OVERVIEW
Students learn about 2 important, yet different types of drawing: expressive work from memory, and more realistic work using observation. The main point is that these are both valid directions to take, but that they don’t tend to mix well in one piece of art. Other work involves layering oil pastels in a contest and then using the technique on an animal drawing they made earlier using observation.– – –
Grades K – 2
1 Hour & 30 Minutes, or two 45-minute sessions
STANDARDS For This Lesson
SUBMIT YOUR SUMMARY
Copy and paste the text below to send your abbreviated lesson plan with national standards and learning targets to your supervisors and colleagues. Or access the WORD doc by using the blue button below.
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Week of March 2 – 6
OVERVIEW:
Students learn about 2 important, yet different types of drawing: expressive work from memory, and more realistic work using observation. The main point is that these are both valid directions to take, but that they don’t tend to mix well in one piece of art. Other work involves layering oil pastels in a contest and then using the technique on an animal drawing they made earlier using observation.
NATIONAL STANDARDS:
Grade K
VA:Cr1.1.K – Engage in exploration and imaginative play with materials.
Grade 1
VA:Cr1.1.1 –Engage collaboratively in exploration and imaginative play with materials.
Grade 2
VA:Cr1.2.2 –Make art or design with various materials and tools to explore personal interests, questions, and curiosity.
LEARNING TARGETS:
Students know the difference between drawing from memory and drawing from a reference
Students know how memory helps us draw even more accurately, if it is recent observation.
LESSON PLAN:
1. Warmup (15 minutes)- Artists’ Choice
2. Insight (10 min) – Explain different types of art
3. Memory Drawing (5) – Draw house from memory
4. Space Pastels (15) – Slide show of planets
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Break – end of part one if dividing into 2 sessions
5. Realistic Drawing (10) – Photo reference of animals
6. Layer Cakes (15) – Practice pastel layering
7. Animal Layers (5) – Layering pastels on animal drawings
8. Clean Up (5) – Everyone helps
Tap the Plus Icon (above right) to open STANDARDS information, including an Overview, Learning Targets and a Syllabus. Copy and paste to send to your Administrators or use the button below to download a Word document with the same information that you can add your info to and email to them as an attachment.
SCROLL & TEACH LESSON PLAN
Don’t worry about rewriting anything. Just spend a few minutes reading the lesson plan and printing out your PDFs. Then check out the READY, SET, GO! section and print your prep-page, which includes checklists and an “at a glance” outline of the lesson so you can stay on track when you’re teaching. Set out the materials from the list on your prep page and you’re ready.
That’s all you need to know. Use your smartphone to Scroll & Teach!
Lesson At A Glance
A brief overview of each step. Buttons jump to each section for detailed information.
10 Min – Explain different tyoes of art
15 Min – Slide show of planets
10 Min – Use photo reference of animals
15 Min – Practice pastel layering
15 Min -layering pastels on animal drawings
5 Min – Everyone helps
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 best with your phone.
LEARNING TARGETS
Students learn to express themselves through creating from their imagination.
M A T E R I A L S
- 11″ x 17″ Copy Paper
- 4B pencil
- Eraser
- Markers and/or oil pastels
- Blenders (stumps)
- Paper Towels
1.1 Print
Reference
Memory House
Cut images apart and print enough for each student to see a house image.
1 Page – Opens in new window
1.2 greet
Kneel down so that you are on their level. Bending over emphasizes the differences in your height, while kneeling makes them feel more important.
1.3 Observe
Show the house picture for the memory drawing as soon as your whole class is there, or one at a time as they arrive. Let everyone look at the house for 20 – 30 seconds to memorize it, letting them understand that it’s for a drawing they’ll create from memory later in the class.
Then make sure no one can see it again until after they draw it later.
1.4 create
Ask them 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.
LEARNING TARGETS
Students learn to create different types of artwork
M A T E R I A L S
- Music system
2.1 learn
“This is classical music. Some people don’t like classical, some people really enjoy it all the time, and some people like it every now and then” (ask who likes classical music and/or this music playing now). “What if I told you that this was the only tune in the world. You have to listen to this one song for the rest of your life! Oh no, that would be bad. Even if you like this music, not having a choice would get pretty boring after a while.
(Change the music to another piece of classical music).
Here’s some more classical music. Ok, then… what if I told you that from now on, there will be lots of different songs, but that there was no other kind of music. There will only be classical music forever! People who only like classical will be happy, but what about everyone else?
Classical music is good, but so are other types of music. Some people like pop music; some like country music; and some people like jazz music. It is good to have more than one kind, right?
Have you noticed that people who make music usually make only one kind? So if I am a jazz musician, does that mean that other types of music are bad? Should I go around saying classical music is not real music? Of course not!
Artists are like musicians in a way. There are lots of different kinds of art.
One kind of art looks realistic, or what we like to call accurate. If you’ve ever said something like, “hey that looks like a real animal” when looking at artwork, then you were looking at a realistic drawing or painting. The artist was observing the animal in real life, or a photo of it.
Another kind of artwork is what we call expressive, and is not as much like real life. Usually, an artist will not look at the real life or picture as much, but rely more on memory, and their feelings they had when they saw or did something. They express those feelings and memories. This kind of artwork has more to do with what the artists thinks than what things look like.
Both kinds of art are great, though! You should try both kinds, and we are going to do just that today. One thing though, is that drawing realistic and also expressively in the same drawing or painting, generally does not work too well. It’s usually best to choose one or the other method.”
LEARNING TARGETS
Students know the difference between drawing from memory and drawing from a reference
M A T E R I A L S
- 4B Pencils
- White Erasers
- 11 x 17″ Copy Paper
3.1 draw
It’s ok to erase and correct. Make sure that you say this is a memory drawing, and that memory drawings almost never look realistic. Anything you draw from memory is a memory drawing and it’s not important how well you remember what the house looks like. It’s important that you realize you can’t draw it like it looks just using your memory!
Neither kind of art is better than the other.
One thing to remember is that you shouldn’t mix the two types. If you want realistic art, never use your memory to change it. That would be like mixing two kinds of music. Never play country music at the same time as classical! Or like mixing mashed potatoes with cookies. Ew!”
LEARNING TARGETS
Students know how memory helps us draw even more accurately, if it is recent observation.
M A T E R I A L S
- Oil Pastels
- Dark paper
4.1 display
Before you hand out any supplies, display the slides of planets and nebulae. Take more time with the first image of all the planets, and you might talk about the colors a bit. Then turn them off before they begin working.
This is a memory drawing, but I showed you some reference so that your memory is from just a moment ago. That always helps if you’re drawing something you haven’t drawn before!
Use several alike colors and blend them up for your planet. You can do a warm colored planet, or a cool one, but don’t try to mix the two or you’ll have a brown and gray planet. At the end you can add a few stars with your white.”
4.2 draw
Encourage making lots of colors and even blending them some. Ask your students to make their picture look like the pictures they saw. There is no wrong way to create these. It should be fun!
BREAK
This is the end of part one if you are dividing into two, 45-minute sessions.
STEP 5. Realistic Drawing
Students will create a drawing from observation of reference photos 10 MinutesLEARNING TARGETS
Students know how to draw from observation – looking at a reference photo
M A T E R I A L S
- 8.5″ x 11″ Card Stock
- 4B Pencils
- White Eraser
5.1 print
Reference
Simple Animals
Cut images apart and print enough for each student to choose from several.
3 Pages – Opens in new window
5.2 choose
Help them understand that they will not be able to change their mind after they begin, so choose carefully.
5.3 draw
Explain how it works using the teacher talk below.
Have them observe first. Then begin the music, and let them draw for 20-30 seconds at a time before stopping for 10 seconds to observe. After a few minutes, tell them you will leave the music on, if they will continue to observe often on their own.
As they are finishing up, talk about the difference between observing and drawing realistically, and the earlier drawings from memory. Make sure they understand that both kinds of drawings are great for artists to do. Sometimes artists do one kind and later do the other kind. Sometimes artists decide they only want to do one kind of art, but only after they’ve tried all kinds. It’s good to try different types of drawings!
“This is an observation drawing, because we observe, or look at, what we are drawing – as we draw it. DO NOT BEGIN until I tell you to. When the music plays, then you draw. Every time the music stops, you stop drawing, and look up at the photo and study the part that you are working on. You can observe your picture at any time, even when the music is on, but when it stops, we want you to study your picture for a moment more. Just look at the one thing you are working on, like one eye, or a foot. Don’t try to look at all of the parts of the animal all at once.
It’s a little like memorizing each little part one thing at a time.”
LEARNING TARGETS
Students know how to add layering as a technique
M A T E R I A L S
- 8.5″ x 11″ Card Stock
- 4B Pencil
- Eraser
- Oil Pastels
6.1 layer
[wait for students to finish]
Now begin filling in your cake with some light colors. Fill each area of your design completely using whatever light colors you want to.
Now it’s time for the first set of layers.
Fill each area again with a layer of a different color. Keep adding layers of colors, doing light colors first, medium colors next, and only going for one or two dark colors or white at the end. The only rule is that the cake must be completely covered for every layer. No paper should be showing through.
Record each layer by making a flat line over to the side with each pastel you use. Layer up the lines as you layer up the cake. Then you can count how many you used and see what the colors were.
See how many layers you can get, but remember… art is not a race where only one person wins. If you make any kind of artwork, you’re a winner!”
LEARNING TARGETS
Students know how to apply their layering technique
M A T E R I A L S
- 8.5″ x 11″ Card Stock
- 4B Pencil
- Eraser
- Oil Pastels
7.1 draw
Layering is also a good technique for shading with pencils, and painting with watercolors, acrylics, and tempera.
LEARNING TARGETS
Students know the importance of cleaning up.
M A T E R I A L S
- Paper Towels
- Cleaning wipes
- Sink
- Waste baskets
- Well-lit spot for photos
- Camera or phone-camera
8.1 clean
- 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
8.2 photo
8.3 connect
%
Insights
This lesson provides understanding
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Technique
This lesson shows application and movement
%
Self Expression
This lesson allows personal freedom
OBJECTIVES
- Practice and improvement in drawing and blending oil pastels
- Understanding how memory drawing is different than observation
- Accomplishment in drawing an animal using observation
- Fulfillment by having personal choices throughout the projects today
TROUBLESPOTS
Weak pastels from distracted students – Many times you will have students who don’t like to do anything except draw the same things over and over. They are really using their drawings to play, just like they do with toys, and you’ll see a lot of action in their work using robots, soldiers, cars, etc. These kids will try to “cheat” the system and barely put a small scribble of pastels, but spread out all over their work so they can say, “I’m finished! Now can I draw?”, ie: play. One effective way to combat this is to make it clear how full and layered the pastels need to be before you start. No paper should be showing. Then you can ask if they have done that, and they know that they have not.
Balance is something that also helps. At some point it’s best to relinquish control and allow a student to do what he or she wants if that prevents anger and frustration over art class. However, it is also good to require the current project to be done in excellence most of the time, if you also provide choices at other times – and our curriculum does.
Our favorite line for this is, “You know how you have artists’ choice at the beginning of class, and some days we have a whole day of artists’ choice? Well right now we are doing this specific project in a very important way, and I want to see your excellent work. You’ll get to choose other things and do them your way at other times.”
ART WORDS
Cheasel – A cardboard stand for holding up reference. Any copy stand will work.
Observation Drawing – Drawing realistically by looking closely and often at your subject.
Reference Image – Any photo that is used for observation drawing or painting.
CLASSROOM
PREP
What your room needs
Here are your printable lists and room prep instructions.
Opens in new window
CLASSROOM
MATERIALS
- 11×17” Copy Paper
- 8.5″ x 11″ Card Stock
- 4B Pencil
- White Eraser
- Markers
- Oil Pastels
- Blenders
- Paper towels
- Dark Colored Paper
- Cleaning Wipes
- Sink
- Waste Baskets
- Camera or phone camera
PREVIEW
Week 29: Bones & Bodies
March 9 – 13
Students will have tons of fun creating a full-body selfie in markers. Then they learn all about the skeleton and body proportions, with an interactive art project using oil pastels, markers, cut paper and interchangeable parts that reveal the bones in the body.
Week 30: Self Portrait Collage
March 16 – 20
Using photos of themselves that were made the week before, students will have a blast cutting and pasting photos from magazines and catalogs, and adding in their own faces to make a picture.
