Kindergarten

Bravery Unit
Lesson One

Art & Bravery, Pt. 1:

Experimenting with Paper-Based
Materials
I.

Topic

Content Area: The Big Idea for this

unit is Bravery- The students will
be
introduced to the concept that
their art is unique and that it does
not have to look like everyone
elses work (it does not have to fit
into a mold). The goal is to
emphasize the importance of
being brave with creating work,
taking chances and experimenting
with materials.
Content Statement: For this
particular lesson, students will
experiment with using paper to
create collage-based art works.
There are certain techniques they
will need to explore (tearing,
folding, cutting, etc) but they
can do this any way that they like.
The goal is to get them to play with the material without feeling like the final product has
to look a certain way.

II. Objectives
By the end of this lesson, students will have been read The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds, which
tells the story of a young girl who feels as if she cannot make art (because it doesnt look
like what other people are doing, because its not perfect, etc), but discovers the beauty
of experimenting and exploring in art making. By the end of the story, she is proud of the art
she makes because it is unique to her, and she passes on the idea to other children that they
too can create their own unique art through exploring and being free with art making.
Using the ideas presented in The Dot, students will engage with art making in a way that
focuses on experimenting with materials and not being afraid of messing up. Students will
be encouraged to focus on effort and the process of making as opposed to the final product.
For this lesson, students will be engaging in paper-based experimentation, and will have a
paper collage piece started or finished by the end of class.

III. Standards of Education

Related National Standards for Visual Arts Education
Content Standard #1: Understanding and applying media, techniques, and processes
Students
a. know the differences between materials, techniques, and processes
c. use different media, techniques, and processes to communicate ideas, experiences, and
stories
d. use art materials and tools in a safe and responsible manner

Kindergarten
Bravery Unit
Lesson One

Related Virginia Visual Arts Standards of Learning

K.1 The student will create works of art that represent personal responses to art-making problems.
K.2 The student will create works of art that express feelings and ideas.
Chesterfield County School Curriculum:
K.5 The student will create a collage CCPS Curriculum Framework standard; not the same as K.5 in
SOLs
K.11 The student will use motor skills (e.g., pinching, pulling, squeezing, twisting, pounding, rolling,
folding, cutting, modeling, stamping) to create two-dimensional and three-dimensional works of art.
-Paste/glue two or more flat surfaces together
-Cut, fold, bend and tear paper
K.12 The student will identify people who make art as artists.:
-Identify illustrators as artists who create artwork to help tell a story
K.13 The student will identify purposes for creating works of art.
-Discuss why artwork helps tell a story
IV. Student Group Targeted

V.

Grade level and group: This lesson was created with the intention to be taught to
Kindergarten level students in a suburban setting. However, it can easily be adapted to suit
other age groups and student populations.
Prerequisite skills/knowledge: Ideally, students should have some experience with using
scissors and glue. However, considering the experimental nature of this lesson, this would
be an ideal time to help students acquire these skills if they do not already have them.

Time Required
This lesson will require one 45-minute-long class period, but will be a part of a unit consisting
of subsequent lessons all focused on experimentation and being brave with art making.

VI. Materials and Resources

VII.

The book The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds

Sample to show students before they begin
Reference poster that shows examples of torn, folded, and cut paper
A variety of 9X12 colored
construction paper
(for backgrounds, one per
student)
Construction paper scraps
Colored tissue paper scraps
Fancy paper scraps
Other paper-based materials that
can be easily
altered and glued onto paper
Glue (1 bottle per student)
Scissors (1 pair per student)
Whiteboard
Dry erase markers/eraser
Paper scrap box (one per table?)

Itinerary and Instructional Strategies

Key terms/vocabulary
Brave: Having or showing courage. Synonyms: bold, courageous, dauntless, doughty,
fearless.
Experiment: To try or test,
especially in order
to prove something.

Kindergarten
Bravery Unit
Lesson One

Collage: Art that is made by sticking together and overlapping pieces of paper and/or
other materials.
Overlap: to cover part of something with (part of) something else.

Motivation and explanations

Reading The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds will be the main hook for this lesson, as its
purpose is to pique student interest and introduce the concept of being brave with
making art.

Questioning strategies/discussion
Questioning after reading The Dot:
-What did the little girl in the story learn about making art?
-What does it mean to be brave? How can we be brave when were making art?
-What does it mean to experiment?
-What is a collage?
Questioning after art making experience:
-What techniques did you like best? Least?
Questioning for closure:
-What did we say it means to be brave?
-How can we be brave in art?
-Do you feel like you were brave with your art today? Why or why not?

Demonstration/guided practice
Before the students begin working on their own, go over a few of the techniques you
want them to explore
during the art making
experience. Briefly show
them how to use the
scissors to cut the paper,
how to tear the paper,
how to fold it, etc Try not
to go too in depth with
demo-ing so that the
students have plenty of
room to make decisions on
their own.

Student independent

practice/activity

During the independent

practice, students will
explore the possibilities of
working with paper and
other paper-based
materials to create a
collage. They will be asked to experiment with certain techniques such as cutting,
folding, and tearing paper before gluing onto their background paper to make a collage.

Checking for understanding

During closure, students will be asked questions about The Dot and what it means to be
brave with art making (see questioning strategies above for details).

Time flow/Transitions (1:15-200 p.m.)

1:15- Students arrive for class and sit on the rug in front of the whiteboard. At this time,
roll is taken and any other pre-lesson announcements are made.
1:20-Students will be read The Dot by Peter H. Reynolds. Afterwards, students will be
asked questions about the book. The questioning will lead to the concept of being brave
with art making, the Big Idea for this lesson (and unit of instruction as a whole). Talking
about being brave with art will then transition into introducing the project,
demonstrating techniques, and emphasizing expectations.
1:30- Start by introducing the project. Tell the students that like Vashti in The Dot,
theyre going to be brave with the art they make today. Encourage them to really think
and work creatively and not to worry about their art having to look a certain way.

Kindergarten
Bravery Unit
Lesson One

Everybodys work is unique and special- make the work you want to make. Tell them
that the focus for today is going to be on working with paper (show them your sample
briefly, but then put it away). Demonstrate how to do the techniques you want them to
do with the paper (cutting, folding, tearing) but also have a poster with these techniques
displayed so that they can reference back to it throughout the lesson. After
demonstrating, before they begin working, make your expectations clear. Let them know
specifically what they will need to do to get an E and what they will need to do to get
an S. Make sure to emphasize the importance of being kind to peers: An E or S
student is respectful of his/her classmates work. (Sometimes, the bravest thing you can
do is to be kind)
1:35- Students will begin their independent practice. Make sure to go around to each
table and help students/give feedback.
1:52- Have the students clean up: Paper scraps that can be reused should go in the
designated box. Scraps that cant be reused should go in the trash. Glue should be
standing up (like soldiers) in their caddies, and scissors should likewise be put away.
Pencils and erasers should go back in their basket.
1:57- After the students have cleaned up, briefly review what happened during class
using the questioning strategies outlined above (this is a check for understanding).
2:00- Make sure students are lined up and ready to go.

Closure
For closure, students will be asked questions about what they learned today. They will
be asked questions about The Dot, about what it means to be brave with art making,
and about the techniques they explored during the class period (see questioning
strategies).

VIII.

Evaluation Strategies
The students will be evaluated on their ability to meet expectations with regards to
experimentation with materials and being respectful of their classmates work.

Student
experimented
with tearing
paper.
Student
experimented
with folding
paper.
Student
experimented
with cutting
paper.
Student
experimented
with
overlapping
paper.

Student
engagement
with art
making
experience and
interaction
with peers.

Student has at
least 3 instances
of paper tearing in
their work.
Student has at
least 2 instances
of paper folding in
their work.
Student has at
least 3 instances
of paper cutting in
their work.
Student has at
least 4 instances
of overlapping
paper in their
work.
Student fully
participates in
art making
experience with
positivity and
enthusiasm. S/he
expresses
kindness in
regards to peer
work and

Student has at
least 2 instances
of paper tearing in
their work.
Student has at
least 1 instance of
paper folding in
their work.
Student has at
least 2 instances
of cutting paper in
their work.
Student has at
least 3 instances
of overlapping
paper in their
work.

Student has at
least 1 instance of
paper tearing in
their work.
Student has no
instances of paper
folding in their
work.
Student has at
least 1 instance of
cutting paper in
their work.
Student has 1-2
instances of
overlapping paper
in their work.

Student has no
instances of paper
tearing in their
work.
Student has no
instances of paper
folding in their
work.
Student has no
instances of
cutting paper in
their work.
Student has no
instances of
overlapping paper
in their work.

Student
participates in
art making
experience with
positivity. S/he is
respectful of
other students

Student
participates in
art making
experience, but
may not
consistently
exhibit positive

Student does not

participate in the
art making
experience and
exhibits
distracting
and/or

encourages other
students to
experiment. This
student is a great
role model.

work.

behavior.

Kindergarten
Bravery Unit
Lesson One
inappropriate
behavior.

IX. Suggested Supplemental Activities

This first lesson is part of an extended unit in which students will explore art making with the
freedom to experiment with materials and take chances they might not otherwise. This unit
can be as long or as short as necessary, though four or five lessons are a nice way to
introduce the concept of being brave with art making to the Kindergarten age group. In
addition to subsequent lessons, there are other possibilities for supplemental activities:
Bring in a contemporary artist who focuses on experimentation to talk to the students
about their work and perhaps do a mini art making experience with them.
Take a trip to the art museum and see that artists work in so many different ways.