Considering scope and sequence in planning art lessons
Artist Ben Long on his Scaffold Dog Sculpture
In a summer camp setting, students come in for a creative experience and leave with an art or craft item. One week does not depend on the next. What they come to you knowing has little influence over planning.
In a school setting, you'll need to build lessons in order of complexity. Your school's environment may heavily influence this. For example, if you teach in a K to 8 school, and students generally stay through all grades within the same school, then you can build from year to year and assume some level of understanding based on your previous teaching. Particularly in a small school. If, however, you teach in a regional school, you cannot depend on the concept that students have had similar experiences in art, some may not have had any art at all. Even if they have, some teachers may have skipped all vocabulary in favor of painting Monet Bridges with their students.
There will be some trial and error in planning but starting simple and adding complexity is a good place to start. Open with rules, a quick survey, and a "get to know me" project. This way you learn a bit about your students and their skill levels. This can be as simple as illustrating your favorite song, to creating an artwork for your cellphone that tells us a bit about you. Then you can dive into vocabulary and baseline information you want students to know ending with a short assessment to check for understand.
Some teachers organize their year by historical periods, world cultures, others by art elements. Whichever approach you take, start with simple media and move toward more complex materials. Think about the explorations you want to give and organize them by their level of difficulty and "messiness." Starting the year with a drawing project is likely better than beginning with a plaster sculpture. As you start simple and set up procedures and routines, students can grow into more complex explorations.
Sequential Example:
You can imagine that the above sequence of experiences could be based on a growing understand of the elements, historical periods, or the arts & crafts of different cultures. Each sequence is a bit more challenging than the next. They become more complex with set-up, tool use, and clean up. When students master one, they are ready to add to that base knowledge with more.
T.A.B. classrooms might begin with a few stations with simple media expectations. As the teacher introduces new tools and methods, more complex stations can be swapped in. Frequent check-ins, peer sharing, and critiques are helpful to be sure students are diving deep in these and any art programs.
The beginning of a year, semester, or quarter can be very stressful. Teachers should consider that as well and plan accordingly.
If you are interested in more topics like this, as a form of online professional development, click HERE.
In a school setting, you'll need to build lessons in order of complexity. Your school's environment may heavily influence this. For example, if you teach in a K to 8 school, and students generally stay through all grades within the same school, then you can build from year to year and assume some level of understanding based on your previous teaching. Particularly in a small school. If, however, you teach in a regional school, you cannot depend on the concept that students have had similar experiences in art, some may not have had any art at all. Even if they have, some teachers may have skipped all vocabulary in favor of painting Monet Bridges with their students.
There will be some trial and error in planning but starting simple and adding complexity is a good place to start. Open with rules, a quick survey, and a "get to know me" project. This way you learn a bit about your students and their skill levels. This can be as simple as illustrating your favorite song, to creating an artwork for your cellphone that tells us a bit about you. Then you can dive into vocabulary and baseline information you want students to know ending with a short assessment to check for understand.
Some teachers organize their year by historical periods, world cultures, others by art elements. Whichever approach you take, start with simple media and move toward more complex materials. Think about the explorations you want to give and organize them by their level of difficulty and "messiness." Starting the year with a drawing project is likely better than beginning with a plaster sculpture. As you start simple and set up procedures and routines, students can grow into more complex explorations.
Sequential Example:
- Drawing from imagination
- Drawing from observation
- Illustration lesson
- Perspective lesson
- Printmaking Exploration
- Cardboard Sculptures
- Plaster or clay lesson
- Independent exploration
- Research assignment
You can imagine that the above sequence of experiences could be based on a growing understand of the elements, historical periods, or the arts & crafts of different cultures. Each sequence is a bit more challenging than the next. They become more complex with set-up, tool use, and clean up. When students master one, they are ready to add to that base knowledge with more.
T.A.B. classrooms might begin with a few stations with simple media expectations. As the teacher introduces new tools and methods, more complex stations can be swapped in. Frequent check-ins, peer sharing, and critiques are helpful to be sure students are diving deep in these and any art programs.
The beginning of a year, semester, or quarter can be very stressful. Teachers should consider that as well and plan accordingly.
If you are interested in more topics like this, as a form of online professional development, click HERE.
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