My Lessons Coordinate with Yours!

As I have been thinking about how to set up my teaching curriculum, I decided to approach it as I would like to have it done were I home schooling my child. I thought that I would want to have the art lesson reflect what we are studying about in the other areas of my curriculum. In order to do that, I will have to keep in close touch with each parent and create my lessons to enhance their current area of study.

An important part of my curriculum is to teach children to enhance their sense of sight. Too often we draw what we think we see rather than what we are really seeing. Lets say since it is fall you are teaching your child about photosynthesis and looking at trees and leaves. As part of my lesson for your child, we would do a unit on learning to "see" Trees. (almost any topic having to do with the natural environment could be substituted for Trees) The idea is to look, study and learn about specific objects in the environment. In this way, students become aware of visual detail.

This unit would focus on developing the student's perceptual abilities and awareness of the environment.

Sample Lesson 1: Trees

Introductory Activities
The natural environment provides a wealth of visual information for students to explore. We would encourage your student to continuously add to their repertoire of images, lines, colors, textures, shapes, forms and patterns by observing and noting the natural environment's every-changing variety.

Questions to discuss:

1. What does a tree look like? Using the terms above make a list of their ideas and words. Get them to really look at what a tree looks like (not the typical lolly-pop on a stick)
2. How does it differ from another species in shape, color, etc.
3. View a tree from far away. What do you see? Draw what you see.
4. Move close up. What do you see now? Notice the lines, colors, textures, leaf shape. Fold a 11 x 17 piece of paper in 6ths and draw a different part of the tree close up.
5. Older students could take photographs and digitally change them on photography editing programs on the computer and print 6 different views/colors/effects of same photograph.
6. Make a large poster of tree and its part in a collage using various natural objects.
7. Ask student, "What can you do with a tree?" Answers may include climb it, make a swing, make a tree house, decorate it at Christmas, make a totem pole, paper,cloth and a variety of materials. Using your imagination now draw a tree in one of these manners.

It would be my job to use materials that create an excitement in the student to create a colorful piece of art. Some of the above ideas could be used by the parent as an art lesson in the week I would not meet with them to continue their art education.

In my next post, I'll give some other ideas I would do for lesson plans. Thanks for taking the time to look at my ideas.