Tucked away in a beautiful Steamboat Springs valley, Strawberry Park Elementary School is a bright and friendly school surrounded by mountains and a lovely community. With class sizes of around 25, and the mascot of the Sea Wolves, the students never miss a beat! Being in a small town, SPE prides itself on being community focused. During my time here at Strawberry Park, I taught kindergarten through 5th grade Art. We did everything from painting, to pottery, to printmaking. For my 3rd-5th graders I spent most of the time doing a TAB (Teaching Artistic Behaviors) class. For my K-2, my lessons were more guided in order to scaffold the necessary skills and techniques for TAB. These elementary students kept me on my toes, and brought me so much joy! I loved being able to watch their confidence grow through their art making process! I quickly learned the importance of having strong classroom management through consistent routines, clear expectations and consequences, and calm follow-through. I learned to quickly love elementary, and I will miss these students dearly.
Teaching Artistic Behaviors (TAB) Lesson Plan (3rd-5th):
Performance/ What is TAB: TAB, or Teaching Artistic Behaviors classrooms are highly structured studio environments with clearly delineated expectations for self-directed learning in choices of varied work spaces. Available tools and art materials are introduced to students who can then access and arrange these materials independently to initiate and explore their artwork. Students will create an artwork of their choice from available "centers" around the classroom (ie, drawing, painting, collage, printmaking, fiber arts, etc.). Students research and plan their artwork and finish and display their artwork along with their artist statement.
During TAB, we focus on the Elements of Art: We also focus on the Studio Habits of Mind:
Objectives:
After researching with books of artists and techniques, or watching a teacher's demonstration, students will be able to sketch 6 ideas for a potential project.
Learning Target: I can use books and demonstrations to brainstorm six different ideas and sketch thumbnails of each.
Standard: Observe and Learn to Comprehend
Blooms: Apply
GLE: 1. Investigate works of art and design to recognize how to create meaning with purpose and intent.
After preliminary sketches, students will be able to choose one idea and plan it out using a planning sheet (and get idea approved by teacher).
Learning Target: I can choose my best idea and plan how I will create it using my planning sheet.
Standard: Envision and Critique to Reflect
Blooms: Apply
GLE: Demonstrate an understanding of how intent and purpose are informed by research and experimentation.
After planning their idea, students will be able to create their project using desired center.
Learning Target: I can follow my plan to create my idea.
Standard: Invent and Discover to Create.
Blooms: Create
GLE: Plan and create works of visual art and design recognizing various purposes and intentions.
After completing artwork, students will be able to write or record an artist statement about their art and display artwork and artist statement.
Learning Target: I can use the Artist Statement handout to write my handout. I can glue my art and artist statement on a colored paper or 3D artwork on black styrofoam board.
Standard: Relate and Connect to Transfer
Blooms: Evaluate
GLE: Recognize how works of visual art and design communicate meaning both within a community and between diverse cultures.
After researching with books of artists and techniques, or watching a teacher's demonstration, students will be able to sketch 6 ideas for a potential project.
Learning Target: I can use books and demonstrations to brainstorm six different ideas and sketch thumbnails of each.
Standard: Observe and Learn to Comprehend
Blooms: Apply
GLE: 1. Investigate works of art and design to recognize how to create meaning with purpose and intent.
After preliminary sketches, students will be able to choose one idea and plan it out using a planning sheet (and get idea approved by teacher).
Learning Target: I can choose my best idea and plan how I will create it using my planning sheet.
Standard: Envision and Critique to Reflect
Blooms: Apply
GLE: Demonstrate an understanding of how intent and purpose are informed by research and experimentation.
After planning their idea, students will be able to create their project using desired center.
Learning Target: I can follow my plan to create my idea.
Standard: Invent and Discover to Create.
Blooms: Create
GLE: Plan and create works of visual art and design recognizing various purposes and intentions.
After completing artwork, students will be able to write or record an artist statement about their art and display artwork and artist statement.
Learning Target: I can use the Artist Statement handout to write my handout. I can glue my art and artist statement on a colored paper or 3D artwork on black styrofoam board.
Standard: Relate and Connect to Transfer
Blooms: Evaluate
GLE: Recognize how works of visual art and design communicate meaning both within a community and between diverse cultures.
Enduring Understandings:
Artists research before they create. Artists learn techniques. Artists create with intention. Artists self assess. Artists defend their artwork. |
Centers Available:
Drawing Painting Collage Sculpture Fiber Arts |
When a student is finished with his/her artwork, they type out their Artist Statement using these sentence starters as a guide:
They also self-assess with the same rubric I grade them on!
Resources:
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Student Art:
Reflection:
After reflecting on this lesson, I definitely think there's some things I will change when I have my own classroom! Firstly, I think I will be slow to open up each center. I think many TAB teachers only open one at a time. I think I will open one, keep it open, then open the next, etc. I want to do this because I would like to spend more time teaching techniques and showing my students contemporary artists and what they make before opening up another center. I also think this way I could be more intentional about pre-and post assessments. I am curious to see how the quality of my students' artwork would be if I did it this way. However, I do think this could be tricky in terms of timing, because I want to give my students as much time as possible to be creating. I think I could make it simple and still intentional and effective. Over all, I adore TAB because I have never seen students as engaged as they are during TAB! I love the energy and excitement in the classroom. I love that it teaches students how to actually think like and artist and how to trust their own ideas!
Lesson Plan Two: You Matter to Me (K-2)
This was a lesson I created for my K-2nd graders. We started out with a read-along by author and illustrator, Christian Robinson:
Essential Understandings:
Artists create to tell a story. Artists can be illustrators. Artists can help people feel better and important. |
Concepts and Vocabulary:
Color- hues from light Pattern- something that repeats itself Value- some places are darker, some are lighter (made with shading) Collage- cutting and gluing with paper etc. Illustrator- a person who creates pictures for a book, magazine etc. Author- a person who writes a book, magazine etc. |
Objectives:
After reading "You Matter" students will be able to define an author and illustrator.
Standard: Observe and Learn to Comprehend, Relate and Connect to Transfer
GLE: Investigate how visual art and design tell the many stories of people, places or things; Identify how artists and designers make connections through personal stories between self, family and friends.
Blooms: Understand
After participating in a Think-Pair-Share, students will be able to envision and reflect on a time that made them feel like they matter and share.
Standard: Envision and Critique to Reflect
GLE: Share and explain choices made and possible next steps in personal works of visual art and design.
Blooms: Apply
After watching a demo, students will be able to illustrate a time they felt special and write one sentence describing their memory.
Standard: Observe and Learn to Comprehend, Invent and Discover to Create
GLE: Investigate the properties of materials to support the planning and making of works of art to communicate.
Blooms: Create
After finishing their illustration, students will be able to add a pattern using collage.
Standard: Invent and Discover to Create
GLE: Investigate the properties of materials to support the planning and making of works of art to communicate.
Blooms: Create
After finishing their illustration, students will be able to talk about their art and their peers' art.
Standard: Envision and Critique to Reflect
GLE: Question and respond to the stories told and the feelings expressed in works of visual art and design.
Blooms: analyze, evaluate
After reading "You Matter" students will be able to define an author and illustrator.
Standard: Observe and Learn to Comprehend, Relate and Connect to Transfer
GLE: Investigate how visual art and design tell the many stories of people, places or things; Identify how artists and designers make connections through personal stories between self, family and friends.
Blooms: Understand
After participating in a Think-Pair-Share, students will be able to envision and reflect on a time that made them feel like they matter and share.
Standard: Envision and Critique to Reflect
GLE: Share and explain choices made and possible next steps in personal works of visual art and design.
Blooms: Apply
After watching a demo, students will be able to illustrate a time they felt special and write one sentence describing their memory.
Standard: Observe and Learn to Comprehend, Invent and Discover to Create
GLE: Investigate the properties of materials to support the planning and making of works of art to communicate.
Blooms: Create
After finishing their illustration, students will be able to add a pattern using collage.
Standard: Invent and Discover to Create
GLE: Investigate the properties of materials to support the planning and making of works of art to communicate.
Blooms: Create
After finishing their illustration, students will be able to talk about their art and their peers' art.
Standard: Envision and Critique to Reflect
GLE: Question and respond to the stories told and the feelings expressed in works of visual art and design.
Blooms: analyze, evaluate
Student Art
Self Assessment/ Rubric:
Reflection: After completing this lesson with my students, I would change a couple things. First off, I think my kindergarteners needed the first half of their sentence typed out for them, even though I had it written on the board ("I feel special when"), I didn't realize how much work copying that first half of the sentence was for them. I think this was a great way to incorporate literacy, however the littles needed some scaffolding! Another thing I would change, would just be to have some more resources to drawing, like maybe some simple step by steps on how to draw a person or a landscape. Although I did a demo, I'm not sure it was very helpful. I think breaking down some basics like how to shade and how to colors slowly and how to create simple value would have been helpful. Over all, it was a very sweet lesson. We did a second one where they drew someone who mattered to them, and that was just as sweet!