Grade 5
Lesson 1&2: "What is art?" & Emphasis mini lesson
Project: Snap line style prints with color emphasis
Students viewed a series of photos and decided whether or not the depictions were works of art. Each student shared their own opinion on their piece, in terms of design, giving reasons for considering it successful or unsuccessful. Some works were straight forward, such as a famous painting or sculpture. Others required deeper thought and consideration, such as Marcel Duchamp's "Fountain". Students really enjoyed listening to each others' opinions and were eager to participate in the discussion.
Students created prints by dipping yarn in black tempera paint, pulling the yarn tight over top of the picture plane, then pressing or snapping the ink onto their paper. Other than following simple directions in order to complete the project, students were told not to put much thought into what the piece was about or why they were making it. After the prints were completed, we discussed whether or not we considered them art due to the fact that there truly was no intended meaning or emotion connected to the pieces. Opinions varied. We collectively decided that if we added more elements of art to the work, in a well thought out manner, it would strengthen the overall design.
In order to better understand how we can manipulate elements of art to strengthen our compositions, we studied emphasis and how it is used in a variety of art, design, and photography media. We then applied it to our work using color pencils.
Project: Snap line style prints with color emphasis
Students viewed a series of photos and decided whether or not the depictions were works of art. Each student shared their own opinion on their piece, in terms of design, giving reasons for considering it successful or unsuccessful. Some works were straight forward, such as a famous painting or sculpture. Others required deeper thought and consideration, such as Marcel Duchamp's "Fountain". Students really enjoyed listening to each others' opinions and were eager to participate in the discussion.
Students created prints by dipping yarn in black tempera paint, pulling the yarn tight over top of the picture plane, then pressing or snapping the ink onto their paper. Other than following simple directions in order to complete the project, students were told not to put much thought into what the piece was about or why they were making it. After the prints were completed, we discussed whether or not we considered them art due to the fact that there truly was no intended meaning or emotion connected to the pieces. Opinions varied. We collectively decided that if we added more elements of art to the work, in a well thought out manner, it would strengthen the overall design.
In order to better understand how we can manipulate elements of art to strengthen our compositions, we studied emphasis and how it is used in a variety of art, design, and photography media. We then applied it to our work using color pencils.
Lesson 3: "Snowflakesque" Symmetry
Project: Symmetrical design paintings
Symmetry is an essential part of design that everyone uses in everyday life. Without even realizing it, we use it not only in designing artwork, but also when creating presentations, while working, and most commonly it comes into play when organizing, decorating or landscaping our homes. Grade 5 studied various uses and forms of symmetry seen around the world and in everyday life. We analyzed both 2 dimensional designs as well as architecture. Although it is considered formal balance and is often constructed by man, symmetry can also be found in nature.
When starting our project, students were under the impression that we were going to be creating paper snowflakes... little did they know that these "snowflakes" were going to be the layout for a more formal design. While cutting the snowflakes, they were required to include a balanced amount of positive and negative space as well as both organic and geometric shapes. Some students centered their snowflake onto a 12x12" piece of tag board, while others attached them to a mirror frame. They traced the shapes formed by the flake with pencil, then removed the snowflake.
Next, we talked about painting techniques. This year we were able to purchase new, more professional quality brushes for the 5th-8th graders. This means we needed to learn new methods of painting in order to achieve crisp, print-like work. Students learned the valuable lesson of "choosing the right tool for the job." They were given a choice of 3 different brushes to complete their work, each of which is supposed to be used for different types of strokes.
Many students were very pleased with how simple is to create professional, print-like quality work when they used the correct tools.
Lesson 4: Self Portrait & Composition
Project: All about me poster
The idea for this project came from a suggestion made by a 5th grade teacher. Students often times will create a poster to use as a visual aid when presenting the information they have obtained for a research project, book report, etc. It was noted that many of these posters were not presenting information clearly or could have used a bit of a "face lift". The ability to clearly, accurately, and attractively present information that we work so hard to obtain in an organized fashion is a key factor for achieving success. And as any successful adult knows, this not stop at the end of middle school, high school, or even college. Many adults use visual presentations every day at their jobs, and more importantly, proof of their organizational skills was most likely evident when they initially presented themselves during the interviews for their jobs to begin with! BOTTOM LINE: I couldn't let a lack of compositional arrangement skills slip through the cracks. I owed it to my 5th graders to teach them how to effectively organize a visual composition (artwork) and then apply their skills to real life situations (report posters).
Students started by drawing a self portrait, during which time we studied the composition of the human face. Then, in an effort to create additional visual pieces in need of arrangement on a final poster, we created pie charts with keys (used to represent how much we enjoyed activities we do), we created bar graphs (used to show how much time we spend doing these activities), and we also included name plates (in place of a title) and personal artifacts such as photos, etc. (optional).
Borders were added to the pieces of our composition - color choices were discussed and chosen based on what the student thought would create visual interest and unity throughout the poster. Once all the pieces were ready to be applied to the poster, students shuffled them around, creating different layouts in order to find the most effective and visually appealing composition. Once the desired arrangement was found, the pieces were glued down.
This lesson was (somewhat unexpectedly) packed with interdisciplinary connections - math, physical science, anatomy, health (self image).... The projects really developed into something the students were proud to present. I'm confident that the skills they learned will help boost their future academic presentations.
(Examples of this project can be found in the photos of the 3rd trimester showcase, located on the homepage of this site.)
Project: All about me poster
The idea for this project came from a suggestion made by a 5th grade teacher. Students often times will create a poster to use as a visual aid when presenting the information they have obtained for a research project, book report, etc. It was noted that many of these posters were not presenting information clearly or could have used a bit of a "face lift". The ability to clearly, accurately, and attractively present information that we work so hard to obtain in an organized fashion is a key factor for achieving success. And as any successful adult knows, this not stop at the end of middle school, high school, or even college. Many adults use visual presentations every day at their jobs, and more importantly, proof of their organizational skills was most likely evident when they initially presented themselves during the interviews for their jobs to begin with! BOTTOM LINE: I couldn't let a lack of compositional arrangement skills slip through the cracks. I owed it to my 5th graders to teach them how to effectively organize a visual composition (artwork) and then apply their skills to real life situations (report posters).
Students started by drawing a self portrait, during which time we studied the composition of the human face. Then, in an effort to create additional visual pieces in need of arrangement on a final poster, we created pie charts with keys (used to represent how much we enjoyed activities we do), we created bar graphs (used to show how much time we spend doing these activities), and we also included name plates (in place of a title) and personal artifacts such as photos, etc. (optional).
Borders were added to the pieces of our composition - color choices were discussed and chosen based on what the student thought would create visual interest and unity throughout the poster. Once all the pieces were ready to be applied to the poster, students shuffled them around, creating different layouts in order to find the most effective and visually appealing composition. Once the desired arrangement was found, the pieces were glued down.
This lesson was (somewhat unexpectedly) packed with interdisciplinary connections - math, physical science, anatomy, health (self image).... The projects really developed into something the students were proud to present. I'm confident that the skills they learned will help boost their future academic presentations.
(Examples of this project can be found in the photos of the 3rd trimester showcase, located on the homepage of this site.)
Lesson 5: Color Theory
Project: Complementary Flowers
Students studied the color wheel to discover complementary colors. Complementary colors are located directly across the color wheel from one another. They have a high contrast with one another and are often used together in things we see every day, such as signs & advertising, clothing, interior design, etc.
Students cut a photocopied picture of a flower into three separate pieces. Each section was to include one pair of complementary colors. Using oil pastels in primary and secondary colors, students colorized the photo and pieced it back together in order to bring it to life.