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Louisiana Crafts and Domestic Arts
Discuss with the class the reasons for identifying and defining the term material culture as refering to a vast array of objects and activities that people make and do traditionally. Your class can identify diverse crafts and decorative...
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Looking at French Decorative Arts: Makers of Nothing, Sellers of Everything
Students imagine they are a 'marchand-mercier' (or salesman) and write a persuasive letter to sell French items. In this art analysis lesson, students identify the role of a 'marchand-mercier' and write a three-paragraph letter to sell...
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Looking at French Decorative Arts
Students compare the role of a marchand-mercier to that of a modern-day business counterpart and write a persuasive letter. In this French art lesson, students discuss the role of the marchand-mercier in French design and role-play his...
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Finding Polygons in Cubist Art
Fourth graders explore geometric properties and relationships in a two-dimensional work of art. They first search for and identify polygons in a Cubist painting and then use polygons to create their own Cubist portrait of a classmate.
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Flora and Fauna as Figures of Speech
What a lovely way to incorporate artwork into your language arts lesson. View artwork in illustrated manuscript pages, depicting insects, animals, plants, flowers, and ornate writing in the Getty Museum. Practice using figurative...
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Repeat After Me: Repetition in the Visual Arts
Students explore one of the techniques artists often use to highlight important elements within a painting's composition and to move a viewer's eye around the canvass from highpoint to highpoint.
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Looking at French Decorative Arts: The Science of Good Design
Learners examine the style of an 18th-century compound microscope and its case. In this scientific design lesson plan, students look at Jacques Caffieri's, "Compound Microscope and Case" before comparing the design to a modern...
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Lesson: Allison Smith: What Are You Fighting For?
Trench art is a nontraditional art form created by soldiers in trenches during wartime. Artist Allison Smith connects her art to the American Revolution and the question: "What are you fighting for?" Kids examine her art, how it connects...
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Seven Famous African-American Masters of American Art
Students examine seven different African-American artists. In groups, they use the internet to identify their contribution and techniques to the art world and examine the time period in which the artwork was produced. To end the...
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Ceramics Are All About Us
Students investigate many of the relationships that contribute to the look and design of decorative arts objects such as ceramics.
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Designing a Civilization for an Art Room
Learners discover the ideas of civilizations by researching Gandhi's philosophies. Â In this art decoration lesson plan, students investigate Gandhi's opinions on civilizations, community and ethics. Â Learners collaborate by decorating an...
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Folk Art Weather Vane
Students observe weather vanes and explore their purpose and history and create a miniature weather vane from cardboard or wood.
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Colonial Silver and Tea
Students examine silver pieces from colonial Boston in order to determine the social context of these objects. They compare signs of social status in colonial Boston with those of today by looking at the associated visuals.
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Back to Basics
Students examine the unique and diverse historical artifacts that people have designed to fulfill their everyday needs in extraordinary ways. They identify ways humans have used design throughout history to enhance the ways they meet...
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Cross-Cultural Connections
Students investigate many of the relationships that contribute to the look and design of decorative arts objects.
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Create an Illuminated Alphabet Word Book
Students create a class alphabet book. In this letter recognition lesson, students use line and color to draw an object whose name begins with a specific letter. Students use adjectives to create a sentence describing the object or...
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Exploring Pottery Techniques
Young scholars examine Native American pottery. In this visual arts lesson plan, students analyze burnished and glazed clay pots. Young scholars study how to create pots from online sources and respond to questions about the process....
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The Mouse and the Motorcycle
Students follow along as they read chapters in the book The Mouse and the Motorcycle. They work with a partner and choose 5 objects to measure when the class does the measuring activity. Students make a picture dictionary using at...
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Flower Symbolism
Fourth graders identify flowers as symbols in art forms. They focus on the Victorian era and create their own flower design for use in visual art or literary forms.
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Looking At French Decorative Arts: Makers of Nothing, Sellers of Everything
Learners compare/contrast the role of merchant to that of his modern-day business counterpart. They role-play that they are 18th-century merchants, and write persuasive letters to sell French beds for clients.
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Small
Young scholars research visual arts by examining a children's book. For this art identification lesson, students discuss the history of art after researching information on the Internet. Young scholars read the book Small which discusses...
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The Un-Birthday Present
Students research an artist of their choice. They examine his or her personal habits, mannerisms, and their art. They pick five objects that would be suitable to give their artist for a present. They must explain each object and why they...
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Elements of Design
Learners define basic design vocabulary. They examine fabrics and sort into similar piles, design a picture of a beautiful room and label each art element in the design. They read an article from an interior design magazine and summarize...
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Personification
Students engage in a lesson about personification. They read passages from Charlotte's Web which are connected to the concept of looking for key words to name the character. Students review the definition of personification, and write a...