Our unit topic: (Communication)
In Julie 's first grade class we chose Communication for our unit focus. Visual art is a form of communication, we communicate about ourselves, our environment and our experiences. Through a variety of materials we will explore how art communicates our intentions. We will touch on communicating through visual stories and movement as the lessons progress. Moving through the unit lessons the students used a variety of art materials and processes like painting, clay building, paper and found objects as well as drawing and large scale sculpture techniques. In their own ways each student was able to experience communication through multiple mediums which inspired creativeness and innovation in their peers.
We began with the notion of using art to tell a story, and to share who we are through what we make. This concept still holds true, there’s just been minor aspects that have been added, such as observation and technique. Artists tell stories through their art. They translate their thoughts, emotions, and ideas into visual imagery. This was a large part of what we concentrated on. “What do you want to make, and how can you make that happen?” We started general with learning about detail and observation, then took that learning and lead into more specific lessons, such as creating clay creatures. Most of these lessons were spent over two/three days, which taught that art takes time. It takes time and it can be altered. An artist’s concept can start as one thing and grow into something else!
Lesson One: Getting to Know You
In our first lesson:
Our first graders were encouraged to create a story about themselves on their sketchbook, we played the name game and talked about Discoveries. Getting to know you was an introductory lesson designed to step into art making and get to know our first graders by laying the foundation for a strong and purposeful relationship . During this lesson the crew was able to consider what they could say through visual art to another person to introduce themselves. Using familiar materials the crew was eager to express themselves.
Being that our first class was geared towards getting to know our first graders. We began our lesson by introducing ourselves along with the art that we make, explaining what inspires us/why we create art. We then discussed the importance of discoveries in making art; asking, “have you ever made a discovery about anything, if so, what was it? What can we do with these important discoveries? Can we put them in our pockets?” This lead into our power point about sketchbooks. We explained how we can store our ideas/discoveries in sketchbooks, and how the use of sketchbooks is an exercise for our brain. After creating our covers, We then went around and asked what everyone had discovered and wrote it on a sticky note. At the end students shared their discoveries and added their sticky to the discovery board.
Lesson 2: It's all in the Details
The second lesson day 1:
We learned that artists use their sketchbooks to record ideas and what they observe. Students also built and used a pair of binoculars or a telescope to help them look at and observe their surroundings. We learned that we can look at the world around us, and through observation we can make art. We can record what we find (our observations) in our sketchbooks for future ideas and works.
During class, we first built our binoculars or telescopes, then we used them to observe our surrounding in different ways. We looked at things close to us, and sketched what we could see. We looked at things that were farther away from us, across the room or outside, and sketched what we could see. Then we used our imagination and our binoculars to imagine a new thing to sketch. These activities will feed into our future days of this lesson. Learning how to look in different ways allows artists to use different perspectives.
The second lesson day 2:
We continued the skill of observation. In the beginning, we went over what details are and how we can find them. We started with asking what a detail is, and how do you know. Students responding with phrases like, “it’s something small that makes a bigger thing.” Based off of their answers, we then asked them to point out what detail they could observe in a poster of a Japanese woodcut that was displayed. Our co-teacher brought arrows to stick on to the poster and make visible their observations of detail.
The rest of the day was spent observing and recording details. The crew was asked to find four details in their poster and record them in a note catcher in their sketchbook. We also incorporated a color mixing activity for the remainder of class. Students had the opportunity to create the colors that they observed in the posters. It was mostly experimental, and allowed them to discover through play.
The second lesson day three:
We continued with our work in details by painting a story. To help us relate how a story includes details we read “Rocket writes a story.” It is a story about a dog that discovers words or details and decides to write a story using those words. We have been looking at different works of student art and posters to discover and understand what details are and what their purpose is in a work of art. Through exploration with different ways of looking/seeing, mixing colors and finding/drawing specific details we have found all the elements necessary to paint a story. We applied this idea to painting a story without words. Students were prompted to pull from the images and colors that they observed from last time,as well as prior experiences to create their own “painted story.”
Lesson 3: Creatures of Clay
The third lesson day 1: .
We introduced a new material: clay. The crew were encouraged to play with clay and discover its qualities without prior instruction. This type of exploration is crucial to understanding how the material works and what is possible working with it. After this, each teacher gave a mini lesson to groups about clay techniques; slipping and scoring, making a pinch pots and different shapes. We stressed the importance of making a clay piece durable.
The third lesson day 2:
We focused around creating a clay creature. We began by introducing the concept of a creature, and all of the animal aspects that could be included. “Does your creature have scales, fur, or feathers?” “How does it move?” Students spent time coming up with these crazy creatures and drawing their plan in their sketchbook. Students explored literacy in art by considering what attributes their creatures could have.
The third lesson day 3:
In this lesson we were expanding on clay techniques and revisiting the theme of details. We wanted to be sure the attachments were strong, as well as add details to our pieces. Students experimented with several tools to make texture. We asked the crew what they wanted to do next with their creatures. The crew voted to make habitats. This created our lesson of building habitats for our creatures.
The third lesson day 4:
We learned about how qualities of an animal or person affect their habitat, or where they live. We modeled what we were doing for the day with an example creature, and made a habitat as a group. “This creature likes to sit in the shade, so let’s create a tree!” Other thoughts such as a bed, a friend for the creature, its food were incorporated. Each student made their own small habitat designed for their creature. This emergent style lesson allowed our crew to feel confident in their making and really explore their ideas. Creating opportunity to allow their ideas to evolve and become somewhat complex.
The third lesson day 5:
We explored pattern and how it affects how we identify objects. The crew used their new knowledge about patterns to finalize their creatures. Knowing how clay goes from work stage to paint stage is an important part of understanding process. To impart this information to the crew we presented a short presentation covering what a kiln is and how it “fires” the clay. In the presentation we also introduced the concept of patterns and what pattern could be. Asking the crew “What is a pattern?” “How do you know?” “ What do you think the purpose of patterns is?” The crew ideated together in small groups several different types of patterns and recorded those patterns in their sketchbooks. Then we worked on using one favorite pattern for finalizing our creatures. The crew used paint, feathers and fur to create their final surface treatments for their creatures.
The third lesson day 6 Final Lesson:
PGC’s
In Julie 's first grade class we chose Communication for our unit focus. Visual art is a form of communication, we communicate about ourselves, our environment and our experiences. Through a variety of materials we will explore how art communicates our intentions. We will touch on communicating through visual stories and movement as the lessons progress. Moving through the unit lessons the students used a variety of art materials and processes like painting, clay building, paper and found objects as well as drawing and large scale sculpture techniques. In their own ways each student was able to experience communication through multiple mediums which inspired creativeness and innovation in their peers.
We began with the notion of using art to tell a story, and to share who we are through what we make. This concept still holds true, there’s just been minor aspects that have been added, such as observation and technique. Artists tell stories through their art. They translate their thoughts, emotions, and ideas into visual imagery. This was a large part of what we concentrated on. “What do you want to make, and how can you make that happen?” We started general with learning about detail and observation, then took that learning and lead into more specific lessons, such as creating clay creatures. Most of these lessons were spent over two/three days, which taught that art takes time. It takes time and it can be altered. An artist’s concept can start as one thing and grow into something else!
Lesson One: Getting to Know You
In our first lesson:
Our first graders were encouraged to create a story about themselves on their sketchbook, we played the name game and talked about Discoveries. Getting to know you was an introductory lesson designed to step into art making and get to know our first graders by laying the foundation for a strong and purposeful relationship . During this lesson the crew was able to consider what they could say through visual art to another person to introduce themselves. Using familiar materials the crew was eager to express themselves.
Being that our first class was geared towards getting to know our first graders. We began our lesson by introducing ourselves along with the art that we make, explaining what inspires us/why we create art. We then discussed the importance of discoveries in making art; asking, “have you ever made a discovery about anything, if so, what was it? What can we do with these important discoveries? Can we put them in our pockets?” This lead into our power point about sketchbooks. We explained how we can store our ideas/discoveries in sketchbooks, and how the use of sketchbooks is an exercise for our brain. After creating our covers, We then went around and asked what everyone had discovered and wrote it on a sticky note. At the end students shared their discoveries and added their sticky to the discovery board.
Lesson 2: It's all in the Details
The second lesson day 1:
We learned that artists use their sketchbooks to record ideas and what they observe. Students also built and used a pair of binoculars or a telescope to help them look at and observe their surroundings. We learned that we can look at the world around us, and through observation we can make art. We can record what we find (our observations) in our sketchbooks for future ideas and works.
During class, we first built our binoculars or telescopes, then we used them to observe our surrounding in different ways. We looked at things close to us, and sketched what we could see. We looked at things that were farther away from us, across the room or outside, and sketched what we could see. Then we used our imagination and our binoculars to imagine a new thing to sketch. These activities will feed into our future days of this lesson. Learning how to look in different ways allows artists to use different perspectives.
The second lesson day 2:
We continued the skill of observation. In the beginning, we went over what details are and how we can find them. We started with asking what a detail is, and how do you know. Students responding with phrases like, “it’s something small that makes a bigger thing.” Based off of their answers, we then asked them to point out what detail they could observe in a poster of a Japanese woodcut that was displayed. Our co-teacher brought arrows to stick on to the poster and make visible their observations of detail.
The rest of the day was spent observing and recording details. The crew was asked to find four details in their poster and record them in a note catcher in their sketchbook. We also incorporated a color mixing activity for the remainder of class. Students had the opportunity to create the colors that they observed in the posters. It was mostly experimental, and allowed them to discover through play.
The second lesson day three:
We continued with our work in details by painting a story. To help us relate how a story includes details we read “Rocket writes a story.” It is a story about a dog that discovers words or details and decides to write a story using those words. We have been looking at different works of student art and posters to discover and understand what details are and what their purpose is in a work of art. Through exploration with different ways of looking/seeing, mixing colors and finding/drawing specific details we have found all the elements necessary to paint a story. We applied this idea to painting a story without words. Students were prompted to pull from the images and colors that they observed from last time,as well as prior experiences to create their own “painted story.”
Lesson 3: Creatures of Clay
The third lesson day 1: .
We introduced a new material: clay. The crew were encouraged to play with clay and discover its qualities without prior instruction. This type of exploration is crucial to understanding how the material works and what is possible working with it. After this, each teacher gave a mini lesson to groups about clay techniques; slipping and scoring, making a pinch pots and different shapes. We stressed the importance of making a clay piece durable.
The third lesson day 2:
We focused around creating a clay creature. We began by introducing the concept of a creature, and all of the animal aspects that could be included. “Does your creature have scales, fur, or feathers?” “How does it move?” Students spent time coming up with these crazy creatures and drawing their plan in their sketchbook. Students explored literacy in art by considering what attributes their creatures could have.
The third lesson day 3:
In this lesson we were expanding on clay techniques and revisiting the theme of details. We wanted to be sure the attachments were strong, as well as add details to our pieces. Students experimented with several tools to make texture. We asked the crew what they wanted to do next with their creatures. The crew voted to make habitats. This created our lesson of building habitats for our creatures.
The third lesson day 4:
We learned about how qualities of an animal or person affect their habitat, or where they live. We modeled what we were doing for the day with an example creature, and made a habitat as a group. “This creature likes to sit in the shade, so let’s create a tree!” Other thoughts such as a bed, a friend for the creature, its food were incorporated. Each student made their own small habitat designed for their creature. This emergent style lesson allowed our crew to feel confident in their making and really explore their ideas. Creating opportunity to allow their ideas to evolve and become somewhat complex.
The third lesson day 5:
We explored pattern and how it affects how we identify objects. The crew used their new knowledge about patterns to finalize their creatures. Knowing how clay goes from work stage to paint stage is an important part of understanding process. To impart this information to the crew we presented a short presentation covering what a kiln is and how it “fires” the clay. In the presentation we also introduced the concept of patterns and what pattern could be. Asking the crew “What is a pattern?” “How do you know?” “ What do you think the purpose of patterns is?” The crew ideated together in small groups several different types of patterns and recorded those patterns in their sketchbooks. Then we worked on using one favorite pattern for finalizing our creatures. The crew used paint, feathers and fur to create their final surface treatments for their creatures.
The third lesson day 6 Final Lesson:
PGC’s
- Recognize, articulate, and debate that the visual arts are a means for expression
- Make informed critical evaluations of visual and material culture, information,and technologies
- Analyze, interpret,and make meaning of art and design critically using oral and written discourse
- Recognize, demonstrate, and debate philosophic arguments about the nature of art and beauty (aesthetics)
- Recognize, demonstrate, and debate the place of art and design in history and culture
- Use specific criteria to discuss and evaluate works of art
- Recognize, articulate, and implement critical thinking in the visual arts by synthesizing, evaluating, and analyzing visual information
- Recognize, interpret, and validate that the creative process builds on the development of ideas through a process of inquiry, discovery, and research
- Develop and build appropriate mastery in art-making skills using traditional and new technologies and an understanding of the characteristics and expressive features of art and design
