Lesson Title & Big Idea: Were All Unique! Grade Level: 1 Lesson Purpose: The purpose of this lesson is to expand students understanding of the fact that everyone in the world is different, both inside and out. Furthermore, this is to be celebratednot ignored or (even worse) disrespected.
Class Periods Required: 2 Key Concepts (2-3): 1.) What is diversity? What makes someone (you) diverse? 2.) Where is diversity found around the world and in our classroom? 3.) How can diversity be represented through art? Essential Questions (2-3): 1.) Diversity is anything that makes us different/unique from our neighbor. 2.) Diversity can be found within your family, neighborhood, city, country, and continent. Where we come from and who we are makes us diverse. 3.) Diversity can be represented and celebrated in art through unique features and characteristics of people.
Lesson Objectives: (Excellent resource at http://www.teachervision.fen.com/curriculum-planning/new-teacher/48345.html?for_printing=1&detoured=1) 1.) Students will discover that even though were all different, everyone has common physical, social and emotional needs. 2.) Throughout reading a short story, students will learn that uniqueness and diversity is beautiful and is to be celebrated. 3.) In response to the story, students will engage in a short discussion about life experiences. 4.) Students will examine the illustrations of characters in the story to receive inspiration and then delve into art through creating a self-portrait. 5.) After discussing their ancestry with a parent or guardian at home, students (class-wide) will locate their ancestry on a map and describe its relative location.
Social Studies: SS5 1.10 Read maps; Locate a place by pointing it out on a map and by describing its relative location (description of a location by explaining where the place is in relation to one or more other places)
SS6 1.10 Explain how people have common physical, social and emotional needs
Visual Arts: Missouri Core Academic Standards (Common Core State Standards) (3-4) (http://www.corestandards.org/) English Language Arts-Speaking & Listening Comprehension and Collaboration 2. Ask and answer questions about key details in a text read aloud or information presented orally or through other media. 4. Describe people, places, things, and events with relevant details, expressing ideas and feelings clearly. 5. Add drawings or other visual displays to descriptions when appropriate to clarify ideas, thoughts, and feelings.
Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 2
3C Create original artwork that communicates ideas about the following themes: People, Animals, Things 1A Discuss a response (feeling or idea) to an artwork based upon the students life experience
Language Arts: 1H Develop and apply post-reading skills after reading or read-alouds to respond to text: a. answer basic comprehension questions, b. question to clarify, c. retell, d. reflect, e. draw conclusions, f. analyze Integrated Content Areas: 1.) Visual Art 2.) Social Studies 3.) Language Arts Identify & define common vocabulary/concepts that connect visual art with the non-art content area. Diversity: what makes each person unique as an individual inward and outward characteristic traits that separate us from our neighbor Ancestry the geographical location where your family came from originally; one aspect of an individuals uniqueness
Anticipatory Set (Gaining Attention): Read-aloud All the Colors of the Earth by Sheila Hamanaka, study and admire the illustrations and hold an immediate discussion connecting students experiences. Closure (Reflecting Anticipatory Set): Students will share and explain their original art work followed by showing and telling where their personal ancestry is by locating on a map.
Lesson Activities & Procedure(s): 1. Gather students on the carpet for read-aloud (All the Colors of the Earth by Sheila Hamanaka); point out and encourage inspiration through words and illustrations. 2. Discuss main points of the story and especially touch on what diversity is and the fact that it should be celebrated in our classroom and across the world. 2. Hold a short class-wide discussion where students are encouraged to participate through sharing unique facts about themselves and their life experiences with being different than their neighbor. 3. Make a charts, lists and visual representations on a white board or SmartBoard about humans common physical, social and emotional needs. Lesson Texts & Materials: All the Colors of the Earth by Sheila Hamanaka The Crayon Box that Talked by Shane DeRolf (optional)
Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 3
Make a point that even though were all different, our commonalities are still very present. 4. Show students a picture of countless robots (see references). Ask students if they are robots. (Anticipate the commenced NOOO!) Tell students that they, themselves, are a work of art. They were uniquely designed to be just the way they are, and no one has the same finger print or skin tone or brain as themselves, which separates them (among many other things) from being robots. 5. Remind students Thankfully we arent robots and were all very, very different from each otherlets celebrate this! This is beautiful! 6. Students will engage in two studios. (One on the first day and one on the second day.) On the first day, students will create a self-portrait. Using white paper plates as a face representation, students may use any of the following types of medium: tempura paint, crayons, or colored pencils, to demonstrate their unique skin tone (as portrayed in the story). Students will be encouraged to mix white, brown and black colored paints until they reach something similar to their skin tone. Students will continue to paint and/or draw other facial features unique to themselves, including hair (string or yarn). 7. Students will be asked to discuss their ancestry with a parent or guardian at home and to become familiar with the geographical and relative location. 8. Students will continue the lesson on day two by doing another studio. Students will trace their hand on computer paper, cut with scissors, and decorate with their preference of the following mediums: colored pencils, markers, crayons. On each finger, students will write about something that makes them uniquethis time being something that doesnt have to do with their appearance. (Example: Lover of iguanas, left-handed, fan of frog legs) As far as the background, students should do something other than the color of their skin. Encourage students to be creative with this (ex: choose favorite color, or create a color scheme or a rainbow). 9. (Optional) Read The Crayon Box That Talked which touches on diversity in a humorous way and could encourage students which colors to use to decorate their hands. 9. Finally, students will share their works of art to the class as well as present the geographical location of their ancestry to the class along with a short explanation of what makes them unique. The teacher will engage in all activities and, similarly, give the first presentation as an example. Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 4
Lesson adaptations for challenged learners: Have blank, numbered worksheet for students entitled Things I Like. Students may do their art studio using the mediums other students are able to. Encourage these students to focus on their inner-strengths such as likes, loves, hobbies, etc. These are easy to be pulled from for most students because most students love to talk about themselves.
ELL students will benefit from the illustrations of the story. Students with advanced communication skills will buddy up with an ELL student to make sure student understands the directions.
Students with learning disabilities may choose one of the studio projects, if preferred. Students may also have the option to do the second studio project during presentations if the student is non-verbal or has other extenuating circumstances.
Students uncomfortable with presenting verbal explanation of individual uniqueness/diversity may choose to write 3 -4 sentences instead. Lesson extensions/enrichments for gifted learners: Encourage gifted learners to add as much detail as possible to their ancestry presentations. Students can, as a result, research more information about the geographical location, community at the time or community now.
Formative Assessment strategies: Checklists Participation (in discussion and studio projects) Summative Assessment strategy: Presentation of ancestry and studio projects Verbal or written explanation of personal uniqueness/diversity
What student prior knowledge will this lesson require/draw upon? Students will have been pre-exposed to maps and the terms diversity, uniqueness and ethnicity.
How will you engage students in imagining, exploring, and/or experimenting in this lesson? Students will explore his/her own family ancestry. Students will imagine if he/she, along with the rest of the world, were to be a robot instead of a unique human being. Students will explore his/her characteristic traits that separate him/herself from their neighbor (both inwardly and outwardly).
How will this lesson allow for/encourage students to solve problems in divergent ways? This lesson encourages and allows students to turn something negative (disrespect of differences) into something positive (celebrating differences). The Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 5
teacher, during discussions will pose ways to phrase things in a positive light and combat negativity. Students will follow his/her example, as a result.
How will you engage students in routinely reflecting on their learning? I will often remind students that they themselves are a work of art; that uniqueness is to be celebrated, not disrespected (classroom rules at the beginning of the year + frequency of discipline).
How will this lesson engage students in assessing their own work and the work of peers? Students will work alongside peers and have the opportunity to discuss their art during studio time. Students are also encouraged to listen critically during the post-read-aloud discussion.
What opportunities/activities will students be given to revise and improve their understandings and their work? Students may choose to improve their work at home or seek further search about their individual ancestry.
What opportunities/activities will you provide for students to share their learning in this lesson? Students will have the opportunity to share in class-wide discussion immediately following the read-aloud as well as during individual presentations on day two of the lesson. Not to mention, students will share their learning in this lesson by doing the studio activities and sharing with classmates through the process.
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Lesson Resources/References: See below. (Photo is on the left)
References Hamanaka, S. (1994). All the colors of the Earth. New York: Morrow Junior Books. Image of Robots. (n.d.). Austin Chronicle. Retrieved May 5, 2014, from http://www.austinchronicle.com/binary/32 DeRolf, S., & Letzig, M. (1997). The Crayon Box That Talked. New York: Random House.