Tentative Beginning Art Curriculum for 5th and 6th Grades
Realistic Drawing Skills: Still Life Drawing
Skills: Observational Skills, Compositional Skills, Technical Skills with a Pencil
Duration: Two Class Periods (80 to 90 minutes) – Pre-Test (25 minutes), Demonstration (15 minutes), Still Life Drawing (40 minutes)
Activity 1: Pre-Test - simple or complex still life with one or more objects; little or no instruction
Activity 2: Demonstration - Discuss observation and composition; demonstrate close study of objects in the still life; demonstrate sketching a blanket or tent on the paper to compose the drawing; demonstrate outline of all of the objects on the paper; demonstrate drawing individual objects while pointing out overlapping and the relationships between objects (height, width, distance, space); emphasize drawing lightly so that lines can be more easily erased
Activity 3: Student Still Life Drawings - further emphasize observation and composition as the students work on their own drawings, point out details in still life, give suggestions to students for ways to improve their skills, perform additional demonstrations for individuals, further discuss overlapping, space, and the relationships between objects
Supplies/Resources: Drawing pencil, 9”x12” paper
Shading Skills: Value Sheet with Blended Shading, Hatching, Cross-hatching, and Stippling
Skills: Technical Skills with a Pencil, Tortillon, Kneaded Eraser
Duration: Two Class Periods (60 to 85 minutes) – Demonstrations for each of the four shading techniques (10 minutes), Student work (60 to 75 minutes)
Activity 1: Demonstration of shading with blending (more pressure = darker value, less pressure = lighter value), Discuss drawing pencils (2H is light and 6B is dark), tortillons (wrapped paper used for blending), kneaded erasers (can be cleaned easily and formed into fine points when needed)
Activity 2: Student shading with blending, creating gradual change in value from dark to light in two rectangular boxes; Individual suggestions, critiques, demonstrations
Activity 3: Demonstrate hatching, Discuss the relationship between the proximity of hatch lines and value (closer the lines = darker the value; further the lines = lighter the value)
Activity 4: Student creation of values with hatching, creating gradual change in value from dark to light in two rectangular boxes; individual critiques
Activity 5: Demonstrate cross-hatching; Discuss proximity and value again
Activity 6: Student creation of values with cross-hatching, creating gradual change in value from dark to light in two rectangular boxes; individual critiques
Activity 7: Demonstrate stippling; Discuss relationship between the proximity of dots and value (closer the dots = darker the value; further the dots = lighter the value)
Activity 8: Student creation of values with stippling, creating gradual change in value from dark to light in two rectangular boxes; individual critiques
Activity 9: Student creation of value changes from light to dark in four more rectangular boxes while working with each of the different shading techniques one more time; additional critiques, if needed
Supplies/Resources: Pencil, tortillon, kneaded eraser, Value Sheet (handout)
Linear Perspective: 1-Point Perspective Road
Skills: Compositional Skills, Technical Skills with Pencil and Ruler
Duration: One Class Period (45 minutes) – Demonstrations/Discussions (15 to 20 minutes), Student work (25 to 30 minutes)
Activity 1: Draw a horizon line and one vanishing point, and use the vanishing point to draw a road leading away from the viewer on the paper; discuss how the horizon line is the viewer’s eye level – everything above the horizon line is something the viewer would look up to see in real life and anything below the horizon line is something the viewer would look down to see in real life; discuss how lines that are parallel in real life get closer together if you draw them on a piece of paper to create depth; show example(s) from drawings or photographs or real life
Activity 2: Have the students draw a horizon line, vanishing point, and road; emphasize drawing lightly so that lines can be more easily erased
Activity 3: Demonstrate using the vanishing point to create the tops of buildings of different heights on the right side of the road; further discuss 1-point perspective
Activity 4: Have the students draw buildings on the right side of their roads using the vanishing point; give suggestions, individual demonstrations
Activity 5: Demonstrate using the vanishing point to create a fence and/or power lines and/or a row of trees on the left side of the road, creating a countryside across from the city
Activity 6: Have the students draw their own fences, or power lines, or tree rows using the vanishing point; give suggestions, individual demonstrations, critiques
Supplies/Resources: Pencil, ruler, kneaded eraser, 9”x12” paper
Linear Perspective: 2-Point Perspective House
Skills: Compositional Skills, Technical Skills with Pencil and Ruler
Duration: Two to Three Class Periods (90 to 120 minutes) – Demonstrations/Discussions (40 to 50 minutes), Student work (40 to 80 minutes)
Activity 1: Review Horizon Line and 1-Point Perspective; Discuss 2-Point Perspective; Draw Horizon line and two vanishing points; Have students do the same
Activity 2: Hand out the 2-Point Perspective House Steps sheet; Begin leading students through the steps by demonstrating how to draw in vertical lines and connect those lines to the vanishing points while discussing which vanishing points to use for which parts of the house
Activity 3: Have students follow the first steps; individual critiques, demonstrations; emphasize drawing lightly so that lines can be more easily erased
Activity 4: Demonstrate erasing lines while following the handout so that only the box of the house remains; Discuss how to find the middle of the side of the house in order to draw a slanted roof and demonstrate drawing it in
Activity 5: Have students erase lines and find the middle of the side of their houses for the roof; individual critiques, demonstrations
Activity 6: Demonstrate drawing the roof while using the appropriate vanishing point
Activity 7: Have students draw their roofs; individual critiques, demonstrations
Activity 8: Demonstrate drawing doors and windows while discussing which vanishing points to use and why
Activity 9: Have students draw their doors and windows; individual critiques, demonstrations
Activity 10: Demonstrate and discuss drawing a chimney while using the vanishing points
Activity 11: Have students draw in their chimneys; individual critiques, demonstrations
Activity 12: Demonstrate drawing a sidewalk and a driveway using the appropriate vanishing point
Activity 13: Have the students draw a sidewalk and a driveway; individual critiques, demonstrations
Activity 12: If time, add other details: Bricks, siding, shingles, window frames, bushes
Supplies/Resources: Pencil, ruler, kneaded eraser, 9”x12” paper; 2-Point Perspective House Steps (handout)
Shading Skills: Non-representational Value Drawing
Skills: Compositional Skills, Measuring Skills; Technical Skills with Pencil, Tortillon, Eraser, Ruler
Duration: Two Class Periods (60 to 90 minutes) – Demonstration (10 minutes), Student work (50 to 80 minutes)
Activity 1: Review shading by applying pressure with a drawing pencil, blending with a tortillon, and removing graphite with an eraser
Activity 2: Demonstrate using a ruler to carefully measure, mark, and draw a 1-inch border on the 5”x7” paper; explain how to use the ruler, noting what each of the marks indicates
Activity 3: Have the students carefully measure, mark, and draw a 1-inch border on their papers; critique individually, perform further demonstrations
Activity 4: Demonstrate drawing an abstract composition with five circles and several straight lines on the paper; draw the circles first and use a ruler to draw the lines in the surrounding space so that the circles overlap the lines
Activity 5: Have the students draw their circles and use rulers to break up the surrounding space with straight lines overlapped by the circles
Activity 6: Demonstrate shading each shape so that the values in each shape created by the lines gradually changes from light to dark; while moving around the paper, alternate the value changes so that the light value of one shape borders the dark value of the surrounding one or two shapes; leave two shapes white and darken two shapes a solid value to add more interest; leave two of the circles white and darken the other three solid values
Activity 7: Have the students shade in their shapes in the same manner; individual critiques and demonstrations
Activity 8: Discuss the drawing, focusing on abstraction, shading, overlapping, and contrast – the round lines of the circles contrast with the straight lines of the surrounding space; the dark values contrast with the neighboring light values; if possible, place their drawings on a wall to critique them – they will see what they could change better when the piece is on the wall ten feet away than when it is on the table a couple feet from their eyes
Supplies/Resources: Drawing pencil, tortillon, kneaded eraser, ruler, 6”x9” paper
Basic Color Theory and Abstraction: Color Sphere Drawing
Skills: Compositional Skills, Technical Skills with Colored Pencil, Ruler, Compass
Duration: Two Class Periods (90 minutes) – Demonstration (20 to 30 minutes), Student work (60 to 70 minutes)
Activity 1: Review the color wheel and basic color theory (complementary colors, warm/cool colors)
Activity 2: Demonstrate using a compass to draw one relatively large circle placed off-center toward one of the corners of the paper, and four to six smaller circles around the paper with a couple of circles overlapping; discuss composition, focusing on creating an emphasis or focal point; for many, turning the paper instead of the compass makes drawing a circle easier
Activity 3: Have the students use compasses to create circles in a similar manner on their papers
Activity 4: Demonstrate using a ruler to draw a twelve lines that are roughly lined up with the center of the larger circle and which lead away from that circle to the edges of the paper; these lines will be roughly equally spread out and will be overlapped by the other circles
Activity 5: Have the students draw in these same lines; individual critiques
Activity 6: Demonstrate using complementary colors for the larger circle, using the warm color as the dominant color, creating changes in value and layering that warm color with its complement to create a shadow along one side of the circle in order to make it look like a sphere; discuss how light and color work – how light travels in waves and how complementary colors can be blended to create a brown color good for shadows; tell the students they will do the same with the other circle, varying the color combinations (yellow and violet, red and green, orange and blue)
Activity 7: Have the students color their circles in a similar manner
Activity 8: Demonstrate using the complement of the dominant warm color of the largest circle to draw over the lines created with the ruler; then work around the largest circle filling in each space created by the straight lines with the same color of the lines, working from a darker value near the circle to a lighter value near the edges of the page; alternate each space between a darker value and a slightly lighter value to create a little bit of contrast between those spaces and to add more interest to the composition; for example, a predominantly orange circle will be surrounded by blue lines, and the spaces between those lines will alternate between a very dark blue gradually getting lighter and a not-so-dark blue gradually getting lighter
Activity 9: Have the students add color in the same manner; individual critiques; if possible, have students place their pieces on a wall and look at them from further away to see things they can adjust
Activity 10: Review composition, emphasis, and focal point; discuss contrast and the various ways the students are creating contrast – by working with complementary colors, values, and round lines surrounded by straight lines
Supplies/Resources: Pencil, colored pencils (red, orange, yellow, green, blue, violet), compass, ruler, 6”x9” paper
Color Theory: Color Wheel with Watercolors
Skills: Technical Skills with watercolor and brush
Duration: One Class Period (45 minutes) - Demonstration (5 to 10 minutes), Student work (35 to 40 minutes)
Activity 1: Review the color wheel and basic color theory (complementary colors, warm/cool colors)
Activity 2: Discuss how watercolors can work (less water and more pigment = darker value, more water and less pigment = lighter value); demonstrate using watercolors to paint one or two colors on a color wheel, gradually changing the values so that there are at least three distinguishable values; demonstrate using a tissue to blot the watercolor and remove excess color; explain that it is often easier to see value differences by looking at the watercolors from an angle; ask the students what they see
Activity 3: Have the students work from relatively light to relatively dark colors as they create their watercolor color wheels – yellow, orange, red, green, blue, and violet – placing the colors in the appropriate spaces so that complementary colors are across from each other; individual critiques
Activity 4: Class critique – show each color wheel to the class without revealing the names and have them critique the wheels for distinguishable values and craftsmanship
Supplies/Resources: basic watercolor set, small brush, cup of water, tissue paper, 6”x9” paper with the image of a simple empty color wheel (a circle with six roughly equal pie pieces)