Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 1

Art Integration Lesson Plan Template

LTC 4240: Art for Children
Lesson Title & Big Idea*: How Artists Portray Identity in Portraits
Lesson Overview/Summary*: Through class discussion and creation of self-portraits the students will
gain insight to how artists tell us something about their own identity in self-portraits and how some
artists tell us something about other individuals in portraits or in abstracted images of human beings.

Grade Level*:3rd
Class Periods Required:
(please circle)
1

Key Concepts (3-4): What you want the students to

know.*
1. Visual Art:
An artist can portray an identity of
themselves or another through multiple
perspectives
Each piece of artwork has its own
identity, and artists can change how you
perceive this identity
2. Literacy:
Identities can be portrayed through
stories
Venn Diagrams are used to compare
and contrast two or more things
3. Social Studies
Identity self-portraits created through
the lens of diverse cultures can help
change preconceived notions
Self-portraits are a great ways to see
how different cultures represent their
identities

Essential Questions (3-4)*:

1. How do artists tell us something about individuals in their works?
2. How does the setting of a piece say something about the person portrayed?
3. How do some artists abstract the human form?
4. How do artists use facial features, clothing, gestures, or symbols to tell us something about
the person represented?
5. How could I compare artists portraits made in different times and places?

Lesson Objectives: (Excellent resource at http://www.teachervision.fen.com/curriculum-planning/new-teacher/48345.html?for_printing=1&detoured=1): What you want the students to do. *
1. Visual Art:
o The students will analyze the visual characteristics of works of art comparing individualized portraits with more generalized abstracted
images of human beings.

Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 2

o The students will evaluate how artists use subject matter and symbols to create meaning.
o Students will examine works of art and explain what they see.
o Students will create a self-portrait that says something about themselves.
2. Literacy:
o Students will create a Venn Diagram and compare and contrast two different styles of portraits.
o Students will describe and justify why they created their self-portrait as they did.
3. Social Studies
o The students will compare and contrast portraits from different times and places.
o The students will be able to recognize characteristics of self-portraits and clarify what these characteristics mean.

Grade Level Expectations (GLEs)

(3-4)
(http://dese.mo.gov/divimprove/curriculum/GLE/)

1. Visual Art: Strand 3rd , Artistic Perceptions (AP)

Compare different responses students may have
to the same artwork.
2. Visual Art: Layer two or more colors using crayon,
colored pencil, or oil pastel.
3. Visual Art: Historical and Cultural Context:
Compare and contrast two artworks on: Subject
matter, media, use of line, color, shape, and
texture, theme, purpose of art in culture, place.
4. Literacy: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.3.8
Recall information from experiences or gather
information from print and digital sources; take
brief notes on sources and sort evidence into
provided categories.
5. Literacy: CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.SL.3.1
Engage effectively in a range of collaborative
discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacherled) with diverse partners on grade 3 topics and
texts, building on others' ideas and expressing
their own clearly.
6. Social Studies: Identify and use pieces of artwork
representative of cultures

Identify & define common vocabulary that connect the art form with the other identified content
areas:
1. Identity-the qualities, beliefs, etc., that make a particular person or group different from
others
2. Culture-the beliefs, customs, arts, etc., of a particular society, group, place, or time
3. Representation-a painting, sculpture, etc., that is created to look like a particular thing or
person
4. Setting-he place and conditions in which something happens or exists

Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 3

Content Areas Integrated*:
1. Visual Art (Inspiration Artist: Chuck Close)
2. Literacy
3. Social Studies

Lesson Activities & Procedure(s) (please be very specific):

Day 1:
1. Ask students to join you on the carpet. Up on the screen will be one of Kent Bellows selfportraits. I will introduce the name of the artist and give a description of his work. I then will do a
VTS on one of his portraits.
2. As students remain on the carpet I will ask them the following questions in a student lead
discussion, What makes this art work different from a photograph, and does the place and time say
anything about the person?
3. I will then divide the class into small groups and give each group an image of either Judith
Leysters, Frida Kahlos, Chuck Close, or Jacob Lawrences self-portrait.
4.I will then have them analyze their picture and discuss the following questions:
What do you know about the person from looking at this self-portrait?
Where are they? Is this a real or an imaginary setting?
What objects do you see in the picture? Do they tell you anything about the person?
How do you think the person feels about where they are?
Does it make a difference that these are self-portraits made by artists of the artist, rather
than images made by another person?
5. After the groups have answered all the questions I will have them research their artist on their
Ipads.
6. After 15 minutes or so, I will have each group one at a time, report out to the whole class what
they thought about the person in the self-portrait. And then what evidence they found researching
to support their answers.
7. Once each group has presented I will have the students create their own portraits using the
medium of their choice (colored pencils, crayons, chalk, oil pastels, or water colors). I will then
provide them with a blank piece of paper.
8. While they plan their work have them consider the following questions:
How will your portrait look different depending on the medium you choose?
How can you create a setting for your portrait that will say something about who you are?
What objects will you include to tell people about yourself?
9. Once the students finish their self-portraits I will have them glue them on colored construction
paper.
10.For homework they will write a short paragraph describing and justifying why they created their
portrait as they did.
Day 2:
1. Have students look at the following images:

Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 4

2.
3.
4.
5.

First have the students look at the image on the right, Ask them what it looks like? Then show
them the image on the left. Ask them, what does this picture look like? What about this image
makes you identify it as a face? And Does it look like a real face?
Then have a student lead discussion about what an image needs to have for us to see it as a
human face?
Next I will print off a series of images from many different cultures that all somewhat resemble a
human face and then I will split the class into groups of 4-5 students.
I will then have each group arrange the images in a row from least like a person to the most like
a person.
When each group has an order, have them compare what they decided with the other groups.
Have them keep these questions in mind
Did everybody have the same order?
Were there some variations?
What made the images look most like a particular individual? Did they all look like
human figures? Why or Why not?
There are both 2D and 3D images, did that make a difference to their order?
What kinds of features did the most human like portraits include that the least like ones

Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 5

Anticipatory Set (Gaining Attention)*:

1. Visual Art: VTS of Kent Bellows, self-portrait
2. Literacy: Have students do research on group
assigned artists to find out more about their life
and career.
3. Social Studies: Student lead discussion based from
the question: What does time and place say about

did not?
6. After each group has compared their order introduce Jun Kanekos piece, Heads to the
students.
7. While introducing the piece try to get your students to answer the following questions in a
student lead discussion:
What do you see in this work? Is there any real object represented?
Is this object represented realistically or is it more abstract? What about the work
makes you think this?
8. Once students have discussed what they saw in the piece, tell them the scale of the piece and
have them measure it out to size in your classroom.
9. Then have them as a class discuss the following questions:
Does knowing the size make you think about these heads differently?
Would you react differently to them if they were the size of a real persons head?
What kinds of emotions do you think these faces represent?(sad, happy, mad calm,)
10. Once the class has discussed the questions, we are going to look at a couple pieces of art on the
smart board.
11. The first image is Ife Oni a bronze African sculpture of a king made around the 14th century.
12. Have the students do a brief VTS on the sculpture and have them take notes
13. Once they finish bring up the next image, Hans Holbeins Ambassadors. Do another brief VTS
on this painting and have the students take notes.
14. Once the students are done with the VTS have them create a Venn Diagram to compare and
contrast the two pieces of art they just VTSed. Have them keep in mind:
Did the artist exaggerate parts of the body to tell something? If so which parts?
Is the artist more interested in telling about what the person looked like or who and
where they were?
Can you tell if the people depicted are wealthy or poor? What their occupation is?
Did the artist include symbols or objects in the piece? If so why?
15. Have students compare their Venn Diagrams with a partner and after have a student lead class
discussion on how the two pieces were similar and different.
Closure (Reflecting Anticipatory Set):
Have students compare Venn Diagrams with a partner and then have class discussion over two very
culturally different pieces of art.

Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 6

a self-portrait?

Formative Assessment strategy:

1. Visual Arts: Did they complete their self-portrait?
2. Literacy: Did the student describe why they
created their self-portrait in their paragraph?
3. Social Studies: Can students see how cultural
differences can affect how self-portraits are
created?

Summative Assessment strategy*:

1. Visual Arts: Does the students self-portrait successfully convey something about themselves?
2. Literacy: Students will have created a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting two different
pieces of art.
3. Social Studies: Students understand that cultural values may have affected how they drew their
self-portrait.

What student prior knowledge will this lesson require/draw upon?

1. The student has previously completed a VTS over a picture book.
2. The student will have had some experience with found objects and how different symbols relate to different cultures.
3. Students will have previously made Venn Diagrams
4. Students will know the parts and characteristics of the human body.
How will you engage students in imagining, exploring, and/or experimenting in this lesson?
1. Doing VTS allows students to imagine whats happening in the piece while exploring art
2. Students are encouraged to explore themselves to find out how they can represent themselves in a self-portrait. This allows students to experience with
symbolism as well as different mediums of art.
3. Students will use their imagination to visualize the piece Heads by Jun Kaneko.

How will this lesson allow for/encourage students to solve problems in divergent ways?
1. Most of the tasks that I have planned, allows for students to interpret the information for themselves and approach it in the ways they feel appropriate.
Since the focus is on self-portraits and identity and how different cultures represent them together, I will remain open to students interpretations of
each of the tasks.
How will you engage students in routinely reflecting on their learning?
1.Throughout the 2 class periods I will refer back to the VTS and paragraph of Identity as a comparative strategy to how they are representing themselves in
their self-portraits.
How will you adapt the various aspects of the lesson to differently-abeled students?
1.Most of this lesson is student driven so there are different ways for the students to approach tasks.

Art Integration Lesson Plan Template 7

2. I will provide pre-drawn Venn Diagrams so students dont have to worry about drawing symmetrical circles.
3. There will be a bucket of each (colored pencils, crayons, water colors, and oil pastels) at each table so students do not have to get up to get them.
What opportunities/activities will students be given to revise and improve their understandings and their work?
1. The students can take their Venn diagrams and self-portraits home to be revised or improved before they get graded.

What opportunities/activities will you provide for students to share their learning in this lesson?
1. VTS allows for students from the beginning of the lesson to share what they notice and why? It allows for students to get their own ideas out in a safe
space since this may have been the first time they have seen a self-portrait
2. After creating their self-portraits students are able to share them with the class.
Lesson Resources/References (please be very specific by providing links, authors, titles, etc.):
1. Judith Leyster self-portrait, Retrieved 11/29/2014, from http://www.nga.gov/content/ngaweb/Collection/highlights/highlight37003.html
2. Jacob Lawrence, Self-Portrait, retrieved 11/29/14, from http://www.artnet.com/magazineus/features/kuspit/reconfiguring-the-body9-209_detail.asp?picnum=1
3. Frida Kahlo, Self-portrait, retrieved 11/29/14, from http://www.artyfactory.com/art_appreciation/portraits/frida_kahlo.htm
4. Chuck Close, Self-Portrait, retrieved 11/29/14, from http://www.walkerart.org/collections/artworks/big-self-portrait
5. Hans Holbein The Younger, The Ambassadors, retrieved 11/29/14, from http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/hans-holbein-the-younger-theambassadors
6. Ife Oni, unknown, retrieved 11/29/14, from http://www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-9429.html

References
Silverstein, L. B. & Layne, S. (n.d.). Defining arts integration. Retrieved from
http://www.americansforthearts.org/networks/arts_education/publications/special_publications/Defining%20Arts%20Integration.pdf