Mark making with light.

This week students made marks with something completely different: light.

Three groups were divided into stations where they rotated to anticipate in each activity. First students drew on a large scale projection. The projection's composition was altered by the students that put assorted objects on the screen.

Demonstrating light drawings

Another station had students picking out their artwork for the show. They chose the their best works out of the projects they did for the semester.

The station that I was at involved making marks with glow sticks. The kids were so excited about this. We set up a partition with black fabric so it would block out bright light.

Once the students became situated with their glow sticks I gave them some direction. I had them try a variety of things like stand against the wall and draw shapes, make big movements, small movements, stand in a circle and put int he glowsticks in the middle for collaboration, connect the glowsticks, move them really fast, really slow, and try to think of their own ways to use the glowsticks.

Madisyn drawing with her glowstick

Since my documentation was integral to the actual making of art I tried a lot of different ways to photograph the students. This was actually one of the very few times I actually got to actively take part in artmaking with the students I was teaching. Most of the time it is based on direction, example, and guiding. I really enjoyed that! It allowed me to step back and have a lot of fun with the kids.

This lesson gave me a chance to create as well, I utilized what I knew about photography to use shudder speed in a way that I could play up color and capture light in different ways

Since I was also a participant in the artmaking I experimented with all the groups. I tried to photograph facing towards the light; this picked up an amazing amount of color even in the children's clothing. I faced away from the light on the black wall which was difficult because SLRs have a tendency to refuse to take photos if there isn't enough light on the subject. I also stood above the kids on a chair. This captured the texture of the floor which served as a background that worked unusually well.

One of the best results from my documentation was when I had the students hold their glow sticks still and I moved the camera around. This time I was the one making the marks and the kids were facilitating me. It was interesting to think about that relationship.

Students explored what kinds of motions made particular shapes. In this photo students made rounded marks with light.

The students thought of some great ways to utilize the glow sticks. They put the through belt loops, spun them on string, wove it through their clothing, and best of all collaborated with other students. I didn't have much intention of having the kids work together at first because I thought it would be a little crazy. However they chose to put the glowsticks together, formed lines, links, and saw what happened when colors were combined.

Since this lesson was in rotation I didn't get a chance to see the other parts of the lesson however there seemed to be a lot of excitement when the materials were presented in demonstrations. However I did get to refine my teaching because I was able to teach three rotations of the same thing. This lesson was a nice wrap up to Saturday School since students were able to have a large amount of input into what work was going into the show.


On Your Mark Class Photo
Fall 2009

Full Circle

This week was a head-spin! We worked hard in helping Amanda conceptualize a lesson that would be fruitful in learning a new technique in markmaking, but that wouldn't be too over-the-top for a final lesson (especially coming off a two-week break). It was a very successful lesson.

We learned about composition and the different techniques that add to creating a successful composition: symmetry, asymmetry, repetition, run-off, overlap, etc. Then, Amanda showed a video on light art. Next, we broke into stations to create several different works of art and critique what we've done the past 9 weeks.

I worked with the station that involved critique and having students choose which artwork they would like to see in the exhibition. This was interesting for me because I enjoy hearing students talk about their artwork as well as assess them based on what they say in discussing each others' work. I was thrilled that a lot of the students used vocabulary that has been introduced since the first week in the classroom! Students chose their "favorite," which would represent their best work, plus two additional pieces that they felt showed their best artistic skills. The rest of the artwork was placed into individual portfolios, which made students even prouder -- having that "real artist" feeling because they had a solid portfolio was really an excellent way to boost their confidence in art. After each selected their favorite piece, we discussed it in groups of 6. This went beyond asking "Why is this a good piece?". Students were eager to share what they thought their peers had done well in their work, which was nice to see. Even better, many of the reasons involved key terms, such as "texture," "pattern," "value," and "color."

Because the students soaked up this terminology, I feel it is important to create a worksheet for them to take home after the exhibition. This worksheet will list all of the vocabulary that we have learned about this semester, possibly with examples and definitions. I think it is necessary to encourage the students in their quest for learning art, beyond the construction paper projects that so many are forced to participate in in their public schooling. It shows how much students are capable of, and that is really important and encouraging for a future educator!

Different Students, Different Ways...

Just a note about Colin... Colin is a student who needs a lot of individual attention. He is teaching me to have more patience as an educator. I realize that my ability to give him a lot of one-on-one attention is possible because Amanda is leading the class, and I have more freedom to attend to his needs.

Colin likes color. Specifically, he likes to color with markers. And nothing else. He does not like the 3-D projects we have taken part in, nor did he like to use only black pencil for our "color-by-number" this week. In fact, he "hated it." I sat next to him and asked him to help me with mine. After lots of grumbling, he did. And when the picture was complete, I asked him to sign his name, since he had helped with it. He would not. Eventually, he said he would do so only if I helped him finish his own "color-by-number." I happily obliged.

This is a video during the erased drawing activity:

As I noted in a previous week, it is important for students, particularly at this age, it seems, to be able to create artworks that include their interests. Colin loves superheroes and fiction characters, such as this "barnacle" he is referring to. If we allow students to incorporate their interests (and prior knowledge) into their work, they are more engaged, interested, and learn even more.

Later, in the museum, Colin "hated" the discussion we were having as a group. So, I took him by the hand and allowed him to speak to me about any artwork in a separate gallery. He clearly demonstrated the knowledge that we had discussed earlier in class, and that the rest of the class was discussing together. However, Colin needed that extra attention to show his understanding of value and to just talk about art. I was proud of him. Different students learn in different ways. I discovered how Colin learns. If it isn't entirely feasible to give such individual attention in a "real" classroom, it was certainly possible this past week. And I am glad it was.

A Trip to the Museum...

This week was fun and definitely a learning experience. We discussed value and its relation to art and form. I am not sure that all students grasped the concept, but nevertheless, we engaged with them both individually and as a group.

After completing a "color-by-number" parody using different shades, we discussed the ideas of realistic (or representational) and abstract (non-representational) art. Specifically, artist Chuck Close's work was looked at to gain an understanding that an artwork may look either realistic or abstract from a distance, but that understanding may be reversed when looking at the same work close up.

In order to reiterate the students' comprehension with different shades and values, we participated in an erased drawing. This was fun, because when doing the "color-by-number" activity, students enforced the notion of using more pressure to obtain a darker value and using a lighter touch to get a shade closer to white. In the erased drawing, however, the opposite occurred -- students were given pre-shaded sheets of paper, then had to apply pressure onto an eraser to get a lighter mark. It was an entertaining concept, primarily because students never get the chance to do an artwork backwards.

In the museum, we looked at the "Leaded" exhibition, which has a few artworks specifically made by erasure. Students made the connection right away and were absolutely excited to be looking and engaging with "real" art. We broke up into groups of 6-8 to fill out worksheets finding four different values. This was an enjoyable activity because of the tools we employed. Each student had a keychain with the four different values of paint swatches hooked onto it. Students were able to hold up each value to find a matching one in an artwork. Together, students filled out worksheets. But, we discovered that integrating spelling and writing into art at this age and in this way was a little too advanced for some and tedious for others. I felt that simply discussing the values and artworks with them was just as fruitful. Regardless, students had fun and got to take home their "color-by-number" papers and value keychains as a reminder to employ this knowledge outside of the classroom.

Interacting with Clay and with Each Other

The most interesting part of working with young students with clay is observing the way in which they interact with the material itself. Not only do they engage with the clay in apparently tactile ways, but they bring a nurturing tendency to the material. For instance, Kate created a model of a cat (above). Look at how gently she displays it to the camera.

Clay is a nurturing material. The way in which students work with the clay adds to this. It is extremely tactile: we pinch, we pull, we cup, we twist, we push, we squeeze. Due to the nature of the assignment (creating hybrid animals which show textural qualities), students were encouraged to exhibit several of these actions with the clay.

Students also bring prior knowledge to their artwork. This is where meaningful connections are made. For example, several of the boys in our class are interested in dinosaurs. In creating models, drawings, or other artworks of these dinosaurs, not only are they learning about the art materials, but they are integrating subjects, such as science and art, and perhaps even history.

We must remember to facilitate lessons which can include these interests. This way, students will stay interested and motivated to participate. Furthermore, they can create a broader knowledge base of integrated material. This also leads to a relational approach to teaching; we can build better relationships with our students if we learn more about them through their interests, which they are free to explore and depict through art.

Sculptural Markmaking

Amanda led this week's lesson on making marks with clay sculpture. Each student got ball of clay and jumped right into sculpting their own forms during sketchbook time. When working with clay some students became very kinetic.

Ginger stabs he clay, according to her " I can punch the clay, to let out some anger."

To most kids sculpting with clay comes naturally and results in a very enjoyable lesson. Students could expand their understanding of concepts because of the ease of the material. It did not take a lot of instruction for students to grasp techniques like modeling, scoring, sgraffito, and impressing. I found it was also easy for students to explain their process.

Amanda also led a clear demonstration of the techniques that we used for the sculptures by having the kids work with large slabs of clay during the demonstration. Having an interactive lecture portion of te lesson really engages students and ensures that they understand the directions you give them at the time you are giving instruction.

Students experiment techniques as a group on large clay slabs.

They seemed comfortable outlining the steps they took to reach their end result. Due to review of concepts in the past students could easily identify what it meant to make a texture and what kind of shapes were inherent in each of their sculptures. It was refreshing to hear students really apply the vocabulary they picked up from previous lessons.

Ava came up to me and showed me how she made her elephant/bee creature.

This lesson integrated mark making into figurative creation by asking students to create several textures on each figure. They worked from models of animals to combine the creatures into animal hybrids. Hybriding the figures allowed students to explore several textures at once.

Garrison was able to go through and identify the forms and shapes that he made to make up his whole piece.

Amanda chose to spotlight a sculptural artist to set the theme: Giacometti.

Presenting the artist's spotlight: Giacometti.

Kiran chose to make a Giacometti-like sculpture and he showed how he used the clay tools to form an inner structure. Giocometi actually used wire to reinforce his pieces, something that was not previously reviewed. I surprised to see that Kiran thought of how to create tall thin structures by using what was around him.

Kiran shows how he made his "Gooz" figure and gives it a good punch.

The final part of the lesson corresponded to Giacometti's process of documenting work by drawing the finished sculptures. Students were very familiar with drawing from real life due to past lessons where they became familiar with drawing from life. One of the best/funniest drawings that was produced by Hynwoo who actually contexted his documentation. He drew his figure (which was a face) as a waiter that was bringing food to customers in a restaurant. The end result was hilarious!

Hynwoo documenting his sculpture.

Opportunities for Learning

I enjoy seeing such young students work from life. It's uncommon for children to use direct observation in drawing and creating art. It's interesting to see the differences between drawing from their imaginations and from life, such as this still-life set up. It really broadens their abilities, beyond filling a sketchbook with page after page of fairies and dinosaurs.

Students were hesitant to engage with the wire materials this week. However, once they began manipulating the wire, they were more comfortable and really succeeded in creating interesting wire sculptures.


I think it is important to note that while we are writing a lesson plan, we have a preconceived outcome. Yet this outcome is bound to change. Yes, specific objectives may be noted and expected in the plan, but other objectives may not come forward until they have the opportunity to present themselves in the lesson. It is so important that, as new teachers, we are open to having malleable plans, goals, and outcomes. I was not disappointed that this lesson was imperfect. I was excited about the goals, outcomes, and objectives that the students discovered themselves through experimenting with the novelty of wire as an artistic medium. After all, aren't we trying to learn through experimentation?