Name of Project:
Traveling in Their Shoes
School:
Lincoln Elementary in Anoka
Cooperating Teacher:
Kara Johnson
Grade Level:
Fourth grade
Presenter's Name:
Jaclyn Nelson
Visual Arts Content
Collage
4.1.3.5.2 - Describe how visual art communicates meaning
Curricular Link
US History Standard
G. Reshaping the Nation and the Emergence of Modern America, 1877-1916
Overview of Project
The project will be a collage made out of a map background and magazine tear-outs using a bookmaking technique with glue and glue brushes to apply. The students have been studying immigration in their social studies class so the project will integrate the idea of having to leave their home or country quickly. The students will find images of things that they would carry with them, like the immigrants who came through Ellis Island did with just a suitcase. They will also incorporate things they would have to leave behind. I expect the students to get a more in-depth "if I were in their shoes" kind of thinking so as to better understand what it would have been like to be an immigrant traveling to another country.
Essential Question(s)
The big idea here is to have the students get into the shoes of the immigrant experience by exploring what they believe would be important for them to bring and what they would have to leave behind. Some essential questions would include: What must I leave? What will come with me? What is important? How do we make these choices? They have been learning about immigration and what would drive people to come to America, what the trip was like, what Ellis Island is, the opportunities and the land of America, etc. I want them to pull all that information and instead of it just being facts to learn, make it be a connected experience with them creating a personal art project representing what it would be like if immigration ever happened to them.
Student Outcome Objectives
Students will create a dynamic composition using collaged images and bookmaking techniques that personalizes what choices an immigrant may make as they move.
Prior Knowledge
They have the prior knowledge of the immigration experience, specifically with Ellis Island. No collage knowledge is required.
Timeline
-Meeting with Lynda Monick-Isenberg at CVA 2:00-3:00pm on 01-12-10 (some phone conversations within the week).
-Meeting with Kara Johnson 9:45-10:15am on 01-15-10 (other discussions happened throughout the residency).
-Parent letter sent out 01-15-10 asking for help with school appropriate magazines to bring in on 01-19-10.
-Teaching the project will occur on Tuesday, 01-19-10, 11:35am-12:35pm and 1:50-2:45pm on the same day. The first section will be covering the presentation, demo and the students collecting their images. The second section will be finishing the collection and creating the collage.
-Installation will be on 01-21-10 where the artwork will be hung in the hallway outside of the classroom.
Examples of Student or Artist Work
I will be providing a power point that will show collage examples of professional artists Hannah Hoch and Kurt Schwitters. I will also provide a physical example that I have created to show what the finished product might look like.
Assessment
The students will demonstrate their understanding of collage and the big idea/essential question by creating a collage using compositional techniques shown in the power point and examplar and provide a written portion explaining how their personally-driven collage relates to the big idea. Students who want to share their collage and its meaning to the class are welcome to do so.
Materials
-Lots of school appropriate magazines (procured from CVA library, personal collection and from the students who bring them in)
-30 glue brushes (Lynda)
-15 Plastic cups (Lynda)
-Road Atlas (Walmart)
-Arches printmaking paper (Wet Paint) cut down to 32 - 10"x10" squares, 30 for students, 1 for mock up, 1 for demo
-Gallon of Elmers Glue (0ffice Max) watered down a little so not as thick
-Scrap paper (copy room) maybe 100 sheets
-30 envelopes to store images (personal stash)
Learning Activities
1. 11:35 Power point explaining the big idea, composition techniques and artist examples of collages. Students are at their desks.
2. 11:40 . Students are collected around demo table. Show mock up and explain my process (what was going on in my head, why did I do the things I did).
3. 11:45 Demo showing how to collage with torn images from a magazine. If image gets torn they can glue it back together on the collage. After demo I will answer any questions they may have.
4. 12:00 Students go back to their desks and start collecting images from magazines. They will need at least 10 to choose from for their final collage. They will begin to layout what their collage may look like.
5. 12:35 Put away materials and work on spelling
6. 12:50 Lunch/Recess
7. 1:50 Students will finish collecting images, if need be, and then continue on to create the collage. All compositions need to be okayed by me or Kara before they may proceed to gluing. They need to explain the compositional techniques that they are using. They all need to start gluing down images by 2:00
8. 2:25 I want them to start explaining their collage by writing a paragraph about it in their social studies notebook.
9. 2:35 Anyone who wants to share their collage may do so at this time.
10. 2:40 They will have 5 minutes to clean up. There is a sink in the classroom for them to use.
Teacher Reflection
I will be anticipating problems with some students getting off task by chatting with each other, daydreaming/zoning out and/or the misuse of materials to create a distraction. I will try to prevent this by stating the proper use of materials and behavior I expect from them. I will also be going around making sure they stay on task and make steady progress through the allotted time. Some students may need more attention to help keep them progressing.
This project fits into the overall curriculum planning for the social studies immigration subject area because it takes the facts that the students have already learned about immigration and evolves them into deeper understanding by putting a personal connection to it.
The students work will be shared with the community by being displayed in the school hallway outside of their classroom. I will mount them on black paper along with a typed version of their assessment.
I will receive feedback from Lynda Monick-Isenberg and Kara Johnson through evaluation forms.