Drawing/Painting

Taking a Line for a Walk I

This was a very simple activity to introduce drawing to students. A lot can be done with a line! In the first activity, ask students to draw a creation on a piece of paper using different kinds of lines. The teacher can show some examples, but should also leave room for students to be the designers and not copiers of what the teacher does. Students should be provided with several pieces of paper to make different designs and explore their lines. After looking around at other classmates, I saw how many different types of drawings can be made from something so simple!

Taking a Line for a Walk II

Following the first activity, students are now asked to make one long connecting line to circle the classroom or hallway. The only directions are that the line has to begin and end in the middle of the paper (horizontally). To help guide this, students can fold their paper in half (hotdog style) and mark two dots where their line needs to begin and end. The rest of the style and travel of their line is up to them! We didn't have the materials to make one connecting line, but I can imagine how amazing it would look around a classroom or hallway! It shows how students (their drawings) are all different and unique, yet we all are connected to one another. Students are practicing an important part of drawing without even realize it! Such a fun activity!

Drawing a Stone

This is another simple way to get students familiar and comfortable with drawing. Provide students with a variety of different types of stones. Each student gets to pick a stone to draw. First, have students look at their stone carefully. Have them think about which side and angle they would like to draw the rock from. First, give them a small piece of paper to practice drawing their rock with a pencil. Once students are content with their drawing, provide them with a sheet of thicker drawing paper. On this paper, students can enlarge their drawing and use colored pencils to add color. Finally, show students how to mat their drawings onto a piece of colored construction paper. This gives students an opportunity to explore shading, cross-hatching, texture, shape, dimension, shadow, and detail. This is not an activity that should be rushed. Students should be in a relaxed, comfortable environment. This would be a nice break in a classroom after taking a test or challenging activity. It would be fun to extend the activity by inviting students to bring in their own rocks to draw. 

Talking About Artwork and Artful Feedback

One great way to introduce artful feedback is by modeling examples of helpful feedback and having students practice using them on other students' drawings. Some examples are, "Wow! You really paid attention to detail," "I love the way you used color to show what the rock looked like," "The way you used your pencils really shows the texture of the rock," "The way you used shading shows the dimension of your rock," or "What an interesting rock!" These include important qualities of drawings and using the rocks as examples works really well. To get students to think about artwork and artful feedback, give each student several post-it notes. Display all of the drawings on the wall. Ask each student to write positive artful feedback on several of the drawings of their choice. Students can use examples given by the teacher or create their own. This is a great exercise and I think it would be really cool to always have post-it notes available for students to make comments on artwork in the classroom. It felt really good to see post-it notes on my drawing. The only possible challenge is making sure all students get a post-it note on their drawing so they don't feel left out or that it is bad. To avoid this, you could make a limit on only 1 or 2 notes per drawing, or by writing your own feedback on post-it notes for the students' drawings. What a great exercise as an extension to a simple activity!

Graphic Illustrations of Contrast

This is a really cool exercise to introduce contrast in drawing. There were 8 drawings on the wall, each representing a different form of contrast. A small group of students sorts through cards with the names of each contrast and matches them with the corresponding picture on the wall. The class then determines if it is right or not, then copies it on their own pieces of paper. I like the concept of this activity and the incorporation of a game. I think it would be really cool as a follow-up to have each pair or small groups of students receive a card with the name of a type of contrast. Each group then makes posters like these to represent their contrast. The whole class then works together to determine which group created each contrast. Fun!

Color Wheels and Rectangles

This is a perfect way to introduce painting and use of colors to students. First, review the definition and examples of primary (red, blue, yellow) and secondary (orange, purple, green) colors. Provide students with red, blue, yellow, black, and white tempera paint, painting trays to pour and mix colors in, a cup of water, paintbrushes, and butcher paper. Invite students to practice mixing colors, forming secondary colors, and creating different shades of colors by adding white and black. Once students are familiar and comfortable with the paints and colors, show them how to make a color wheel or rectangle/grid. Show them examples of each, pointing out how and where to use black and white paint. Practicing first allowed us to explore with the paint in a free way. It helped me practice for my color wheel and prepared me for my final drawing. Although there were only several different ways to make our final paintings, once they were all hung up on the wall together, it was amazing how different each painting looked. It created such a beautiful display for a classroom. If I did this in my classroom, I would like to do the post-it note feedback extension for these paintings as well. So fun!