I use this lesson to introduce students to drawing by asking them to evaluate and reproduce shapes and shading without representing anything identifiable. The lesson is a group project that diffuses competition and brings students together at the end of the session for a surprise.
Students will learn several techniques to visually measure shapes in relationship to other shapes. Looking objectively at shapes in relationship to other shapes is a key to representational drawing and painting and students will build their skills in both observation and representation over the course of the school year.
Students will also learn to evaluate dark and light and represent black, white, and values in between using the most simple of drawing materials: charcoal. Students will learn some practical tips for working with charcoal, including how to create a rich black, how to use an erasure to “draw” white areas, and how to smudge and blend to replicate gray tones.
“Do now” or Anticipatory Set
I will ask students to make a Gray Scale. They will each receive a narrow strip of charcoal paper along with a stick of charcoal. I will ask them to make one end of the paper black and to leave one end of the paper white. I will then challenge the students to create as many different shades of gray as possible between the black end and the white end.
This lesson addresses/meets the following New York State Standards for the Arts:
1. Creating, Performing and Participating in the Arts – Each student will receive a tiny fragment of a famous painting. He or she should not be able to identify the source or content of the fragment. I will ask students to enlarge and reproduce the fragment as accurately as they can.
2. Knowing and Using Art Materials and Resources – I will provide charcoal and a rough drawing paper. Students will learn how to create black, erase or leave white paper for the lightest tones, and techniques for creating gray shades.
3. Responding to and Analyzing Works of Art – At the end of the class session, students will see the masterwork they recreated. Students will respond to the mural that they created and to the original masterwork.
Performance Task
Each student will receive a fragment, one to two inches by one to two inches, that is a small section of a Xeroxed masterwork. Students will not be able to recognize what is depicted on the small paper fragment. I will instruct students to do the following:
Materials Required
Charcoal, kneaded erasures, stubs, rough drawing paper and masking tape.
TEACHING
Statement of Purpose
After the Anticipatory Set described above, I will explain the objectives of the lesson:
First, I want you (students) to realize that drawing is a skill and one that we will develop over the course of the school year.
I will demonstrate several techniques that you will find useful today, for future assignments and hopefully in the future. I will show you two methods for measuring that you can use to accurately enlarge or replicate shapes. And I will demonstrate some helpful tips for creating a range of tones with charcoal.
This is an introduction to my art class and concepts such as shape and shading will be explored in greater depth as the year progresses.
Presentation of Material
I will distribute a small fragment to each student along with a sheet of drawing paper. Students will already have charcoal, a kneaded erasure and a stub.
I will instruct students: “Enlarge and replicate the fragment I gave you as accurately as possible, making sure to fill the drawing paper I provided.”
I will encourage students to begin, using either/both of the measuring techniques I demonstrated. I will assure them that I will be walking around and coaching as needed.
When I do walk around the room, I will differentiate my instruction based upon the experience and needs of the individual students. I will help with measuring and encourage beginners. I will offer suggestions (and if necessary demonstrate on a separate piece of paper).
When students complete the task, I will collect the drawings and fragments. Using masking tape loops, I will assemble their drawings to create a mural-size replica of a masterwork. Even though no one’s efforts are perfect, this exercise is always a success. The final “mural” is always recognizable and dramatic. Students will automatically assess their own effort and the efforts of their peers.
Closure
If time permits, we can discuss concepts of tone and shading and shape. We can discuss the artist who painted the masterwork that we reproduced. I also like to introduce and explore the idea of ownership and how it felt to work together to produce a work of art.
Objective
At the end of the class period, students will understand that drawing is a skill, like handwriting, that anyone can learn and improve. While we will look at the work of many gifted artists over the course of the school year, I want to convey at the start that art is not only a consequence of talent. Contrary to what most of us learn growing up, drawing and painting are skills that we can develop. They are not valued as reading and writing by our society and that is why most of us never develop our potential as artists. That is the message I want to impart on the first day of class.
Students will learn several techniques to visually measure shapes in relationship to other shapes. Looking objectively at shapes in relationship to other shapes is a key to representational drawing and painting and students will build their skills in both observation and representation over the course of the school year.
Students will also learn to evaluate dark and light and represent black, white, and values in between using the most simple of drawing materials: charcoal. Students will learn some practical tips for working with charcoal, including how to create a rich black, how to use an erasure to “draw” white areas, and how to smudge and blend to replicate gray tones.
“Do now” or Anticipatory Set
I will ask students to make a Gray Scale. They will each receive a narrow strip of charcoal paper along with a stick of charcoal. I will ask them to make one end of the paper black and to leave one end of the paper white. I will then challenge the students to create as many different shades of gray as possible between the black end and the white end.
This lesson addresses/meets the following New York State Standards for the Arts:
1. Creating, Performing and Participating in the Arts – Each student will receive a tiny fragment of a famous painting. He or she should not be able to identify the source or content of the fragment. I will ask students to enlarge and reproduce the fragment as accurately as they can.
2. Knowing and Using Art Materials and Resources – I will provide charcoal and a rough drawing paper. Students will learn how to create black, erase or leave white paper for the lightest tones, and techniques for creating gray shades.
3. Responding to and Analyzing Works of Art – At the end of the class session, students will see the masterwork they recreated. Students will respond to the mural that they created and to the original masterwork.
Performance Task
Each student will receive a fragment, one to two inches by one to two inches, that is a small section of a Xeroxed masterwork. Students will not be able to recognize what is depicted on the small paper fragment. I will instruct students to do the following:
- Reproduce as accurately as possible the tiny image that you received. I will demonstrate more than one method of measuring that students may employ to complete this task.
- Enlarge the image so that it fills the paper I gave you. You must completely fill the drawing paper I gave to you. Again, I will demonstrate a simple tool to accurately enlarge an image.
- Replicate, as closely as possible, the tones of gray, black and white that you can identify in the small piece of paper I gave to you.
Materials Required
Charcoal, kneaded erasures, stubs, rough drawing paper and masking tape.
TEACHING
Statement of Purpose
After the Anticipatory Set described above, I will explain the objectives of the lesson:
First, I want you (students) to realize that drawing is a skill and one that we will develop over the course of the school year.
I will demonstrate several techniques that you will find useful today, for future assignments and hopefully in the future. I will show you two methods for measuring that you can use to accurately enlarge or replicate shapes. And I will demonstrate some helpful tips for creating a range of tones with charcoal.
This is an introduction to my art class and concepts such as shape and shading will be explored in greater depth as the year progresses.
Presentation of Material
I will distribute a small fragment to each student along with a sheet of drawing paper. Students will already have charcoal, a kneaded erasure and a stub.
I will instruct students: “Enlarge and replicate the fragment I gave you as accurately as possible, making sure to fill the drawing paper I provided.”
I will encourage students to begin, using either/both of the measuring techniques I demonstrated. I will assure them that I will be walking around and coaching as needed.
When I do walk around the room, I will differentiate my instruction based upon the experience and needs of the individual students. I will help with measuring and encourage beginners. I will offer suggestions (and if necessary demonstrate on a separate piece of paper).
When students complete the task, I will collect the drawings and fragments. Using masking tape loops, I will assemble their drawings to create a mural-size replica of a masterwork. Even though no one’s efforts are perfect, this exercise is always a success. The final “mural” is always recognizable and dramatic. Students will automatically assess their own effort and the efforts of their peers.
Closure
If time permits, we can discuss concepts of tone and shading and shape. We can discuss the artist who painted the masterwork that we reproduced. I also like to introduce and explore the idea of ownership and how it felt to work together to produce a work of art.
Objective
At the end of the class period, students will understand that drawing is a skill, like handwriting, that anyone can learn and improve. While we will look at the work of many gifted artists over the course of the school year, I want to convey at the start that art is not only a consequence of talent. Contrary to what most of us learn growing up, drawing and painting are skills that we can develop. They are not valued as reading and writing by our society and that is why most of us never develop our potential as artists. That is the message I want to impart on the first day of class.