Art Lesson 2: Stories Behind Our Feelings
This lesson is a follow-up to the art talk which focused on representing feelings through a human face. It extends the artwork that students made in that lesson by giving them an opportunity to think beyond just the feeling they see on the face and more about what might have caused that feeling. This lesson integrates the arts through drama and literature.
For a reflection of my teaching, see ART LESSON 2 REFLECTION
For a reflection of my teaching, see ART LESSON 2 REFLECTION
Lesson Plan
Standard/Benchmark
HCPS III:
Strand:Visual Arts
Standard 1: VISUAL ARTS: Understand and apply art materials, techniques, and processes in the creation of works of art and understand how the visual arts communicate a variety of ideas, feelings, and experiences
Topic: How the Arts Communicate
Benchmark FA.K.1.3 Create art that expresses feelings about a familiar subject
Strand: Drama and Theatre
Standard 3: DRAMA AND THEATRE: Understand and apply the skills of acting, design, and technical theatre and understand the role of drama in various cultures throughout history
Topic: How the Arts are Organized and Applied
Benchmark FA.K.3.1 Perform imitative movements
Assessment
Students will be able to: read the emotion in their partner’s picture of a face and write a story in their journal explaining why they think the person in their picture is feeling the way that they do.
Students will be able to: communicate emotions using their facial expression and body positions.
Materials
**When students come in, printed student artwork will be on tables, arranged by inquiry buddies and with names of the inquiry buddies next to the artwork.
Have students sit on carpet, facing board.
1. Intro Activity: “Faces with Feelings”
“The last time we talked about feelings, we learned that you can tell what someone is feeling just by looking at their face. So, today we’ll practice showing feelings on our faces. I’ll start with one emotion.
Teacher assumes a lonely position. Back a little hunched over, arms covering body, shoulders bent inwards, head tilted slightly upward, eyes looking up, pouty mouth, etc.
“What feeling do you think that was?” Take a few responses.
“Did you notice the way my arms were? …. back was? …. shoulders were?
“When I made myself look lonely, I was thinking about how sometimes when I wake up late and my house is empty. No one is at home, and I don’t know where anyone is. That, made me feel very lonely.”
“With your eyes closed, I want you to think of a time when you felt very lonely. Now show it on your face and your body. Make them look as lonely as you can. ”
Stop students and ask: “What were you thinking about?”
“Who can think of a new emotion/feeling that we show on our faces? Can you show us?”
Let other students guess what emotion they were trying to show. “What feeling do you think __________ was trying to show?”
Comment on the features in student’s face and body positions. “Look at how their face ….”
Ask: “What did you think of when you showed ___ on your face?”
Let’s all do the same thing. With your eyes closed, think of something that makes you feel really ____ , then show that emotion on your face.
Repeat for one or two more feelings. If feelings repeat, just prompt students with some of these feelings: sad, happy, embarrassed, nervous, frustrated, confused, scared, etc.
2. Gallery walk:
Since the student artwork is already out on the tables, have students stand in a line and follow the teacher. Walk slowly around the tables. Students will have a chance to admire their own and their classmates’ artwork.
Rules for gallery walk: no touching, no talking, just looking.
3. Modeling for assessment task:
Come back to the rug, have students sit down.
“ Now let’s look at the angry face that Todd Parr drew, the one that we looked at last week. Let’s all think of a story that explains why this girl is so angry. What do you think happened that made this girl so angry?”
Take multiple ideas and include all of them.
Draws the story of why she is angry on the board. Underneath, write “I feel angry because ….
4. Assessment task:
Now you are going to do the same thing that we just did.
You will be working with your inquiry buddies. You will look at your inquiry buddy’s drawing and figure out what emotion or feeling your buddy was trying to draw. Then, just like we did as a class, by yourself you will think of a reason why the person was feeling that way and draw on this journal paper. As best you can, write about what happened.
5. While students are working:
- teacher walks around to ensure that students are on task
- assists with sounding out words
- transcribe what students wrote (illegibly)
- ask students about their story and what they’re writing
HCPS III:
Strand:Visual Arts
Standard 1: VISUAL ARTS: Understand and apply art materials, techniques, and processes in the creation of works of art and understand how the visual arts communicate a variety of ideas, feelings, and experiences
Topic: How the Arts Communicate
Benchmark FA.K.1.3 Create art that expresses feelings about a familiar subject
Strand: Drama and Theatre
Standard 3: DRAMA AND THEATRE: Understand and apply the skills of acting, design, and technical theatre and understand the role of drama in various cultures throughout history
Topic: How the Arts are Organized and Applied
Benchmark FA.K.3.1 Perform imitative movements
Assessment
Students will be able to: read the emotion in their partner’s picture of a face and write a story in their journal explaining why they think the person in their picture is feeling the way that they do.
Students will be able to: communicate emotions using their facial expression and body positions.
Materials
- Student artwork from Art Talk lesson printed on white paper (faces with emotion/feeling, Todd Parr style)
- Laminated paper from Art Talk lesson with angry face on it
- journal paper with "How Do You Feel?" as the title
- pencil, colored pencils
**When students come in, printed student artwork will be on tables, arranged by inquiry buddies and with names of the inquiry buddies next to the artwork.
Have students sit on carpet, facing board.
1. Intro Activity: “Faces with Feelings”
“The last time we talked about feelings, we learned that you can tell what someone is feeling just by looking at their face. So, today we’ll practice showing feelings on our faces. I’ll start with one emotion.
Teacher assumes a lonely position. Back a little hunched over, arms covering body, shoulders bent inwards, head tilted slightly upward, eyes looking up, pouty mouth, etc.
“What feeling do you think that was?” Take a few responses.
“Did you notice the way my arms were? …. back was? …. shoulders were?
“When I made myself look lonely, I was thinking about how sometimes when I wake up late and my house is empty. No one is at home, and I don’t know where anyone is. That, made me feel very lonely.”
“With your eyes closed, I want you to think of a time when you felt very lonely. Now show it on your face and your body. Make them look as lonely as you can. ”
Stop students and ask: “What were you thinking about?”
“Who can think of a new emotion/feeling that we show on our faces? Can you show us?”
Let other students guess what emotion they were trying to show. “What feeling do you think __________ was trying to show?”
Comment on the features in student’s face and body positions. “Look at how their face ….”
Ask: “What did you think of when you showed ___ on your face?”
Let’s all do the same thing. With your eyes closed, think of something that makes you feel really ____ , then show that emotion on your face.
Repeat for one or two more feelings. If feelings repeat, just prompt students with some of these feelings: sad, happy, embarrassed, nervous, frustrated, confused, scared, etc.
2. Gallery walk:
Since the student artwork is already out on the tables, have students stand in a line and follow the teacher. Walk slowly around the tables. Students will have a chance to admire their own and their classmates’ artwork.
Rules for gallery walk: no touching, no talking, just looking.
3. Modeling for assessment task:
Come back to the rug, have students sit down.
“ Now let’s look at the angry face that Todd Parr drew, the one that we looked at last week. Let’s all think of a story that explains why this girl is so angry. What do you think happened that made this girl so angry?”
Take multiple ideas and include all of them.
Draws the story of why she is angry on the board. Underneath, write “I feel angry because ….
4. Assessment task:
Now you are going to do the same thing that we just did.
You will be working with your inquiry buddies. You will look at your inquiry buddy’s drawing and figure out what emotion or feeling your buddy was trying to draw. Then, just like we did as a class, by yourself you will think of a reason why the person was feeling that way and draw on this journal paper. As best you can, write about what happened.
5. While students are working:
- teacher walks around to ensure that students are on task
- assists with sounding out words
- transcribe what students wrote (illegibly)
- ask students about their story and what they’re writing