MOPA museum of pinney art
I Wonder
State Standards
Perceiving/Knowing
The third grade students are spending this year wondering. The act of wondering
leads to creativity, innovation and new solutions. To begin this year of wondering,
we looked at the work of Marcel Broodthaers. We focused on one of his pieces
and went through the thinking routine of See, Think, Wonder. In this process, the
first step is to state everything you see in the artwork. This trains the eye to notice
the details. The next step, was to state what you think about what you see. This
step allows the students to see multiple perspectives and gain new insights to the
• 6PE Recognize and identify
choices that give meaning to
a personal work of art.
Producing/Performing
• 1PR Demonstrate skill and
expression in the use of art
techniques and processes.
work and ask new questions as well. The last step is to ask, “what does this make
you wonder?” This step is all about growing curiosity, questioning and making new
connections. All three of these steps are essential to the art making process and
Responding/Reflecting
can be transferred to any discipline. These skills will help students as they move
• 3RE Compare and contrast
through school and move onto future careers as well. After this activity, the
their opinions of a work of art
students then brainstormed various things they wonder about. These could be real,
imaginary, and even unthinkable! The challenge for the students was to create a
piece of art that was inspired by their wonder. In the middle of the project, the
students stopped creating and pressed the pause button on the creative process. I
asked them to take a small sheet of paper and write down a burning question they
had about their own artwork that they wanted advice on. This could have been a
question about a tool, technique, next step or how to
with those of their peers.
ELI PINNEY
symbolize something. It represented a creative roadblock they had hit. Then, silently, the rest of the class went around the
room and wrote down advice they had for their classmates burning questions. Once we were finished, the students went
back to their seats and had 4-5 fresh ideas to think about. This quick activity was a great way for the students to practice
asking meaningful questions. They were able to use flexible thinking to see their problem in a new way based on others
feedback. It also was a form of collaboration, as many students commented on how helpful other students ideas were. Too
often, students think of what they could have done to their artwork once the project was over. This activity represented a way
for the student to get valuable feedback in the middle of the creative process and make adjustments as needed. Once the
students read through the comments, they were back at it, creating away. Some of the students infused symbolism, while
others wove humor, and other emotions as well. At the end of this project, the students created imaginative artworks that are
filled with personal interests, passion, whimsy and wonder.
ELI PINNEY