Ayanna,
grade one.
“I want to stand
on the bridge, too!”
These were the words I heard
from my excited first graders
as we learned about Monet
and his pond and bridge at
Giverny in France. This wonderful
learning experience began when the
first-grade teachers approached me
about incorporating an art lesson
into their science unit on habitats.
They asked if I had any ideas for
lessons that incorporated ponds and
lily pads. Did I ever! I used a combination of ideas and added my own
technology twist. This project took
place over the course of four, 50-
minute periods.
First, students had to create a
garden, pond and most importantly,
the bridge. Through a generous
grant, I had acquired a wide variety
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Jeryl Hollingsworth
of technology tools, including
a projector, digital camera, and
printer. Using an image-manipu-
lation program, I adjusted digital
portraits so that my first-grade
students could “stand on” their
individual bridges.
named the prominent colors in the
paintings and identified cool colors.
After a demonstration to show the
wet-on-wet technique, students
began using watercolor paper and
watercolor paint. I wet all the papers
and they filled the page with only
cool colors. They were delighted
with the way the colors spread and
mixed.
Introduction
We began by viewing
the video Linnea in
Monet’s Garden. In
the video, a young
girl travels to
Monet’s gar-
den and even
stands on
his famous
bridge. I
next showed a short
multimedia presentation with
images of the garden and paid particular attention to the lily pads,
which the students quickly connected to their classroom science
activity. The next slides included
photos of my daughter and me
on the bridge. The students were
amazed that the
bridge was still
there and even
more amazed
that I had actually been there!
It was then that
the “I want to
stand on the bridge, too!” chant
began.
Snapshots of the Garden
The next time students came to the
artroom, I used a ceiling-installed
projector to review a presentation
of Monet’s artwork. The students
Creating the Pond
On day three we reviewed Monet’s
work again, this time focusing on
all the different shades of green. I
had previously mixed five different greens using acrylics and stored
them in air-tight containers. To
involve the students in the mixing process, I started with a mid-tone green in one pan and elicited
responses from the students as to
how to create different shades of
green. It became a real learning
experience as students watched yellow, blue, and even red paints transform the green.
Demonstrating how to dab the
paint on with sponges, I empha-
sized dabbing to get blobs of color,
reminding the students how Mon-
et’s colors seem
to blend together.
We talked about
the horizon line
but recognized
that it would be
hard see because
of the foliage and
reflections of the trees in the water.
The next part of the process was
a little tricky. I started eight stu-
dents (four at each table) at what we
called “table one” using the darkest
green. Next they rotated to “table
two” while four more students
began at “table one.” We continued
The students were amazed
that the bridge was still
there, and even more
amazed that I had
actually been there!
