Lesson At A Glance

Here’s a brief overview of the complete lesson. It’s also on your prep page in the Ready, Set, Go! section (below the lesson).

Colored buttons jump to each section in the full lesson plan below.

15 Minutes – Artists’ choice & spiral color dancing

15 min – Demo radial symmetry using flower

15 min – Make a spiral circle design and color with markers

15 min – Make a radial design circle and color

20 min – Make a moving sculpture

8 min – Create a garden or machine using circular radial designs

2 Min – Everyone helps

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SCROLL & TEACH

LESSONPLAN

Each section is a different color. Read over once and then you can SCROLL & TEACH using any device you like. It’s designed to work well with your phone.

All materials are suggestions and may be modified as you see fit. We have tried many items, and these seem to allow the most versatility for the cost.

Greet & Seat

Always try to greet students as they come in and kneel down when you can, so that you are on their level.

Artists’ Choice

Encourage students to work with one piece of paper for a while. If someone uses the phrase, “free draw”, explain that artists’ choice is something only artists can do, while free-draw is something anyone can do. You want to use the phrase to elevate the students’ expectations of their work.

Everyone should take their time with the work and make a finished piece of art. Limiting the paper can also help kids focus on the work. If someone finishes in super-fast time, ask them what more they can do to the existing paper. Ask again several times – unless they appear overly frustrated; then you can allow them to move on to a new work.

Spiral Color Dance

Use ambient music that has very little or no beat. Have students choose 3 or 4 colors to work with. Then make slow spirals by starting at the center of the paper and going around and around, getting bigger with each rotation. Add more lines in different colors to the spiral, beginning at the center.

Blend the colors with white

This is optional, but scribbling over the whole thing with white, or wiping with a paper towel, can blend the colors some.

p with lines.

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 Demo the flower symmetry in 2 directions

Take the large pdf photo of a flower, and fold it in half, with the fold right down the center of the bloom. Use the image and place the folded edge against the mirror so you see a whole flower again using both the mirror and the photo. Then as you talk using the script below, take the sheet away and fold it in half at a 90 degree angle to the first fold and do the same thing with the mirror.

Also, you can review the mirror image of the face that we did a couple of weeks ago if you have it. 

Radial Symmetry(tap any image to open viewer)

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Trace the plate

Have students draw a circle by tracing around a small disposable saucer or plate 6-7.5″. (You can also just make templates using a compass on card stock and cutting them out.)

Use a black marker to trace the circle. don’t use black at any other time during the rest of this design. This allows you to see the circle edge to cut out later.

Demo making a spiral

Do a spiral for them to watch. You can do one on paper, or draw a spiral on a display screen.

Students make a spiral

Walk them through the beginning and watch for students who make the spiral too tight with a dozen trips around, or too loose with only 1 or 2 trips around. It’s ok to do either of these, but if you can help them make 3 to 5 spiral circles, it’s easiest and the most fun later on.

Add color to the spiral line.

Early finishers can add more colors.

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Trace a circle

Draw a second circle by tracing around another small disposable saucer or plate. Use a black marker to trace the circle. don’t use black at any other time during the rest of this design. This allows you to see the circle edge to cut out later.

Create a radial design

Students can make up their own design or copy one from the printout. Draw the design using a light colored pencil, or very light marker (so the drawing medium will not mix into the oil pastels).

Color the design with oil pastels

Add as much color as they want. Encourage layering and blending the oil pastels.

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Cut out the circle artwork

Cut around the outer edge of the spiral marker design from Step 3, and also the Radial oil pastel design from Step 4.

 Attach circles to two plates

Students can use a glue stick and lots of glue to attach their designs to the bottom of a plate.

Teacher places toilet tube ‘spoke’

These roll better when the tube is right in the center, so teachers should help with placement. Set the wheel with the art facing down and then position the roll on top like a tower.

Hot glue or tape the spoke to the plates

The two circle/plates will become wheels on the spoke of the toilet roll tube.

Roll the artwork for moving designs!

Students should take turns rolling their work. They’ll all enjoy watching the designs roll across the table. The spiral side will seem to grow or shrink, depending on the direction it rolls.

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 Create a garden or Machine

Students can use the radial design ideas to make a crazy design garden of radial flowers, or make a crazy radial wheeled machine with too many wheels and gears!

Have them use markers or oil pastels and enjoy expressing themselves.

Encourage!

Point out things you really like about each student’s work. Even if you don’t like the work as a whole, there are things you can find to encourage them about. Always say things you believe to be true!

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Students set up their work area.

• Wash hands
• Super-wash brushes if used
• Put art supplies away
• Wipe tables & toss trash
• Remove any smocks (last)
• Check for items on floors and tables

Try to get photos of your student’s artwork. Find a good spot for quick lighting without highlights or shadows from your hands and device. Ideally in-between two strong lights on each side.

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Have a bunch of amazing supplies ready, and cut a few things apart before-hand in a way that make you look amazing.

Print all of your PDFs from the lesson plan and cut any references apart as needed.

Week 24: The Most Important Spot

Emphasis is one of the most important aspects of good composition. However, this is a lot of abstract thinking for kids, so we say, “every artwork needs a Most Important Spot!” The lesson helps students think about what is in artwork, and to distinguish between wallpaper type designs and art that has that important spot that you see first. We begin with a fake art show using textures on paper but nothing else on them. Then we do some exercises with color. The end of the class has students taking the art show down and fixing the work by adding an important spot.

Week 25: Color Balancing Wheels

Students will review radial balance and create basic color wheels. They will also learn how opposites make browns and greys, using these mixes on a fun cartoon painting of a cow.

Use this button to view our parent’s blog. Share the link: http://parentart.org, with your student’s parents so your they can read about the lesson each week.