Art Lesson Plan

Straight Lines

Subject: Lines in Art

Grade Level: 1^st grade

Description: I am going to use this lesson to help my students understand the different kinds of lines. I will teach my students how they can use straight-lines to form many types of shapes and designs in their artwork. After this lesson I want my students to be able to recognize lines in their surroundings such as at school, in their home, outside in the environment, etc. I also want my students to feel comfortable using their own creative imaginations when they are working on their line picture. 

Objectives:

·         Students will be able to identify types of line in the environment. (Cognitive)

·         Students will be able to demonstrate how lines can be used in art. (Cognitive)

·         Demonstrate skills in using glue appropriately. (Psychomotor)

·         Students will be able to express how the lines in their creations make them feel.  (Affective)

Standards:

            Standard 1: Students will develop a sense of self.

            Objective 3: Develop and use skills to communicate ideas, information, and feelings.

                                b.   Express how colors, values, and sizes have been controlled in artworks to create mood, tell stories, or celebrate events.

            USOE Fine Arts Rainbow Chart:

Build Skill Practice-

·         Apply, construct, demonstrate, illustrate, evaluate, and practice.

·         Practice making likes that are horizontal, vertical, and diagonal.

·         Recognize objects that form a line and arrange objects into a line.

Materials Needed:

·        Black construction paper

·        Many different colors of pre-cut lines

·        Glue sticks

·        White crayons

Teacher Resources:

·         An example of the straight-line design.

·         Pre-cut lines ready for the lesson.

·         Glue sticks for students.

·         Black construction paper for students.

·         White crayons so students can write their names on the black paper.

·         Examples of masterpieces that will show students examples of line.

Vocabulary:

·         Straight line- A line that keeps going and going in one direction with no bending or turning.

·         Zigzag line- Sharp turns in different directions.

·         Curved line- A line that bends but does not have any sharp points.

·         Line- A mark with a pencil that can be in a zigzag, curve, wave, etc.

·         Dotted line- Short dots that go straight, curved, zigzagged, etc.

Pedagogy:

Step 1: I will talk to the students about different types of lines and show them examples of them on the board. I will then have the students create their own different lines by having them stay in their personal space and trace lines in the air with their fingers.

Step 2: Next I will just focus on straight lines and ask the students to give me examples of objects around them that have straight lines. I will call on different students to share examples with the whole class.

Step 3: I will then ask the students why they think straight lines are important and why they think artists use straight lines in their artwork. With these two questions in the students’ minds I will explain to them how art can be made just from putting straight lines together.

Step 4: To show the students what they will be doing I will show them an example of my line design and explain to them how many different looking masterpieces can be created by just using lots of straight lines. I will also show the student’s artwork by Picasso, Warhol, and Matisse that contain line.  Then I will distribute ten pieces of pre-cut lines that are different colors and black construction paper for students to make their designs. I will hand out glue and make sure students know to glue the cut out lines onto the black paper.

Step 5: Once the students are done designing their lines I will have everyone hold up their creations for the whole class to see. I will point out to the students how many different shapes, designs, and objects lines can create. I will state how they all started out with the same materials yet they all created very different pictures from one another.

Assessments:

1.      For one assessment I will be able to see if students understand lines and the many things they can do by just looking at their straight-line designs.

2.      For another assessment I can use a rubric:

Straight Line Rubric	Points
Student actively identifies lines in their environment. 0= Student cannot identify any lines in the classroom. 1= Student can identify one maybe two objects with lines in their environment. 2- Student can identify a few lines in the classroom environment but still does not catch onto the concept as much as he/she should. 3= Student can point out many objects in the classroom environment that has lines.	/3
Student can actively demonstrate how line can be used in art. 0= The student cannot demonstrate how line can be used in art. 1= Student starts to demonstrate how line can be used in art but does not finish the whole concept. 2- Student successfully completes the demonstration on how lines can be used in art.	/2
Total Points:	/5

Accommodations:

For my students with special needs I will assign them a peer helper that will encourage, guide, and help them with their art. I will also give them more time or less pre-cut lines to glue on their black construction paper.

My Sources:

http://www.princetonol.com/groups/iad/lessons/elem/straightlines.htm

Assessment Strategies

I really enjoyed reading about the different assessment strategies. These strategies can be applied in many areas not just in art so this reflection assignment really helped me see how I can assess my students in many subject areas.

•   Portfolios- This has to be my favorite of all of the assessments that I read about in the readings. I think portfolios really show the growth and development of the students’ art projects throughout the year. Portfolios are great to help children set goals. When the students achieve their goals, they can put their art in the portfolio for their parents to see. As a teacher this form of assessment will show me not only how well my students are doing but it will also show me how well I am doing as an instructor, and what I need to do to help my students more.
•   Journals- I love the idea of using journals as an assessment in art because it also integrates English into the curriculum. When students use their journals they will be able to express their feelings about their art pieces and about how well they think they did. Students will be able to write about goals in their journals and whether they achieved them or not. Using journals as assessments will help teachers see how their students feel about their teaching and projects. They will also be able to tell if the student has improved or not by if their writing is positive.

• Group discussions- I liked this assessment because students will be able to talk together about their struggles, likes, and dislikes about certain projects they are working on. The teacher does need to make sure that all students are discussing equally. A rating scale can be used in the classroom to have the student’s rate how well they think they did on their work. It also is important for the teacher to rate the student because some students might be hard on themselves and others may give themselves a better score than they deserve. Once the rating scale papers are filled out, the students can discuss with one another why they gave themselves the scores they did. Then explain what they will to do better next time if they think they could have tried harder.

Resources:

Chapter 5. Art A Qualitative Art Program for Elementary and Middle Schools. Robert D. Clements and Frank Wachowiak.

Assessment in Art, Chapter 2 by Dr. Donna Kay Beattie

http://www.teachervision.fen.com/assessment/teaching-methods/20153.html

How Can You Integrate Art Into Your Classroom?

Art is a great asset in the classroom but a lot of teachers worry about if they have enough time to include art in their daily schedules. What they don’t realize is that they can bring art into math, language arts, history, and many more subjects. “Integrating art across the curriculum brings novelty and breaks the daily monotony of “classroom work.” Students enjoy exploring and tapping into their creative side. Art unifies teaching lessons and is the accent to classroom lesson plans” (Lopez). This quote is from one of my resources and it really showed me how much art can bring into the classroom. It can make learning fun, creative, and it will help students who might struggle in certain subject areas.

I found some great ideas on how to integrate art into my classroom. The first idea that I liked was to have my students listen to different genres of music each month, and have them write in a journal about how the music makes them feel and what it reminds them of. I also love the idea of having my students create their own illustrations for a book while I read it to them. This will help them bring their imaginations to life, and it will be really fun for me to see what they are seeing in their minds while I read to them. One thing I remember doing while I was in school was making Native American art and creating Pueblos. I have also seen this during my practicum experience in level II. When I created my pueblo in elementary school, it was fun for me because I not only was able to do art, but I was also able to learn more about the Native American culture. In fourth grade I remember using the cognitive domain. In my class that year we were learning about the water cycle. My teacher taught us a song that had hand and arm movements to go along with it. I can still remember the song and it’s movements to this day, and I know most of us did very well on the water cycle test when she gave it to us.  Just last week in my social studies class I found information on how to celebrate Chinese New Year in the classroom. One lesson I planned was to have my students make their own dragon masks with streamers and a handle attached to the mask. Once they were done with their masks I would turn on traditional Chinese music and have them free style their own dragon dance to the music. After reading about the different domains, I found this type of exercise would fall under the psychomotor domain and it would be the visual culture approach as well. Students will love this type of activity because it is considered art, they will be able to move, and they will also learn about a different culture.

Math is a subject that I have struggled with and have never had much fun while doing it, but in chapter nine of the textbook I read different ways that I can bring art into my math lessons. I hope that this will help my students who may have a hard time with math actually enjoy it, and understand it better. I might have a different attitude towards math if my teachers would have integrated art and other subjects into their lessons. This is a way to integrate the affective domain. If art changes my students’ attitudes and feelings towards a subject I want to bring it into my lessons as much as possible. 

Resources:

http://artswork.asu.edu/arts/teachers/lesson/visarts/visarts1.htm

www.ehow.co.uk/how_7860034_integrate-arts-classroom.html

Watkins, G. Integrating arts into the classroom [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://gingersnapstreatsforteachers.blogspot.com/2010/01/integrating-arts-into-classroom-this-is.html

www.nwlink.com/~donclark/hrd/bloom.html

http://explorations.sva.psu.edu/322/

Clements, R, & Wachowiak, F. (2010). Art a qualitative art program for elementary and middle schools. Boston: Pearson.(chapter 7,page 84), (chapter 8, page 103), (Chapter 9, p 119), (chapter 6, pg 70-72).

Why is it Important to Teach Art?

I believe it is important to teach art because art helps students learn how to express themselves, it teaches students about different cultures, and it can help students learn different types of skills. I think that these reasons are all very significant because they can help students become well rounded. 

 These days it seems like elementary students do not know how to use their imaginations. I think this can be blamed on video games, television, and lack of art taught in our schools. It seems that teachers have to go by the rules and students can’t think in their own way. Art can help students learn how to express themselves and to think on their own. “Art should be valued ‘‘for art’s sake’’ because it is considered an important means for self-expression-spontaneity, imagination, play, experimentation, and lack of inhibition are desirable components of making artworks- and for freedom of expression” (S. Wright). I loved this quote from a source that I found because it shows how much art can bring into students’ lives and what they will miss out on if art is not taught in schools. I really believe that art can help students learn how to “express ideas and feelings in individual ways, and not be afraid to display their learning before their teachers, peers, and parents” (Burton, Horowitz, & Abeles, 1999). Art can help students feel more confident and I also believe it will help them feel like their work and input is important. 

One thing that is very important for our students to learn about and understand is other cultures. Art is a perfect way for students to not only learn about those other cultures but to realize that even though we all may be different or from another place, we still can come together when it comes to art. “Art is an international language; it is universally accessible even to those with little knowledge of how it was used in a culture” (Clements, & Wachowiak, 2010). Art will always be something that will connect us to people all over the world. It is something that is universally loved and it is important for our students to understand that connection.

“The discipline, creative problem-solving, patience, and productivity that must be used in order to create a piece of art are life skills that anyone can benefit from learning, particularly at an early age” (Rakoczy). I really enjoyed this quote from another source that I found because it really stated that art not only helps students with imagination and self expression, but it also helps them learn life skills that they will use throughout their whole lives. I think it is important for students to learn that some things will not come easy, and they may have to wait awhile for things that they want. Art will be able to help students learn these different skills so it is not as difficult for them when they face challenges times.

I really found out a lot of information from the three sources from class and also from the three sources that I found on my own. They taught me many benefits of teaching art and they have made me an even bigger advocate for keeping arts in our schools.

References:

Burton, J, Horowitz, R, & Abeles, H. (1999). Learning in and through the arts: curriculum implications . 36.

Clements, R, & Wachowiak, F. (2010). Art a qualitative art program for elementary and middle schools. Boston: Pearson.

Creation Mind- Chapter 4- “In the arts the individual can use materials to confer upon forms whatever suits his or her purposes without being accused of ‘distorting reality’.”

Wright, S. Why art is important for young children. www.education.com/reference/article/art-important-young-children

Rakoczy, C. (n.d.). Why teach art in elementary schools?. Retrieved from http://answers.yourdictionary.com/answers/jobs-education/why-teach-art-in-elementary-schools.html

Schreiner, E. (n.d.). Important skills that art can teach you. Retrieved from www.ehow.com/list_7241034_important-skills-art-can-teach.html

What is Art?

I believe that art can be about anything it just depends on the eye of the beholder. I also think that art is a different way for people to express themselves without speaking. Art is something people may enjoy but it could also rub them the wrong way. To me it is hard to draw the line at what is art and what isn’t, but I definitely think it is a matter of personal opinion. Three resources I found really supported my belief that it is hard to define exactly what art is. The resources also made me see that people have their own opinions and that art doesn’t always have to be beautiful.

References:

http://www.arthistory.sbc.edu/artartists/artartists.html

http://arthistory.about.com/cs/reference/f/what_is_art.htm

http://web.ubc.ca/okanagan/creative/links/arthistory/What_is_Art_.html