Grade Level: 3rd
Subject: Art
Lesson #: 1 Forces of Nature: Elements in Art Are Elements in Nature
Lesson Title: Animal Expressions: Line & Movement
Materials:
 overhead projector
 chalkboard
 Explorations in Art: Teacher’s Edition Grade3
 student journals
 pencils
 markers
Rationale: This lesson will introduce the students to one of the primal elements of art
and how it is seen in nature and used by artists.
Standard(s):
National Standard 2a– Students know the differences among visual characteristics and
purposes of art in order to convey ideas.
National Standard 2b– Students describe how different expressive features and
organizational principles cause different responses.
National Standard 2c– Students use visual structures and functions of art to communicate
ideas.
Objectives:
1. Students will individually identify (knowledge) how lines can convey movement with
100% accuracy.
2. Students will individually describe (comprehension) different types of action lines
with 100% accuracy.
3. Students will individually give an example (application) of using action lines through
their animal drawing.
Vocabulary:
motion – the act of moving; the showing of movement in art.
line – any mark made on a surface with an art tool like a pencil, pen, crayon, or brush.
action line – a special kind of line that shows movement.
Essential/Engaging Questions:
1. If you were to show movement, what type of line would you create?
2. Why would an artist use action lines?
3. What type of lines capture the most motion?
Procedure:
Beginning:
1. Students will be asked to put their index fingers into the air and be
asked to trace the movement of a scene being described with their
imaginations (scenes should be animal based).
2. Tell students that they just demonstrated motion (give definition).
Have the students imagine doing the same thing on a piece of paper.
Demonstrate on the board one of these scenes (introduce the term line).
3. Tell students today we’ll draw a picture of something from nature and
practice using different kinds of lines. Tell students that artists use
different kinds of lines to make the figures in their paintings and
drawings seem to come alive. Ask Students, if you were to show
movement (motion), what type of line would you create? a wavy line,
wiggly line, swirlly line. Tell students that they were just doing such
a thing in the anticipatory set (introduce the term action line).
Middle:
4. (Focus on Figure A) The fish seem excited by the shower of water
bugs. Ask how does the artist show this? Wavy lines that suggest
movement.
(Focus on Figure B) Explain that the artist uses curvy lines in (B).
Encourage students to describe the shape of the cat’s tails wiggly,
curvy. Guide students to identify the other curvy lines in this picture.
the cats’ bodies. Ask the students why would an artist (like this) use
action lines? to suggest that the cats are moving.
5. Guide students to discover how the lines in these two drawings are the
same. They are both curvy. Ask students what type of lines capture
the most motion? curvy, wavy, anything that is not straight.
End:
6. Brainstorm a list of creatures for students to choose from. Possibilities
include snakes, birds, and cats. Write these on the board. Then
encourage students to choose a creature that moves and can be drawn
with lines that indicate motion, such as a snake.
7. Have students open a blank section in their journals and draw an
animal of their choice doing some sort of motion. Suggest that they
can put the animal in a scene to help them realize the animals movement in that setting (Tell them that it is much in the same way as the
opening set they did). Students should label the types of action lines
they used. Students should title the image with the action in the title.
(formative informal assessment)
Differentiation of Instruction:
Help students learn the words, wavy, wiggly, and straight and reinforce the lesson theme
with a game. Arrange the students in a straight line and point out that they are in a
straight line. Then call out wavy or wiggly and have the students move the line in that
way. Freeze the line and discuss how its new shape shows motion.
Grade Level: 3rd
Subject: Art
Lesson #: 2 Forces of Nature: Elements in Art Are Elements in Nature
Lesson Title: Weather Fronts: Shading
Materials:
 chalkboard
 power point slides
 Exploration in Art: Teacher’s Edition Grade3
 tempera paint
 small cups of water
 paper towels
 1 paintbrush per student to use to apply the paint
 12”x18” sheet of paper per student
 sponges
 trays
 scissors
 tape
Rationale: This lesson will introduce the students to one of the primary techniques of art
and how it is seen in nature and used by artists.
Standard(s):
National Standard 2a – Students know the differences among visual characteristics and
purposes of art in order to convey ideas.
National Standard 2b – Students describe how different expressive features and
organizational principles cause different responses.
National Standard 2c – Students use visual structures and functions of art to
communicate ideas.
National Standard 3b – Students select and use subject matter, symbols, and ideas to
communicate meaning.
Objectives:
1. Students will identify (knowledge) as a class – shading with 100% accuracy.
2. Students will individually create (synthesis) an artwork with attention to shading.
3. Students will rearrange (synthesis) their images in small groups according to the
mood.
Vocabulary:
shading – how to go from light to dark on a image to make it more real.
moody – to be sad or upset; a dark scene.
hurricane – a tropical storm; a rain storm over a body of water.
Essential/Engaging Questions:
1. What are some different types of storms you know?
2. How does the sky often look before a storm?
3. Why did the artist use shading here? (Teacher’s Edition)
4. How does a stormy sky might make you feel?
Procedure:
Beginning:
1. Play a thunderclap to get the students attention while you put up the
power point slides. Ask students what are some different types of
storms you know? snowstorms, rain storms, hailstorms, ice storms,
hurricanes, tornadoes. Write these words on the chalkboard and pull
up these examples, plus the ones not mentioned on power point.
(explain the difference between hurricanes and tornadoes)
(Start reviewing the images of storms) Ask the students - how does the
sky often look before a storm? cloudy, dark, gray, blackish, light and
dark, scary. Tell students that today in class we’ll look at some
paintings that show storms about to happen.
2. State to the students that some artists like to draw pictures that show
stormy skies. State that they will paint some clouds of their own.
Their pictures will show a cloudy sky. They will practice using light
and dark to show clouds.
Middle:
3. (Introduce the term shading) Bring up figure (A). Have volunteers
point out the gradual blending from light to dark in the sky in (A).
Explain that we call this “shading.” Isolate the shading as you guide
students to see how the artist creates change in the sky. Ask why did
the artist use shading here? to create the cloudy sky and makes us feel
like a storm is coming close.
4. (Focus on Figure B) Pull up this slide and ask; what does this particular
sky look like? a cloudy sky. What colors do you see in this sky? white,
purple, gray, greenish. Point out that the artist shows the feeling of an
approaching storm by gradually changing from light to dark colors, just
as the artist did in (A). Discuss how this might make one feel. might
feel frightened as the storm approaches or speechless of the power of
the storm.(introduce the term moody)
End:
5. Students will begin painting their own cloud formations. Have the
examples on the power point available for students, and have the
students think about colors they have seen in the sky during real
storms or even on pleasant days; the students should think about
paintings (A) & (B) as well.
(a) Making Cloud Formations – Talk about how making gradual
changes from light to dark will help students make their cloudy
skies realistic. Instruction: Students will divide their papers into
four sections: one for a sunny, partly-cloudy day; one for a cloudy
day; one with a storm coming; and the other during a storm.
(b) Guide students to plan their colors and shading before they begin to
paint. Also supply them with cups of water and paper towels to use
for cleaning their brushes as they change colors.
(c) Guide students to blend related colors to show gradual shading.
Point out that students can also add white to a deep color as they
shade. If students first wet their papers with a sponge before they
paint, they can more easily manipulate the paint to look like
clouds.
6. Students will finish each cloud section and then be split into four
groups. The students in these groups will arrange and tape their clouds
according to the four sections they individually produced. The teacher
should visit with each group to assess the pictures and check for
understanding of arrangement and shading.
Bulletin Board: On the bulletin, each group will have a landscape of their own to put
their cloud formations on. The cloud formations should show
a progression from nice to stormy. If time allows have each group talk
about their incoming storm.(part 6 is formative informal assessment)
Differentiation of Instruction:
Pastels are easier to control and blend than tempera paints for students with limited
muscle control. Students can apply the pastels by hand and then blend them to achieve
and shading they desire.
Grade Level: 3rd
Subject: Art
Lesson #: 3 Forces of Nature: Elements in Art Are Elements in Nature
Lesson Title: Contrast in Nature: Color, Size, and Value
Materials:
 chalkboard
 Explorations in Art: Teacher’s Edition Grade3
 overhead projector
 oil pastels
 dark watercolor paints
 1 wide paintbrush per student to use to apply water colors
 12” x 18” white painting paper – 1 sheet peer student
 containers of water
 paper towels.
Rationale: This lesson will introduce the students to one of the primary principles of art
and how it is seen in nature and used by artists.
Standard(s):
National Standard 2a – Students know the differences among visual characteristics and
purposes of art in order to convey ideas.
National Standard 2b – Students describe how different expressive features and
organizational principles cause different responses.
National Standard 2c – Students use visual structures and functions of art to
communicate ideas.
National Standard 3b – Students select and use subject matter, symbols, and ideas to
communicate meaning.
Objectives:
1. Students will individually identify (knowledge) contrast with 100% accuracy.
2. Students will individually create (synthesis) an artwork showing contrast in size and
color.
3. Students as a whole will justify (evaluation) the imagery they chose by explaining
their image.
Vocabulary:
contrast – a major difference between things, like size, color, or value.
resist – some art mediums do not blend together. When this happens we call one of them
this.
Essential/Engaging Questions:
1. Think about the cloud examples from the last lesson, If you were in the middle of one
of those huge storms how would you feel in comparison? Would you feel larger than the
storm?
2. Imagine an elephant standing next to an ant. How would they look together?
Procedure:
Beginning:
1. Start the lesson by making a connection to the previous one. Ask the
students to think about the cloud examples from the last lesson, If you
were in the middle of one of those huge storms how would you feel in
comparison? Would you feel larger than the storm? no, smaller. Now
ask the students to imagine an elephant standing next to an ant. How
would they look together? very different.
2. (Introduce the term contrast) Tell students that we can contrast other
things in art as well as size. For example, we can contrast values and
colors. In this lesson, tell students that we will study contrast in nature.
And then they will explore how to show contrast in their own paintings.
Middle:
3. (Examining the images for contrast) Have students look at image (A).
Ask the students which colors are the brightest? orange, white, red,
blue, yellow. Which colors are the darkest? brown, black, tan.
Point out how the bright, light colors contrast with the dark ones.
Discuss how the artist creates contrast by arranging the colors in a
specific way: the bright colors in the sky, the dark colors on the ground.
4. (Focus on Figure B) Point out that this painting does not have the wide
variety of contrasting colors that we see in (A). Instead, it has contrasts
in size. Have the students look back to the storm images from the last
lesson. With figure (B) in mind, have the students point out how tall
they would be in comparison to one of the storm images.
5. (Refer back to figure B) Ask students what is the contrast between the
people in the boat and the cliffs ahead? they are different in size.
End:
6. Explain to students that they will put contrast into their own artwork.
Remind students what they learned about showing contrast with color
and size.
Assignment: Students will create a picture where they pick two images
that contrast in size using resist painting.
(a) Model for students the resist painting: first draw a picture with oil
pastels and then brush a layer of dark paint over it. (Introduce to
students the term resist) Demonstrate how the oil pastels act as the
resist to the dark paint.
(b) Point out to the students that they are already creating color contrast
with the oil pastels against a black background. So their main
concern should be the images that they choose to contrast.
7. Students will show their pictures after completion to the class. The
teacher will thus assess the reasons why each student chose the two
images to be contrasted based on the students’ response. (formative
informal assessment)
Differentiation of Instruction:
Those students with mental retardation or a learning disability will just make contrast in
color for their portion of the assignment. The images they choose can be of their own
choice with out the size/contrast criteria.
Grade Level: 3rd
Subject: Art
Lesson #: 4 Forces of Nature: Elements in Art Are Elements in Nature
Lesson Title: Kent Bellows: The Discovery of Texture
Materials:
 Natural objects,
 overhead projector
 texture pictures / texture worksheets (see attached)
 pencils & erasers
 Over The Mermaid Lounge
Rationale: This lesson will introduce the students to one of the primal elements of art
and how it is used by artists today.
Standard(s):
Standard 01: Use various art media, techniques, and processes to communicate ideas.
01 Develop and use a basic art vocabulary that exhibits knowledge of the following art elements
and principles of design and their characteristics.
Standard 02: Understanding the visual arts in relation to aesthetics, history, and culture.
02 Demonstrate how the elements and principles work together to create artwork.
Objectives:
1. Students will individually identify (knowledge) 6 to 8 different textures with 100%
accuracy.
2. Students will individually be able to identify (knowledge) the difference between
natural and illustrated textures with 100% accuracy.
Vocabulary:
texture – the surface quality or “feel” of an object like its smoothness or roughness.
natural – something that comes from nature or something we can touch, taste, or feel.
illustrated – something drawn from real life.
realistic – something that looks real or looks like a photograph.
Essential/Engaging Questions:
1. What is the difference between natural textures and illustrated textures?
2. When illustrating textures on to a picture we’re drawing, does the detail make the
object more realistic?
3. When you see a drawing that looks like a photograph, does the textures illustrated
make the drawing more real?
Procedure:
Beginning:
1. Show on overhead Kent Bellows’s Over The Mermaid Lounge – (See
Attached) Ask if this is a drawing or a photograph? Photo
Students should be surprised and intrigued when told otherwise.
2. Ask students how Kent Bellows was able to draw this way to make the
picture look like a photograph (wait for student comments).
State that it was through drawing accurate textures that look real.
3. Introduce the term texture and help students describe different
textures found on the picture.
Middle:
4. Show the students how we perceive textures (through touch and
through sight).
(a) Exercise 1- Have students get into small groups and have them
close their eyes. These groups will be given natural objects. The
students are to describe what they feel, and those descriptions will
be recorded on the board next to the name of the object. (Note
that we just described the textures of these objects through touch.)
The term natural should be addressed to the class corresponding to
the actual objects given.
(b) Exercise 2 - (Students should note that since we know how an
object feels, we can describe this feeling through textures we only
see.) As a class students will be shown actual pictures (see
attached) of real textures and asked to identify them in the same
manner as Exercise 1.
5. (Transition - Students will then be introduced to the term illustrated.)
Ask students what is the difference between the natural textures (we’ve
touched and felt) and those drawn? Natural textures are real and those
drawn are made to look real. (Introduce the term illustrated)
Illustrated textures are just like the pictures of natural textures we just
saw except they are made by the artist with art mediums:
i.e. paints, chalk, pencil, etc.
Return to the Kent Bellows piece. Reiterate that this is a drawing.
Point out to the students the textures he made using pencil (the same
the students picked at the opening). Ask students when illustrating
textures on to a picture we’re drawing, does the detail make the
object more realistic? yes (Note: Let students know that illustrated
textures are not always as detailed and hard to define as this example.)
End:
6. Students will be given a worksheet (see attached) and will describe the
textures presented using the word bank (we will go over the words for
clarification together). They will also be asked to identify the textures
as either natural or illustrated. (formative assessment)
7. Ask students after worksheet completion -When you see a drawing that
looks like a photograph, do the textures illustrated make the drawing
more real? yes Students will be introduced to the term realistic. This
should bring students back to the beginning of the lesson on how
drawing accurate textures can make a picture realistic.
Differentiation of Instruction:
The worksheet can be shortened to identifying only three textures. The worksheet can be
expressed orally to the teacher instead of written and turn in for evaluation.
Grade Level: 3rd
Subject: Art
Lesson #: 5 Forces of Nature: Elements in Art Are Elements in Nature
Lesson Title: Dinosaurs: The Discovery of Texture continued…
Materials:
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a variety of paper sizes several sheets per student
1 crayon or oil pastel with paper removed per student
surfaces that have bumps or grooves
glue
scissors
Explorations in Art: Teacher’s Edition Grade3
ELMO
textures
Rationale: This lesson will emphasize for students one of the primal elements of art and
how it is used by artists today.
Standard(s):
National Standard 2a – Students know the differences among visual characteristics and
purposes of art in order to convey ideas.
National Standard 2c – Students use visual structures and functions of art to
communicate ideas.
Objectives:
1. Students will individually visualize (synthesis) visual textures with 85% accuracy.
2. Students will individually illustrate (application) visual textures through the use of
rubbings.
Vocabulary:
rubbing – by placing paper over a raised surface and going over it with a flat crayon or
oil pastel, that surface underneath will appear on the paper.
Visual textures – textures drawn or actually seen.
paleoartist – an artist that creates art about the ancient dinosaurs.
Essential/Engaging Questions:
1. Whether the textures are natural or illustrated, can anyone tell me what we call
textures we only can see and not feel?
2. If you don’t know what an actual animal looks like (like a dinosaur), how do you
show the way it could look like?
3. Scientists and paleoartists use clues to find out how dinosaurs might have looked
and how they felt. What kind of clues do you think they have?
Procedure:
Beginning:
1. Explain to the students that the last time we learned to identify textures
was on the worksheet. Today we will learn more about those
textures we only “see”. Ask students - whether the textures are natural
or illustrated, can anyone tell me what we call textures we only can see
and not feel? (visual textures) term identified.
2. Now tell the students that we know how something would feel by
looking at it, but what about something we have never seen before like
a dinosaur, how do describe a dinosaur? scaly, big, like a giant
lizard.
3. Explain to the students that we will be making dinosaur pictures and
showing how they might have looked and felt just like a paleoartist
does.
Middle:
4. (Introduce the term paleoartist) Ask the students - Scientists and
paleoartists use clues to find out how dinosaurs might have looked
and how they would have felt. What kind of clues do you think they
have? Fossils or real dinosaurs? Fossils. Tell students we are going
to look at some art made by some paleoartist to get some ideas on how
dinosaurs might have looked like.
(a) (Focus on Figure A) Ask students how do you think the dinosaurs’
skins feel? rough, scratchy, coarse, scaly, bumpy Discuss with the
class how the artist created the texture using some of the
techniques that students learned in earlier lessons.
(b) (Focus on Figure B) Ask how is this picture similar to Figure A?
they both show dinosaurs; they both show the texture on the dinosaurs’ skin. Point out the visual textures here, as you did with
Figure A. Ask how would you describe the textures of this
dinosaurs’ skin? It is the same as the texture shown in Figure A.
Discuss with the class how the artist created the texture using
some of the techniques that students learned in earlier lessons.
5. Tell students that now that you have some idea on how a dinosaur
looks and feels, we will now make are own dinosaurs by using a
technique called rubbing. (Introduce the term rubbing) Demonstrate
the process of rubbing and have natural textures available.
End:
6. Have students rub on different surfaces to create different textures.
They will then cut out different shapes from the textures they made to
create a collage of their own dinosaur (See Example C).
7. A few students will share their dinosaur collages and tell the class why
they choose some of the textures they used to make the dinosaur. How
do they compare to the examples we have seen? The show-and-tell
session will also indicate their proficiency at rubbing. (formative
informal assessment)
Differentiation of Instruction:
Students who are having a hard time with the rubbing process can make just the rubbings
and not the collage, as long as they can describe the textures they were creating.