Lesson Plan: Collaboration & Palimpsest
PART I: UNIT OVERVIEW
●
Enduring (Big) Idea: Collaboration and Palimpsest
A
Palimpsest artifact or artwork is one that reveals its history just like a
chalk board allows you to still see partially erased marks. A palimpsest “may
be anything having diverse layers or aspects apparent beneath its surface.
Close examination of a painting's layers might reveal changes made by the
original painter, by later painters, conservators, restorers, by environmental
factors, or by vandals”. Artists are always adding different layers into their
artwork. Maybe they are creating a mixed
media piece and need the glue to dry before they can add another piece of the
collage. Maybe they are creating a
sculpture and need to create a metal base before they can add the fabric layer.
Lastly, maybe they are creating a painting and need the paint to dry before
they can add the next layer. Layers can
create dimension, tell a story, and convey emotion. “Layered elements in
artworks can suggest an ironic comment on the world, stimulate creative
thinking, or reach into the unconscious to reveal personal meanings”.
●
Key Concepts about the Enduring Idea:
(These are important ideas—a PART of the
Enduring Idea—that help you in thinking about the unit and planning
instruction. They are not addressed, as such, in the unit of study, but might
be helpful in making interdisciplinary connections.)
●
Layers
●
Erased
●
Dimensions
●
Mixed Media
●
Collage
●
Base Coat
●
Collaboration
●
Experiment
●
Perspective
●
Vision
●
Organization
●
Separation
●
Addition
●
Palimpsest
●
Time
●
History
●
The Making processes
●
The unknown
●
Key Concepts:
●
Layers
●
Erased
●
Addition
●
Dimensions
●
Palimpsest
●
Base Coat
●
Collaboration
●
Time
●
The making
processes
●
Material
Exploration
●
Essential Questions:
(These will help you as you plan ways for
students to develop a knowledge base and explore the enduring idea and key
concepts)
- How do you start a drawing,
painting, or sculpture? What are your first steps?
- Do you create spontaneously, or
do you plan ahead?
- How can you collaborate with
other artists?
- What does each layer of an
artwork convey?
- How do you create emotion with
layers?
- How do you create layers with
colors?
- How do you create layers with
different mediums or materials?
- How do layers tell a story?
- What are the components of a
good story?
- Does all artwork tell a story?
- How do artists leave their
artwork up for interpretation?
12. Rationale:
(Why is it important for students to
understand the Enduring Idea (along with Key Concepts/Essential questions)? Why
should it serve as the guiding focus of the unit? How does it fit with the
theme?)
Art tells a story
about different time periods, cultures, societies, genders, races, religions,
and more. Art explains the history of
these different concepts. When looking
through artwork, a viewer can see from composition, concentration, and style
the story the artist was trying to tell or the movement this art piece belongs
to. Every piece of art tells a story;
therefore, students need to understand how they can create a story or explain
their culture, society, time period, race, religion, or gender through the
different layers of their artwork.
●
Unit Objectives:
(These are UNIT, not specific lesson,
objectives. What “big” things will students understand as a result of
investigations in this unit of study? Refer to your Enduring idea, key
concepts and essential questions as you plan these objectives.)
Students will learn
how to begin an art piece and get inspiration from their surroundings or their
personal lives.
Students will create
their identity through how they layer, compose, color, style, and shape their
art piece.
Students will
collaborate with other artists.
Students will create
use layers to enhance their artwork.
Students will use
their artwork to tell a story.
Students will connect
their artwork to social, personal, racial, religious, gender issues.
●
Standards:
(These can be National, State, District, or
School Visual Art Standards that you are expected to align and/or aspire to
meet.)
●
(VA:Cr1.1.6a) - Combine concepts collaboratively to generate
innovative ideas for creating art.
●
(VA:Cr2.1.6a) - Demonstrate openness in trying new ideas,
materials, methods, and approaches in making works
of art and design.
●
(VA:Cn11.1.6a) - Analyze how art reflects
changing times, traditions, resources, and cultural uses.
●
End of Unit Assessment:
EVIDENCE: (How
will students DEMONSTRATE their understanding of the Enduring Idea and Key
Concepts of the unit? What “end-of-unit” performance task(s) will they
complete?)
Students
will should their understanding of our enduring ideas and key concepts through
willingness to collaborate. They will also reflect and tell a story of their
collaborative piece during the final lesson.
RUBRIC/LEVELS and CRITERIA: (How will students and others know that they have
completed the task successfully? What criteria will be used to judge partial,
essential, or exemplary achievement?)
Students will be evaluated on their openness to allow
others to create on their canvases, as well as appropriately making contributions
onto others work. This project relates to participation not necessarily about
the final product.
OVERVIEW OF LESSONS
In planning the lessons within the unit, make sure that
you consider the following:
1.
How will you
help students connect the enduring idea/theme to the students’ lives?
Students will pull inspiration for their paintings from
personal, social, political, familial, gender, racial, and religious aspects of
their lives to create a composition and a story for their artwork. They will show this through the layers they
create on their artwork.
2.
How will you
build the students’ knowledge base about the enduring idea/theme as it relates
to life?
In the beginning of the lesson we will teach students the
artist definitions of layering, collaboration, and palimpsest. We will explain the power of art work
throughout history and in cultures and societies today.
3.
How will you
build the students’ knowledge base about the enduring idea/theme as it occurs
in art (e.g., media, practice, theory, art criticism, art history, aesthetics,
visual culture)?
We will show famous artists in particular throughout
history and currently who have collaborated, used layers, or embraced
palimpsest in their artwork. Such as Jose Parla, Ann Baldwin, David Chalmers Alesworth,
Lisa Pressman, Lisa Creed, Carol Ann Carter, Raymond Pousette-Dart, Alice
Spencer, Laurie Pearsall, and Patricia Oblack
4.
How will you
engage students with exploring, questioning, and problematizing the enduring
idea/theme through artmaking?
We will ask students to reflect on the process they went
through to make the first layer. They
will question what they were inspired by or what their first step was on a
blank white canvas.
We will ask students what the experience of collaborating
with their piers was like. Did they feel
positive or negative emotions when layers were added to the canvas?
We will ask students about their process of uncovering the
layers of the final art piece to create a story.
LESSON 1: What will students DO? What will students LEARN
from this?
Students will
begin this lesson with a blank canvas.
They will question and determine what they want to create as their base
coat and the first layer. They will
explore with materials and their creativity as they create the first layer.
Then they will have a brief amount of time to create the first layer before
they pass the canvas onto a pier to add a new layer and start a collaborative
artwork. Students will continue exploring materials, adding layers, and
collaborating on the several artworks that are passed around the art
space.
LESSON 2: What will students DO? What will students LEARN
from this?
Students will be
given back their original canvases. They
will be able to see how the artwork transformed with each new layer through
collaboration. Then they will create a story.
Each layer of the artwork creates a new dimension, evokes an emotion,
and tells a story. On a piece of paper, they will write the story about the
many layered art piece that is in front of them. They will learn about the concept of
Palimpsest, which is something having usually diverse layers or aspects
apparent beneath the surface. They will learn how to make interdisciplinary
connections between language arts/writing and art.
(The following areas adapted from Walker, S. (2001). Teaching meaning in artmaking.
Worcester, MA: Davis Publications— may help you conceptualize the lessons.)
PERSONAL CONNECTIONS / ARTMAKING BOUNDARIES
What limits will
you place on students' artmaking?
Students will only have a brief amount of time to create
the first layer of their canvas. Then
they will need to pass the canvas onto another individual in the room. They will continue to only have a brief amount
of time to add an additional layer onto each canvas they are given.
When students are given back their canvas after multiple
layers have been added in the collaborative process, they may not be able to
see their original layer, or other piers’ layers have been covered up. This is part of the collaborative art-making
process. They will need to interpret and reflect on each layer themselves to
create a story for each layer that may or may not be visible.
ARTWORKS, ARTISTS, ARTIFACTS
Jose Parla
(Palimpsest)
Alice
Spencer (Palimpsest)
Patricia
Oblack (Palimpsest)
Damian
Gonzales
Ross
Bleckner
Akihiko
Miyoshi
Francesco
Lo Castro
JM Robert
MATERIALS AND RESOURCES
What materials,
resources and supplies are required to teach this lesson?
1.
White canvases
2.
Paint
3.
Paint brushes
4.
Water
5.
Sketchbook paper
6.
Nice cardstock
paper
7.
Nice quality
black pens or ink pens
INTERDISCIPLINARY CONNECTIONS:
What kinds of
substantive/reasonable and engaging connections are there between the enduring
idea, key concepts, essential questions in the unit and other subject areas?
Students will
learn how to connect art to history
Palimpsest
Time period
Art movements
Famous artists in history
Students will
learn how to connect art to language arts/writing
Story telling
Layers of a story
Creating emotion through words
Creating a beginning, middle, and
end of a story
PART II: PLANNING INDIVIDUAL LESSON WITHIN THE UNIT
●
UNIT TITLE: Layering, Collaboration, Palimpsest &
Stories
●
ENDURING IDEA/THEME:
(repeated here, as a reminder) Palimpsest
●
LESSON NUMBER: One (Carolyn/Katy)
●
LESSON TITLE: Layering and Collaboration
●
GRADE OR CLASS: 6th Grade
●
TIME ALLOTMENT: 45 minutes
●
LESSON SUMMARY:
(Describe the action)
●
In this lesson,
students will be given a blank piece of paper/canvas where they will be told
they can start creating whatever they want. They can draw inspiration from
their own personal experiences and what they find interesting. We will also be
playing music during the creation to both provide inspiration and create an
easy transition. After the students are given a few minutes to start their
creation, they will be instructed to pass their work to a peer. Their peer will
then continue their creation adding another layer or aspect to it. Ideally, one
artwork would be passed around 7-9 times.
●
ARTWORKS, ARTISTS
and/or ARTIFACTS: (i.e., motivation, inspiration)
●
KEY
CONCEPTS addressed in this lesson: (from the original list in unit
overview)
●
Layers
●
Erased
●
Dimensions
●
Mixed Media
●
Collage
●
Base Coat
●
Collaboration
●
Perspective
●
Vision
●
Organization
●
Addition
●
Collaboration
●
●
ESSENTIAL
QUESTIONS addressed in this lesson: (from the original list in unit
overview)
●
How do you start a drawing or a painting? What are your first
steps?
●
Do you create spontaneously, or do you plan ahead?
●
How can you collaborate with other artists?
●
What does each layer of an artwork convey?
●
How do you create emotion with layers?
●
How do you create layers with colors?
●
How do you create layers with different mediums or materials?
●
STANDARDS
●
(VA:Cr1.1.6a) - Combine concepts collaboratively to generate innovative ideas
for creating art.
●
(VA:Cr2.1.6a) - Demonstrate openness in trying new ideas, materials, methods, and approaches in
making works of art and design.
●
INTERDISCIPLINARY
CONNECTIONS
●
Students will be able
to connect this to their language arts classes as they create layers of a
painting that will eventually tell a story.
They will also learn new vocabulary terms such as Palimpsest,
Collaboration, and Layering.
●
LESSON
OBJECTIVES: Students will:
(understand, be able to, evidence, demonstrate). How will students demonstrate
1.
Knowledge? Students will learn
how develop their own personal idea and how to expand onto other ideas.
2.
Skills? Students will get the
opportunity to work with a variety of materials and see how they can work
together.
3.
Dispositions? Students might
demonstrate dispositions or the building of capabilities (e.g., criticality,
creativity, ethics, responsibility, sensibility, translate-ability,
questioning).
●
ASSESSMENT: (one assessment strategy can address more than one objective)
1. How will
students and you know that they have learned what is intended in this lesson?
They will end up with a final piece that looks nothing
like what they had planned/their original idea. They will also have made a
contribution to a peer’s piece. They
will discover that each layer on a canvas as new depth, meaning, and emotion.
2. What objects
or performances will count as evidence of student learning as stated in your
objectives for this lesson?
Their final creation along with their classmates’
contributions will be evidence of the learning objectives. Their willingness to
create and collaborate can also serve as evidence of learning/participation.
3. How will you
measure student achievement?
Through willingness to allow others to work on their
original piece and making school appropriate contributions on peer’s work. They
will put thoughtful marks and layers onto their canvas and each new canvas they
are collaborating on.
4. How will you
sequence instruction to facilitate learning?
I will give instruction at the beginning of the class
period and use music as a source of inspiration and a way to signal students to
pass their canvases to their peers.
●
PREPARATION
1. Teacher Research
and Preparation:
2. Teaching
Resources:
3. Student
Supplies:
Acrylic paint,
paint brushes, canvases/paper, newspaper to cover tables, speaker to play
music.
LESSON 2 PART 2 OVERVIEW
UNIT TITLE: Layering,
Collaboration, Palimpsest & Stories
ENDURING IDEA/THEME:
(repeated here, as a reminder) Palimpsest
LESSON NUMBER: 2
(Maggie)
LESSON TITLE: Palimpsest
Storytelling
GRADE OR CLASS:
6th
TIME ALLOTMENT:
45 min
LESSON SUMMARY:
(Describe the action) Students will be asked to reflect on their collaborative
piece and create a narrative for it. Students will be asked a series of
questions that help provoke emotions or a sense of history for their piece
which will be documented and handwritten
ARTWORKS,
ARTISTS and/or ARTIFACTS: (i.e., motivation, inspiration)
KEY CONCEPTS
addressed in this lesson: (from the original list in unit overview)
●
Collaboration
●
Perspective
●
Vision
●
Organization
●
Addition
●
Story telling
●
Emotions
● History
ESSENTIAL
QUESTIONS addressed in this lesson: (from the original list in unit overview)
●
How does this
piece make you feel? What emotions?
●
What does this
piece represent to you?
●
How do the
layers come together to tell a story?
●
What does
collaboration mean to you?
STANDARDS
VA:Re.7.2.6a: Analyze ways that visual components and cultural associations
suggested by images influence ideas, emotions, and actions.
INTERDISCIPLINARY
CONNECTIONS
LESSON OBJECTIVES: Students will: (understand, be able to, evidence, demonstrate).
How will students demonstrate
●
Students will be
able to create a piece of writing that reflects their creative process and
understand the importance of collaboration in the art world.
Knowledge? Students
might demonstrate knowledge of public pedagogy, contemporary art vocabulary,
concepts, theories, self, others, materials, and/or procedures.
●
Students will
demonstrate a knowledge of interpreting art into a story and how art practices
embodies some sort of storytelling
Skills? Students might
demonstrate skills through their involvement in a process—cognitive, social, or
physical—that may result in a product or a performative act.
●
Students will
learn about reflecting in writing on not only their finished piece but also the
process
Dispositions? Students might demonstrate dispositions or the building of
capabilities (e.g., criticality, creativity, ethics, responsibility,
sensibility, translate-ability, questioning).
ASSESSMENT: (one
assessment strategy can address more than one objective)
1. How will
students and you know that they have learned what is intended in this lesson?
●
Students will
learn what is intended by engaging in teacher questions and creating a piece of
writing that emphasizes the importance of relating art to a story and emotions
2. What objects
or performances will count as evidence of student learning as stated in your
objectives for this lesson?
●
Responding to
questions, engaging in conversations with classmates about the art, and
explaining their thought process and feelings in their reflective narrative
3. How will you
measure student achievement?
●
Student
achievement will be measured by putting a final layer onto the canvas and then
creating a written story that describes their artistic process or what the
layers of the canvas mean.
4. How will you
sequence instruction to facilitate learning?
PREPARATION
1. Teacher
Research and Preparation:
2. Teaching
Resources:
3. Student
Supplies: Card stock paper and pens
PART III: IMPLEMENTATION (teach one lesson or one
part of a lesson)
On
Thursday, March 28, I taught the first lesson to the Middle School Class.
Before arriving, we sent the lead teacher a brief outline of our plans, the
power point we would present to the class, and asked if she could have music to
and a few materials to place out. When we arrived in the classroom, we
had a few minutes to place white canvas paper, paintbrushes, paint pallets,
water, and acrylic paint out for the students. The students started
filing in and taking a seat at their assigned spot. I began right away
and introduced myself. I went through a brief slide show that explained
what layering means in the art world. I showed photos and had a brief
conversation with the students as they raised their hands and engaged in
artistic conversation. Then we discussed collaboration and the many ways this
is possible as an artist and in the art community. Next, I introduced a
very new word, Palimpsest. I showed the students an array of current artists
who layer, collaborate, or focus on Palimpsest in their artwork. I left up on
the screen a collage of photos from the different artists and types of artwork
that we discussed during our conversation for the children to have as reference
and inspiration.
Next,
I explained the class project. Students were given a blank white canvas
and painting materials. I would play the music and students would add the
very first layer onto their canvas. They were in charge of deciding what
to create as the first layer. As an artist you need to use your
imagination, research, and the world around you to find inspiration for what to
create. When asked what students were creating as their first layer I
received the answers "Galaxy", "my home and family",
"the beach because it is Hawaiian day today". However,
this also came as a challenge to some students who were asking "what
do you want us to draw" or "I can't think of anything".
One student even decided to leave the entire first layer blank because he could
not think of something that was worthy to put on the page. As the music played
for about 3 minutes, the students explored the painting process. I
stopped the music, and the next step of the project was to get up out of their
seats and move to another canvas in the room. There, when the music
started again, they were to add a second layer onto another artist's
canvas. Students were now engaging in collaboration and layering. This
stimulated an energetic, playful, and curious atmosphere in the art
space. I asked several students their thoughts on collaboration, and
received very mixed opinions and answers. Some students believed they
were positively adding their art onto other people's work; whereas, other
students thought they were destroying something their pier had already
created. The students continued adding layers to canvases in the room and
then moving on to another individual's canvas. Each student was able to
add a layer onto 5 or 6 total canvases.
With
10 minutes left in class, we took this time to clean up and have a brief
artistic conversation about their opinions of collaboration, layering, and
palimpsest. Children had a much greater understanding for all three of
these words. Some students even admitted that this was the very first
time they had collaborated with someone else or a group of people on an art
project. Looking back on this lesson, some challenges I faced were keeping
everyone positive. Some students felt they did not want to add a layer
onto someone else's work because they did not want to ruin in. I
explained to the students that art is not always about the final outcome, but
it is about the process of making and exploring materials and styles of
artwork. I also faced difficulty with students drawing or writing inappropriate
words or phrases onto other people's canvases. Although we did have a
conversation in the beginning of the class about making sure we had appropriate
content, students felt comfortable enough to do as they pleased. As a
future art educator I personally struggle with deciding where to cross the line
when it comes to certain words, phrases, or typically inappropriate or vulgar
topics. I believe that apart of growing up is exploring different conversations
and topics and a huge percentage of artwork in the real world is vulgar and
promiscuous; however, we need to make sure all individuals feel comfortable and
safe in the art and education space. Individuals need to know manners and
how to show respect to elders and piers.
Overall,
the lesson and class was a huge success. The canvases are filled with
unique and various types of layers. In the following lessons, students
will be able to come back to their original canvas and add the final layer onto
the artwork, thus having created the first and last layer of the artwork.
They will also be asked to create a story for the artwork and explain the many
layers of the piece.
PART IV: REFLECTION
Please post on your blog a narrative
reflection on your implementation of your lesson. Reflect by addressing
the following questions:
1.
How did you
incorporate your enduring (big) idea(s) in your plan?
- I went through a brief
slide show that explained what layering means in the art world. I
showed photos and had a brief conversation with the students as they
raised their hands and engaged in artistic conversation. Then we
discussed collaboration and the many ways this is possible as an artist
and in the art community. Next, I introduced a very new word,
Palimpsest. I showed the students an array of current artists who
layer, collaborate, or focus on Palimpsest in their artwork. I left up on
the screen a collage of photos from the different artists and types of
artwork that we discussed during our conversation for the children to
have as reference and inspiration.
2.
What do you imagine would
happen in teaching the lesson? What did happen?
- I
imagined that the students would start with a layer on the canvas and
other students would add to the layer in a similar way. Each new artist would add to the
original layers in their own style and unique way. The students would begin to create
unique and elaborate compositions on the single canvases. However,
students were more inclined to create something totally new and almost
cover up what the previous student had painted. Half of the class was
thoughtful in their artwork, whereas other students were just covering up
the previous artist(s) artwork or writing, “sub to pudypie” on the
canvas. I later discovered at this
saying is correlated to a YouTube blogger that is popular amongst the students.
3.
What challenges did
you expect to face and plans did you make to address the expected challenges? What
challenges arose and how did you address them, or will address in the future?
- I
expected that students would fill the page so much that it would be
difficult to view the other layers of the painting. I addressed this by encouraging
students to focus on the collaboration aspect of the experience and
expand on what the previous artist(s) in the class had already put on the
painting instead of just covering it up. The challenges that arose were
students being aggressive towards others because they did not want other
students in the class “ruining” what they put on the canvas. We addressed this by explaining to the
students that this is meant to be collaboration and it is part of the
process to let each artist have artistic freedom on the canvas.
4.
What changes
(curriculum or pedagogy) or research are you interested in doing to prepare to
teach the lesson again? Why is this preparation important?
- The
next time I teach this lesson I will use canvases that are larger to give
the students a bigger space to add more onto the canvas and be able to
see more layers. We were able to expand on this in a third class period
by bringing out 2 large sheets of paper for students to make a mural
style large collaborative painting.
5.
Reflecting on the
entire process of preparing for and teaching your lesson, what stands out or is
significant to you now?
- It
is apparent now that in the classroom there will be particular students
who seem uninterested, misbehave, and provoke or instigate other
students. Dealing with these
students is challenging and each situation is very different. As an educator you need to prepare for
the students who are unengaged and misbehaving but you need to treat each
child as an individual and determine how to handle each child’s situation
in a proper and caring manner. One student in the middle school class was
particularly misbehaving on days 1 and 2 of the lesson. On day 1 she was aggressive towards
other students and repeatedly told other students to not ruin her
original canvas. I handled this by
having a one-on-one conversation with her to re-explain the importance
and possibilities of collaboration.
We were able to have an artistic dialogue while also addressing
her behavior. On the second day she was saying inappropriate things to
the main teacher. The teacher handled this by asking her to step outside
of the classroom to talk with her privately. In my own classroom, I will
handle every situation by immediately addressing the student or students
involved in an environment that they feel comfortable conversing and I am
able to express to them what they should have done differently or not at
all.
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