Art Quilt STEAM Lesson Brief
Educators on the team: (for certification max: 4/team) Sarah Willard, Ginny Barker, Jana Morrow, Cathy
Wallace
When & Where you attended a training. Dates August 11th & 12th, 2014_ Town/State _Knob Noster, MO
Students use knowledge from across the disciplines to strengthen their understanding of each subject’s
content and its related careers through topic or theme oriented realistic problem-based activity-rich
lessons.
Theme that this lesson would tie to: Traditional and Contemporary Quilts
Specific Topic Concept within that theme: Differentiate between traditional quilt-making and expressing
oneself through the art of quilting with non-traditional materials.
PROJECT IDEA + brief notes & supplies
BASIC CONCEPTS
Concept: Students will experience the art of
quilt-making as a contemporary art form.
During this project students will research
historical and cultural use of the traditional
quilt (Social Studies). Students will analyze
mathematical figures found in a variety
places in their environment (Math).
Students will design (Engineering), and
create a contemporary wire quilt block
using a variety of media (Art & Technology).
Students will learn about color theory
through color mixing using tempera paint,
and then incorporate their findings into
selections made in the finished quilt block
(Science).
Science –
 Concepts – Students will analyze and experiment
with the physics of the light spectrum and
transition of colors Students will learn about the
color wheel and create their own color wheel
using tempera paint to mix all the colors using
only the primary colors
 Goal / Objectives - Identify and describe angles of
incidence and reflection
 Standards – Show Me Standards/Missouri
Learning Standards. Impact of Science,
Technology and Human activity on resources and
the environment.
 3rd grade 1.2.A. Observe light being transferred from
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Basic Plan: Students will be taught about
traditional quilts throughout history.
Traditional quilts rely heavily on geometric
shapes and the combination of coordinated
fabric selections. A comparison will be
made between traditional quilt-making and
the Story Quilts created by Faith Ringgold.
A base knowledge of the evolution of
quilt-making is essential as students begin
brainstorming and planning an abstract
relief quilt block. They will be expected to
create a basic quilt block utilizing the Quilt
Wizard app. on the Ipad. This template will
assist students as they use wire to form
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the source to the receiver (eye) through space
Science Inquiry 1C - Analyze whether evidence
supports proposed explanations
This is a 4th grade plan and there is a 3rd grade
standard here – if this is going to be a meaningful
science plan for 4th grade, it needs to cover some
important standards. If you were to put in an
upper grade standard I would be ok with that,
but going to a lower grade standard makes this
less than rigorous for this grade level.
5th Grade 5.A.1 - Scope and Sequence – Water
Cycle and Weather
-a. Recognize the atmosphere is composed of a
mixture of gases, water, and minute particles –
relate to rain/rainbows/color spectrum
Careers –Engineer, Scientist, Photographer,
STEAM Education
Lesson Brief
angles inside a metal frame. Students will
create a relief “additive” sculpture
assembling a variety of materials found in
the art room and at home. Students will
weave, string, sew, and glue objects to
create an aesthetically pleasing and
meaningful piece of art as a means of selfexpression.
As we work our way through this STEAM
lesson, students will be able to experience
and make connections from one subject to
another.
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Skill level (Grade Range):
4th and 5th grade
Timing of Lesson:
(50 minute class periods)
(Overview of unit lessons)
Lesson 1: An introduction to the art of
traditional quilt making.
A. Historical background of quilt
making around the world.
B. How and why fabric quilts are
made.
C. Professional Quilter visit.
Lesson 2: Introduction to artist, Faith
Ringgold & her Story Quilts.
A. PowerPoint of Ringgold’s art.
B. Video clip of Ringgold’s personal &
professional life.
C. Read Tar Beach written &
illustrated by Ringgold.
Lesson 3: Problem-based lesson on the
creation of a wire, relief quilt block.
A. Compare & contrast traditional &
contemporary quilts.
B. Use of geometric shapes to
construct traditional &
contemporary art.
C. The use of digital technology to plan
a plausible solution. Investigate
possible careers in the field of
technology and digital program
designs.
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Movie Director, Interior designer, Lab researcher
Project – After presenting a lesson on Color
Theory, students will demonstrate an
understanding of proper color mixing and a basic
knowledge of a variety of color schemes
(Monochromatic, Complementary, Triad and
Analogous). Study the color wheel. Students will
create a color wheel of their own. Create color
combinations that follow basic color schemes.
Students will create a value scale using tempera
paint. Each student will select a specific hue and
experiment by adding white tempera in small
increments to make gradations of tints. They will
repeat this process using black tempera to create
gradations of shades. Students will also learn
about angles of incidence by watching a video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aHlucFI0Qdo
. Students will write one question and answer
from the video to use in a Quiz-Quiz-Trade or
Inside/Outside Circle about angles of incidence.
Students will discuss how colors and light are
related. Students will conduct their own
experiment to determine the angles of incidence
and orally describe their observations. Students
will analyze the results to determine if the
experiments with mirrors and light provided
evidence to support the angles of incidence.
Students will discuss how light and reflection
impact color.
Assessment – Students will be assessed on their
ability to successfully create a color wheel by
using a limited palette of the primary colors.
Students are also assessed on their ability to
articulate how light and reflection impact how
colors are seen. Students will also demonstrate
understanding by correctly answering oral
questions during class and when explaining the
angles of incidence experiment.
Extension - Remediation: Peer modeling;
Enrichment: Identify color schemes used in
famous artwork by master artists. Create a
variety of beads using a recipe of glue, white
bread and food coloring. Create beads from
earthen clay.
http://www.auntannie.com/CraftRecipes/BreadC
lay/
STEAM Education
Lesson Brief
Basic Supplies: Ipads/Quilt Wizard app.,
pencils, watercolor markers, 10” X 10” wire
frame, variety of wire (copper, brass, steel,
etc.), string, beads, buttons, feather, etc.,
embellishment trinkets brought from home
(found-objects).
All Subjects:
Pencils, watercolor markers
Individual Subjects:
Science: Color Wheel, tempera paint, 12”x
12” white paper, paintbrushes.
Technology: Ipads and Quilt Wizard app.
Math: Ipads/Geometry app., rulers, graph
paper
Music: Songs from American Heritage and
The Twelve Days of Math Class.
Art: Wire, beads, feathers, string, found
objects etc…
P.E. basketball, parachute
L.A.: Tar Beach and The Greedy Triangle.,
various websites.
IT Resources:
Ipads: Quilt Wizard app., geometry app.,
protractor app.
PowerPoint
Video clip from the VHS tape entitled:
The Last Story Quilt by Faith Ringgold
https://www.dickblick.com/lesson-plans
(wire quilt)
Other Resources:
Video: Faith Ringgold – The Last Story Quilt
Presenter: Community Quilter
Traditional quilts on display
Technology & Engineering –
Concepts – Compare & contrast traditional vs.
contemporary quilt. Design and construct a
contemporary quilt with wire, beads, and found objects.
Investigate career possibilities in the fields of technology
and engineering.
 Goal / Objectives –Students will design and
construct a quilt block incorporating a variety of
2-D geometric figures and a variety of angles
using a digital media (ipad).
 Standards – Show Me Standards/Missouri
Learning Standards. ISTE 1 a-b apply exiting
knowledge to generate new ideas, products or
processes. Create original works of art as a
means of personal or group expression.
 Careers – Machinist, Fabricator, Mechanical
Engineer, Computer Programmer, Computer
Program Designer
 Project -Students will use digital media and
visual displays of data to enhance the basic Ipad
design of a quilt block. The students will be
asked to reflect on their experience with digital
design and investigate ideas to enhance current
app availability and needed changes. Students
will take the design created on the app and use
the information to design and construct a
contemporary quilt in which they will use wire,
beads and found objects to artistically express
themselves while creating a relief sculpture. .
 Assessment – Teacher evaluation of basic design
elements created on an Ipad app and students
ability to use digital tools and transfer design to
construct a quilt block made of non-traditional
materials. The use of the Quilt Wizard. Selfassessment of design.
 Extension - Remediation: One-on-one
instruction. Enrichment: Higher level
expectation of the design on the Ipad.
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Math –
Concepts –Identify and use Geometric Figures
Goal / Objectives – Students will classify
polygons by the types of angles and the lines
used to form the polygons.
Standards – 4.G.2 Classify two-dimensional
figures based on the presence or absence of
parallel or perpendicular lines, or the presence
STEAM Education
Lesson Brief
Misc:
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Photos:
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or absence of angles of a specified size.
Recognize right triangles as a category, and
identify right triangles
Careers – Architect, Computer Programmer,
Math Teacher
Project – Students will examine quilts in
photographs, real examples and text examples
to identify geometric shapes and perpendicular
lines. Students will identify patterns consisting
of 2D and 3D shapes and will classify the
figures with in the quilts examined. Students
will use paper and pencil to create a
representation of the geometric patterns they
discovered using 5-10 different shapes and
perpendicular lines.
Assessment: Students will be assessed on their
ability to identify geometric patterns and
classify the shapes and angles within the
pattern. Students will also be assessed on their
ability to create a geometric pattern including
2Dand 3D shapes, angles and perpendicular
lines.
Extension – Students will orally describe the
polygons, angles and lines used during a class
presentation. Students will use geometric
shapes to design a quilt block using
digital technologies.
This is good as an extension- Alien Project—
students will draw and design an “Alien” based
on specific polygons, angles and lines. Students
will be given a scenario of an alien landing
and asked to draw the alien as they are the
only witness. (4th grade teacher collaboration
project) Create a wire quilt block using and
identifying a variety of geometric figures.
LA –
Concepts –
 Goal / Objectives –Students will participate
collaboratively in a variety of discussions and
write for a variety of purposes
 Standards – 4.SL.1 Engage effectively in a range
of collaborative discussions (one-on-one, in
groups and teacher led) with diverse partners on
grade 4 topics and texts, building on others’ ideas
and expressing their own clearly. 4 W3 Write
narratives to develop real or imagined
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STEAM Education
Lesson Brief
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SS –
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experiences or events using effective technique,
descriptive details, and clear event sequences.
Careers – Authors, Storyteller
Project – Students will engage in a group reading
of The Greedy Triangle by Marilyn Burns and
discussion using academic vocabulary. Students
will read and discuss Tar Beach by Faith Ringgold
to make connections between artist, storyteller
and author. Students will develop a creative
writing narrative using academic vocabulary
about how the shapes on a quilt met?. This is a
creative assignment so students could write
about how the shapes met and became a quilt,
or how the quilt changed to make a pattern for a
particular purpose etc.
http://storybookquilts.org/library/show-all/acloak-for-the-dreamer
Assessment – Students will identify geometric
figures found throughout the book and discuss
results in a Rally Robin cooperative learning
structure. Teacher observation of student
participation in oral discussion about Tar Beach
and The Greedy Triangle. Students will be
assessed on their ability to create grade level text
for the purpose of developing a creative
narrative story using shapes and quilting as the
basis of their story.
Extension –Students will participate in a
storytelling assignment and read their stories to
one another in small groups. Students will create
questions that they would ask a quilter about
how she/he develops the pattern on a quilt.
Concepts – Geometric Figures & Quilts as Oral
History
Goal / Objectives – Students will identify times in
history when people used quilts as a means of
oral history. World Culture Study.
Standards – Relationships of individuals 6B –
Analyze how needs are met by groups and
organizations. Describe human characteristics of
a place (such as population composition,
architecture, kinds of economic and recreational
activities, transportation and communication
networks, etc.)
Careers – Graphic Designer, Historian, Artifact
STEAM Education
Lesson Brief
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Preserver
Project - Students will listen to a presentation by
a community quilter and discuss the traditional
quilts on display to understand the oral history of
the quilt. Students will engage in a small group
project to identify the history of their school and
community and draw quilt blocks to represent
their ideas. The students will then talk about the
present and future of their community. Students
will have the option to do past, present or future
quilt blocks. Students will put their drawings
together to create a paper quilt and hang it in the
foyer to share with the community.
Assessment –Students will be involved in an oral
discussion about the history of quilts in different
cultures around the world. Students will write a
short reflection about what they learned from
the guest presenter concerning quilts being
made to preserve history through stories.
Extension – Students will research the use of
quilts to communicate during history ie: quilts
and the underground railroad.
Art –
Concepts –Understanding what quilts are, how
and why they are made. Are quilts art or craft?
Do individuals who make quilts identify
themselves as artists or quilters? Differentiate
between traditional and contemporary quilts.
Goal / Objectives - Create a modern
interpretation of a traditional art
Standards – Product and Performance: Build or
layer materials to create a relief. (I.2.A) Explain
how patterns in art are similar to patterns in
math. (IV.2.A)
Careers – Art Therapist, Art Director, Art Teacher,
Tailor, Fiber Artist, Sculptor
Project – Students will design a template using
the quiltwizard app on the ipad. Students will
begin the process of making a contemporary
quilt block by forming a quilt block frame using a
pliable, but rigid wire. They will place the frame
over the printed template previously made on
the ipad. Students will select a variety of string,
wire, ribbon, etc… to attach from one side of the
frame to the other in a fashion that duplicates
the angles (or geometric figures) on the printed
STEAM Education
Lesson Brief
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template. Once the basic armature or
framework of the quilt block is completed,
students will begin adding beads, feathers,
trinkets and found objects that best express who
they are (self-expression). Each completed wire
quilt block will be assembled into a quilt that will
be displayed in the lobby of the school.
Assessment – Formative: Periodic questions
during instruction and demonstration of
expected performance (whole group, small group
and individual). Summative: Teacher evaluation
of the completed student-generated product.
Student reflection and self-assessment of
completed product.
Extension –Remediation: One-on-one instruction
from the teacher. Peer-modeling. Accelerated
learner: Further research to explain the
difference between relief sculpture and sculpture
in the round. Students will present their
contemporary quilt project to another adult and
share their discoveries as to the oral history of
quilts and how quilts can be an art.
PE –
Concepts – Geometric Figures
 Goal / Objectives - Identify the connections
between angles and trajectory
 Standards - Careers – Athletic coach and player
 Project – Students will shoot baskets at a variety
of angles from the court.
 Assessment – Students will compare shooting
from different locations on the court and the
effectiveness of the angles used.
 Extension – Students will successfully be able to
shoot a basket using their knowledge of angles
and trajectory. Students will use a parachute in
the gym and show knowledge of the angles used
to make the parachute.
Music –
 Concepts – Compare musical art forms
 Goal / Objectives – Use Music to reinforce ideas
– Geometric figures
 Standards – Historical and Cultural Context 1C Describe the function of music representing
diverse cultures, including Missouri and
American heritage, in various settings and
cultural events
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STEAM Education
Lesson Brief
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Interdisciplinary Connections 1C – Compare in
two or more arts how the characteristic materials
of each art (sound in music, visual stimuli in
visual arts, movement in dance, human
interrelationships in theatre) can be used to
transform similar events, scenes, emotions, or
ideas into works of art.
Careers – Teacher, Composer
Project – Students will listen to and learn the
Types of Angles Song and the 12 Days of Math
Class by Cheri Braden
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2MWYakuD8
_k
http://www.youtube.com
Students will discuss as a group the functions of
music including how to use music to reinforce
ideas such as geometric shapes. Students will
extend their learning by comparing the patterns
in quilts created in art and patterns developed in
music.
Assessment- Students will be assessed on their
ability to sing along to the lyrics to remember
geometric figures and angles found in our
environment. Students will also be assessed on
their ability to articulate how patterns are used
in both art and music and to compare the two art
forms.
Extension – Students will create in small groups
their own song to remember and describe the
geometric figures
STEAM Education
Lesson Brief