“My experience in Delaware Teachers Institute has been far more rewarding than I could have imagined. I loved the process of creating a unit from learning a new topic, enriched by an expert in the field, growing it with a community of fellows from different content areas, grade levels and districts then funneling my knowledge into a comprehensive interdisciplinary unit for my elementary Art students.” ~ Kristen Leida [email protected] leidascope.weebly.com
In this unit, fifth grade students will focus on the guiding questions: To what extent can media be manipulated using a variety of techniques and processes? To what extent does history reflect upon and have an influence on art? How and why is art used as a vehicle for communication? Following the Delaware Visual Art Standards, students will study artists who were influenced by the Harlem Renaissance to better understand different techniques and processes for creating art and also how artists analyze and interpret their personal experiences and external history in their artwork. This unit is naturally interdisciplinary connecting visual art to Common Core Standards in English Language Arts through reading, writing and speaking about artworks and Delaware Social Studies Standards by studying the Civil Rights Movement. For their culminating activity, students will create a painting or collage that reflects a significant event in their life.
How can I incorporate reading, writing and drawing poetry in my elementary art classroom as a fun interdisciplinary approach for my fourth grade students? Students can be intimidated by interacting with art and with poems. Through strategies in observation, critical thinking, and collaboration students will recognize poetry and art are both accessible. I aim to build engagement in both poetic literacy and visual illustration in my elementary art classroom through humorous poetry.
I have always adored the wit of Shel Silverstein and still laugh when reading "Something Missing." This author-artist combines the art of poetry with the art of illustration as two symbiotic parts where the poem and drawing are interdependent. After an introduction of 'playing' with poetry and drawings by Shel Silverstein and creating original collaborative ones, students will use their prior knowledge of the planets from the fourth grade science curriculum to create a poem about an imaginary trip to a planet of their choice and draw an illustration of themselves during this extraordinary visit. "Something Missing" inspires me to fill in the gaps in my curriculum to best meet my students' needs. Their poems will use rhyme and figurative language inspired by elements in Silverstein's work. (Recommended for Visual Art, Science, English Language Arts, Grade 4)
The role of the artist has always been integral in recording history. In this unit, I will introduce the artwork of Thomas Moran, William Henry Jackson and their influence in the inception of Yellowstone National Park. We will investigate the Ranger Naturalist Service series and how posters can influence and educate the viewer. We will discuss how human population growth has adversely impacted our planet and why it is important to have protected lands. Students will understand the impact on our environment which, in turn, impacts our health and well-being. We will connect with the role of artists as catalysts for preserving places and preventing the human population to further disrupt the natural habits around us. Subsequently, we will discuss what areas of Delaware are and are not protected, preserved or maintained by local, state and federal policies. For the culminating project, students will choose a place in Delaware that deserves to be protected to recreate in a two to three color work of art in the style of the Ranger Naturalist Series and write a statement why. Students will demonstrate craftsmanship and techniques of different media while applying the elements of art and principles of design in their artwork.
The Civil Rights Movement in America - Origins, Movements and Legacies
The Delaware Teachers Institute is a unique program of professional development for K-12 public school teachers!
Music of the Civil Rights Movement
In Music of the Civil Rights Movement unit, elementary school students will focus on the guiding questions: To what extent does music play a role in culture? How does society influence musicians? How does music influence social change? Following the Delaware Music State Standards, students will sing the freedom songs “Oh! Freedom,” “This Little Light of Mine,” “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ‘Round” and “We Shall Overcome”. Classes will learn how spirituals were collected, adapted and sung by civil rights activists. They will then sing and accompany these songs with percussion instruments. Students will learn how these songs became important in the Civil Rights Movement from 1954-1968. Music of the Civil Rights Movement unit also is collaborative with the Delaware Social Studies Common Core Standards in that students summarize important ideas and events for the Civil Rights Movement and describe how men and women such as Malcolm X, Medgar Evans, Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King, Jr. influenced the movement. Description of the functions of freedom songs and the conditions under which these songs were sung and performed will be discussed. Learners will explain how music can motivate and move its listeners to take action. ~ Cecilia Hann [email protected] cmhann.weebly.com/civil-rights-movement
Art in a Nation of Change – Visual Artists Influenced by the Harlem Renaissance
In this unit, fifth grade students will focus on the guiding questions: To what extent can media be manipulated using a variety of techniques and processes? To what extent does history reflect upon and have an influence on art? How and why is art used as a vehicle for communication? Following the Delaware Visual Art Standards, students will study artists who were influenced by the Harlem Renaissance to better understand different techniques and processes for creating art and also how artists analyze and interpret their personal experiences and external history in their artwork. This unit is naturally interdisciplinary connecting visual art to Common Core Standards in English Language Arts through reading, writing and speaking about artworks and Delaware Social Studies Standards by studying the Civil Rights Movement. For their culminating activity, students will create a painting or collage that reflects a significant event in their life.
“My experience in Delaware Teachers Institute has been far more rewarding than I could have imagined. I loved the process of creating a unit from learning a new topic, enriched by an expert in the field, growing it with a community of fellows from different content areas, grade levels and districts then funneling my knowledge into a comprehensive interdisciplinary unit for my elementary Art students.” ~ Kristen Leida [email protected] leidascope.weebly.com
“How it feels to be discriminated” - A Journey Through School Segregation using Art and Children’s Literature
This nine day curriculum unit was designed for implementation in a fifth grade art class. Students will listen and/or read stories about the civil rights movement and important historical figures. This unit is also connected to Common Core State Standards, which can be found in the appendix. While exploring these stories we will do art related projects that will help students to better understand the civil rights movement and relate to today’s topic of bullying. Through the interview process, students will have conversations with family members, adults, and peers to learn how the civil rights movement played a role in their life. With the help of age appropriate books, students will discuss civil rights and bullying with the guidance of the teacher. Video clips and artwork will help provide new knowledge about the civil rights movement. With a focus on bullying students will be able to compare and contrast events that have happened in their life to events that happened in the civil rights movement. By the end of this unit, students should recognize that discrimination still occurs today, but we are all unique individuals with different qualities. ~Jamie Navone [email protected] missnavoneart.weebly.com