to practice gesture drawings from observation. Next, we will begin a contour figure drawing on a large sheet of paper. Use your pencil as a ruler to measure the proportions of the

figure and be sure to draw large on the page.

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.3: Students will learn and useappropriate vocabulary related to methods, materials, and techniques.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.8: For line, students will use and be able to identify various types of line, specifically in contour drawings and freehand studies from observation, memory, and imagination, and schematic studies.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.1: Students will be able to create 2D artwork from direct observation. Objectives:

• Students should understand the human figure and how motion can be expressed by creating a quick gesture drawing.• Students should be able to measure figure proportions using a pencil as a ruler.• Students should be able to identify and apply repetition, patterning, and color to a work of art.

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• Students will create a sheet of quick gesture drawings from observation.• Students will begin a large contour drawing from observation.


• Charcoal• Pencils• Erasers• Large sheets of drawing paper• Exemplar of various figure drawings throughout art history• Henri Matisse’s, The Purple Robe

Motivation:

Henri Matisse’s, The Purple Robe:• What kind of lines do you see?• Do you notice any colors that repeat throughout the painting?• Do you notice any patterns in the painting?• How many colors are in each pattern that you see?• Where part of the painting does your eye focus on?

• Why do you think that is?

Procedure:

1. The teacher will introduce the unit along with the art vocabulary and concepts entailed. The students will be asked guiding questions about Matisse’s, The Purple Robe.2. The teacher will give each student two large sheets of drawing paper, charcoal, a pencil, and a kneaded eraser.3. The teacher will call on students to take turns modeling in front of the classroom. The students will use one sheet of drawing paper to practice drawing five- minute gesture drawings from observation. 4. The teacher will then instruct the students to use the second sheet of drawing paper to begin a large figure drawing using contour lines. They will use their pencils to measure proportions and this will be an ongoing project. 5. At the end of class, students will hand in their drawings to be redistributed in the next art class. The teacher will review the art vocabulary learned in the lesson. She will announce the inclusion of Matisse like patterns and repetitions in the next art lesson.

Evaluation:



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• Students should have one sheet of paper filled with various gesture drawings using charcoal.• Students should have a contour figure drawing planned out in pencil. It should be large on the page and be measured with concise proportions.• Students should understand the difference between a gesture drawing and a contour drawing.



“Drawing is like making an expressive gesture with the advantage of permanence.”- Henri Matisse

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Emphasis, Patterning, and Space


This lesson teaches students about value and emphasis through line. Students will create a foreground and background by learning how to separate the wall and the floor in the composition of their drawings. This lesson also allows students to apply their knowledge of Matisse’s pattern making into their own artwork.


Being able to represent human movement from observation demonstrates an understanding of structure while providing visual information to outsiders. It is also important to understand spatial concepts in the surrounding environment. The emotional impact of pattern making and color use will be considered in this lesson as well.


Today we are going to create emphasis and an environment for our figures. Notice the patterns that Matisse uses in his paintings. We are going to create repetition and patterns in our figure as well as in the background to create rhythm and motion.

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.4: For shape and form, students will explore the use of shapes and forms in 2D works. They will identify simple shapes of different sizes in the environment and in artwork.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.5: For pattern, students will explore the use of patterns in 2D works. They will identify patterns in the environment and artwork.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.6: For space and composition, students will explore composition by creating artwork with a center of interest, repetition, and/or balance. They will demonstrate an understanding of foreground, middle ground, and background and will be able to define and identify occurrences of balance, rhythm, repetition, variety, and emphasis.

Objectives:

• Students will use a black sharpie marker to create emphasis by outlining their contour drawings.• Students will add space in their drawings by separating the wall from the floor and creating a foreground middle ground and background.• Students will demonstrate an understanding of rhythm

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through pattern making by creating repetition throughout their drawings.


• Figure drawings from the previous lesson• Pencils• Erasers• Black sharpie markers• Exemplar of patterns• Henri Matisse’s, The Purple Robe

Motivation:

• Where is your figure sitting?• What is behind the figure?• What is the figure wearing? • Do you see any patterns?Henri Matisse’s, The Purple Robe:• How does Matisse include patterns?• Do you see any similar patterns throughout the painting?• What does that allow your eye to do?• How can you achieve this in your drawing?

Procedure:

1. The teacher will introduce the lesson and give a class demonstration on how to create emphasis and space for the figure drawings. The class will discuss patterns and repetition. They will be instructed to complete three tasks by the end of class: Emphasis, space, and patterns.2. The teacher will distribute the figure drawings from the previous lesson. Pencils, erasers, and black sharpie markers will be placed in each of the table bins and monitors will be instructed to get them.3. Students will use the black sharpie marker to outline the contour figure drawing to create emphasis. They will also draw a line separating the wall from the floor allowing the figure to sit in a spatial environment. Students will use pencil to draw patterns throughout their drawings. 4. Students will spend the class period working on completing the three tasks for the day. The teacher will walk around the room helping students as needed.5. At the end of class, the teacher will announce the inclusion of color in the next lesson. All work will be collected and redistributed in the next art class.

Evaluation:

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• Students should have completed the three tasks that were assigned for the day: emphasis, patterning, and space in the figure drawings.• Students should demonstrate an understanding of repetition by creating patterns within the figure as well as in the background.

“Itismydreamtocreateanartwhichisfilledwithbalance, purity and calmness, freed from a subject matter that is disconcerting or too attention-seeking. In my paintings, I wish to create a spiritual remedy, similar to a comfortable armchair which provides rest from physical expectation for the spiritually working, the businessman as well as the artist.”- Henri Matisse

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Color and Critique


This lesson introduces students to the emotional and captivatingimpact color has on a work of art. This lesson also allows students to talk about their artwork and that of their classmates along with any difficulties they may have encountered throughout the unit.


It is important for students to be able to identify and consider contrasting colors in art as well as in every day life. Acknowledging repetition and pattern is fundamental to being proactive obtaining to needed circumstances. In relation to art, observing and applying repetition allows one to create rhythm and energy. It is alsoimportant for students to be able to discuss their work and any difficulties they may have encountered not only in art, but in other subjects as well.


Today we are going to use watercolors to paint the patterns you designed in the previous lesson. Each pattern should contain only two colors. At the end of class, everyone will have the opportunity

to share their artwork,

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.5: For pattern, students will explore the use of patterns in 2D works. They will identify patterns in theenvironment and artwork.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.5: Students should be able todemonstrate the ability to recognize and describe the visual, spatial, and tactile characteristics of their own work and that of others.

Objectives:

• Students will create rhythm by using watercolors to paint patterns in the figure drawings. • Students will be able to apply the artistic techniques and vocabulary learned in the lesson to their artwork.• Students should be able to talk about their artwork and that of their classmates.


• Figure drawings from the previous lessons• Watercolors

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• Paintbrushes• Cups for water• Newspaper• Matisse’s, A Purple Robe

Motivation:

Matisse’s, A Purple Robe:• How many colors does Matisse use in his patterns?• Are they consistent throughout the painting?

Procedure:

1. The teacher will introduce the lesson to the class and demonstrate specific techniques using watercolors. Students will learn the importance of repetition of color and how it makes the viewers eye follow that color through out the picture. In Matisse’s, A Purple Robe, he uses only two colors in his patterns that are located in the foreground, background, dress, robe, and vase.2. The teacher will distribute the artwork to the students and will select table monitors to hand out watercolors and paint brushes.

3. The students will spend time painting the patterns in their figure drawings.4. At the end of class, students will have time to talk about their artwork. They will share their strengths and weaknesses while his or her classmates give constructive feedback.

Evaluation:

• Students should have a completed figure drawing with the use of watercolors to create patterns consisting of two colors within the figure as well as in the background.• Students should be able to identify and apply the art vocabulary and concepts learned throughout the unit.• Students should be able to talk about and justify their art work as well as that of their classmates.

Color and Critique


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Unit: Pointillist Landscapes

Unit:

Unit: Pointillist Landscapes Grade: 4Length of Unit: 5 lessons, 45 minutes each

Goals:


MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.9: For texture, students will use and be able to differentiate between surface texture and the illusion of texture (visual texture).

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.15: Students will create artwork that demonstrates an understanding of the elements and principles of design in establishing a point of view, a sense of space, or a mood.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 3.6: Students will create artwork that shows knowledge of the ways in which architects, craftsmen, and designers develop abstract symbols by simplifying elements of the environment.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 4.14: Students will demonstrate an ability to see their own personal style and discriminate among historical and contemporary styles.

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Students will be able to describe simi-larities and differences in works, and present personal responses to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design ele-ments in artworks.


“Art is harmony. Harmony is the analogy of contrary and of similar elements of tone, of color and of line, conditioned by the dominate key,andundertheinfluenceofaparticularlight,ingay,calm,orsadcombinations.”- Georges Seurat

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“Originality depends only on the character of the drawing and the vision peculiar to each artist.”- Georges Seurat

• Color can be used for emphasis in a composition.• Texture can be used to create surface variety.• Texture can add detail to an object• Using a Q-tip or a paintbrush with acrylic paint and a minimal amount of water can help to make dots of a consistent size and texture. • Drawing from observation helps students develop perceptive skills such as those used to define edges, and background and object shapes and spaces.• The thickness of paint, tools used to apply paint, and the size of the dots all help to create texture.• Pointillism is a technique of painting in which a lot of tiny dots are combined to form a picture.• An optical illusion is created by applying paint in small dots or dabs. From a distance, the eye helps to blend and mix the separate colors creating an optical illusion.

Lessons:

Lesson one:Prior to the lesson, students will be instructed to bring in a land-scape photograph that has personal significance and portrays a

specific time of day. Students will be introduced to the impressionist works of Georges Seurat. The class will explore the period of impressionism and pointillism in art history and how they reflect the society and culture of 19th-Century Europe. Thestudents will notice how Seurat’s tiny brush marks are different than any other artist previously discussed in art class. They will notice his use of color and how his landscape paintings were createdusing pointillism, a technique of applying paint in small dots or dabs. From a distance, the eye helps to blend and mix the separate colors creating an optical illusion. The teacher will demonstrate how to create an optical illusion by applying two primary colors next to each other to create a secondary color. Students will be told that they will be using pointillism to create a landscape painting based on the photograph they brought to class. They will have time to make practice thumbnail sketches to block out the shapes in their landscapes.

Lesson Two:Students will use canvas board to make their final pointillist land-scapes. Students will spend the class period drawing and observ-ing their photograph. The teacher will demonstrate techniques in finding shapes and how to fill up the entire board.

Lesson Three:After the students have their drawings mapped out on their canvas


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boards, the teacher will introduce acrylic paint and the use of q-tips to make dots. The students will not be mixing colors together, but rather placing dots of paint next to each other to create an optical illusion. The students will practice pointillism using q-tips and acrylics by painting their thumbnail sketches. As they become acquainted with the technique, students will begin to paint their canvas boards.

Lesson Four:Students will spend the class painting their pointillist landscapes and creating an optical illusion. The teacher will walk around the room making sure students understand the concept. Student’s work that demonstrates a solid grasp of the assignment will be pointed out to the class. The pointillist painting technique is extremely time consuming and will take several classes upon completion.

Lesson Five:When the pointillist landscape paintings are dry, they will be hung in the back of the classroom for a class discussion. The students will notice which paintings create an optical illusion and give theimpression of their photographs. Each student will have theopportunity to share his or her painting and the significance behind choosing that particular landscape.


• Pencils• Drawing paper• Canvas board• Photograph of a landscape with significance• Acrylic paint• Q-tips• Water• Paper towels • Exemplars from Georges Seurat: o Le Pont de Courbevoie, (1886-87) o Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, (1859-1891)

Assessment:


• Consistent dots throughout the painting.• Understanding pointillism – Do the colored dots blend together to create the illusion of other colors when viewed from a distance?• Paintings resemblance to landscape photograph.• Effort to work consistently and quietly during each class.


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• Ability to talk about and justify their artwork along with its significance.

Questions to Ask:

Looking AT seurAT’s poinTiLLisT pAinTings:Topic quesTions:• How are the marks used to create shapes and forms?• How is color used?• What types of colors are most common?• Do the paintings change when viewed from a distance?• What happens to the shapes and colors?

AssociATion quesTions:• How is Seurat’s painting different than the works of other artists that you know? • How is it the same?

visuALizATion quesTions:• Do the dots looks consistent throughout the piece?• Do the colored dots blend together to create the illusion of other colors when viewed from a distance?• Why do you think the artist chose this technique? What mood might he be trying to capture?


“Art is harmony. Harmony is the analogy of contrary and of similar elements of tone, of color and of line, conditioned by the dominate key, andundertheinfluenceofaparticularlight,ingay, calm, or sad combinations.”- Georges Seurat

“Originality depends only on the character of the drawing and the vision peculiar to each artist.” - Georges Seurat

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Pointillism and Planning


This lesson allows students to explore impressionism and pointillism and how they reflect the society and culture of 19th-Century Europe by looking at the works of Georges Seurat. Students will begin planning their landscape paintings by drawing large sketches from a photograph of personal significance that was required for class previous from the lesson. They will be able to practice the pointillist technique by applying small dots of color next to each other to create an optical illusion, similar to that of Seurat.


People are faced with visual challenges every day. Pointillism creates an optical illusion, which explains why Seurat’s figures and landscapes seem to shimmer with a play of moving lights, colors, and shadows. It is important for students to practice the pointillist technique while observing their personal photograph in order to become familiar with the medium to be ready to begin the final pointillism landscape in the next class.


Create a sketch for your landscape and begin by practicing to paint using Pointillism, a technique of applying paint in small dots or dabs. From a distance, the eye helps to blend and mix the separate colors creating an optical illusion. You will then begin sketching your landscape on canvas board. We will begin painting on the canvas boards in the next art class.

Goals:



Objectives:

• Students will be able to recognize Pointillism and the works of artists associated with the technique. • Understand that light and color are essential to pointillism in creating an optical illusion.• Use their knowledge of complementary colors to create shadows and highlights.

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• Apply dots of paint that are consistent in size• Students will make practices sketches from a landscape photograph of significance and get accustomed to the pointillist technique.• Students should have a landscape sketch on canvas board that is ready to be painted.


• Pencils• Drawing paper• Canvas board• Photograph of a landscape with significance• Acrylic paint• Q-tips• Water• Paper towels • Exemplars from Georges Seurat: o Le Pont de Courbevoie, (1886-87) o Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, (1859-1891)

Motivation:

Looking AT seurAT’s poinTiLLisT pAinTings:Topic quesTions:• How are the marks used to create shapes and forms?• How is color used?• What types of colors are most common?• Do the paintings change when viewed from a distance?• What happens to the shapes and colors?

AssociATion quesTions:• How is Seurats painting different than the works of other artists that you know? • How is it the same?

visuALizATion quesTions:• Do the dots looks consistent throughout the piece?• Do the colored dots blend together to create the illusion of other colors when viewed from a distance?• Why do you think the artist chose this technique? What mood might he be trying to capture?

Procedure:

1. Prior to the lesson, students will be instructed to bring in a



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landscape photograph that has personal significance and portrays a specific time of day. Students will be introduced to the impressionist works of Georges Seurat. The class will explore the period of impressionism and pointillism in art history and how they reflect the society and culture of 19th-Century Europe. They will become familiar with the vocabulary and techniques involved in the lesson. Students will be told that they will be using pointillism to create a landscape painting based on the photograph they brought to class.2. The teacher will pass out practice paper and pencils and tell the students to take out their landscape photographs. Students will make pencil sketches from their photographs. 3. Table monitors will be instructed to get cups of water and the bins for their table containing acrylic paint and q-tips.4. Students will practice painting their landscape sketches using pointillism.5. Once students get their sketches approved by the teacher, they will receive canvas board to sketch their landscape photograph. They will be instructed to fill up the entire board and have it ready to be painted by the next art class.6. At the end of class, the teacher will review the art vocabulary and concept learned in the lesson. All work

will be collected and the class should be ready to paint their landscapes on the canvas boards.

Evaluation:

• Understanding pointillism – Do the colored dots blend together to create the illusion of other colors when viewed from a distance?• Students should have practice sketches using the pointillist technique with q-tips and acrylic paint.• Students should have a pencil sketch of their landscape photograph on canvas board that is ready to be painted by the next art lesson.



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Optical Illusions-Pointillist Landscapes



This lesson allows students to paint a planned out pointillist land-scape on canvas board while creating an optical illusion.


Pointillism is a technique of painting in which a lot of tiny dots are combined to form a picture. Seurat’s “A Sunday in the Park on the Island of La Grande Jatte” which covered a wall (81 inches by 120 inches), took him two years to complete. He was known for amazing devotion and concentration. It is important for students to be able to look carefully at an image while concentrating on individual colors and being devoted to a tedious task.


Using your photograph, practice sketches, and the pointillist tech-niques we have discussed in class, create a landscape impression-ist painting on your canvas board. From a distance, your eye should blend and mix the separate colors to create an optical illusion.

Goals:

MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 1.3: Students will learn and use appropriate vocabulary related to methods, materials, and tech-niques.


MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 2.15: Students will create artwork that demonstrates an understanding of the elements and principles of design in establishing a point of view, a sense of space, or a mood.



Objectives:

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• Students should understand that light and color are essential to pointillism in creating an optical illusion.• Students should use their knowledge of complementary colors to create shadows and highlights. • Students should use a q-tip to apply dots of paint that are consistent in size.• Students should work to complete a pointillist landscape from a photograph that can be justified as personally significant.


• Canvas board• Photograph for landscape• Practice landscape sketches from previous lesson• Acrylic paint• Q-tips• Water• Paper towels • Exemplars from Georges Seurat: o Le Pont de Courbevoie, (1886-87) o Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte, (1859-1891

Motivation:

An exemplar will show the optical illusion being created from pointillism. Students will watch as the teacher mixes two primary colors to create a secondary color. The teacher will demonstrate applying dots on a canvas and students will see how from a distance their eyes blend the dots to make an array of colors and values.

Procedure:

1. The teacher will demonstrate different pointillist techniques and emphasize the importance of creating an optical illusion and filling up the entire canvas, leaving no white spaces.2. The teacher will distribute the canvas boards, previous sketches, and instruct students to take out their landscape photographs.3. The teacher will select table monitors to distribute cups of water and the bins that contain acrylic paints and q-tips.4. Students will work on painting their landscapes as the teacher walks around the room helping students as needed.5. At the end of class, the paintings will be placed on the drying rack and the teacher will review artistic concepts and requirements upon completion of the project.

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Evaluation:

• Students should have a completed pointillist landscape painting with dots that are consistent in size.• Students should have an understanding of pointillism. Do the colored dots blend together to create the illusion of other colors when viewed from a distance?• Paintings should give the impression of the landscape photograph that the student is observing. • Student’s work should demonstrate an understanding of the art vocabulary and concept learned throughout the unit.



“Some say they see poetry in my paintings; I see only science.”- Georges Seurat

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Review and Critique



This lesson allows students an opportunity to step back from their pointillist landscapes to determine their achievement in creating an optical illusion. Students will be able to discuss his or her creative processes and the significance behind the respective photographs. This lesson is also a summation of the unit and a review of the vocabulary and concepts learned throughout the unit.


Public speaking is important for children to practice in order to be confident while communicating in every day life. Being able to constructively criticize one’s artwork while giving positive feedback to that of others, allows for self-improvement and collaborative achievement.


Today we are going to have a class critique on the pointillist figure paintings. Now that you are able to step back from your artwork, you can begin to notice the optical illusions you have created. Everyone will have the opportunity to talk about their paintings and

share the significance behind your landscape photograph.

Goals:



MACF Pre-K-12 Standard 5.3: Students will be able to describe simi-larities and differences in works, and present personal responses to the subject matter, materials, techniques, and use of design ele-ments in artworks.

Objectives:

Students will talk about their painting and justify the significance behind their landscape photograph. They will participate in a class critique.

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Review and Critique



• Pointillist Landscape Paintings- student artwork

Motivation:

• Who can point out a painting where you can see a clear optical illusion?• Which ones do you find most successful? Why?• Who wants to begin by sharing their painting?

Procedure:

1. The teacher will announce that there will be a class critique and everyone must share his or her paintings with the class.2. The student paintings will be displayed in the back of the classroom and the teacher will instruct the students to turn their chairs around to face the back wall.3. The teacher will begin the critique by prompting the students with guiding questions. Students will then take turns sharing their paintings with the class. They must raise their hand if they would like to give feedback or comment about a classmate’s artwork.

4. The teacher will end the class with a quick review of the art vocabulary learned throughout the lesson.

Evaluation:

• Students should be able to talk about and justify their art work with the class.• Students should demonstrate an understanding of the art vocabulary learned throughout the unit and be able to participate in the class discussion.

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Appendix

Abstract: Art that looks as if it contains little or no recognizable or realistic forms from the physical world. Focus is on formal elements such as colors, lines, or shapes. Artists often “abstract” objects by changing, simplifying, or exaggerating what they see.

Acrylic Paint: A fast-drying synthetic paint made from acrylic resin. Acrylic is a fast-drying water-based “plastic” paint valued for its versatility and clean up with soap and water.

Aesthetics: A branch of philosophy that focuses on the nature of beauty, the nature and value of art, and the inquiry processes and human responses associated with those topics.

Analogous Colors: any set of three or five colors that are closely related in hue(s). They are usually adjacent (next) to each other on the color wheel.

Analysis: Identifying and examining separate parts as they func-tion independently and together in creative works and studies in the visual arts.

Architecture: The art of designing and constructing buildings (structures), and other environmental features. A person who prac-tices architecture is called an architect.

Armature: A skeleton-like framework to give rigid internal support to a modeled sculpture.

Art Criticism: Describing and evaluating the media, processes, and meanings of works of visual art, and making comparative judg-ments.

Art History: A record of the visual arts, incorporating information, interpretations, and judgments about art objects, artists, and con-ceptual influences on developments in the visual arts.

Art Media: Broad categories for grouping work of visual art ac-cording to the art materials used.

Artist: A practitioner in the arts, generally recognized as a profes-sional by critics and peers.

Background: The part of a picture or scene that appears to be farthest away from the viewer, usually nearest the horizon.

Balance: A feeling of equality in weight, attention, or attraction of the various elements within a composition as a means of accom-plishing unity.

Glossary of Terms

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Canvas: A heavy, closely woven fabric; an oil painting on canvas fabric; the support used for an acrylic or oil painting that is typically made of linen or cotton, stretched very tightly and tacked onto a wooden frame. Linen is considered far superior to the heavy cotton for a canvas.

Ceramics: The art of making objects of clay and firing them in a kiln. Wares of earthenware and porcelain, as well as sculpture are made by ceramists. Enamel is also a ceramic technique. Ceramic materials may be decorated with slip or glaze, applied by a number of techniques, including resist, mishima, and sanggam. Pots made can be made by the coil, slab, some other manual technique, or on a potter’s wheel.

Charcoal: Compressed burned wood used for drawing.

Coil: long, snake-like rope of clay

Collage: Introduced by the Cubists, the technique of creating a work of art by adhering flat articles such as paper, fabrics, string or other materials to a flat surface such as a canvas whereby a three-dimensional result is achieved.

Color Wheel: A round diagram that shows the placement of colors in relationship to each other. It is from the color wheel that “color

schemes” are defined

Complementary colors: Two colors directly opposite one an-other on the color wheel. When placed next to one another, comple-mentary colors are intensified and often appear to vibrate. When mixed, brown or gray is created. Red and green, blue and orange, and yellow and violet have the greatest degree of contrast. Red-vio-let and yellow-green, red-orange and blue-green, and yellow-orange and blue-violet are also complementary colors.

Composition: The arrangement of the design elements within the design area; the ordering of visual and emotional experience to give unity and consistency to a work of art and to allow the observer to comprehend its meaning.

Context: A set of interrelated conditions (such as social, econom-ic, political) in the visual arts that influence and give meaning to the development and reception of thoughts, ideas, or concepts and that define specific cultures and eras.

Contour: The outline and other visible edges of a mass, figure or object.’

Contrast: The difference between elements or the opposition to various elements.

Glossary of Terms

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Cool Colors: Colors whose relative visual temperatures make them seem cool. Cool colors generally include green, blue-green, blue, blue-violet, and violet.

Create: To produce works of visual art using materials, techniques, processes, elements, and analysis: the flexible and fluent generation of unique, complex, or elaborate ideas.

Cropping: The cutting out of extraneous parts of an image, usually a photograph; excluding part of a photo or illustration to show only the portion desired or to fit a given space requirement.

Cubism: Art that uses two-dimensional geometric shapes to depict three-dimensional organic forms; a style of painting created by Pablo Picasso and Georges Braque in the early 20th century whereby the artist breaks down the natural forms of the subjects into geometric shapes and creates a new kind of pictorial space.

Design: The arrangement of the design elements to create a single effect. The organization or composition of a work; the skilled arrangement of its parts. An effective design is one in which the elements of art and principles of design have been combined to achieve an overall sense of unity.

Drawing: The act of representing an image on a surface by means

of adding lines and shades, as with a pencil, crayon, pen, chalk, pastels, etc. Also refers to an illustration that has been drawn by hand.

Elements of Design: The qualities of a design that can be seen and worked with independently of its figurative content. They in-clude line, form, value, texture, color, and shape.

Exhibition: A public showing of a piece or a collection of objects. Also called an exhibit.

Expressive Features: Elements evoking affects such as joy, sadness, or anger

Expression: A process of conveying ideas, feelings, and mean-ings through selective use of the communicative possibilities of the visual arts

Figure Drawing: Drawings of a human figure. Usually of nude figures so that the artist can understand how the muscles look and how light, tone and shadow reflect around the body.

Focal Point: A specific area, element or principle that dominates a work of art; the area in a work, which the eye is most compellingly drawn. The viewer’s eye is usually drawn there first.

Glossary of Terms

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Form: The volume and shape of a three-dimensional work, perhaps including unfilled areas that are integral to the work as a whole.

Frame: Something made to enclose a picture or a mirror; enclose in a frame, as of a picture.

Gallery: A room or series of rooms where works of art are exhib-ited.

Gesture: A movement of the body or limbs that expresses or em-phasizes an idea or attitude.

Glaze: A thin layer of translucent acrylic or oil paint applied to all or part of a painting, to modify the tone or color underneath. Glazing is the process of using this technique.

Horizon Line: In a painting, a level line where land or water ends and the sky begins. Vanishing points, where two parallel lines ap-pear to converge, are typically located on this line. A horizon line is used to attain the perspective of depth.

Hue: The name of the color, such as red, green or yellow. Hue can be measured as a location on a color wheel, and expressed in de-grees; the main attribute of a color which distinguishes it from other colors.

Illustration: Visualization such as drawing, painting, photograph or other work of art that stresses subject more than form. The aim of an Illustration is to elucidate or decorate a story, poem or piece of textual information (such as a newspaper article) by providing a visual representation of something described in the text.

Impressionism: A loose spontaneous style of painting that origi-nated in France about 1870. The impressionist style of painting is characterized chiefly by concentration on the general impression produced by a scene or object and the use of unmixed primary colors and small strokes to simulate actual reflected light.

Kiln: Refers to an oven in which pottery or ceramic ware is fired.

Landscape: A painting, drawing or photograph, which depicts outdoor scenery. They typically include trees, streams, buildings, crops, mountains, wildlife, rivers and forests.

Line: An actual or implied mark, path, mass, or edge, where length is dominant.

Linear Perspective: A system for creating the illusion of depth on a two-dimensional surface. The system is based on a scientifi-cally or mathematically derived series of actual or implied lines that intersect at a vanishing point on the horizon. Linear perspective de-

Glossary of Terms

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termines the relative size of objects from the foreground of an image to the background.

Masterpiece: A work done with extraordinary skill, especially a work of art, craft or intellect that is an exceptionally great achieve-ment.

Medium: Material or technique an artist works in; also, the compo-nent of paint in which the pigment is dispersed.

Mixed Media: The art technique where an artist employs different types of physical materials such as ink and pastel or painting and collage etc. and combines them in a single work.Model: A person who poses for an artist.

Movement: As it applies to art, the path that our eyes follow when we look at a work of art.

Mural: A large wall painting, often executed in fresco

Negative Space: The unoccupied or empty space left after the positive shapes have been laid down by the artist; however, be-cause these areas have boundaries, they also function as shapes in the total design.

Neutral Colors: Colors of very low saturation, approaching grays.

Optical Mixing: The process by which the eyes blend bits of pure color placed next to each other in an image to create an optical illu-sion.

Organizational Principles: Underlying characteristics in the vi-sual arts, such as repetition, balance, emphasis, balance, contrast, and unity.

Pastel: A crayon made from pigment mixed with gum and water and pressed into a stick-shaped form; a work of art created from pastels; a pale color.

Pattern: The repetition of any thing — shapes, lines, or colors — also called a motif, in a design; as such it is one of the principles of design.

Perspective: The art of picturing objects on a flat surface so as to give the appearance of distance or depth.

Point of View: The position from which something is seen or con-sidered. For example: head-on, from overhead, from ground level, etc.

Glossary of Terms

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Pointillism: A painting technique in which pure dots of color are dabbed onto the canvas surface. The viewer’s eye, when at a dis-tance, is then expected to see these dots merge as cohesive areas of different colors and color ranges.

Portrait: A painting, photograph, or other artistic representation of a person.Positive Space: Space that is occupied by an element or a form.

Primary Colors: Red, yellow, and blue. With these three colors (and black and white) all other colors can be made. The primary colors themselves cannot be made by mixing other colors

Principles of Design: The basic aesthetic considerations that guide organization of a work of art. They include balance, move-ment, emphasis, contrast, proportion, space, and unity.

Printmaking: The process by which a work of art can be recre-ated in great quantity from a single image usually prepared from a plate.

Proportion: A sense of appropriateness in the size relationship of different parts of a work.

Realism: A style of painting, which depicts subject matter (form,

color, space) as it appears in actuality or ordinary visual experience without distortion or stylization.

Repetition: A series of repeated elements having similarity.

Reproduction: A copy of an original print or fine art piece. A re-production could be in the form of a print, like an offset-lithographic print, or even reproduced in the same medium as the original, as in an oil painting.

Rhythm: A continuance, a flow, or a feeling of movement achieved by the repetition or regulated visual units.

Score: To make scratches or creases in pieces of clay to be joined together.

Sculpture: Any three-dimensional form created as an artistic ex-pression. Sculpture is primarily concerned with space: occupying it, relating to it, and influencing the perception of it.

Secondary Colors: Green, purple, and orange. These three colors are derived from mixing equal amounts of two of the three primary colors (see illustration).

Self-Portrait: A portrait an artist makes using himself or herself as

Glossary of Terms

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its subject, typically drawn or painted from a reflection in a mirror. Also a portrait taken by the photographer of himself, either in a mir-ror, by means of a remote release, or with a self-timer.

Shading: Showing change from light to dark or dark to light in a picture by darkening areas that would be shadowed and leav-ing other areas light. Shading is often used to produce illusions of dimension and depth (see illustration).

Shape: An area, which stands out from the space next to it or around, it because of a defined boundary or because of a difference of value, colors, or texture.

Silhouette: A dark image outlined against a lighter background.Sketch: A rough drawing used to capture the basic elements and structure of a situation often used as the basis for a more detailed work.

Slip: An opaque, creamy liquid made by mixing finely ground clay with water used to stick attach two pieces of clay together.Space: The interval or measurable distance between pre-estab-lished points.

Still Life: A painting or other two-dimensional work of art repre-senting inanimate objects such as bottles, fruit, and flowers. Also,

the arrangement of these objects from which a drawing, painting, or other artwork is made.

Structures: Means of organizing the components of a work into a cohesive and meaningful whole, such as sensory qualities, organi-zational principles, expressive features, and functions of art.

Symmetry: The parts of an image or object organized so that one side duplicates, or mirrors, the other.Texture: An element of art, texture is the surface quality or “feel” of an object, its smoothness, roughness, softness, etc.

Thumbnail Sketch: Crude, small pencil drawings used to de-velop the initial concept for a design.

Tint: A hue with white added. Pink is a tint of red.

Tools: Instruments and equipment used by students to create and learn about art, such as brushes, scissors, brayers, easels, knives, kilns, and cameras.

Two-dimensional: Having two dimensions (height and width); referring to something that is flat.

Under Drawing: Preliminary drawing that lies under the final

Glossary of Terms

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painted or inked image.

Under Painting: The preliminary coats of paint in a painting that render the basic outline before the final paint layers are added to complete the work.

Unity: Organization of individual parts so that they all contribute to a coherent whole. It is the combined result of all principles of design.

Value: The lightness or darkness of a color; contrasts between light and dark.

Vanishing point: In perspective, the point on the horizon in the distance where two lines seem to converge and visibility ends.

Viewfinder: A tool used to look through to compose an image. This tool is helpful in selecting the most interesting composition to be found in a larger image by cropping out unwanted perimeters. In photography a viewfinder is what the photographer looks through to compose, and in many cases to focus, the picture (see illustration).

Visual Arts: A broad category that includes the traditional fine arts such as drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture; communi-cation and design arts such as film, television, graphics, product

design; architecture and environmental arts such as urban, interior, and landscape design; folk arts; and works of art such as ceramics, fibers, jewelry, works in wood, paper, and other materials.

Visual Communication: The communication of ideas through the visual display of information. Primarily associated with two-di-mensional images, it includes: alphanumeric, art, signs, and elec-tronic resources. Recent research in the field has focused on web design and graphically oriented usability.

Volume: The mass of three-dimensional shapes in space.Wash: Used in watercolor painting, brush drawing, and occasionally in oil painting to describe a broad thin layer of diluted pigment or ink. Also refers to a drawing made in this technique.

Warm Colors: Colors whose relative visual temperature makes them seem warm. Warm colors or hues include red-violet, red, red-orange, orange, yellow-orange, and yellow.

Watercolor: A water-based paint that is a translucent wash of pig-ment; a painting produced with watercolors.

Glossary of Terms

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Elements of Art

The Elements Of Art are the building blocks of art creation. They can be analyzed, organized, and manipulated by artists. They are the visual language of art. Each of the Elements is important when looking at a work of art in identifying which ones the artist stressed, organized, or used to express a message or to create a mood.

Line:

How many types of lines can you make? How important are lines to our environment? The artist recognizes the power of the “Line” when he or she creates a work of art. Let’s take a more detailed look at “Line” and its impact on our world and the world of art.

Color:

Many people would argue that the Element of “Color” has the most effect on a work of art. Consider what our world would look like if ev-erything was black, white and shades of gray? The effects of “Color” on humans has been studied many times. Artists have known that “Color” has a powerful effect on their works and on the impressions of the viewers.

Texture:

An element of art which refers to the surface quality or “feel” of an object, its smoothness, roughness, softness, etc. Textures may be actual or simulated. Actual textures can be felt with the fingers, while simulated textures are suggested by the way the artist has painted

certain areas of a picture.

Shape:

Shapes are everywhere. More common ones are given names such as circle or square. There are an infinite amount of shape possibili-ties and combinations. Let’s see what role “Shape” plays in works of art and just how an artist uses the Element “Shape”.

Form:

Forms are often called the “three-dimensional shapes”. Unlike flat, two-dimensional areas, Forms are represented as “three-dimen-sional”.

Space:

How an artists uses Space or chooses NOT to use Space adds a great deal to a work of art. Positive Space is the space created by an image or a sculpture. Negative Space is the Space around and between parts of an image or a sculpture.

Value:

Value refers to the lightness or darkness of a color. It also refers to how artists use other Elements Of Art to create a sense of light or dark.

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Principles of Design

The Principles Of Design refer to the organization of a work of art. Each Principle interprets how an artist uses the Elements of Art, composition and design to express their feelings and ideas. By studying these, the artist’s work will become more sophisticated as they begin to apply this knowledge to a work of art.

Rhythm and Movement:

To an artist, rhythm shows movement through the artists’ repetition of certain Elements Of Art. Just as in music when a beat is repeated over and over, an artist will use an Element of Art such as Color and repeat it over and over in a work of art.

Balance:

There are different types of visual Balance and artists use these types to create works that convey a particular message or idea to a viewer. Formal Balance is usually is achieved by the artist placing objects in the work in a symmetrical or equal-sided arrangement. Informal Balance is created when an asymmetrical layout is used. There is also Radial Balance. A balanced artwork leaves the viewer feeling “visually comfortable”. On the other hand, a work that is not balanced creates a sense of visual stress.

Proportion:

Artists use their sense of Proportion to make statements or express a particular feeling about a subject in a work of art. Proportion refers

to one piece of an object in relation to the rest of the object. Today many artists feel that there is not necessarily one perfect means of proportion. Artists learned that distorting or exaggerating proportion could alter the effect of a work on the viewer.

Variety and Emphasis:

Variety in art refers to the use of contrasting or different types of Ele-ments in a work of art. An artist knows that adding contrast to a work of art adds interest. Sometimes an artist wants the viewer to look particularly close at a specific area of the work. The artist will ma-nipulate the Elements of Art so that your eye is drawn to a particular area.

Harmony and Unity:

“Harmony” in art results from a combination of related Elements of Art creating a pleasing work for the eye. Using related colors, repeating lines and shapes and themes will also make the work ap-pear Harmonious. “Unity” infers that the work of art is presented as a “ whole”. When a work of art has “Unity”, the viewer sees the work as a whole, not in separate sections.

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Connections to the World: The Basic Concepts of Philosophy. Berkeley: University of California Press. (1989), (1997).

Edwards, B. (1999). The new drawing on the right side of the brain. New York, NY: Tarcher/ Putnam.

Lasky, L. and Mukerji-Bergeson, Rose. (1980). Art: Basic for Young Children. Washington, DC: NAEYC. # 106

Lowenfeld, V., & Lambert Brittain, W. (1987). Creative and mental growth: Eighth edition. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall.

Olsen, J.L. (1992). Envisioning writing: Toward an integration of drawing and writing. Portsmouth, NH: Heinemann.

Pauly, N. (March 2003). Interpreting visual culture as cultural narratives in teacher education. Studies in Art Education, 44 (3), 264-84

Read, H. (1948). Culture and Education in World Order. New York: The Museum of Modern Art.

Simpson, J.W., & Delaney, J.M., & Carroll, K.L., & Hamilton, C.M., & Kay, S.I., & Kerlavage, M.S., & Olson, J.L. (1998). Creatingmeaning through art: Teacher as choice maker. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice-Hall.

Stainton Rogers, W. (2003). Understanding childhood: An interdisciplinary approach (M. Woodhead & H. Montgomery, Eds.). Milton Keynes, UK: The Open University

Bibliography

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Websites

ArtLex Art Dictionaryhttp://www.artlex.com

Art Education Internet Resources for K12http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/arteducation.htm#E

Art Quoteshttp://www.artquotes.net

Belmont Public Schoolshttp://www.belmont.k12.ma.us

Goals 2000http://www.ed.gov/G2K

Massachusetts Department of Educationhttp://www.doe.mass.edu No Child Left Behindhttp://www.ed.gov/nclb

The Getty Museumhttp://www.getty.edu

The Official Eric Carle Web Sitehttp://www.eric-carle.com/home.html

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