Mobiles & Story Elements

Mobiles & Story Elements

MOBILES AND STORY ELEMENTS

Learning Description

In this lesson, students will create a mobile sculpture inspired by the artist, Alexander Calder, to show the elements of a story.

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: 2-3
CONTENT FOCUS: VISUAL ARTSE & ELA
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can create a mobile sculpture inspired by the artist, Alexander Calder, that illustrates the elements of a story.

Essential Questions

  • How can I demonstrate my understanding of the elements of a story through a mobile sculpture?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 2:

ELAGSE2RL1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.

ELAGSE2RL5 Describe the overall structure of a story including describing how the beginning introduces the story, the middle provides major events and challenges, and the ending concludes the action.

ELAGSE2RL7 Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.

ELAGSE2SL1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 2 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.

ELAGSE2SL2 Recount or describe key ideas or details from written texts read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.

Grade 3:

ELAGSE3RL1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. 

ELAGSE3RL7 Explain how specific aspects of a text’s illustrations contribute to what is conveyed by the words in a story (e.g., create mood, emphasize aspects of a character or setting).

ELAGSE3SL1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

ELAGSE3SL2 Determine the main ideas and supporting details of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

Arts Standards

Grade 2:

VA2.CR.1 Engage in the creative process to generate and visualize ideas by using subject matter and symbols to communicate meaning. 

VA2.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes. 

VA2.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art.

VA2.RE.1 Discuss personal works of art and the artwork of others to enhance visual literacy.

VA2.CN.3 Develop life skills through the study and production of art (e.g. collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, communication).

Grade 3:

VA3.CR.1 Engage in the creative process to generate and visualize ideas by using subject matter and symbols to communicate meaning.

VA3.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes. 

VA3.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, processes, and concepts of two dimensional art. 

VA3.RE.1 Use a variety of approaches for art criticism and to critique personal works of art and the artwork of others to enhance visual literacy.

VA3.CN.1 Investigate and discover the personal relationships of artists to community, culture, and the world through making and studying art.

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 2:

2.I.1.1 Ask self-generated questions that lead to group conversations, explorations, and investigations. 

2.RL.MC.6.1 Use information gained from illustrations and words in a print or multimedia text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot. 

2.C.MC.1.4 Participate in shared conversations with varied partners about focused grade level topics and texts in small and large groups. 

2.C.MC.1.5 Explain personal ideas and build on the ideas of others by responding and relating to comments made in multiple exchanges. 

2.W.RC.6.1 Write routinely and persevere in writing tasks over short and extended time frames, for a range of domain-specific tasks, and for a variety of purposes and audiences.

Grade 3:

3.I.1.1 Formulate questions to focus thinking on an idea to narrow and direct further inquiry. 

3.RL.MC.1 Use text evidence to: a. describe characters’ traits, motivations, and feelings and explain how their actions contribute to the development of the plot; and  b. explain the influence of cultural and historical context on characters, setting, and plot development.

3.C.MC.1.1 Explore and create meaning through conversation and interaction with peers and adults. 

3.C.MC.1.2 Participate in discussions; ask questions to acquire information concerning a topic, text, or issue.

3.W.RC.6.1 Write routinely and persevere in writing tasks

Arts Standards

Anchor Standard 1: I can use the elements and principles of art to create artwork.

Anchor Standard 2: I can use different materials, techniques, and processes to make art.

Anchor Standard 3: I can improve and complete artistic work using elements and principles.

Anchor Standard 4: I can organize work for presentation and documentation to reflect specific content, ideas, skills, and or media.

 

Key Vocabulary

Content Vocabulary

Character - A person, figure, or animal depicted in literature.

Setting - When and where a story takes place.

Plot - The main events of the story.

Summary - A brief description of a passage that captures the main idea.

Main idea - The central idea or theme of a story.

Detail - Information from the passage that supports the main idea.

Arts Vocabulary

Shape - One of the seven elements of art; a two-dimensional object that can be geometric, organic, or free-form.

Form - One of the seven elements of art; a three-dimensional object that can be geometric, organic, or free-form.

Sculpture - An art form that shows the element of form.

Mobile - A hanging sculpture that has moving parts.

 

Materials

  • Paper plates
  • Markers/colored pencils
  • Plain white paper
  • Yarn/string
  • Paper clips
  • Scissors

 

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

  • Show the students Alexander Calder’s sculpture, Mariposa (Butterfly), on a screen. Do not show them the title of the artwork. Have students go through the See, Think, Wonder strategy to engage with the image.
  • Tell students that the name of the sculpture is Mariposa (Butterfly). Ask students if they can see the butterfly in the sculpture.

 

Work Session

  • Explain to the students that this sculpture shows the following elements of art: shape, line, and form. Explain that sculpture is three-dimensional art. The pieces of the sculpture are made up of free-form shapes and lines. Show students the different types of shapes in art: organic, free-form, and geometric.
  • Tell students that you are going to read them a story. Students should listen for details that tell about the character(s) and setting of the story. As you read, students should raise their hands whenever they hear a detail about the character(s) or setting. Pause as you read to allow students to share their details. Create a list of details on the board. 
  • At the end of the story, ask students to summarize the story. Students should identify the beginning, middle, and end of the story. 
  • Explain to students that they are going to create a sculpture like the one they looked at at the beginning of class, Mariposa, by Alexander Calder. 
  • Students should draw the setting of the story on their paper plate. 
  • Then, demonstrate to students how to draw a spiral on their paper plate, starting at the middle and spiraling outward. Students will then cut along the spiral.
  • Next, students will draw images/symbols on plain white paper to represent the character(s) and the beginning, middle, and end of the story. Students should cut these out.
  • Students will tie yarn or string to the spiral that they cut out of the paper plate and attach the symbols for the beginning, middle, and end of the story to the yarn or string. Students should place the symbols in sequential order. On the back of the symbols, students should summarize the beginning, middle, and end of the story. 
  • Students will attach a paper clip to the center of the spiral to hang the sculpture.

Closing Reflection

  • In small groups, have students compare and contrast their artwork to the illustrations in the book. What are the similarities and differences between the way the illustrator communicated meaning and the way students communicated meaning? 
  • Students should conclude by writing an artist statement that says what they are most proud of in their artwork, their names as artists, and what symbols they chose to show in their artwork.

 

Assessments

Formative

  • See, Think, Wonder strategy analyzing Calder’s, Mariposa (Butterfly) - students should be able to use visual evidence to support reasoning
  • Students’ identification of the character(s)
  • Students’ identification of the setting
  • Students’ identification of the beginning, middle, and end of the story

 

Summative

  • Students’ mobiles that show the character(s), setting, and beginning, middle, and end of the story
  • Students’ summaries of the beginning, middle, and end of the story

 

Differentiation

Acceleration: Have students retell the story to each other using their mobiles as a visual aid. Students should then compare and contrast their use of symbols to communicate meaning.

Remediation: Have students work in groups. Each member is assigned one part of the story to illustrate for their group’s mobile–beginning, middle, or end. Students will combine their work to create one piece of art. Students will work together to retell the story using their mobile.

Additional Resources

Mobiles and Story Elements

Types of Shapes

*This integrated lesson provides differentiated ideas and activities for educators that are aligned to a sampling of standards. Standards referenced at the time of publishing may differ based on each state’s adoption of new standards.

Ideas contributed by: Katy Betts

Revised and copyright: September 2023 @ ArtsNOW

Communicating Through Self Portraits

Communicating through Self-Portraits

COMMUNICATING THROUGH SELF PORTRAITS

Learning Description

In this lesson, students will use symbolism and imagery to create a self portrait. Students will support their work by writing about their art.

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: 2-3
CONTENT FOCUS: VISUAL ARTS & ELA
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can communicate meaning about myself using symbols and imagery.
  • I can create a self-portrait using accurate proportions.

Essential Questions

  • How can I communicate meaning about myself using symbols and imagery?
  • How can I use proportions to create a self-portrait?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 2:

ELAGSE2RI1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text. 

ELAGSE2RI2 Identify the main topic of a multi-paragraph text as well as the focus of specific paragraphs within the text.

ELAGSE2W3 Write narratives in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.

ELAGSE2SL1 Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade 2 topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.

ELAGSE2SL2 Recount or describe key ideas or details from written texts read aloud or information presented orally or through other media.

ELAGSE2SL6 Produce complete sentences when appropriate to task and situation in order to provide requested detail or clarification.

Grade 3:

ELAGSE3RI1 Ask and answer questions to demonstrate understanding of a text, referring explicitly to the text as the basis for the answers. 

ELAGSE3RI2 Determine the main idea of a text; recount the key details and explain how they support the main idea.

ELAGSE3RI7 Use information gained from illustrations (e.g., maps, photographs) and the words in a text to demonstrate understanding of the text (e.g., where, when, why, and how key events occur).

ELAGSE3W3 Write narratives to develop real or imagined experiences or events using effective technique, descriptive details, and clear event sequences.

ELAGSE3SL1 Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacher-led) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas and expressing their own clearly.

ELAGSE3SL2 Determine the main ideas and supporting details of a text read aloud or information presented in diverse media and formats, including visually, quantitatively, and orally.

Arts Standards

Grade 2:

VA2.CR.1 Engage in the creative process to generate and visualize ideas by using subject matter and symbols to communicate meaning. 

VA2.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes. 

VA2.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art.

VA2.RE.1 Discuss personal works of art and the artwork of others to enhance visual literacy.

VA2.CN.3 Develop life skills through the study and production of art (e.g. collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, communication).

Grade 3:

VA3.CR.1 Engage in the creative process to generate and visualize ideas by using subject matter and symbols to communicate meaning.

VA3.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes. 

VA3.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, processes, and concepts of two dimensional art. 

VA3.RE.1 Use a variety of approaches for art criticism and to critique personal works of art and the artwork of others to enhance visual literacy.

VA3.CN.1 Investigate and discover the personal relationships of artists to community, culture, and the world through making and studying art.

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 2:

2.I.1.1 Ask self-generated questions that lead to group conversations, explorations, and investigations. 

2.I.2.1 Engage in daily exploration to formulate questions from texts and personal experiences; generate possible explanations and consider alternatives. 

2.RI.5.1 Ask and answer literal and inferential questions to demonstrate understanding of a text; use specific details to make inferences and draw conclusions in texts heard or read.   2.RI.5.2 Make predictions before and during reading; confirm or modify thinking.

2.RI.6.1 Retell the central idea and key details from multi-paragraph texts; summarize the text by stating the topic of each paragraph heard, read, or viewed. 

2.W.3.2 Plan, revise, and edit, focusing on a topic while building on personal ideas and the ideas of others to strengthen writing.

Arts Standards

Grade 1:

Anchor Standard 1: I can use the elements and principles of art to create artwork.

Anchor Standard 2: I can use different materials, techniques, and processes to make art.

Anchor Standard 3: I can improve and complete artistic work using elements and principles.

Anchor Standard 4: I can organize work for presentation and documentation to reflect specific content, ideas, skills, and or media.

 

Key Vocabulary

Content Vocabulary

Main idea - The central message of a text.

Supporting details - Information in a text that supports the main idea.

Personal narrative - Writing that expresses real or imagined personal experiences.

Arts Vocabulary

Self-portrait - A visual representation of oneself.

Proportions - How one thing relates to another in terms of size.

Symbols - An image that communicates meaning.

Background/negative space - The area around the subject of an artwork.

 

Materials

  • Pencils
  • Crayons/colored pencils/markers
  • White paper

 

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

  • Show students the image, Self Portrait with Monkeys, by Frida Kahlo, without the artist’s name or name of the artwork visible. Lead students through the See, Think, Wonder strategy. Students should collaborate in small groups and share their responses.
  • Show students the title of the artwork, artist’s name, and year it was made. Explain that Frida Kahlo often included symbols and imagery that represented important things to her in her artwork, such as her pet monkeys and her Mexican heritage. 
  • Ask students what a symbol is. Provide examples such as a heart, and explain that symbols are images that communicate meaning.

 

Work Session

  • Explain that Frida Kahlo is a very famous artist who had polio as a child and was later in an accident that limited the activities that she could do. She had to use her imagination and what she knew about the world around her to create her artwork. 
  • Read the book, Frida’s Animalitos, to students (read aloud version). 
  • Ask students to identify the main idea or theme of the text and the supporting details (answers might include that circumstances in life don’t have to determine what we choose to do or citing that Frida continued to paint despite her illness and accident).
  • Explain to students that they will be creating a self portrait that includes symbols and imagery that represents important things about themselves. 
  • Show students the proportions of the face. Have students use this as a guide to draw their own faces on plane white paper. Have students add color and details to their self-portraits.
  • Next, go back to Self Portrait with Monkeys by Frida Kahlo. Remind students that Frida Kahlo included symbols and imagery that were important to her in her artwork like her pet monkeys. Ask students to brainstorm 3-4 things that they would like to include in the negative space/background of their artwork. Have a few students share their ideas with the class.
  • Students will then use symbols and imagery to represent things in the area around their portrait (background/negative space).
  • Students will write a response to the following prompt in complete sentences when they complete their self-portrait: What does your self portrait communicate about you? Student responses should include a topic sentence and supporting details that state the symbols they chose and why they chose them.

 

Closing Reflection

Have students get in groups of 3-4. Students should take turns showing their self-portraits and explaining the imagery that they used and why they chose it.

 

Assessments

Formative

  • Class discussion around Frida Kahlo’s self portrait and symbolism to check for understanding
  • Class discussion around the main idea in the book, Frida Kahlo’s Animalitos.

 

Summative

  • Self portrait
  • Written response

 

Differentiation

Acceleration

  • Ask students to write a personal narrative (one paragraph in length) about one of the symbols that they included. 
  • Have students trade self-portraits and write an interpretation of their partner’s self-portrait based on the symbols that their partner included.

Remediation

  • Allow students to provide an oral explanation of the symbols that they chose and why they chose them rather than writing them down. 
  • Reduce the number of symbols that students should include in their self portrait to two.

Additional Resources

*This integrated lesson provides differentiated ideas and activities for educators that are aligned to a sampling of standards. Standards referenced at the time of publishing may differ based on each state’s adoption of new standards.

Ideas contributed by: Katy Betts

Revised and copyright: September 2023 @ ArtsNOW

Camouflage and Mimicry

CAMOUFLAGE AND MIMICRY IN THE CLASSROOM

CAMOUFLAGE AND MIMICRY IN THE CLASSROOM

Learning Description

Animals are very creative! They adapt to their environments to improve their chances of survival; two types of adaptation are camouflage and mimicry. In this lesson, students will use voice and body, as well as the observational and creative skills of Costume and Set Designers, to use camouflage and mimicry in their own natural habitat – the classroom!

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: 3-4
CONTENT FOCUS: SCIENCE
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can define camouflage and mimicry, and tell the difference between them.
  • I can identify color, shape and pattern in my own clothing and in my classroom environment and make choices that create the effect of camouflage.
  • I can use my voice, body, and simple craft materials to create the effect of mimicry of another organism (a classmate) in my classroom environment.

Essential Questions

  • What are camouflage and mimicry?
  • How are color, shape and pattern important elements of camouflage and mimicry?
  • How can we use acting and design skills to explore camouflage and mimicry in the classroom?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 3:

S3L1 Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the similarities anddifferences between plants, animals, and habitats found within geographic regions (Blue Ridge Mountains, Piedmont, Coastal Plains, Valley and Ridge, and Appalachian Plateau) of Georgia.

b. Construct an explanation of how external features and adaptations (camouflage, hibernation, migration, mimicry) of animals allow them to survive in their habitat.

Arts Standards

Grade 3:

TA3.PR.1 Act by communicating and  sustaining roles in formal and informalenvironments.

TA3.PR.2 Execute artistic and technical elements of theatre.

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Grade 4:

4.L.5B.3 Construct explanations for how structural adaptations (such as methods for defense, locomotion, obtaining resources, or camouflage) allow animals to survive in the environment.

Arts Standards

Anchor Standard 2: I can design and use technical elements for improvised scenes and written scripts.

Anchor Standard 3: I can act in improvised scenes and written scripts.

 

Key Vocabulary

Content Vocabulary

Adaptation - A change by which an organism becomes better suited to its environment.

Mimicry - An adaptation by which an organism copies the physical or vocal characteristics of another.

Camouflage - An adaptation by which an organism visually blends into its surroundings by virtue of its shapes, patterns, and coloring.

Habitat - The natural home or environment of an animal, plant, or other organism.

Arts Vocabulary

Voice – An actor’s tool, which we shape and change to portray the way a character speaks or sounds

Body – An actor’s tool, which we shape and change to portray the way a character looks, walks, or moves.

Set Design - The creation of the physical space in which the action of a performed event takes place.

Costume Design - The creation of clothing and accessories for a character in a performance.

 

Materials

  • Drum or percussion instrument (optional)
  • Images of camouflage and mimicry in the natural world (from textbook, class resources, or the internet)
  • Sound clips of mimicry (optional)
  • Multi -colored pieces of construction paper
  • Scissors
  • Glue

 

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

Animal and Habitat Statues
Use a drum, percussion instrument, or clapping to establish that students will form statues in response to a single beat and then relax out of the statues in response to a double beat.  Remind students that statues do not move, but that they must allow themselves to breathe and blink.  Provide a series of prompts of animals and habitats that fit with the lesson, e.g., parrot, cheetah, lizard, butterfly, owl, etc.; and rainforest, desert, tundra, prairie, etc.  Use observational language to comment on specific physical choices that students make to create their statues (e.g., “I see that Caitlyn has her chest low like a stalking leopard,” or “Donté’s arms are straight back like a grasshopper’s wings.”

 

Work Session

Number Statues

  • Define and discuss camouflage.  Show examples of camouflage from the natural world.
  • Introduce the concept of camouflage in the classroom.  Model by looking for colors and patterns that mirror your own clothes.  Find a place in the classroom where you can approximate blending in.  Prompt students to say, “Where’s Ms. _______?  We can’t see her!”
  • Discuss how, in theatre, television, and film, costume and set designers make intentional choices about costumes and sets used in the production.  Explain that students are going to be like designers, making choices based on colors, shapes, and patterns in the given costumes and settings in the classroom.
  • Invite a volunteer or two to step up.  Have the class identify colors, shapes, and patterns both on the volunteers and around the classroom, and brainstorm ideas for the volunteers to camouflage themselves in the classroom.
  • Model being a predator, looking for prey (the volunteers), and passing them by because they blend into their surroundings.
  • Have students partner up and work together to identify camouflage opportunities for each; when each is camouflaged, have the other act like a deceived predator.
  • Have volunteers share examples of the camouflage opportunities they found around the classroom.
  • Define mimicry; share examples (visual and perhaps aural) from the natural world.
  • Remind students about the roles of designers; explain that they will use simple materials to create external adaptations to mimic other organisms (classmates).
  • Model with construction paper, scissors, and glue.  Select a student to mimic, and use the supplies to quickly create a ‘costume’ piece that mimics what that student is wearing.  Have the student come up and make a random sound.  Stand by the student with the costume piece, and mimic the sound.  Have the class say, “Look, it’s two ______s!”  (i.e., if standing next to and mimicking Tyler, the class says “Look, it’s two Tylers!”).
  • Discuss mimicry as a form of flattery, and impress upon the students that the activity should not be used in order to mock, tease, taunt, make fun of, or bully others.  
  • Have students use materials to create a costume piece to mimic other students’ visual appearance – primarily costuming, but hair is also a possibility.
  • Once students have created their pieces, invite volunteers to come to the front, and invite the classmates on whom they based their mimicry. Have the model make a sound, and have the mimic stand beside them and mimic the sound.  Have the class say, “Listen!  Look!  It’s two ______’s!”
  • Remind students that they worked together to understand mimicry, and have students thank each other for the honor of both mimicking and being mimicked.

 

Closing Reflection

Discuss:  How did we use elements of costume and set design – color, shape, and pattern – to bring camouflage and mimicry to life in our classroom ‘habitat.’

Students will draw a picture of themselves demonstrating camouflage or mimicry in the classroom. Identify the image as an example of either camouflage or mimicry.  Identify the areas and objects in the classroom that were used for camouflage or the classmate on whom the mimicry was based.

 

Assessments

Formative

  • Observe student comprehension of camouflage and mimicry as they make artistic decisions in the lesson.
  • Observe how students use color, shape, and pattern to successfully create the effects of camouflage and mimicry.

 

Summative

Evaluate the student drawings for evidence of comprehension of camouflage and effective use of design concepts in the lesson activity.

 

Differentiation

Acceleration: For mimicry, have students pair up; have one create a distinctive sound and movement, and have the other mimic it as precisely as possible.

Remediation:  Lead a slow visual tour of the classroom as a class, identifying specific colors, shapes, and patterns, and making connections with individuals to provide ideas to be used for camouflage.

Allow students to adjust objects in the classroom environment to facilitate the camouflage effect.

Rather than mimicking one another, have all the students mimic the teacher.

*This integrated lesson provides differentiated ideas and activities for educators that are aligned to a sampling of standards. Standards referenced at the time of publishing may differ based on each state’s adoption of new standards.

Ideas contributed by: Barry Stewart Mann, MFA

Revised and copyright: August 2022 @ ArtsNOW

Module 3:
Rounding Roller Coasters

ROUNDING ROLLER COASTERS

Rounding Roller Coasters

Module Description

This project-based, arts integrated module will explore the mechanics of roller coasters. Students will review their understanding of place value and apply it to the concept of rounding whole numbers to the nearest 10 or 100 using design, engineering, and the performing arts. Students will design and build a roller coaster to model the concept of rounding. Students will label the roller coaster like a number line and demonstrate what happens when a marble is placed on various points. Designing the slope of the roller coaster will reinforce when the marble rolls forward “rounded up” or rolls backwards “rounded down” based on its pathway of movement. Students will then create a rap, cheer or song that expresses the specific number’s journey as it rounds to the nearest ten or hundred.

Learning Targets

“I Can…”

  • Apply my understanding of place value to the concept of rounding whole numbers
  • Determine when a multi-digit whole number should be rounded up and when it should be rounded down
  • Use materials to design and engineer a roller coaster that models the concept of rounding whole numbers to the nearest 10 or 100
  • Create a rap, cheer or song that expresses my overall understanding of the concept of rounding

Essential Questions

  • How can I design a roller coaster that models the concept of rounding multi-digit whole numbers to the nearest 10 and 100?
  • How does place value relate to rounding multi-digit whole numbers?

Curriculum Standards

GA Performance Standards:

3.NBT.A.1. Use place value understanding and properties of operations to perform multi-digit arithmetic.

  1. Use place value understanding to round whole numbers to the nearest 10 or 100.

National Standards:

CCSS.MATH.PRACTICE.MP1. Make sense of problems and persevere in solving them.

Arts Standards

GA Performance Standards:

VA3PR.3. Understands and applies media, techniques, and processes of three-dimensional works of art (sculpture) using tools and materials in a safe and appropriate manner to develop skills.

  1. Creates sculpture using a variety of methods (e.g. cutting, folding, found objects).

VA3C.2. Develops life skills through the study and production of art.

  1. Manages goals and time.
  2. Adapts to change.
  3. Works in teams.
  4. Guides and leads others.
  5. Directs own learning.
  6. Demonstrates persistence.

M3GM.5. Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines

  1. Create rhythmic motives to enhance literature.
  2. Compose rhythmic patterns in simple meter including quarter notes, quarter rests, half notes, paired eighth notes, and whole notes.
  3. Compose simple melodic patterns.
  4. Arrange rhythmic patterns creating simple forms and instrumentation.

National Standards:

Visual Arts

VA:Cr1.1.3. Elaborate on an imaginative idea. VA:Cr2.1.3. Create personally satisfying artwork using a variety of artistic processes and materials.

Content Vocabulary

  • Place value: The value of where the digit is in the number. Ex: In 352, the 5 is in the "tens" position, so it shows a value of 50.
  • Thousands place: One part out of 1,000 equal parts of a whole. Ex: In the decimal 56.781, 1 is in the thousandths place.
  • Hundreds place: One part out of 100 equal parts of a whole. Ex: In the decimal 2543.978, there are 7 hundredths.
  • Tens place: The value of where the digit is in the number. Ex: In 352, the 5 is in the "tens" position, so it shows a value of 50.
  • Ones place: The last or right digit. Ex: In 784, 4 is in the ones place.
  • Rounding: Making a number simpler but keeping its value close to what it was. The result is less accurate, but easier to use. Example: 73 rounded to the nearest ten is 70, because 73 is closer to 70 than to 80.
  • Whole number: A number without fractions or decimal parts.
  • Greater than: A symbol used to compare two numbers, with the greater number given first. Ex: 5 > 3 shows that 5 is greater than 3.
  • Less than: A symbol used to compare two numbers, with the lesser number given first. For example: 5 < 9 means 5 is less than 9.
  • Number line: A line with numbers placed in their correct position. Useful for addition and subtraction and showing relations between numbers.

Arts Vocabulary

Theatre Arts

  • Lyrics: The words of a song.
  • Tempo: This is the speed of the beat.
  • Rhythm: These are long and short sounds.
  • Design: To conceive and plan out in the mind.
  • Architecture: The art or science of building; specifically: the art or practice of designing and building structures and especially habitable ones.
  • Engineer: To lay out, construct, or manage as an engineer.
  • Mechanics: The practical application of mechanics to the design, construction, or operation of machines or tools.

Visual Arts

  • Form: Is a term used to describe three-dimensional artwork. Forms can be geometric or organic. Three-dimensional art has volume, which is the amount of space occupied by the form. The form also has mass, which means that the volume is solid and occupies space.
  • Design process: A process that designers and engineers use to arrive at a solution: brainstorm, design, build, test, evaluate, and redesign.

http://www-tc.pbskids.org/designsquad/pdf/parentseducators/DS_TG_DesignProcess.pdf

Formative Assessment

  • Teacher anecdotal notes during small group collaboration when designing and engineering the roller coaster
  • Student’s experimentation with the marble and the roller coaster

Summative Assessment

  • Roller coaster design and creation (see Appendix for Design Process Rubric)
  • Song, cheer, or rap created that describes the design process and how it relates to rounding

Materials

Visual Arts/Design:
Marbles
Duct tape
Scrap cardboard, cardboard tubes
Plastic cups
Index cards
Black marker
Foam pipe insulation: each small group is given a 4-6 ft. long piece (cut tubing in half to create tracks) (http://www.homedepot.com/p/MD-Building-Products-3-8-in-x-3-4-in-x-6-ft-Tube-Pipe-Insulation-Kit-50150/100665768)

Theatre Arts:
Rubber Ball (light weight, size of basketball)

Theatre Arts and Visual Arts - Activating Strategy

Zip-Zap-Zop:

  • Place students in a circle.
  • One student passes the word “Zip” to another student by making eye contact and throwing the ball.
  • The student that catches the ball passes the word “Zap” to another student in the circle by making eye contact and throwing the ball.
  • The third student catches the ball and does the same thing with the word “Zop.”
  • It repeats again with three new players saying the phrase again.

Apply this game to rounding to the nearest ten:

  • The game works the same except this time the first person throwing the ball will call out a two digit number.
  • The student catching the ball must determine if the number should be rounded up or rounded down to the nearest ten by stating “round up!” or “round down!”
  • The third student catching the ball will do the actual rounding and then throw the ball to a new person giving the new person a new two digit number.

*This game could also be used to Round to the Nearest Hundred if time permits.

Main Activity

Part 1

  • Announce to the class that today we will be taking our understanding of rounding whole numbers to the nearest ten and hundred and applying it to designing roller coasters.
  • Review our prior knowledge of rounding and the rules of rounding whole numbers.
  • Watch the video of the roller coaster simulation. (see Additional Resources) Encourage students to count when on the slope so they begin to understand how the concept of rounding connects to the slope of a roller coaster.
  • Introduce students to the History of Roller Coasters, the engineering and problem solving that is present in the design. (see Additional Resources)
  • Introduce The Design Process to students. (see Additional Resources for handout)
  • Explain that the coaster design should express form and function (aesthetically pleasing and functional).

Part 2

  • Give directions on how we will work in small groups to design our own innovative roller coaster that models the concept of rounding.
  • Students are to work together to engineer their coaster.
  • Give each group a different multi-digit number (differentiate these numbers based on leveled groups).
  • Students are to use index cards, tape and black markers to label the coaster with a multi-digit starting and ending number determined after considering the number they are rounding up or down.
  • Model this for the whole group by drawing the roller coaster and labeling it. Ex: If you model the number 18 and you are rounding to the nearest ten, then the range of numbers labeled on the roller coaster track would be numbers 10-20. If your example is 127 and you are rounding to the nearest hundred, then the range of numbers would be 100-200 (labeling by tens: 110, 120, 130, etc.)

Part 3

  • Students will work in their small groups to design and engineer their roller coasters. Students should create a sketch of their design plan, labeling the parts and expressing the
    concept of rounding specific to their number.
  • Students will use foam pipe insulation, tape, cardboard and plastic cups to build an innovative coaster.
  • Students will label their coaster demonstrating the concept of rounding.
  • Students will test out the mechanics of their roller coaster by using a marble.
  • Encourage students to redesign if needed.

Reflection Questions

  • How did the roller coaster help you understand the concept of rounding?
  • How could we have used this same roller coaster to round to the nearest thousand or ten thousand?
  • What are you most proud of after completing this lesson?
  • If you could do this lesson again,what would you do differently?

Additional Resources & Extension Activities

Books:

  • Rounding Rescue, a Rounding Numbers Story by Eric Lostorto
  • Numbers Elementary: Rounding by Mike Shuck

Extensions:

  • Ask students to name their roller coaster and create a brand based on characteristics.
  • Ask students to write a story about the process of designing and creating as part of a team.
  • Ask students to describe the type of energy used in their coaster. Potential energy as energy at rest and Kinetic energy as energy in motion.

Appendix

  • Design Process Rubric

Grade 3:
Pollution Matters

POLLUTION MATTERS

Grade 3: Pollution Matters

Unit Description

Students will use theatre, music, movement, and the visual arts to observe, obtain, evaluate and communicate the effects of pollution on the environment. This unit uses The Lorax by Dr. Seuss to bring to life the causes and effects of various types of pollution on the environment and their ecosystems. Students will also strengthen their persuasive and descriptive writing skills throughout the projects in this “Pollution Matters” unit.

Unit Essential Question

How can we obtain, evaluate and communicate the effects of pollution on the environment?

Real World Context

We study the effects of pollution on the environment because it is in the world around us and affects our lives on a daily basis. Understanding the impact of pollution on our environment will help us make better decisions about our everyday choices as producers and consumers.

Cross-Cutting Interdisciplinary Concepts

Cause/Effect
Compare/Contrast

Projects

Project 1: Ego vs Eco
In this project, students will learn about air, water and land pollutants from around the world. Students will express how they feel emotionally about pollution through movement. They will respond to images addressing pollution using dance. The culminating activity for students is creating an environmental awareness brochure that synthesizes all of their knowledge around pollution.

Project 2: Good Garbage
In this project, students will examine the effects of pollution on the ecosystem in a musical way! This project includes students creating new lyrics to a song about pollution. Students step into role as lyricists and use music to help humans understand the causes and effects of pollution around them.

Project 3: The Lorax
In this project, students will listen to the story The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. Students will discuss the art elements they see in the text. They will sketch and use oil pastels to recreate their own scene analysis of the illustrations before and after the Onceler. Students will also relate to the changes of mood throughout the story. Students will then create a persuasive writing piece comparing and contrasting the Lorax’s habitat.

Project Essential Questions

PROJECT 1:

  • How does pollution affect people from different cultures in different ways?

PROJECT 2:

  • How can I use music to evaluate and communicate information about the effects of pollution on people and the environment?

PROJECT 3:

  • How can art be used to compare and contrast the land of the Lorax before and after the Onceler? How do you analyze the mood in a piece of artwork using key vocabulary?

Standards

Curriculum Standards
S3L2. Obtain, evaluate and communicate information about the effects of pollution (air, land, and water) and humans on the environment.
ELAGSE3W1: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.

  1. Introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that lists reasons. b. Provide reasons that support the opinion.
  2. Use linking words and phrases (e.g., because, therefore, since, for example) to connect opinion and reasons.
  3. Provide a concluding statement or section

ELAGSE3RI3: Describe the relationship between a series of historical events, scientific ideas or concepts, or steps in technical procedures in a text, using language that pertains to time, sequence, and cause/effect.

ELAGSE3RI6: Distinguish their own point of view from that of the author of a text

ELAGSE3RL5: Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza; describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.

Arts Standards

VA3AR.1: Discuss his or her artwork and the artwork of others.

VASAR.2: Uses a variety of approaches to understand and critique works of art.

D3CR.1: Demonstrates an understanding of creative and choreographic principles. processes and structures.

  1. Responds through movement to a variety of stimuli (eg. Literature, visual art, props)

D3CR.2: Demonstrates an understanding of dance as a way to communicate meaning.

  1. Uses a combination of improvisations and choreographic tools to create movement based on one’s own ideas, feelings, concepts and kinetics awareness

M3GM.1: Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

M3GM.5: Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines.

  1. Create rhythmic motives and enhance literature.
  2. Compose simple melodic patterns.
  3. Arrange rhythmic patterns creating simple forms and instrumentation.

TAES3.2: Developing scripts through improvisation and other theatrical methods

  1. Uses the playwriting process: pre-write/pre-play; prepare to write/plan dramatization; write; dramatize; reflect and edit; re-write/play; publish/perform
  2. Collaborates to generate story ideas
  3. Describes the elements of script writing; plot, setting, point of view, sequence of events, and cause and effect

TAES3.4: Designing and executing artistic and technical elements of theatre

  1. Uses technical theatre elements to design costumes, props, sets, sound and lighting
  2. Incorporates technical theatre elements such as costumes, props, sets, sound, lighting, into dramatizations

VA3PR.1 Creates artworks based on personal experience and selected themes.

  1. Creates artworks to express individual ideas, thoughts, and feelings from memory, imagination, and observation.
  2. Creates artworks emphasizing one or more elements of art (e.g., color, line, shape,form, texture).
  3. Creates art emphasizing one or more principles of design (balance, proportion, rhythm, emphasis, unity, contrast).
  4. Combines materials in new and inventive ways to make a finished work of art.

VA3PR.2 Understands and applies media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art processes (drawing, painting, printmaking, mixed-media) using tools and materials in a safe and appropriate manner to develop skills.

  1. Creates drawings with a variety of media (e.g., pencils, crayons, pastel).
  2. Draws lines with varied weights and in varied ways.
  3. Uses directional lines (vertical, horizontal, diagonal).
  4. Creates landscape with foreground, middle ground, background.
  5. Achieves distance through diminishing sizes and placement of objects higher on the page

VA3AR.1 Discusses his or her artwork and the artwork of others.

  1. Describes how size, colors, lines, shapes, and textures are organized in artwork to create a focus or center of interest (emphasis).
  2. Demonstrates a respect for art forms and art objects.
  3. Uses art terminology with emphasis on the elements of art: line, shape, form, color, space, texture.
  4. Uses art terminology with emphasis on the principles of design. (e.g., balance, proportion, rhythm, emphasis, unity, contrast).
  5. Recognizes that lines can be used to suggest movement, feelings, sounds, and ideas.
  6. Points to descriptive, directional, and expressive lines in artworks.
  7. Explains how texture (implied and actual) is used in two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional forms.
  8. Identifies intermediate and complementary colors, tints, and shades of colors.
  9. Recognizes value as the lightness and darkness of a color.
  10. Distinguishes between 2-D shapes and 3-D forms.
  11. Recognizes the division of picture plane into foreground, middle ground, and background.
  12. Describes how negative and positive space is related.
  13. Recognizes and compares symmetrical and asymmetrical balance in artworks.

Materials to be Purchased for this Unit

  • Science Weekly Newspapers
  • Post It brand chart paper
  • Clear Garbage bags
  • Black Ultra Fine Sharpies
  • Soft Chalk Pastels
  • Patel Card Paper
  • Light Filters or Color Transparencies
  • Flash Light
  • Spray Fixatives

Character Education

Components

Students can also create and share brochures with other students, school visitors, and/or grade levels to encourage environmental awareness. Students will collaborate with peers to create a variety of projects that educate others on the awareness of pollution and what they can do to limit the amount of garbage and pollution in the ecosystems around the world.

Character Attributes Addressed During Unit

  • Empathy
  • Learning with others
  • Environmental awareness
  • Respect

Summative Assessments

  • Pre/ Post Test

Partnering With Fine Arts Teachers

Music Teacher:

  • Can provide assistance to students with creating song documenting awareness of pollution
  • Help students select music to use with song lyric creation
  • Review Quaver program to assist students with composing music

Visual Arts/Drama Teacher:

  • Assist students with the process of text rendering when creating visual representations of art using the garbage collected
  • Discuss with students the elements of art (tone, mood, warm/cool colors) when analyzing a piece of art

Physical Education Teacher:

  • Teach students empathy by sharing a variety of movements that express a variety of emotions

Appendix (See Additional Resources)

  • Pre/ Post Test

Credits

Jill McNally, Alisa Moore, Julie Palmieri, Edited by Jessica Espinoza, Edited by Dr. Carla Cohen, Edited by Jessica Rosa

Ego vs. Eco

Description

In this project, students will learn about air, water and land pollutants from around the world. Students will express how they feel emotionally about pollution through movement. They will respond to images addressing pollution using dance. The culminating activity for students is creating an environmental awareness brochure that synthesizes all of their knowledge around pollution.

Learning Targets

“I Can…”

  • I can identify types of pollution around the world
  • I can analyze the effects that pollution has on human life
  • I can express feeling towards pollution using movement

Essential Questions

  • How does pollution affect people from different cultures in different ways?

Curriculum Standards

S3L2. Obtain, evaluate and communicate information about the effects of pollution (air, land, and water) and humans on the environment.

Arts Standards

D3CR.1: Demonstrates an understanding of creative and choreographic principles. processes and structures.

  1. Responds through movement to a variety of stimuli (eg. Literature, visual art, props)

D3CR.2: Demonstrates an understanding of dance as a way to communicate meaning.

  1. Uses a combination of improvisations and choreographic tools to create movement based on one’s own ideas, feelings, concepts and kinetics awareness

Content Vocabulary

  • Pollution
  • Reduce
  • Recycle
  • Reuse
  • Garbage
  • Litter
  • Smog
  • Smoke
  • Water Vapor
  • Acid Rain
  • Oil Spills
  • Run off
  • Pesticides
  • Fertilizers
  • Emission (ex: car, airplane)

Arts Vocabulary

  • Mood: emotion or feeling
  • Locomotive Movement: movement traveling through space
  • Non-locomotive movement: movement standing in one place
  • Body Levels: the plane in which your body is moving, including high, mid and low levels
  • Movement Pathways: the path a dancer travels through space, such as curved or straight

Technology Integration

Formative Assessment

  • Brainpop quiz: Effects of humans on the environment
  • Graphic organizer while watching video

Summative Assessment

  • Project 1 Rubric (See Downloads)

Materials

  • Microsoft SWAY program
  • Chart paper
  • Markers
  • Pollution Articles (located in Main Activity Part 2 below)
  • Computer/tablet for Padlet (if chosen)
  • Post it Notes
  • If doing extension, old t-shirts

Activating Strategy (5-10 min)

  • Students will view a slide show: https://sway.com/lT9ZpXuLI9nUt7Gy including images regarding pollution and discuss the images as a class.
  • After each slide, students will stop to interpret a movements to show how each image makes them feel. The teacher will ask students to explain their rationale for choosing each movement.

Main Activity

Part 1:

  • Introduce to students the concept of “Ego vs. Eco” (human advancement at the expense of nature vs. caring for the ecosystem): Use this website resource to explore/ research https://recyclingsutainabiliy4a.weebly.com/ego-vs-eco.html
  • Students will create digital journal entries on Padlet/Post it notes (teacher's choice) to explain possible causes of and solutions for pollution viewed in the images from the slideshow.

Part 2:

Part 3:

  • Student will create an environmental awareness brochure using six facts from the articles they have read and their science resources (books, texts, etc…). They must accurately use the science vocabulary in their persuasive video. A word bank will be provided from the class discussion.

Students will then summarize the project by answering the following questions:

  • How does pollution make us feel and why?
  • What is something new you learned about pollution while participating in this project?
  • How can we further reduce the amount of waste that we have?

*Extension activity to create a reusable shopping bag by recycling an old t-shirt- instructions provided in the link below. http://www.scatteredthoughtsofacraftymom.com/2015/09/how-to-make-tote-bag-from-t-shirt-no-sewing.html/2

Reflection Questions

  • Name the different types of pollution you saw and describe the effects it has on our world.
  • How does it make you feel seeing pollution around the world?
  • Where have you seen pollution in your own environment?
  • What could you do to help the environment? Can your family do anything together to positively impact the environment?

Differentiation

Below Grade Level:

  • Provide sentence starters for students’ journal entry writing.
  • Provide a template for the brochure.
  • Allow for peer tutor and pairings.

Above Grade Level:

  • Turn and talk with partners: How would you feel if you were in the same situation or you were in that environment?
  • In partners, what do you think caused the pollution in the environment? Come up with possible solutions.
  • Create electronic brochure in Microsoft Word with template and share within Office 365.

EL Students:

  • Include picture support on the vocabulary anchor.
  • Allow students to copy their articles into Microsoft Word Online and use the “Immersive Reader” feature to hear their articles read aloud. (Office365 Student Account>Word Document Online>View>Immersive Reader)
  • Provide sentence starters for students’ journal entry writing. Use first language support to clarify unknown academic vocabulary.
  • Provide a template for the brochure.

Additional Resources

Appendix

  • Rubric for Project 1

Credits

Pollution Matters

Description

In this project, students will examine the effects of pollution on the ecosystem in a musical way! This project includes students creating new lyrics to a song about pollution. Students step into role as lyricists and use music to help humans understand the causes and effects of pollution around them.

Learning Targets

“I Can…”

  • Write song lyrics that explain the various types of pollution
  • Create an adaptation for a song that relates to pollution and its effects on the environment
  • Rehearse and Perform a song for an audience

Essential Questions

  • How can I use music to evaluate and communicate information about the effects of pollution on people and the environment?

Curriculum Standards

S3L2. Obtain, evaluate and communicate information about the effects of pollution (air, land, and water) and humans on the environment.

ELAGSE3RI6: Distinguish their own point of view from that of the author of a text

Arts Standards

M3GM.1: Singing, alone and with others, a varied repertoire of music.

M3GM.5: Composing and arranging music within specified guidelines.

  1. Create rhythmic motives and enhance literature.
  2. Compose simple melodic patterns.
  3. Arrange rhythmic patterns creating simple forms and instrumentation.

Content Vocabulary

  • Garbage
  • Pollution
  • Compost
  • Biodegradable/non-biodegradable
  • Reduce, reuse, recycle
  • Conservation

Arts Vocabulary

  • Lyrics: the words of a song
  • Verse: writing arranged with a metrical rhythm, typically having a rhyme
  • Chorus: writing arrangement that is a repeated section of a song
  • Genre: category of a musical composition such as a rap, ballad, etc...

Technology Integration

Formative Assessment

  • Teacher will check for appropriate usage of unit vocabulary through their song writing.

Summative Assessment

  • Project 2 Rubric (See Downloads)

Materials

  • Recycled materials
  • Computer/tablet if using padlet
  • Post it Notes
  • Science journals

Activating Strategy (5-10 min)

  • Review the list Suggested Collected Items (See Downloads) and find 5-6 items to bring into the classroom. With the class, use Padlet (www.padlet.com) to generate ideas with the class on how we can reuse the items.
  • In whole group, use Footprint calculator and discuss their reactions and how their footprint can be improved.

Footprint Calculator website – http://www.carbonfootprint.com/calculator.aspx http://web.stanford.edu/group/inquiry2insight/cgi-bin/i2sea-r2b/i2s.php?page=iscfc#

Main Activity

Part 1:

  • Watch YouTube Video: “Good Garbage” (https://youtu.be/GXSBHlLdboQ). Discuss in whole group vocabulary such as compost, biodegradable/non-biodegradable, recycle, reuse and reduce.
  • As a whole group, discuss the author’s purpose of writing the song. Why is it catchy? Discuss the rhythm, chorus, verse, rhyme, alliteration, stanza, poems, etc.
  • As a whole group, discuss well-known songs that students may like to use to create/write a class pollution song. Students will create a chorus for a new pollution song. Discuss the elements of the song in relation to the ELA standards main idea and supporting details. Separate into 4 groups and have students create verses for the four categories: air, land, water and conservation.

    *Strategically assign your students to homogenous groups.

Part 2:

  • Review “Good Garbage” song in whole group.
  • Have the students revise or edit their assigned part for their song.
  • Come up with music for the class song using Quaver or GarageBand.

*Extension: Students can also create their own instruments to create their music for their group’s songs.

Reflection Questions

  • What was the author’s purpose for writing the song?
  • What is the main idea? What are the details in the song?
  • How does the tone of the song make you feel?

Differentiation

Below Grade Level:

  • Provide students with the lyrics from the “Good Garbage” song to use as a model for writing their verses including sentence frames and a word bank.

Above Grade Level:

  • Students will create their own version of a pollution song.

EL Students:

  • Have students choose 3-5 key vocabulary words from the vocabulary list generated in project one to include in their verse.
  • Provide all EL students with the lyrics from the “Good Garbage” song to use as a model for writing their verses.

Additional Resources

Appendix

  • Rubric for Project 2
  • Suggested Collected Items

Credits

The Lorax

Description

In this project, students will listen to the story The Lorax by Dr. Seuss. Students will discuss the art elements they see in the text. They will sketch and use oil pastels to recreate their own scene analysis of the illustrations before and after the Onceler. Students will also relate to the changes of mood throughout the story. Students will then create a persuasive writing piece comparing and contrasting the Lorax’s habitat.

Learning Targets

“I Can…”

  • Create a persuasive piece to compare and contrast the scenes in the Lorax’s habitat before and after the Onceler
  • Create a piece of art that shows the cause and effect of the pollution that occurred in the Lorax

Essential Questions

  • How can art be used to compare and contrast the land of the Lorax before and after the Onceler?
  • How do you analyze the mood in a piece of artwork using key vocabulary?

Curriculum Standards

S3L2. Obtain, evaluate and communicate information about the effects of pollution (air, land, and water) and humans on the environment.

ELAGSE3RI6: Distinguish their own point of view from that of the author of a text

ELAGSE3RL5: Refer to parts of stories, dramas, and poems when writing or speaking about a text using terms such as chapter, scene, and stanza; describe how each successive part builds on earlier sections.

Arts Standards

TAES3.4: Designing and executing artistic and technical elements of theatre

  1. Uses technical theatre elements to design costumes, props, sets, sound and lighting
  2. Incorporates technical theatre elements such as costumes, props, sets, sound, lighting, into dramatizations

VA3PR.1 Creates artworks based on personal experience and selected themes.

  1. Creates artworks to express individual ideas, thoughts, and feelings from memory, imagination, and observation.
  2. Creates artworks emphasizing one or more elements of art (e.g., color, line, shape,form, texture).
  3. Creates art emphasizing one or more principles of design (balance, proportion, rhythm, emphasis, unity, contrast).
  4. Combines materials in new and inventive ways to make a finished work of art.

VA3PR.2 Understands and applies media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art processes (drawing, painting, printmaking, mixed-media) using tools and materials in a safe and appropriate manner to develop skills.

  1. Creates drawings with a variety of media (e.g., pencils, crayons, pastel).
  2. Draws lines with varied weights and in varied ways.
  3. Uses directional lines (vertical, horizontal, diagonal).
  4. Creates landscape with foreground, middle ground, background.
  5. Achieves distance through diminishing sizes and placement of objects higher on the page

VA3AR.1 Discusses his or her artwork and the artwork of others.

  1. Describes how size, colors, lines, shapes, and textures are organized in artwork to create a focus or center of interest (emphasis).
  2. Demonstrates a respect for art forms and art objects.
  3. Uses art terminology with emphasis on the elements of art: line, shape, form, color, space, texture.
  4. Uses art terminology with emphasis on the principles of design. (e.g., balance, proportion, rhythm, emphasis, unity, contrast).
  5. Recognizes that lines can be used to suggest movement, feelings, sounds, and ideas.
  6. Points to descriptive, directional, and expressive lines in artworks.
  7. Explains how texture (implied and actual) is used in two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional forms.
  8. Identifies intermediate and complementary colors, tints, and shades of colors.
  9. Recognizes value as the lightness and darkness of a color.
  10. Distinguishes between 2-D shapes and 3-D forms.
  11. Recognizes the division of picture plane into foreground, middle ground, and background.
  12. Describes how negative and positive space is related.
  13. Recognizes and compares symmetrical and asymmetrical balance in artworks.

Content Vocabulary

  • Compare/Contrast
  • Cause and Effect
  • Pollution
  • Conservation
  • Environment
  • Air Pollution
  • Land Pollution
  • Water Pollution

Arts Vocabulary

  • Lines: an identifiable path created by a point moving in space; can vary in width, direction, and length; Lines can be horizontal, vertical, or diagonal, straight or curved, thick or thin
  • Color: the element of art that is produced when light, striking an object, is reflected back to the eye
  • Shape: a flat, enclosed area of an artwork created through lines, textures, colours or an area enclosed by other shapes
  • Form: refer to a three-dimensional composition or object within a three-dimensional composition
  • Texture: the perceived surface quality of a work of art
  • Shade: created when only black is added to a hue. This results in a rich, often more intense and darker color
  • Warm colors: such as red, yellow, and orange; evoke warmth because they remind us of things like the sun or fire
  • Cool colors: such as blue, green, and purple (violet); evoke a cool feeling because they remind us of things like water or grass
  • Proportion: concerned with the scale and size of an object (a whole) in relationship to another object (another whole)
  • Contrast: a principle of art, referring to the arrangement of opposite elements (light vs. dark colors, rough vs. smooth textures, large vs. small shapes, etc...

Technology Integration

Formative Assessment

  • Teacher will observe the students for the understanding of appropriate usage of unit vocabulary through their persuasive writing.

Summative Assessment

  • Project 3 Rubric (See Downloads)
  • Persuasive Writing Piece

Materials

  • The Lorax Book- eBook
  • Pastel Card paper
  • Black Sharpies
  • Pencils
  • Pastels
  • Fixatives (after drawing is complete- Spray and let dry so pastel does not smuge)
  • Loose-leaf paper for writing piece

Activating Strategy (5-10 min)

  • Read and listen to the first half of the eBook of The Lorax by Dr. Seuss.

Main Activity

Part 1:

  • After the first half of The Lorax with the students, discuss as a group the art elements they saw while reading.
  • Use this The Lorax movie clip to help with recalling the mood of the “beginning” part: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P1j_DThGI9M&feature=youtu.be
  • Students will fold paper in half. (landscape) Label “Before the Onceler” on the left hand side of the paper with center adjustment and “After the Onceler” on the right hand side of the paper with center adjustment.
  • Then they will lightly sketch the horizon line, the foreground and the background on both sides of the paper. Once the students sketch, they will use the black sharpies to outline their drawings.
  • Students will then use oil pastels to recreate the before scene. This will be where the colors are warm. Remind students to include the characters: Barbaloot Bears, Truffala trees, Hummingfish, and Swammie Swams.

Part 2:

  • Read the second half of The Lorax with the students. Discuss as a group the art elements they saw while reading the second half of the story.
  • Use this movie clip to help with recalling the mood of the “ending” part: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1jpKTYmIzA&feature=youtu.be
  • Students will then use oil pastels to recreate the “After the Onceler” scene. Remind students to think about how many characters have vanished from the setting. How did the colors change? What happened to the Truffla trees?
  • In whole group, teacher will lead a discussion referring to theatrical set rendering. Using the illustrations that the student created we can discuss how a set might be designed and assembled in a theatrical performance.
  • Use a sample drawing of the scene done in black and white and have the students experiment with a flashlight and colored light filters to recreate the mood of their illustration as a model of the set.

Part 3:

  • To conclude the project, in whole group, discuss the point of view from the main characters (Onceler/ Lorax). Have students pair up and recreate a quick conversation between the characters. Point of view must be clearly identified and supported.
  • Students will then create their own persuasive writing piece using their Suess inspired illustration picture to compare and contrast the Lorax’s habitat before and after the Onceler.

Extension Activity: Discuss the artist Vik Munez. Use the pictures attached to discuss his artwork and what inspires him. Students will be able to create their own art pieces using garbage collected.
http://time.com/3775724/portraits-with-purpose-vik-muniz-in-waste-land/

Reflection Questions

  • How does the Land of the Lifted Lorax compare after the Onceler?
  • How would you describe the mood of the scene before and after the Onceler?
  • What was the main cause of the destruction to the Land of the Lifted Lorax?

Differentiation

Below Grade Level:

  • Folded paper available and provide pencil sketch of background, foreground and horizon line.
  • Provide sentence starters for students. Include a visual word bank for additional support.

Above Grade Level:

  • Third Panel of the storyboard with the possibly of the UNLESS scene and how they think it would look (possible outcomes, new small plants growing, grass beginning to grow again etc…).

EL Students:

  • Make sure to use the ebook link provided below because it has the words to the story along with the pictures.

Additional Resources

Appendix

  • Rubric for Project 3

Credits

Grade 3: Pollution Matters

Additional Resources

Websites

Suggested Books

  • The Lorax by Dr. Seuss

Additional Videos

Scientific Sketching