Exploring Adjectives Through Art and Creative Writing

EXPLORING ADJECTIVES THROUGH ART AND CREATIVE WRITING

EXPLORING ADJECTIVES THROUGH ART AND CREATIVE WRITING

Learning Description

Describing artwork can be a great way to help students use more adjectives!  Adjectives support students in using descriptive language to create interesting and unique stories. In this lesson students will have the opportunity to do both!

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: K-1
CONTENT FOCUS: VISUAL ARTS & ELA
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can use adjectives to describe a piece of art.
  • I can use art as an inspiration to write a creative story.

Essential Questions

  • How can adjectives help me describe a piece of art? 
  • How can art stimulate my imagination and help me write a creative story?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Kindergarten:

ELAKR6 The student gains meaning from orally presented text.  

ELAKW1 The student begins to understand the principles of writing. 

ELAKW2 The student begins to write in a variety of genres, including narrative, informational, persuasive, and response to literature.  

ELAKLSV1 The student uses oral and visual skills to communicate.  

Grade 1:

ELA1R6 The student uses a variety of strategies to understand and gain meaning from grade-level text. 

  1. Recognizes and uses graphic features        

and graphic organizers to understand text. 

ELA1W2 The student writes in a variety of genres, including narrative, informational, persuasive and response to literature.

ELA1LSV1 The student uses oral and visual strategies to communicate. 

Grade 2: 

ELA2R4 The student uses a variety of strategies to gain meaning from grade-level text. 

ELA2W2 The student writes in a variety of genres, including narrative, informational, persuasive, and response to literature.  

ELA2LSV1 The student uses oral and visual strategies to communicate. 

Arts Standards

Kindergarten:

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

VAK.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes. a. Create works of art emphasizing one or more elements of art and/or principles of design. 

VAK.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art. e. Develop manual dexterity to develop fine motor skills. 

VAK.MC.3: Selects and uses subject matter, symbols, and/or ideas to communicate meaning. 

VAK.PR.1 Participate in appropriate exhibition(s) of works of art to develop identity of self as artist. 

Grade 1:

VA1.CR.1 Engage in the creative process to generate and visualize ideas by using subject matter and symbols to communicate meaning.

VA1.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes. a. Create works of art emphasizing one or more elements of art and/or principles of design. 

  1. Create works of art that attempt to fill the space in an art composition.

VA1.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art. 

  1. Explore spatial relationships.

VA1MC.3: Selects and uses subject matter, symbols, and ideas to communicate meaning. 

VA1.PR.1 Participate in appropriate exhibition(s) of works of art to develop identity of self as artist.

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Kindergarten:

K.W.MCC.3.1 3.1 Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to narrate a single event or several loosely linked events, to tell about the events in the order in which they occurred, and to provide a reaction to what happened.

K.W.L.4.5 With guidance and support, use adjectives.

K.W.MC.1.4 Participate in conversations with varied partners about focused grade level topics and texts in small and large groups.

Grade 1:

1.W.MCC.3.1  Explore multiple texts to write narratives that recount two or more sequenced events, include details, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure. 

1.W.L.4.5 Use adjectives and adverbs.

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

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

Narrative - A story or sequence of events and experiences. 

Adjective - Words that describe or modify another person or thing in the sentence. 

Illustration - A picture or diagram that helps make something clear or attractive. 

Arts Vocabulary

Line - A mark made by a pointed tool such as a brush, pen, or stick; a moving point

Color - One of the seven elements of art; it is created by light. There are three properties of color: Hue (name), value (shades and tints), and intensity (brightness)

Shape - A flat, enclosed area that has two dimensions, length and width

Texture - Describes the feel of an actual surface

 

Materials

  • Picture of artwork 
  • Pencil 
  • Paper 
  • Colored pencils/crayons/markers

 

Instructional Design

Opening/Activating Strategy

Project an image. In pairs, have students identify 10 things that they see in the image. Have students switch pairs and identify 10 more things that they see. Repeat one final time.  Reflect with the students on how the task became more difficult with each round.  Point out some examples in rounds 2 and 3 in which students began to include more detail, describing the attributes of what they saw (using adjectives).

 

Work Session

Process 

  • Start the lesson by reviewing adjectives. Using the image from the activator, name a few adjectives that can be seen in the image. Focus adjectives around the elements of art - color, types of lines and shapes, and texture.
  • Show students a work of art or illustration from a story. The illustration should be vivid and colorful if possible (not abstract). This will help the students identify many adjectives to use in describing the image. 
  • Older students will write their adjective on a sticky note. The teacher will ask students to take turns sharing their adjectives that describe the artwork. Students will place the sticky note on the board next to the image of the artwork. They will share where they see the adjective in the artwork when it’s their turn to put their sticky note on the board. For younger students, have them take turns coming up to the board and pointing out where they see the adjective that they used to describe the artwork. The teacher can write these words on the board. 
  • Next, have the students close their eyes and imagine what is happening in the picture. Ask the students the following questions to guide their imagination. 
    • Who are the people or objects in the artwork? 
    • What are the characters doing in the image? 
    • Where are the characters going? 
    • When did this happen? 
    • Have the students focus on Who, What, When, and Why as they will have to use their creativity and imagination to write a creative story using the artwork as a starting point. 
  • Explain that students will be writing a story based on the artwork. Students will fill out a graphic organizer to plan their story. Set a minimum number of adjectives that students should include in their story to make the story more interesting and capture the readers’ interest. 
  • Students will then generate drawings of their own to illustrate their stories.

Closing Reflection

Have students engage in small group story time. Students will share their stories and illustrations with each other. Students should use adjectives to describe each other’s stories and illustrations.

 

Assessments

Formative

  • Check for understanding through student discussion of artwork using adjectives and explaining where students see them. 
  • Creative story planning graphic organizer

 

Summative

Students will demonstrate mastery of learning concepts through their illustrations and creative stories based on original artwork.

 

Acceleration: 

Gifted Modifications and Extensions:  Follow steps 1-3 of the original lesson and then finish the lesson with these modifications: Give students a series of adjectives and have them create their own piece of artwork. When done creating their artwork, have the students close their eyes and imagine what is happening in the picture. They will then write an imaginative writing piece answering the questions who, what, when and where in their writing.  

Remediation: 

Follow steps 1 and 2. Next, using a graphic organizer, work as a group to name adjectives that describe the picture. Invite students to use the adjectives as they write or dictate sentences about the picture. 

*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: Greg Sena. Modifications, Extensions, and Adaptations Contributed by:  Peggy Barnes, Candy Bennett, Lindsey Elrod, Jennifer Plummer, and Vilma Thomas.  Reviewed by Debbie Frost. Updated by Susie Spear Purcell and Katy Betts

Revised and copyright:  August 2022 @ ArtsNOW

Back to Modules

Exploring Organisms with Crayon-resist Painting

EXPLORING ORGANISMS WITH CRAYON-RESIST PAINTING

EXPLORING ORGANISMS WITH CRAYON-RESIST PAINTING

Learning Description

Discover the world of organisms as students explore an art-making technique known as crayon-resist painting. Students will demonstrate their understanding of organisms, their structures and their needs through this unique style of painting.

 

Learning Targets

GRADE BAND: K-1
CONTENT FOCUS: Visual Arts & Science
LESSON DOWNLOADS:

Download PDF of this Lesson

"I Can" Statements

“I Can…”

  • I can sort organisms into groups
  • I can identify similarities and differences between different types of organisms.
  • I can create a watercolor-resist painting that visually demonstrates an organism of my choice.

Essential Questions

  • What are the types of organisms?
  • How are organisms visually similar and different?

 

Georgia Standards

Curriculum Standards

Kindergarten:

SKL2: Students will compare the similarities and differences in groups of organisms.  a. Explain the similarities and differences in animals. (Color, size, appearance, etc.)  b. Explain the similarities and differences in plants. (Color, size, appearance, etc.)  

 

Grade 1: 

S1L1: Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the basic needs of plants and animals.a. Develop models to identify the parts of a plant—root, stem, leaf, and flower.

  1. Ask questions to compare and contrast the basic needs of plants (air, water, light, and nutrients) and animals (air, water, food, and shelter).

Arts Standards

Kindergarten:

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

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

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

 

Grade 1: 

VA1.CR.1 Engage in the creative process to generate and visualize ideas by using subject matter and symbols to communicate meaning. 

VA1.CR.2 Create works of art based on selected themes. 

VA1.CR.3 Understand and apply media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional art.

 

 

 

South Carolina Standards

Curriculum Standards

Kindergarten: 

Standard K.L.2: The student will demonstrate an understanding of organisms found in the environment and how these organisms depend on the environment to meet those needs. 

 

Grade 1: 

Standard 1.L.5: The student will demonstrate an understanding of how the structures of plants help them survive and grow in their environments.

 

 

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 7: I can relate visual arts ideas to other arts disciplines, content areas, and careers.

 

 

Key Vocabulary

Content Vocabulary

  • Plant - Any member of the kingdom Plantae, comprising multicellular organisms that typically produce their own food from inorganic matter by the process of photosynthesis 
  • Animal - Any member of the kingdom Animalia, comprising multicellular organisms that have a well-defined shape and usually limited growth, can move voluntarily, actively acquire food and digest it internally, and have sensory and nervous systems that allow them to respond rapidly to stimuli
  • Organism - Any individual living entity that can carry out life processes independently

Arts Vocabulary

  • Crayon-resist - The process of using an oil-based crayon or pastel as a drawing tool prior to covering with watercolor paint
  • Watercolor wash - A layer of watercolor that completely covers a surface and is translucent
  • Line - One of the seven Elements of Art; it is a mark made by a pointed tool such as a brush, pen or stick; a moving point
  • Shape - One of the seven Elements of Art; it is a flat, enclosed area that has two dimensions, length and width; artists use both geometric and organic shapes
  • Space - How the Elements of Art are organized in an artwork; it is used to create the illusion of depth; space can be two-dimensional, three-dimensional, negative and/or positive
  • Contrast - An arrangement of opposite elements in a composition to create visual interest

 

Materials

    • Crayons (or oil pastels)
    • Watercolor paints 
    • Soft paint brushes 
    • Water cups 
    • Paper towels
    • Images of plants and animals 
    • Bristol board paper or watercolor paper
    • Digital artwork of Henri Rousseau  
    • Index card or small piece of blank paper
    • Pencils

     

     

    Instructional Design

    Opening/Activating Strategy

    • Students will draw their favorite type of animal on an index card. This should be a quick drawing. Ask a few students to share what their favorite animal is and why.
    • Ask a student to remind the class what an organism is. Explain that the animal that students drew is a type of organism.

     

    Work Session

      PRE-WORK: 

      • Have pictures of a plant and tree and two different types of animals for students to compare and contrast.
      • Create labels for types of organisms and post them on the walls.
      • Have pictures of the artwork of Henri Rousseau ready to show students.

       

      WORK SESSION: 

      • Begin by asking students to identify groups of organisms. 
        • Write them on the board. Under each type, ask students to list types of organisms that one could find in these groups.
        • Facilitate a discussion by asking students to discuss similarities and differences that may be found within these groups.  
      • Display a visual of a plant and a tree. 
        • Ask students to make the shape of a plant or tree with their arms. 
        • Then ask students to identify how the two organisms are similar and different. 
        • Next, display visuals of two animals and ask the same question. 
        • Discuss lines, shape and color of the different organisms.
        • Tell students that they are going to create a painting of an organism.  
      • Introduce the artwork of Henri Rousseau, folk artist, to students. 
        • Ask students to identify the organisms they recognize in the paintings.
        • Discuss similarities and differences between the organisms.   
      • Leaving the visuals projected for students to see, have students make a sketch of one of the organisms on a sheet of tag board or watercolor paper.
        Grade 1: Students should select a plant and focus on portraying how the structures of plants help them survive and grow in their environments and the needs of a plant.
        • Encourage students to use the whole page.
        • Using crayons, have students color in their picture going over all pencil lines. 
      • Introduce the process of crayon-resist painting and demonstrate the technique by drawing with crayons before applying wet watercolor wash on top.
        • Students will follow the teacher's example by painting on top of their crayon drawings using a “wash” technique with watercolor paints. The crayon will “resist” the watercolor.
        • Encourage students to use a contrasting color to the ones they used in their crayon drawing so that their artwork will stand out. This will create contrast and emphasis.

       

      Closing Reflection

      • Ask students to sort their artwork into categories of organisms by taping their artwork under the label of their group of organisms posted around the room.
      • Finally, students will discuss similarities and differences that can be observed between the groups of organisms depicted.

      Assessments

      Formative

      Teachers will assess students’ understanding by observing the discussion of the characteristics of groups and types of organisms and students’ ability to compare and contrast groups and types of organisms.

       

       

      Summative

      CHECKLIST: 

      • Students can sort organisms into groups.
      • Students can identify similarities and differences between different types of organisms.
      • Students can create a watercolor-resist painting that visually demonstrates an organism.

       

       

       

      Differentiation

      Acceleration:

      • Students will create a crayon-resist painting showing the needs of their chosen organism (water, light, etc.).
      • Students can write a description of their organism to accompany their artwork.

       

      Remediation:

      • Reduce the number of images of Rousseau’s artwork. Help the student label at least three organisms they can see in the painting. Ask the student to select one of the three organisms to draw.

       

      •  

       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: Darby Jones and Debi West. Updated by Debi West and Katy Betts.

      Revised and copyright:  May 2024 @ ArtsNOW

       

       
      Back to Modules

      Collaborative Kandinsky

      COLLABORATIVE KANDINSKY

      Collaborative Kandinsky

      Learning Description

      Students will review some of Kandinsky’s works to find shapes. Students will create a collaborative piece of art using shapes and lines that is inspired by the artwork of Wassily Kandinsky.

       

      Learning Targets

      GRADE BAND: K-1
      CONTENT FOCUS: Math
      LESSON DOWNLOADS:

      Download PDF of this Lesson

      "I Can" Statements

      “I Can…”

      • I can identify different types of shapes and lines.
      • I can use different types of shapes and lines to create an original artwork.

      Essential Questions

      • How can you utilize visual images to learn math concepts?
      • How can you create an original work of art using a variety of shapes and lines?

       

      Georgia Standards

      Curriculum Standards

      Kindergarten: 

      K.GSR.8 Identify, describe, and compare basic shapes encountered in the environment, and form two-dimensional shapes and three-dimensional figures.

      Grade 1: 

      1.GSR.4 Compose shapes, analyze the attributes of shapes, and relate their parts to the whole.

      1.GSR.4.1 Identify common two dimensional shapes and three dimensional figures, sort and classify them by their attributes and build and draw shapes that possess defining attributes.

      1.GSR.4.2 Compose two-dimensional shapes (rectangles, squares, triangles, half-circles, and quarter-circles) and three dimensional figures (cubes, rectangular prisms, cones, and cylinders) to create a shape formed of two or more common shapes and compose new shapes from the composite shape.

      Arts Standards

      Kindergarten: 

      VAKMC.3 Selects and uses subject matter, symbols, and/or ideas to communicate meaning. 

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

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

      VAKAR.1 Discusses his or her own artwork and the artwork of others. 

      Grade 1:

      VA1MC.3 Selects and uses subject matter, symbols, and ideas to communicate meaning. 

      VA1PR.1 Creates artworks based on personal experience and selected themes. 

      VA1PR.2 Understands and applies media, techniques, and processes of two-dimensional works of art (drawing, painting, printmaking, mixed media) using tools and materials in a safe and appropriate manner to develop skills. 

      VA1AR.1: Discusses his or her artwork and the artwork of others.

       

      South Carolina Standards

      Curriculum Standards

      Grade 1:

      1.NSBT.1.c. Read, write and represent numbers to 100 using concrete models, standard form, and equations in expanded form1.NSBT.4 Add through 99 using concrete models, drawings, and strategies based on place value to: a. add a two-digit number and a one-digit number, understanding that sometimes it is necessary to compose a ten (regroup)

      Arts Standards

      Grade 1:

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

       

      Key Vocabulary

      Content Vocabulary

      Place Value - The value of where the digit is in the number, such as units, tens, hundreds, etc.

      Arts Vocabulary

      Statue (Statues) - An actor frozen in a pose.

      Tableau (Tableaux) - A group of actors frozen to create a picture.

       

      Materials

      Plus (+) and equal (=) sign placards that can stand on the floor (one possibility – written with marker on an inverted file folder - or part thereof – and capable of standing like a tent).

       

      Instructional Design

      Opening/Activating Strategy

      Letter Statues
      Introduce or review what a statue is – an actor in a frozen pose. Explain that the students will make letter statues with their bodies. Call out one letter at a time and have them make the letters. Use a drum, another percussion instrument, or clapping to cue the statues. Encourage students to be creative, using full body, limbs, fingers, etc., and exploring the possibilities of standing, kneeling, sitting, lying down, etc., as appropriate for the classroom space. Use observational language to comment on the different ways in which students use their bodies to create the statues.

       

      Work Session

      Number Statues

      • Repeat the process with numbers (single digits). After exploring multiple possibilities, inform students that they will focus on making number statues that use their whole bodies, and for which they will remain standing. Practice standing number statues.
      • Ask students how they would make a statue of a number up to 100. Elicit from them, or guide them to, the idea of working in pairs or trios.
      • Introduce or review what a tableau is – a group of actors frozen in a picture. Explain that tableaux often create pictures with characters and settings, but the tableaux today will be of numbers and number sentences.
      • Invite two, and then three, volunteers to model creating a tableaux up to 100. Ask students what each digit in a multiple-digit number represents. Introduce or review the concept of place value. Ensure that students understand that the digit to the left represents a higher place value than the digit to the right, and identify the units: ones, tens, and hundreds places.
      • Have students work in pairs to create a 2-digit number tableau (full-body, standing). Have them work together to say the name of the number together out loud. After creating a number, have them switch positions and say the name of the number with the digits switched. Move among the pairs to confirm that they are expressing each number correctly.
      • If students have grasped the 2-digit numbers and are ready for 3-digit numbers, have them repeat the process in trios. Each trio can explore all the possibilities with their three digits (if the digits are all different, e.g., 1, 2, and 3, there will be six permutations: 123, 132, 213, 231, 312, 321.)
      • Introduce the idea of moving from number tableaux to addition sentence tableaux.
      • Invite three students to model a simple addition sentence tableau, e.g., 3 + 4 = 7. Have the students assume their positions, and then have them speak the sentence together. (Note: this is an opportunity, if relevant, to introduce or reinforce the Commutative Property of addition by having the addends switch places.)
      • Provide plus and equal sign tent cards and have students work in trios to create addition sentence tableaux.
      • Use the same process, first modeling and then having the students work in small groups, to move into more complex addition sentences: adding two 1-digit numbers that result in a 2-digit sum (e.g., 5 + 7 = 12), adding a 1- and a 2- digit number together, without and then with sums that require making a new ten (e.g., 31 + 7 = 38, and then 29 + 3 = 32), and then adding two 2-digit numbers, without and then with sums that require carrying to the tens and hundreds places (e.g., 45 + 12 = 57, then 24 + 19 = 43, then 74 + 38 = 112).

      Teaching Tips:

      • As appropriate to the class, use established addition strategies (counting on, making ten, etc.) to calculate sums, and advance only as far in the sequence of complexity as the class can manage.
      • This may be a lesson that is done over time. The first step may best be suited for when single digit addition is taught, then adding 2-digit addition as the concept is taught, and so on.

       

      Closing Reflection

      Ask students: How did you use your bodies to create letter and number statues and addition sentence tableaux? Which were more challenging, letter statues or number statues? How do we determine the name and value of a 2- or 3-digit number? How did you determine your place or role in the number sentence?

       

      Assessments

      Formative

      • Students will identify shapes and describe where they are in Kandinsky’s artwork through group discussion.
      • Students will be able to explain the difference between two-and three-dimensional shapes.

       

      Summative

      • Student collaborative artwork with required shapes and lines
      • Student scavenger hunt/checklist for closing/reflection

       

      Differentiation

      Acceleration: After the assessment, have the students practice combining two or more simple shapes to create a different shape.  Example:  You can combine two triangles to make a rectangle.

      Remediation: Provide students with a printed copy of the types of shapes as a visual guide. Provide a visual guide for the types of shapes and lines that the student is required to include in their part of the artwork.

       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: Carolynn Stoddard.  Updated by Katy Betts

       Revised and copyright:  August 2022 @ ArtsNOW

      Back to Modules

      Magic Rocks & Habitats 1-2

      MAGIC ROCKS & HABITATS

      MAGIC ROCKS & HABITATS

      Learning Description

      Students will explore using their voices and bodies to become animals from three distinct habitats, and then work in groups to enact interactions among the animals in their assigned habitat. They will become Magic Rocks, emerging from stillness to act their roles, and then returning to stillness. Group will share their simple habitat scenes with the class.

       

      Learning Targets

      GRADE BAND: K-2
      CONTENT FOCUS: SCIENCE & THEATRE
      LESSON DOWNLOADS:

      Download PDF of this Lesson

      "I Can" Statements

      “I Can…”

      • I can use my voice and body to enact an animal from a particular habitat.
      • I can work with a group to portray relationships among animals in a habitat.

      Essential Questions

      • How do we use our voices and bodies to enact diverse animals?
      • How do animals interact in a desert, rainforest, and tundra?

       

      Georgia Standards

      Curriculum Standards

      Grade 1:

      S1L1. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information about the basic needs of plants and animals.

      Arts Standards

      Grade 1:

      TA.PR.1 Act by communicating and sustaining roles in formal and informal environments.

       

      South Carolina Standards

      Curriculum Standards

      Grade 2:

      2.L.5B. Animals (including humans) require air, water, food, and shelter to survive in environments where these needs can be met. There are distinct environments in the world that support different types of animals. Environments can change slowly or quickly. Animals respond to these changes in different ways.

      Arts Standards

      Grade 1:

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

       

      Key Vocabulary

      Content Vocabulary

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

      Animal - a living organism that feeds on plants or other animals, has organs that sense what is going on around it, and is able to move and respond to its surroundings.

      Desert - an arid landscape with little vegetation.

      Tundra - a large, barren region with no trees found between the permanent ice of the far north and the northern forests of North America, Europe, and Asia.

      Rainforest - a lush, warm, wet habitats with tall trees and several layers of plant and animal life.

      Predator - an animal that hunts or preys on other animals for food.

      Prey - an animal hunted or killed by another animal for food.

      Parent - an animal that has had or given birth to offspring.

      Offspring - the child of an animal.

      Arts Vocabulary

      Act - to pretend to be or do something imaginaryCharacter - a person, or an animal or object that has human qualities, in a dramatic work.

      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.

      Scene - a unit of drama, composed of dialogue and action that occurs in one place over a continuous period of time.

       

      Materials

      Note cards of animals that can be found in the rainforest, desert and tundra (number of notecards is dependent on the number of students in the class). Each card should have a picture of the animal, the animal’s name, and the environment in which the animal lives.

       

      Instructional Design

      Opening/Activating Strategy

      Ask students, what are animals? What are plants? What is the difference? What makes an animal an animal, and what makes a plant a plant?

       

      Work Session

      Grouping Habitats and Animal Characters

      • Divide students into three groups. Assign each group one of three habitats: rainforest, desert, and tundra. Hand out note cards with the pictures, names, and habitats of various animals - e.g., the rainforest notecards might include a toucan, a black panther adult, a black panther cub, a tree frog and a monkey. Have students work in their groups to discuss their habitat, e.g., weather, plant life, land forms, other animals not featured, etc.
      • Students will explore using their voices and bodies to become their animal. Remind them that they are constrained by the limitations of the human body, but can use their imaginations. For safety, it is recommended that all animals be portrayed standing up on the floor, rather than crawling or slithering on the ground, or standing on chairs or desks.
      • Instruct the students to move through the space meeting other animals in character. The animals introduce themselves by showing their cards and saying their names and habitats. Remind them to use their character voices.

      Small Group Drama

      • Put the students in their habitat groups, and assign each group a separate area of the classroom. Then tell the students to lie on the ground curled up tight to become “magic rocks”. When given a cue (“Magic rocks, come to life!”), they should wake up and gradually become their animals using their voices and bodies. They can talk to the other animals in their habitat group from their character viewpoint, using details about their needs, their physical and behavioral characteristics, and the environment in which they live. A predator might talk about wanting to hunt its prey; an herbivore might talk about the plants it eats; a young animal might talk about its life cycle; two animals might discuss the aspects of their environment that are important to them (temperature, land surface, plant life, etc.). Note: Instruct students not to act out predator/prey relationship, i.e., no chasing or pretend-eating of classmates. These may be discussed, but not enacted.
      • Give students the cue to return to Magic Rocks (“Animals, return to Magic Rocks!”). Once they have become Magic Rocks, instruct them to become themselves again.
      • Give groups a chance to discuss their Drama and their interactions. Instruct them to shape a simple scene with some planned dialogue and actions. Give them a chance to practice their scene several times.
      • One at a time, each group presents their habitat scene to the class. Have them begin as Magic Rocks, come to life, become their animals, enact their dialogue and actions, and then settle back down into Magic Rocks. If necessary, Teacher may need to give a cue for the animals to become Magic Rocks again.

      Extension Activity: Have each student draw a picture of their habitat, showing all the animal characters they had in their group, and showing the relationships between them and their relationships to their environments. Remind them they can include aspects of the landscape, plants, water features, and elements of the weather.

      Closing Reflection

      Ask students: How did we use our voices and bodies to create animal characters? How did we make choices to act out the animals and their relationships?
      What did you learn about the three habitats? How are they alike and different?

       

      Assessments

      Formative

      • Students use both voice and bodily to become their animal character.
      • Students work together collaboratively in their groups.
      • Students use and apply knowledge in creating their animal characters and group knowledge.

       

      Summative

      • Student group dramas convey accurate interrelationships in their habitats.
      • Student drawings show accurate details about the animals, plants, and landscape of their assigned habitat.

       

      Differentiation

      Acceleration: Have groups write out the dialogue and actions of their group drama in scene format.

      Remediation: Choose one of the three habitats, and work through the sequence with the entire class together. Allow multiple students to portray the same animal character; they can work together to create their characterization.

       

      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 updated by:  Barry Stewart Mann

      Revised and copyright: January 2023 @ ArtsNOW

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      Mona Mesa What is Your Opinion 2-3

      MONA MESA: WHAT IS YOUR OPINION?

      MONA MESA: WHAT IS YOUR OPINION?

      Learning Description

      Students will look at the painting, the Mona Lisa, by Leonardo DaVinci and talk about what they see, think and wonder. Students will identify visual clues to help them form an opinion about what they think the painting is about, and will write an opinion paragraph on the Mona Lisa using evidence to support their opinions. Students will then take what they learned about portraiture and create their own Mona MEsa self portrait!

       

      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 describe what a portrait is.
      • I can create a self-portrait inspired by the Mona Lisa.
      • I can write an opinion paragraph using evidence to support my reasoning.

      Essential Questions

      • How can I describe a piece of art by forming opinions?
      • How can I use visual evidence to support my opinion?
      • How can art stimulate my imagination and help me understand the process of portraiture?

       

      Georgia Standards

      Curriculum Standards

      Grade 2: 

      ELAGSE2W1: Write opinion pieces in which they introduce the topic or book they are writing about, state an opinion, supply reasons that support the opinion, use linking words (e.g., because, and, also) to connect opinion and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section.

       

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

       

      Grade 3: 

      ELAGSE3W1: Write opinion pieces on topics or texts, supporting a point of view with reasons.

       

      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.

       

      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.

       

      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.

       

       

       

      South Carolina Standards

      Curriculum Standards

      Grade 2: 

      WRITING - Meaning, Context, and Craft 

      Standard 1: Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.

      1.1 Explore print and multimedia sources to write opinion pieces that introduce the topic, state an opinion and supply reasons that support the opinion, use transitional words to connect opinions and reasons, and provide a concluding statement or section.

       

      COMMUNICATION - Meaning and Context

      Standard 1: Interact with others to explore ideas and concepts, communicate meaning, and develop logical interpretations through collaborative conversations; build upon the ideas of others to clearly express one’s own views while respecting diverse perspectives.

       

      Grade 3

      WRITING - Meaning, Context, and Craft 

      Standard 1: Write arguments to support claims with clear reasons and relevant evidence.

      1.1 Write opinion pieces that: a. introduce the topic or text, state an opinion, and create an organizational structure that includes reasons; c. organize supporting reasons logically; d. use transitional words or phrases to connect opinions and reasons; and g. provide a concluding statement or section.

       

      COMMUNICATION - Meaning and Context

      Standard 1: Interact with others to explore ideas and concepts, communicate meaning, and develop logical interpretations through collaborative conversations; build upon the ideas of others to clearly express one’s own views while respecting diverse perspectives.

       

       

      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 5: I can interpret and evaluate the meaning of an artwork.

       

       

      Key Vocabulary

      Content Vocabulary

      • Topic sentence - The sentence of a paragraph that states the subject of the paragraph
      • Closure - The summary ending of a paragraph
      • Opinion - The creator’s point of view on a topic
      • Evidence/reason - Information from the source to support a claim

      Arts Vocabulary

      • Portrait - A depiction of a person
      • Self-Portrait - A depiction of the artist, by the artist
      • Proportion - Relative size and scale of the various elements in the portrait. How one thing relates to another thing in terms of size
      • Background - The part of a picture or scene that appears to be farthest away from the viewer, usually nearest the horizon
      • Foreground - The area of a picture or field of vision, often at the bottom, that appears to be closest to the viewer
      • Shape - Shape is one of the seven Elements of Art and is a flat enclosed area that has two dimensions, length and width. Artists use both geometric and organic shapes.
      • Horizon line - An implied line that separates the earth and the sky

           

          Materials

            • 8.5” x 11” tracing paper (1 per student)
            • Digital Mona Lisa painting to project on board
            • Digital image of a pre-Renaissance portrait (profile)–see “Additional Resources” 
            • Copy of Mona Lisa painting for each student
            • Pencil with eraser
            • Sharpie or other black marker 
            • White drawing paper
            • Multicultural crayons, markers, or colored pencils
            • Regular colors of crayons, markers, or colored pencils.

             

             

            Instructional Design

            Opening/Activating Strategy

            • Project the Mona Lisa and a landscape painting. 
            • Ask students to explain the difference between what they see in each of the paintings. 
              • Students should notice that the subject/topic of the painting in the Mona Lisa is the figure and the subject of the painting in the landscape is the scenery. 
              • Explain that the Mona Lisa is an example of artwork called a portrait because the subject of the painting is a person. Teacher will explain that when an artist makes an artwork of themselves, it is called a “self-portrait”.
            • Engage students in the See, Think, Wonder Artful Thinking Routine. 
              • First, with a partner, students will identify what they see in the painting. Emphasize that they should make objective observations about the image (i.e. physical features, colors, textures, etc.). 
              • Next, ask students to identify what they think about the image. Emphasize that students should be creating inferences using visual evidence from the painting. 
              • Finally, ask students what they wonder about the image. 
              • Facilitate a class-wide discussion around students’ observations, inferences, and questions.

             

            Work Session

              • Explain that the artwork students are looking at is an example of a landscape painting. Landscape paintings show a wide expanse of land–usually a countryside–and show depth through a background, middle ground, and foreground. 
              • Show students the diagram of a landscape. Explain that the background is what is farthest away from the viewer, the foreground is directly in front of the viewer, and the middle ground everything in the middle. 
              • Ask students to try to identify the background, middle ground, and foreground in Landscape from Saint Remy by Vincent Van Gogh.
              • Explain to students that texture in art is how something feels or looks like it feels. Ask students to identify textures in the landscape painting.
              • Tell students that they will be creating their own landscape artwork based off of an informational text. Provide each student with a copy of the informational text that connects to a region students are studying in Social Studies (if applicable). 
              • With partners, have students annotate the text as they read, looking for details that describe how the region looks such as landforms, colors, etc. 
              • Facilitate a discussion with students around what details they might include in the background, what details they might include in the middle ground, and what details they might include in the foreground. 
              • Instruct students to locate and research an additional informational text on the same region. 
                • Students should use their knowledge of research practices to identify a reliable source. Students should annotate the text as they did previously. 
                • Students will synthesize the details that they found in the two sources to create their landscape artwork. 
              • Introduce students to the term Collagraph Printmaking. 
                • Printmaking is a process by which the artist creates an image that has texture and transfers that image repeatedly onto another surface like paper. 
                • Tell students that the printing press is an early example of printmaking. 
              • Explain the process of creating their artwork. 
                • Students should glue the landforms down to a piece of cardstock or cardboard starting with the background and moving to the foreground. 
                • Students should use overlapping as they glue each layer down.
                • Students will draw a rough draft of their landscape on blank paper using evidence from both texts. Students’ rough drafts should have a background, middle ground, and foreground.
                • Out of cardstock, students will cut out landforms like mountains and physical features like forests that they included in their rough draft. 
                • Once they have created their landscapes, students will create a rubbing by placing a piece of computer paper over their landscape. Using a crayon or oil pastel, they will rub across the surface to pick up the texture of the landscape.
              • Students can then add in details and additional texture using colored pencil, crayon, or oil pastel.

               

              Closing Reflection

              • In small groups, students will present their portraits to their groups. In their presentation, they will share the background images they drew as well as their attention to detail in creating their self-portrait.

              Assessments

              Formative

              Teachers will assess student understanding by observing students’ responses in class and small group discussion and students’ ability to explain what a portrait is and what their portrait shows.

               

               

              Summative

              CHECKLIST

              • Students can create a self-portrait inspired by the Mona Lisa.
              • Students can write an opinion paragraph on the Mona Lisa explaining what they think the painting is about, why they think that (cite evidence). Students should include a topic sentence, body sentences with specific evidence, and closure.

               

               

               

              Differentiation

              Acceleration: Students will write an artist statement about their Mona MEsa portrait (see additional resources below).

               

              Remediation: 

              • Instead of writing a traditional opinion paragraph, students will be provided with a graphic organizer with sentence starters to help them write an opinion paragraph (see in additional resources below).
              • Provide students with a Mona Lisa outline of the head with the face removed to use as a template for their Mona MEsa portraits.

               

               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 and updated by: Debi West; updated by Katy Betts

              Revised and copyright:  May 2024 @ ArtsNOW

               

               
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