The Art Problem
Can children control paint without
using brushes or other tools?
Objective
Students will paint by spooning the
paints and tilting their paper.
Materials
liquid watercolors, cups and spoons,
construction paper, watercolor
paper, diffusion paper, water bowls
Procedures
1. Cover tables with newspapers.
Provide children with cups of water-
colors and spoons. Explain that
they will be painting without using
brushes and without the spoons
touching their papers.
2. Demonstrate spooning the
paint onto the paper and tipping
the paper in different directions to
make the paint move.
3. Show students how to place the
spoon into the water bowl before
reusing it.
Assessment
Was the child able to complete the
lesson without scraping the spoon
on the paper? Did the child tip the
paper carefully to get streams of
color?
By Laurie Bellet, art specialist at
Oakland Hebrew Day School in
Oakland, California, and creative
consultant for Torah Aura Productions.
Buggy Over Flowers Middle School
The Art Problem
How can insects be realistically pre-
sented in a work of art?
Objectives
Students will accurately depict
insects on a collaged tissue-paper
image.
Materials
reference images of flowers and
insects (especially by Maria Sibylla
Merian), 9 x 12" ( 23 x 30 cm) white
board or heavy white drawing
paper, assorted colors of bleeding
tissue paper, bowls of glue diluted
with water, brushes, pencils, perma-
nent fine-point markers
Procedures
1. Show and discuss examples of
flowers and insects, especially ones
native to your area. Discuss and
show works of Maria Sibylla Merian,
the first artist to depict metamor-
phosis in insects.
2. Distribute background papers,
colored tissue paper, containers
of diluted glue, and brushes. Ask
students to tear and glue on strips
of colored tissue paper for their
flowers, filling the space as much as
possible. Let dry.
3. Have students add realistic draw-
ings of insects to their flowers using
permanent fine-point markers.
Assessment
To what extent do the torn paper
flowers form an interesting compo-
sition? To what extent did students
accurately depict insects on the
flowers?
By Nancy Walkup, editor of
SchoolArts and an art teacher at
W.S. Ryan Elementary School in
Denton, Texas.
Plate Sensations Elementary
The Art Problem
How can students create a balanced
design on the back of a plate?
Objective
Working on the back of a glass
plate, students will use simple
materials to create a gift-quality
piece.
Materials
clear glass plate, collage papers (or
magazine pictures), tissue paper
(non-bleeding), découpage glue,
scissors, foam brushes, metallic
acrylic paint, sea sponge
Procedures
1. Turn plate over to work on the
back side. Cut out pictures and/
or shapes to design the first layer
that will show when the plate is
completed.
2. Spread a light, even, coat of
découpage glue over the back side
of the plate. Place the design face
down onto the découpage glue and
spread another coat.
3. Tear or cut tissue paper into
shapes, then carefully lay tissue
paper to cover the entire plate.
Coat evenly with découpage glue.
4. Continue until you have three
layers of tissue paper and end with
a final coat of découpage glue.
5. Allow découpage glue to dry
completely. If the finish remains
tacky, or if there are any empty
spaces, gently sponge with a light
layer of metallic acrylic paint.
6. Send the plate home with a
warning to damp wipe it only—no
dishwasher or submersion!
Assessment
Did the student succeed in making
an interesting, balanced design?
Was the student able to lay down
smooth, even layers of tissue paper
and découpage glue? Was the
student able to follow unfamiliar
directions and solve challenges as
they arose?
By Laurie Bellet, art specialist at
Oakland Hebrew Day School in
Oakland, California, and creative
consultant for Torah Aura Productions.
State of the Art Soda Can High School
The Art Problem
How can students better under-
stand pattern, shape, repetition,
and composition while exploring
the use of recycled materials?
Objectives
Students will create the shape of a
U.S. state by cutting different pieces
of aluminum soda cans and arrang-
ing them in the shape of the state.
Materials
100 empty aluminum soda cans,
X-Acto knives, heavy-duty serrated-
edge shears, hot-glue guns, glue
sticks, scissors, foam board, pencils,
zippers, a projector
Procedures
1. Show images of recycled art and
point out how repetition of objects
can create a pattern when forming
shapes.
2. Provide one sheet of thick foam
board and tell students to choose a
state that they have an interest in.
3. Project a digital image of their
chosen state onto a screen or wall
so that students can trace the pro-
jected image of the state onto their
foam boards.
4. Once the outline of the state is
drawn in pencil, have students cut
out the shape of the state with an
X-Acto knife. Be sure to remind stu-
dents of safety rules.
5. Demonstrate how to cut alumi-
num cans safely with heavy-duty
serrated-edge shears. First, bend
the can so that it is thinner in the
middle, then cut.
6. Have the students cut out strips
of aluminum cans, then hot glue
them onto the foam board.
7. Once students have glued down
all of their aluminum strips, have
them trim the edges of the state so
it will look clean.
8. For added effects, the students
can use a different colored can to
create a small section where they
can glue a zipper to show the layer
of the other aluminum cans.
Assessment
To what extent did the artwork
express understanding of shape,
pattern and repetition and the use
of aluminum cans as a different
media?
By Cindy Hasio, teaching fellow
and Ph.D. student in Art Education at the University of North
Texas in Denton, Texas.
