Curated OER
Exploring War Themes in Art and Poetry
What is war? High schoolers discuss the ethical dilemma of war by viewing Picasso's painting entitled "Guernica" and write down everything they see in the painting. Then they choose one emotion that best summarizes their emotional...
Curated OER
3-D Design - Painting
Learners explain elements of relief sculpture. They create a sculpture from foam. They identify characteristics of the art of Clayton Pond and Pop Art. They develop skills in working with color.
Curated OER
Horse of a Different Color: An Introduction to Color in the Visual Arts
Students examine how artists use color to create a sense of depth in a two-dimensional space. They view and analyze prints, complete worksheets, and write a paragraph on how color is used to draw the viewer's eye to a central figure.
National Endowment for the Humanities
Lesson 1: In Depth with the Full Spectrum
High schoolers study the ways in which an artist can use color. They view various images of artwork and discuss the effect of color on spacial dimensions, focal points, tone, and mood.
Curated OER
Exploring Photographs, Lesson 2—A Closer Look: Analysis in the Museum
Students explore photographic works of art. In this visual arts lesson, students analyze selected photographs by Garcia, Ray, and Eggleston. Students take their own photographs in the style of these photographers.
Curated OER
Tip Ins - "Games People Play"
Students use different design techniques such as collage, paint, pencil, etc., to show the theme of "games people play."
Curated OER
Still Life
Students compose a three-dimensional still life composition in a shoe box, sketch portions of their work and then design a painting based on the finished box. They complete and critique their paintings.
Curated OER
The Producers
Students design attractive posters to promote the work of Leroy Anderson, an American composer with an unusual style.
Akron Art Museum
Storytelling Resist
The illustrations of Ezra Jack Keats in The Snowy Day inspire young artists to examine shapes in illustrations and to use these shapes to create their own watercolor resist painting.
Curated OER
Cardboard Radial Weaving
Students explore cultural history by participating in an arts and crafts activity. In this weaving activity, students identify the many cultures that used weaving methods and local plant life to create baskets and other useful tools....
Curated OER
Painting with and Learning From Art History - Extend the Composition
Students create a painting based on an artist from a chosen period in history. They research a modern artist and write a critique.
Curated OER
If Paintings Could Talk: Art and Language
Middle schoolers learn about the artist Canaletto, play a vocabulary game, and create a landscape using collage technique. Background information on the artist is provided along with instructions for the game and vocabulary words to...
Curated OER
Illusions of Depth
Learning to create depth when painting or drawing takes skill and the ability to understand how things should be placed on the canvas. The class will use the Charles Deas painting Long Jakes to learn about composition, sharing...
Curated OER
Painting/technology "and You Were There!"
Eighth graders study Impressionism through the works of Claude Monet. They do a self portrait in the Impressionist style.
Curated OER
Boogie Woogie Colors - Mondrian Painting
Students create art in the style of Piet Mondrian. They review works by Mondrian, identify primary and secondary colors and then use construction paper, cut strips of paper and paint to create a piece of art that incorporates geometric...
Curated OER
Gesture Drawing
Students investigate the use of proportion using gesture drawing as the subject matter. They create a painting using the elements of art and principles of design.
Curated OER
Chinese Calligraphy
Young scholars explore Chinese culture and Chinese calligraphy. In this Chinese calligraphy lesson, students create paintings using Chinese techniques. Young scholars describe the differences in Chinese art and other culture's art....
Curated OER
Values and Composition
Students examine and analyze the values of gray and the composition in photographs by Ansel Adams. They discuss elements of art, draw shapes and lines, complete a tone rectangle, and create a still life drawing.
Curated OER
Painting - Architecture Study
Students study architectural elements, then develop a strong composition from an interior photographs. They explore color planning by developing a painting with a variety of values.
Curated OER
Hard Edge Painting
Students study the history of hard edge painting and discover demonstration techniques using a variety of fonts and discuss lettering. They present a number of abstract works of art with hard edge technique and works of art with text.
Curated OER
Three-Dimensional Ceramic Sculptural Forms Inspired by the Paintings of Wassily Kandinsky
Students analyze / deconstruct elements of design used in Wassily Kandinsky's paintings in order to synthesize the elements into a three-dimensional form. Works may be functional or non-functional.
Curated OER
Still Life Painting: Arranging Nature
Students choose meaningful objects for a still-life arrangement and paint it using watercolors and write an artist’s statement. In this still life art lesson, students identify and analyze the characteristics of a still-life painting and...
Curated OER
Going West: The Artist Who Painted the Way
Fifth graders study the artists and artwork of the Westward movement. In this Westward Movement lesson set, 5th graders examine the characteristics of the art of this era. They look at the lives of the artists and think about how the art...
Curated OER
My Monkey in the Jungle
Second graders create depictions of a monkey in its' natural habitat. Emphasis is placed on the artwork of Henri Rousseau and techniques of landscape and design. State standards are addressed in this lesson plan.