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Visual Arts
Grades K-2
Overview
Visual arts education in Grades K-2 provides students with a developmentally appropriate
foundation upon which advanced content is built in subsequent grades. Young children respond and
grow in a curriculum where the teaching of art fundamentalsthe elements of art and principles of
designis sequential and goal-oriented. They experience joy and confidence through selfexpression when using acquired knowledge and skills to solve artistic problems creatively.
Students in Grades K-2 come to school with diverse learning experiences in the arts. Some have
explored visual arts in preschool programs, while others may have had less structured, and perhaps
limited, visual arts experiences. Students possess a variety of learning styles and are highly
enthusiastic, inquisitive, adventuresome, and visually stimulated by the world around them.
Foundation gained in early art experiences aids students in the development of artistic skills and
insights that can be used in future problem-solving situations. The Grades K-2 visual arts curriculum
emphasizes cognitive, affective, sensory, and motor skill development.
The visual arts classroom provides a safe and appropriate environment for student exploration and
assessment in Grades K-2. This environment is active and stimulating, and provides materials and
equipmentincluding technologyadapted to students needs to allow for individual, cooperative,
and responsible growth and learning to take place.
In the early elementary curriculum, emphasis is placed on producing, responding to, and
understanding art. Learning of the elements of art and principles of design is accomplished by using
traditional, digital, and multimedia technology. In addition, the curriculum allows students to
become aware of art and artists in local, national, and international communities. While assessment
of students in Grades K-2 is primarily subjective and teacher-directed, content standards for these
grades provide opportunities for measurable evaluation.

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Visual Arts
Kindergarten
During the kindergarten years, students learn to listen, share, cooperate, use materials responsibly,
and follow directions in a formal school setting. They begin to develop representational thought
about things not present and learn to tap their imaginations as they explore the importance of
building positive relationships with others.
The visual arts classroom provides a safe and appropriate learning environment with attention to
individual learning styles and opportunities for exploration and discovery. The environment
promotes cognitive, affective, sensory, and motor skill development.
Kindergarten students are introduced to the elements of art and principles of design, the foundation
upon which advanced content is built in subsequent grades. Visual arts concepts explored at this
grade level include line, shape, color, texture, and repetition.

Produce
Students will:
1. Use selected materials to produce works of art.
Example: water-soluble paint, clay
Creating works of art using a variety of traditional processes
Examples: crayon-resist paintings, folding and curling different kinds of paper
Creating two- and three-dimensional art forms
Examples: finger painting, paper collages, clay pinch pots
Recognizing safe and proper use and care of basic tools, materials, and supplies,
including scissors, pencils, crayons, markers, glue, paints, paintbrushes, and clay
Example: properly holding and using scissors to cut paper
2. Use line, shape, color, texture, and repetition to produce works of art.
Examples: linecurved, straight, jagged, zigzag, bumpy, wavy;
shapecircle, triangle, square;
colorprimary, secondary;
texturerough, smooth, soft, furry;
repetitionpattern
3. Create works of art to communicate ideas and moods.
Producing expressive portraits

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Respond
4. Identify line, shape, color, texture, and repetition in works of art.
Identifying similarities and differences in works of art
Examples: shape, color, size
Identifying media used in a work of art
Examples: paint, clay, crayons
5. Identify moods, feelings, and emotions generated by a work of art.
Examples: happiness, sadness

Understand
6. Identify artistic characteristics of cultures, times, and places.
Examples: culturesdesigns on tribal masks of Africa and carnival masks of Brazil,
timesline quality of prehistoric cave drawings,
placesarchitectural design of medieval castles in Europe
7. Identify examples of visual arts within the community.
Examples: architecture, murals, environmental sculptures, digital media productions,
museums
8. Identify works of art viewed by using digital media tools and products.
Example: using the Internet to participate in interactive museum programs
9. Identify similarities among the visual arts and other disciplines.
Examples: language artsviewing illustrations in literature selections by authors or
illustrators such as Eric Carle, Gerald McDermott, and Dr. Seuss;
social studiesidentifying similarities and differences in clothing styles worn
by people of various time periods, cultures, and professions

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Visual Arts
First Grade
The overall goal of the first-grade visual arts program is to guide students in the development of
skills in the areas of listening, sharing, cooperating, using materials responsibly, and following
directions. Providing foundational experiences and opportunities in the visual arts serves to
stimulate students to become independent thinkers and lifelong, creative problem solvers.
Students entering first grade have a wide range of technical and creative abilities. They need time to
conceptualize ideas and transform these ideas into works of art. An effective visual arts instructional
environment allows for hands-on opportunities, cooperative learning strategies, and verbal
communication. Such a setting promotes cognitive, affective, sensory, and motor skill development.
In Grade 1, students continue to learn about the elements of art and principles of design, the
foundation upon which advanced content is built in subsequent grades. Form and space are added to
the art concepts of line, shape, color, texture, and repetition for students to use in building visual
literacy. These concepts enable students to develop skills for describing and explaining their works
of art.

Produce
Students will:
1. Create works of art using a variety of techniques.
Example: creating prints and collages using found objects
Creating works of art using a variety of subject matter, including still life paintings and
portraits
Examples: still life painting of fruit in a bowl, family portraits
Producing three-dimensional works of art
Examples: found-object sculptures, clay sculptures such as pinch pots
2. Apply primary, secondary, and neutral colors; line directions; form; and space to create works
of art.
Examples: primary and secondary colorsmixing primary colors to achieve secondary
colors in paintings of aliens,
neutral colorscreating and painting sculptures similar to Charles Lucas
outdoor sculpture The New Breed,
line directioncreating paintings similar to Piet Mondrians
Broadway Boogie Woogie,
formcreating a work of art similar to Frederick Roths sculpture
Columbia Lion,
spacecreating figures using found objects such as spools and cardboard
tubes

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Respond
3. Identify neutral colors, form, and space in works of art.
Examples: neutral colorsGeorges Braques Cubist still life paintings,
formPueblo Indian ceramic storyteller sculptures,
spaceAlexander Calders mobiles
4. Recognize similarities and differences in media, visual and tactile characteristics, and natural
or man-made forms used in artwork.
Example: visual and tactile characteristicsJacob Lawrences collages versus Frank
Stellas and George Seurats paintings,
natural or man-made formstexture of pine cone versus texture of concrete
block,
mediadifferences between tempera and watercolor paints
5. Describe moods, feelings, and emotions depicted by a work of art.
Examples: dark room representing loneliness, sunny sky representing cheerfulness

Understand
6. Recognize artistic characteristics of various cultures, times, and places.
Examples: culturesdots in Aboriginal dream paintings,
timesfashion depicted in Early American paintings,
placespyramids of Egypt
Using digital media to view works of art
Example: using a compact disk-read-only memory (CD-ROM) to view
characteristics of works of art
7. Identify visual arts professions within a community.
Examples: landscape architects, sculptors, interior designers, museum curators

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Visual Arts
Second Grade
Second-grade students enjoy learning about cultures, times, and places beyond their immediate
environment. They are able to solve increasingly challenging problems and to discuss and discover
new media, artists, and works of art. Activities involving these discoveries provide opportunities for
visual arts students to consider multiple solutions to artistic problems.
The visual arts classroom setting for second-grade students provides a meaningful and active
learning environment with attention to individual learning styles. Instruction in Grade 2 continues to
promote opportunities for exploration and discovery as well as cognitive, affective, sensory, and
motor skill development.
Exploration of ideas and justification of solutions to artistic challenges allow second-grade students
to expand upon prior knowledge of the elements of art and principles of design. Art concepts
emphasized at this grade level include line, shape, color, texture, repetition, form, space, and
balance. These same concepts continue to be emphasized at the more advanced levels of the visual
arts curriculum.

Produce
Students will:
1. Apply a variety of procedures, methods, and subject matter in the production of twodimensional works of art, including landscapes, still lifes, and relief prints.
Example: producing paintings, drawings, and relief prints of family life and
neighborhood play
Producing three-dimensional works of art
Example: pinching and pulling clay to create clay dinosaurs
Demonstrating appropriate safety, care, and use of printmaking and sculptural materials
and equipment
Examples: printmaking inks, carving instruments, wire sculptures
2. Apply analogous and intermediate colors, symmetrical balance, and geometric and organic
shapes in the production of works of art.
Examples: monoprint of butterfly, landscapes with intermediate color schemes, Georgia
OKeeffes flower images in pastel drawings
3. Express ideas, feelings, and moods through traditional and digital media in creating works of
art.
Examples: showing happiness by using traditional media such as crayons or paints in the
production of a portrait based on Paul Klees Senecio or Head of a Man; using
digital drawing and painting programs to generate ideas in the production of a
fantasy cityscape

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Respond
4. Explain similarities and differences in works of art, including color schemes, symmetrical
balance, and geometric and organic shapes.
Examples: naming the similarities and differences in works by Eric Carle and Peter Max
depicting butterflies, discussing organic shapes in Henry Moores sculpture
Working Model for Oval with Points and geometric shapes in David Smiths
Cubi series sculptures
5. Describe the media technique used in a specific work of art.
Example: describing the technique of pointillism by Georges Seurat in A Sunday on La
Grande Jatte
Identifying the technique of spatial relationships, including foreground, middle ground,
and background
Example: identifying overlapping shapes that create depth in Grant Woods
landscapes
6. Relate moods, feelings, and emotions generated by a work of art to life experiences.
Examples: relating the happy moods and feelings of children at play as depicted in
Winslow Homers Snap the Whip to those of contemporary neighborhood
children at play

Understand
7. Describe artistic styles of various cultures, times, and places.
Examples: culturesJapanese painting techniques,
timesmosaics of the Roman Empire,
placesarchitectural structures of the Middle East and Russia
Describing ways in which visual arts connect to other disciplines
Example: describing Edgar Degas ballerina works in relation to dance, Pablo
Picassos Three Musicians in relation to instrumental music, and George
Rouaults clowns in relation to costumes in theatre productions
8. Identify ways art reflects and records history.
Examples: pictographs created by the Plains Indians, Mayan glyphs, Frederic
Remingtons paintings and sculptures of the American West
Using digital media to view works of art

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Visual Arts
Grades 3-5
Overview
Visual arts education in Grades 3-5 provides students with a foundation of developmentally
appropriate content upon which more advanced content is built in subsequent grades. Students
respond and grow in a curriculum in which the teaching of art fundamentals is sequential and goaloriented. They experience joy and confidence through self-expression when using acquired skills
and knowledge to continue solving artistic problems creatively.
The Grades 3-5 visual arts curriculum focuses on strengthening students cognitive, affective,
sensory, and motor skill development. As students progress from dependent to independent thought
processes, they are growing in their social and emotional development. In Grades 3-5, students
cognitive and technical abilities become more fully developed. Teacher, peer, and self-assessment
practices increase in rigor and can remain subjective in nature or be measured for evaluative
purposes.
The visual arts classroom in Grades 3-5 provides a safe and appropriate setting for student
exploration and assessment. An active and stimulating environment provides materials and
equipmentincluding technologyadapted to meet students needs. The ideal art environment
facilitates responsible growth in learning and encourages artistic fluency as students work both
individually and in groups.
In the Grades 3-5 curriculum, emphasis is placed on producing, responding to, and understanding art
while promoting the elements of art and principles of design through traditional, digital, and
multimedia technology. In addition, the curriculum promotes an awareness of the influence of the
past on contemporary culture, along with an increased awareness of art, artists, and diverse cultures
found throughout the world.

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Visual Arts
Third Grade
Third-grade students are active and inquisitive. They are primarily concrete learners, acquiring
knowledge through visual stimulation and hands-on experiences. Students in this grade are making
connections between their personal lives and various cultures, times, and places.
In Grade 3, the visual arts classroom learning environment encourages students to work together as a
community of learners yet provides an atmosphere in which they are valued individually for their
ideas and contributions. Such an environment promotes self-confidence, and students are more
receptive of suggestions for improvement.
As cognitive and technical skills increase in third grade, the elements of art and principles of design
continue to be the basis of the visual arts curriculum. Expanded forms of assessment, such as
critiques and self-assessments, become more meaningful to students as they implement skills in
producing, responding, and understanding works of art.

Produce
Students will:
1. Utilize a variety of processes and media in the production of artwork.
Examples: producing a drawing using markers and crayons, painting using watercolors
and pastels on watercolor paper
Utilizing digital processes to produce works of art
Example: using a paint program to design a digital quilt
2. Produce works of art depicting genre subject matter.
Examples: interiors in the paintings of Benny Andrews and Pieter Brueghel, landscapes of
Grandma Moses (Anna Mary Robertson), portraits of daily life by Norman
Rockwell
3. Apply the elements of art and principles of design, including complementary and
monochromatic color schemes, value, contrast, and asymmetrical balance in works of art.
Examples: using positive and negative space or complementary color schemes to create
contrast in designs, using gray scales, mixing white to create tints and black to
create shades
4. Create symbolic works of art to communicate ideas.
Example: using personal symbols to create a medieval family crest or heraldry
5. Demonstrate appropriate safety, care, and use of art materials and equipment.

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Respond
6. Compare works of art in terms of complementary color schemes, value, contrast, and
asymmetrical balance.
Example: comparing elements of art and principles of design used to depict water in
Winslow Homers Gulf Stream and Katsushika Hokusais The Great Wave
7. Identify symbols and signs depicting specific ideas, moods, feelings, and emotions generated
by a work of art.
Examples: sign depicting theme of love in Robert Indianas Love sculpture, raising of the
flag in the National Iwo Jima Memorial Monument generating feelings of
patriotism
8. Identify ideas and feelings expressed by individual artists in works of art.
Examples: feeling of triumph in Emmanuel Leutzes painting George Washington
Crossing the Delaware; happiness in Robert Henris Laughing Child

Understand
9. Contrast artistic styles of various cultures, times, and places.
Examples: culturesAsian landscapes versus Albert Bierstadts landscapes,
timesart deco interiors versus minimalist interiors,
placespaintings of covered bridges in rural areas versus suspension bridges
in urban areas
Using digital media to compare artistic styles of various works of art
Identifying symbols from different cultures, times, and places that portray common
themes
Examples: color purple relating to royalty, arrow or spear symbolizing the hunt

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Visual Arts
Fourth Grade
Students in Grade 4 are becoming more expressive as they respond to life experiences through
artistic challenges. Although they are primarily concrete learners, these students are intrigued with
more abstract modes of solving artistic problems. To nurture this interest, the fourth-grade
classroom environment promotes the active engagement of students in their learning through
independent and group projects, including opportunities for self-assessment. These experiences
allow students to strengthen the skills needed to communicate, reason, solve artistic problems, and
reach higher levels of cognitive thinking.
Although the visual arts content for Grade 4 continues to build upon the elements of art and
principles of design, new concepts, techniques, and media provide opportunities for students to
explore alternative solutions for self-expression. These experiences help students continue to
develop in multiple domainscognitive, physical, social, and emotional.

Produce
Students will:
1. Produce two- and three-dimensional works of art with a variety of traditional and digital
processes, materials, subject matter, and techniques.
Examples: processesusing a digital camera to create images to be digitally altered;
materialscreating papier-mch animals;
subject mattercreating portraits, landscapes, still lifes, interiors, or
seascapes;
techniqueslayering materials such as cardboard,
rubber, fabric, paper clips, and papers to create a collagraph
2. Use traditional and digital media in the production of graphic design to communicate ideas
and feelings.
Example: designing posters, book covers, or logos on the themes of recycling, drug
awareness, or endangered species
3. Apply the elements of art and principles of design, including rhythm, movement, and
emphasis, in the creation of works of art.
Examples: producing collages or paintings similar to those of Romare Bearden and Piet
Mondrian that were inspired by music, creating works of art similar to Diego
Riveras works that were inspired by everyday life experiences in Mexico

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Respond
4. Describe how the elements of art and principles of design, including rhythm, movement, and
emphasis, are used in a specific work of art.
Examples: movement as depicted in the use of line and painting techniques in Wassily
Kandinskys abstract works, emphasis as depicted in Giorgio de Chiricos
The Nostalgia of the Infinite, rhythm as depicted in Jackson Pollocks Autumn
Rhythm, movement in Glenna Goodacres sculpture Puddle Jumpers
Critiquing works of art orally or in writing, using the elements of art and principles of
design
Example: reflecting upon the creative process and success of personal works of art
in an electronic portfolio
5. Describe functions of art within the total environment, including functional sculptures, urban
improvement, and transportation.
Examples: functional sculpturesfountains, benches, playground equipment;
urban improvementmurals on walls;
transportationbridges
6. Compare different interpretations of the same subject or theme in art.
Example: landscapes by Impressionist and Hudson River School artists

Understand
7. Utilize community resources to identify works of art from various cultures, times, and places.
Examples: guest artists, artists-in-residence, museums, libraries, universities
8. Identify works of art from various artists that were inspired by the environments in which
they were created.
Example: Alabama artists inspired by their heritage and environment, including Howard
Finsters painting Coke Bottle, Jimmy Lee Sudduths painting Cotton Pickers,
and Frank Flemings sculpture Storyteller

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Visual Arts
Fifth Grade
Students in Grade 5 experience increased cognitive, emotional, and social development. As they
become more aware of their immediate surroundings, students interest in the expanded environment
begins to emerge. Students recognize the benefits of teacher, peer, and self-assessment when
reflecting, understanding, and producing works of art. They develop a more sophisticated sense of
visual arts as a means of expressing their feelings and emotions and learn to assess their ability to
communicate thoughts and viewpoints and to understand the opinions of others. To accommodate
these developmental changes, the fifth-grade visual arts classroom provides a positive learning
environment that encourages students to think creatively and to expand their technical skills.
Visual arts content standards for Grade 5 require students to become engaged in historical and
cultural investigations of works of art, media, techniques, and processes. Greater awareness of the
elements of arts and principles of design in the process and production of works of art is achieved
through the objectives set forth in these standards. As students begin to manipulate ideas, media, and
techniques, they also become more respectful of other viewpoints and works of art.

Produce
Students will:
1.

Utilize the elements of art and principles of design and the structures and functions of art to
communicate personal ideas.
Example: creating a painting, drawing, or sculpture in reaction to world events, drug
awareness, or medical issues
Creating works of art utilizing a variety of traditional found and recycled objects
Example: using Samuel Sambo Mockbees architectural structures as motivation
to produce recycled structures
Producing one-point perspective drawings
Example: drawing cubes using a vanishing point

2. Apply variety and unity in the production of two- and three-dimensional works of art.
Example: using Joan Mirs Horse Carnival of Harlequins to create a circus, carnival,
zoo painting, or diorama
Producing moving and stationary sculptures
Examples: mobiles, totem poles, origami paper sculptures, clay coil or slab-built
pottery

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Respond
3.

Explain the elements of art and principles of design, including variety and unity in a work of
art.
Examples: varietyshapes and lines in Joan Mirs Composition,
unityblack lines in Henri Matisses Purple Robe and Anemones
Applying appropriate vocabulary in discussing a work of art

4. Critique personal works of art orally or in writing according to specified criteria, including
elements of art, principals of design, technical skill, and creativity.
Organizing the progression of artwork in a personal portfolio

Understand
5. Identify societal values, beliefs, and everyday experiences expressed through works of art.
Examples: satire expressed in editorial cartoons, societal values expressed by the digital
animation industry
6. Describe works of art according to the style of various cultures, times, and places.
Examples: culturesartistic styles of Native American cultures of the Southwestern and
Pacific Northwestern United States,
timesAsher B. Durands early 19th century painting Kindred Spirits,
placesgargoyles and sculptures known as grotesques from European
countries
Describing ways in which the subject matter of other disciplines is interrelated with the
visual arts
Examples: mathematicsMavrits Cornelis (M. C.) Esher and tesselations;
language artsPatricia Pollaco and book illustrations;
social studiesMatthew Brady and Civil War photography;
sciencetransformation of shapes to forms, circles to spheres, squares
to cubes, and triangles to pyramids
7. Associate a particular artistic style with an individual artist.
Examples: Claude Monet with Impressionism, Claes Oldenberg with pop art, Alfred
Leslie with photorealism
Using traditional and digital media to arrange works of art according to culture, theme,
and historical period
Example: arranging works of art within a specific art movement or on a timeline

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Visual Arts
Grades 6-8
Overview
Visual Arts content standards for Grades 6-8 provide a bridge between elementary and secondary
visual arts education. Students in Grades 6-8 are learners of varied maturities and styles. They are
in a state of transition in both physical and emotional growth as they acquire a broad range of
understanding of the world around them. The backgrounds of these students include diverse family
structures as well as diverse social and emotional environments. Students at this age want their
works of art to look more realistic. They are becoming more proficient technically, but they lack
self-confidence and motor skills and need to be encouraged to develop their creative imaginations.
A developmentally appropriate curriculum, therefore, provides the foundation students need to build
confidence in their creative and artistic abilities. The visual arts classroom provides a safe and
appropriate learning environment for media exploration and self-expression. An active, structured,
and stimulating environment that allows for flexibility best meets the growing needs of the student
artist.
In Grades 6-8, the visual arts curriculum centers on producing, responding, and understanding art.
Production encompasses traditional and exploratory subjects, techniques, styles, and media
including the latest digital and multimedia resources. Responding involves exploring issues from the
domains of criticism and aesthetics. Understanding then grows out of the themes and skills from the
discipline of art history. Content standards provide students with a variety of experiences. They are
designed to enable students to develop a respect and appreciation of the visual arts. Through arts
education, students become informed consumers and patrons of the visual arts.
The sixth-eighth grades visual arts course is designed for all students, regardless of visual arts
background, ability, or academic achievement. It is recommended that this course be taught by a
visual arts specialist. While this course may be appropriate for any middle-level grade, a student
may only take the course one time. Continued visual arts experiences in Grades 7 and 8 should be
accomplished through the use of Level I Visual Arts standards.

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Visual Arts
Grades 6-8
Produce
Students will:
1. Create works of art utilizing a variety of traditional and nontraditional media and techniques.
Examples: torn-paper collage, weaving, wire sculpture, clay relief
Applying steps artists use in production of art, including conceptualizing ideas and
forms, refining ideas and forms, and reflecting on and evaluating both the process of
production and the product
Applying the elements of art and principles of design to the production of two- and
three-dimensional artwork
Examples: two-dimensionalmonochromatic paintings, found or natural object
prints, texture rubbing compositions;
three-dimensionalpaper-mch masks, clay whistles
Creating original multimedia works of art
Examples: television broadcasts, digital imaging, multimedia presentations
Creating original works of art using observational skills
Examples: drawing a shoe; painting a still life; creating a landscape in mixed
media; creating timed, gesture studies of a figure
2. Produce works of art using one- and two- point perspectives.
Example: drawing a cityscape or still life of geometric shapes that uses a vanishing point
and horizontal line

Respond
3.

Apply appropriate vocabulary in discussing a work of art.

Examples: discussing the use of cool colors, organic shapes, and flat perspective in Marc
Chagalls Green Violinist; explaining movement in Giacomo Ballas
Dynamism of a Dog on a Leash

4. Discuss the strengths and weaknesses of a personal portfolio or other work of art.
Defining the four-step process of critical analysis, including describing what is seen,
analyzing how each artist arranged the elements of art and principles of design,
interpreting each work in expressive intent and purpose, and judging the effectiveness
of communication
Example: analyzing Miriam Schapiros The Poet #2 and asking What do I see in
the painting?, How did the artist organize the elements of art and
principles of design?, What is the message that the artist is trying to
convey?, and How effective is the artwork?

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Understand
5. Define the appropriate technical terminology in creating a work of art.
Example: student asking teacher, Is my greenware vase ready to be bisque-fired?
6. Discuss ways in which the subject matter of other disciplines is connected with the visual arts.
Examples: connection of plants and animals in a rainforest to Henri Rousseaus The
Peaceable Kingdom; relationship of music to Wassily Kandinskys paintings;
relationship of measurement, scales, and proportion to Chuck Closes portraits
7. Describe historical and cultural influences on works of art.
Examples: historicalcreating a computer presentation depicting works of art of the Civil
War,
culturalcomparing the impact of racism in Faith Ringgolds Flag Quilt and
William Johnsons Moon Over Harlem
Identifying various art periods and movements
Examples: periodscomparing Mayan temples and Egyptian pyramids or
Renaissance and twentieth-century paintings,
movementscomparing Impressionism and Cubism or Surrealism and
Realism

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Visual Arts
Grades 7-12
Overview
In Grades 7-12, students acquire a range of skills and a broad understanding of the world of visual
arts. Moreover, should the student choose to pursue higher education in visual arts, the standards for
Grades 7-12 provide an excellent foundation for personal growth and potential career development.
By exploring connections and comparisons to other disciplines, content standards guide students to
an understanding of the value of the visual arts as ways of thinking, knowing, creating meaning, and
solving problems creatively in a rapidly changing global environment.
Students in Grades 7-12 are learners of varied maturities and styles. Their backgrounds include
diverse family structures and varying social and emotional environments. Throughout these grades,
students are adjusting to personal, physical, and emotional changes, as well as to social changes
taking place in the world around them. In the middle grades, students want to create works of art
that look realistic, yet they are able to begin thinking more imaginatively and abstractly and are eager
to explore and experiment with familiar and new media and processes. These students need concrete
experiences that provide direction and skill development, but they also need to be encouraged to
develop their creative imaginations. The visual arts curriculum in Grades 7-12 provides students
with higher-order thinking skills that enable them to solve visual arts problems. Knowledge, skills,
and attitudes gained in the Grades 7-12 program promote future enjoyment and appreciation of the
arts. It is recommended that Grades 7-12 Visual Arts courses be taught by a certified visual arts
specialist.
The visual arts classroom provides a safe and appropriate setting for student exploration and
assessment in Grades 7-12. The active, structured, and stimulating environment is adapted to
students growing needs and sophistication as apprentice artists. As the levels advance, materials,
equipment, and technology are provided that increasingly approach the professional level. In these
grades, students are becoming more aware of the possibility of a career in the visual arts.
In Grades 7-12, the visual arts curriculum centers on producing, responding to, and understanding
art. Production encompasses traditional and exploratory subjects, techniques, styles, and media,
including the latest digital and multimedia resources. Responding involves exploring issues from the
domains of criticism and aesthetics. Understanding then grows out of themes and skills from the
discipline of art history. The visual arts curriculum for Grades 7-12 is organized into four levels.
These levels build on the foundation established in Grades K-6 and allow students to move toward
increasing proficiency of skill, depth, complexity, and rigor in production and thought. Levels I
through IV represent the minimum content that students are required to master. For students who are
beginning their experience with art in Grades 7-12, the standards in the beginning levels are designed
to provide an appropriate foundation and entry-level experience for advanced work in the upper
levels. Regardless of the level, the introductory visual arts course in Grades 9-12 at the high school
level will satisfy the one-half credit arts education requirement for graduation.

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Level I of Visual Arts addresses teaching concepts for seventh- and eighth-grade students while
standards taught in Level II are designed primarily for students in Grades 9-10. Levels III and IV
may be expanded to higher-level courses such as Advanced Placement (AP) Studio Art; AP Art
History; media-specific courses such as Ceramics, Photography, Sculpture, and Graphic Design; and
Media Arts. Because skills, attitudes, and knowledge are gained through repetition as well as
through new explorations, the content standards at each new level depend on repeating and
practicing the content of standards from previous levels.
The content standards for the Grades 7-12 visual arts program provide opportunities for students to
produce, respond to, and understand the visual arts. Through implementation of the standards,
teachers challenge students to become more aware of the visual and cultural world around them and
enhance their artistic development.

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Visual Arts
Grades 7-12
Level I

Level I Visual Arts is designed to address the needs of young artists who are eager to explore and
experiment in creating two- and three-dimensional works of art. Students respond to personal
experiences and conceptualized ideas as they learn to manipulate the elements of art and the
principles of design through the use of a variety of processes, techniques, and media. Level I
standards build on students prior knowledge of concepts and skills introduced in Grades K-6. This
course serves as a transition between the elementary and secondary grades, but because many
Alabama students may not have had previous visual arts experiences, it is also structured to provide a
foundation for the more advanced work in Levels II-IV.
Level I learners of visual arts may include students from Grade 7 through Grade 12. This course
may be used in Grades 7-8 or in Grades 9-12. If taken in Grades 9-12, Level I Visual Arts may be
used to satisfy the one-half credit arts education requirement for graduation.

Produce
Students will:
1. Create original works of art from direct observation.
Organizing spatial relationships utilizing linear and atmospheric perspective
Creating the illusion of three-dimensional forms through tonal rendering
Incorporating traditional categories of subject matter into original works of art
Examples: drawing a still life, painting a landscape, sculpting a portrait
2. Create original works of art using reflective ideas, personal experiences, and imaginary
content.
Examples: reactions to current events, fantasy, cultural traditions
3. Apply steps artists use in the production of art, including conceptualizing ideas and forms,
refining ideas and forms, and reflecting on and evaluating both the process of production and
the product.
4. Apply the elements of art and principles of design to the production of two- and threedimensional artwork.
5. Demonstrate the use of traditional, digital, and multimedia techniques to create works of art.
Examples: two-dimensional expression in books, comic strips, and timelines;
enhancement of images in a digital imaging program; three-dimensional
expression in dioramas, masks, puppets, mobiles, stabiles, scenery, and props
6. Demonstrate safe and responsible handling of art materials, including cleanup, storage, and
replenishment of supplies where applicable.
Identifying safety and environmental regulations
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Respond
7. Describe personal, sensory, emotional, and intellectual responses to the visual qualities of a
work of art.
8. Evaluate selected works of art to determine the effectiveness of their organization.
Describing the subject matter, elements of art, principles of design, media, technique,
and style used in selected works of art
Analyzing the formal organization of subject matter, elements of art, and principles of
design in selected works of art to determine structural relationships
Interpreting expressive intentions and purposes in selected works of art
Describing the effectiveness of expressive and meaningful communication in selected
works of art
9. Compare works of art with functional and natural objects, aesthetic components, and formal
qualities.
Examples: stylized lines in automobiles; shapes and forms of appliances; shape, line,
form, volume, and color of a tree
Identifying aesthetic components and formal qualities in man-made and natural objects
Examples: comparing a Henry Moore sculpture with bones, comparing David
Hockneys Grand Canyon series to rock formations

Understand
10. Utilize specialized terminology from art history, aesthetics, criticism, and production in
discussions of works of art.
Defining visual arts terminology to include the elements of art and principles of design
Describing the intrinsic qualities of a work of art
Example: divisionist color in Camille Pissaros Impressionist paintings
11. Describe historical themes, symbols, and styles associated with works of art from various
cultures, times, and places, including major periods and movements.
Identifying the style associated with selected works of major artists
Examples: Richard Estesphotorealism, Helen Frankenthalercolor field,
Vincent van Goghpost-Impressionism
Describing the extrinsic context qualities of a work of art
Example: optical color mixing theory as depicted in works by Berthe Morisot such
as Jeune Fille au chien (Young Girl with a Dog)
Using digital processes or media to identify symbols and styles associated with works
of art from various periods
Example: using the Internet to view, collect, or find examples of Renaissance art
and architecture

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Visual Arts
Grades 7-12
Level II

Level II Visual Arts is designed to address the needs of students with Level I art experience. These
students require concrete experiences that provide direction and advanced skill development. As
they continue to learn the visual language and understand the significance of artistic symbolism,
students focus on the production of visual relationships; the exploration of techniques, processes, and
media; and the study of history, culture, aesthetics, and criticism. Students in Level II may be
considering art as a possible career option.

Produce
Students will:
1. Create works of art with a variety of visual relationships.
Organizing formal relationships in works of art
Examples: color contrasts, differences in shape and size, repetition of textures and
patterns
Organizing subject relationships in works of art
Examples: mother and child, man-made objects in a landscape
Describing how visual relationships create meaning in works of art
2. Produce works of art using a variety of techniques.
Determining the appropriateness of techniques used to create a work of art
Demonstrating technical proficiency in the production and presentation of a work of art
Examples: skillful use of printmaking tools, properly matting two-dimensional
works of art
3. Demonstrate knowledge of safe handling of tools, studio and environmental practices,
procedures, and regulations.
Examples: properly using and disposing of hazardous chemicals or fluids, using
flame-retardant cabinets, utilizing ventilation systems

Respond
4. Evaluate student works of art orally or in writing according to specified criteria.
Identifying criteria for judging works of art
Examples: craftsmanship, originality, technique, content
Comparing a finished personal work of art with its intended content or design

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5. Describe various artistic contributions to environmental and social issues.

Examples: Frederic Olmsteads design of Central Park, Frank Lloyd Wrights Falling
Water, Jacob Lawrences Migration series
Explaining the role of works of art placed in the environment
Examples: Maya Lins Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C.; Lins
Civil Rights Memorial in Montgomery, Alabama; AIDS (acquired
immunodeficiency syndrome) Quilt Memorial; Robert Smithsons
Spiral Jetty
6. Produce a reflective narrative that critically analyzes selected works of art.
Identifying the elements of art and principles of design
Interpreting the subject matter, purpose, and expressive content of a work of art

Understand
7. Use appropriate visual arts terminology in response to works of art, including the elements of
art and principles of design.
8. Describe stylistic characteristics of selected works of art and architecture.
Examples: Raphaels (Raffaello Sanzio) Madonnas in the High Renaissance, Cathedral of
Notre Dame in Gothic architecture, Charles Demuths I Saw the Figure Five in
Gold
Analyzing major works of art and architecture from various cultures, times, and places
to understand forms, subjects, themes, and symbols
Examples: Parthenon in Athens, Greece; Kremlin in Moscow, Russia
Using a variety of resource media in researching stylistic characteristics of selected art,
artists, cultures, times, and places
Examples: multimedia presentation, storyboard, poster, or research paper
identifying the characteristics of Jacob Lawrences Harlem series
paintings
9. Identify various uses of the visual arts in business and industry.
Examples: developing logos and advertisements, designing buildings and other structures
Identifying arts careers in business and industry
Examples: dancechoreographer, dance educator;
musicconductor, composer;
theatreset designer, artistic director;
visual artstextile designer, museum curator
10. Compare ways of producing, responding, and understanding in the visual arts with other arts
disciplines, the humanities, and other academic subject areas.
Examples: process of writing compared to process of forming works of art; rhythms in
visual arts, dance, and music compared to rhythms in poetry; color theory in
art compared with color theory in science

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Visual Arts
Grades 7-12
Level III

Level III Visual Arts directs students toward skill proficiency and dynamics in individual expression,
artistic presentation, and portfolio development. Students are able to communicate concepts and
intentions through manipulation of subject matter, organizational components, media, and processes.
They are able to explore issues in art criticism and aesthetics as well as provide analysis of their own
works of art and the works of others. At this level, some students may have determined an area of
media concentration and artistic expression to be considered as a career choice.

Produce
Students will:
1. Create works of art that communicate specific concepts, emotions, and intentions.
Selecting appropriate subject matter as a basis for meaningful and expressive
compositions
Organizing subject matter and formal qualities in a work of art into meaningful and
expressive compositions
Employing a diverse range of traditional media, digital media, and multimedia;
techniques; styles; tools; concepts; and processes in producing meaningful and
expressive compositions
Producing a thematically related body of work
2. Employ a diverse range of traditional media, digital media, multimedia, techniques, styles,
tools, concepts, and processes in producing meaningful and expressive compositions.
3. Produce a self-critique of a work in progress.
4. Demonstrate independent research related to studio work.
Example: researching the masks of various cultures to determine emotional and stylistic
characteristics that might influence or inspire the making of ones own mask
Maintaining a self-directed sketchbook or journal

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Respond
5. Apply the four-step process of critical analysis to works of art, including describing what is
seen, analyzing how each artist arranged the elements of art and principles of design,
interpreting each work in expressive intent and purpose, and judging the effectiveness of
communication.
Analyzing selected works of art for visual and functional differences
Example: comparing decorative ceramic vessels and utilitarian pottery
Describing visual and functional qualities of composition
Producing a reflective narrative that critically analyzes the organizational effectiveness
and artistic choices of personal and peer works of art
6. Respond orally and in writing to the ideas of selected critics, historians, aestheticians, and
artists.
Example: discussing criteria for valuing works of art from Kenneth Clarks What is a
Masterpiece?

Understand
7. Explain the purposes, functions, and meanings of selected works of art from a variety of
cultures, times, and places.
Describing characteristics of works of art that are common to a cultural group or
historical period
Example: culturaluse of animals in Eskimo masks, absence of representations of
animals or human form in Islamic art
historicalinclusion of concepts of war and politics in
Francisco de Goyas paintings
Comparing works of art with different styles
Example: Celtic knot designs with rose windows, African masks with Kabuki
masks
8. Compare modes of artistic expression used in art and other academic disciplines.
Examples: comparing improvisation in music, visual arts, dance, and theatre; comparing
narrative art to literature, a painting of historic events to social sciences, op art
to the science of optics, or tessellations to geometric shapes and designs
9. Organize research about art, artists, cultures, times, and places into a product or presentation.
Examples: producing a digital presentation comparing the use of logos in advertising,
writing a research paper comparing art and its social context

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Visual Arts
Grades 7-12
Level IV

Level IV Visual Arts engages students in the most advanced level of artistic development and
technical proficiency. Students at this level understand the multifaceted components of solving
visual arts problems. They are able to examine contexts, processes, and criteria for evaluation of
works of art through an analytical method and to communicate their ideas regarding relationships
among art forms and between their own work and the works of others. Many Level IV students plan
to use their visual arts interest and ability in future careers.

Produce
Students will:
1. Produce a thematically related body of work.
Describing the results of researching the works of other artists or cultures for inspiration
2. Organize subject matter and formal qualities into meaningful and expressive compositions.
Generating alternative design solutions to visual arts problems
Solving visual arts problems using analysis, synthesis, and evaluation
Defending personal choices in creative visual compositions
Examples: oral critiques, written reflections
3. Assemble a portfolio of personal works of art that includes a concentration in a specific theme
or medium.
Demonstrating advanced skill with at least three visual arts media
Writing an artists statement for a personal portfolio
Documenting personal works of art
Example: using slides or electronic images to depict works of art
4. Organize an exhibition of works of art, including publicizing an exhibition, composing an
exhibition statement, and completing a self-evaluation of an exhibition.
Examples: exhibiting works of art on bulletin boards with content documentation,
displaying works of art for competition, showcasing works of art with
interdisciplinary connections in media centers

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Respond
5. Relate the ideas of selected critics, historians, aestheticians, and artists to specific works of
art.
Examples: Harold Rosenburg on Willem de Koonings action paintings; critical writings
on contemporary art and artists in local, regional, and national periodicals;
Public Broadcasting Systems American Masters series on nineteenth-century
American authors
6. Interpret expressive intentions and purposes in selected works of art based on intrinsic and
extrinsic conditions.
Example: looking at Vincent Van Goghs The Night Caf and reading his letter to Theo
about his intentions in creating the painting

Understand
7. Analyze specific works of art to determine the relationship between intrinsic qualities and
historical and cultural context.
Examples: Francisco Goyas The Third of May and the Napoleonic Invasion of Spain,
Diego Riveras murals and the history of Mexico, Bayoux Tapestry and the
Battle of Hastings, Native American paintings and the Battle of the Little
Bighorn
8. Analyze artists choices in order to interpret meanings, ideas, attitudes, views, and intentions
in works of art.
Examples: choice of media, subject matter, signs, symbols, source of inspiration
9. Explain the importance of major works of art and architecture.
Describing the stylistic impact of selected works of art
Examples: Claude Monets Impression, Sunrise; Egyptian obelisk
Describing the social, cultural, historical, and political context of selected works of art
Examples: impact of Jacque-Louis Davids Oath of the Horatii on French society
and painting styles, adoption of Greek temples as architectural models
in later cultures
10. Compare the creative processes of visual arts with other arts disciplines, the humanities, and
other academic areas.
Examples: comparing creative problem-solving models with the scientific method,
comparing the drafting process in writing with the composition process in
visual arts

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Visual Arts Glossary

Abstract Art derived from realism but deviating
in appearance, leaving the essentials: shapes,
lines, colors, and textures relating to the
subject.
Abstract expressionism An American
movement in the 1940s and 1950s which
emphasized feelings and emotions. It is often
called action painting because many artists
used slashing brushstrokes and dripping,
pouring, or spattering paint on canvas.
Aesthetics A philosophy dealing with the nature
and expression of beauty, as in the fine arts.
Analogous Three or more colors that are closely
related because they contain a common hue
and are adjacent on the color wheel. Blue,
green-blue, and green are analogous colors.
Analogous colors may be used as a color
scheme.
Art criticism Art processes and skills involved
in studying, understanding, and judging a
work of art. The four formal steps involve
description, analysis, interpretation, and
judgment.
Appliqu A decoration or ornamentation made
by cutting pieces of material and applying
them to another surface.
Atmospheric perspective Creating the illusion
of distance on a flat surface by simulating the
effects of light and air on an object. For
example, a bright object appears closer to the
viewer than a dull object. (Also called aerial
perspective.)
Background The part of the picture plane
appearing to be farthest from the viewer.
Balance A design principle dealing with the
appearance of stability or the equalization of
elements in a work of art. A balanced work of
art seems to have equal visual weight or
interest in all areas. Balance may be
symmetrical, asymmetrical, or radical.
Coil method A process of rolling long pieces of
clay that are then used to form the sides of
bowls, containers, or objects.
Collage A work of art where various materials,
such as bits of paper, fabric, photographs, and
found objects, are arranged and glued to a flat
surface.
Collagraph The print resulting from printing a
relief collage.
Complementary colors Colors directly opposite
each other on the color wheel. Red and green,
blue and orange, and yellow and purple are

complementary colors. They make a neutral

result when mixed.
Composition The organization of the design
principles and art elements in creating a work
of art.
Contour drawing Lines indicating the outlines
and main parts of the object drawn.
Contrast The use of opposing elements, such as
color forms or lines, to produce different
effects in a work of art.
Cool colors Blues, greens, and violets. These
colors suggest coolness and appear to recede
from the viewer.
Resist Method where wax or crayon is used to
cover surface areas the artist does not want to
be affected by paint or dye.
Critique A critical review or commentary
dealing with a literary or artistic work.
Crosshatch Shading using two or more crossed
sets of parallel lines at various angles to
indicate value.
Design The organization of the art elements and
principles into a plan. (Also called
composition.)
Digital media The use of technology to capture
images, sounds, and effects in the creative
process.
Elements of art The visual tools artists use to
create works of art. These include form,
shape, line, texture, color, space, and value.
Form A shape having three
dimensions: height, width, and
depth.
Shape An area defined by line or color.
Line The path made by a moving point
that can vary in width, direction,
and length.
Texture The actual roughness or
smoothness of a surface or the
illusion thereof.
Color The hue, value, and intensity of
an object as seen by the human eye.
Space The area between, around,
above, below, or within objects.
Value The lightness or darkness of a
color. (See shade and tint.)
Engraving Scratching a line design into a
surface with a sharp tool.
Etching Printmaking process in which lines are
incised into a surface.
Foreground The parts of an artwork that appear
closest to the viewer.

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Found object Everyday objects such as cups,

keys, chains, buttons, lids, and scraps that can
be composed to create a work of art such as an
assemblage, a collage, a stabile, a mobile, or a
sculpture.
Genre subjects Depiction of everyday life
scenes.
Grotesque A relief decorating Gothic
architecture such as gargoyles and sculptures.
Linear perspective A technique of creating the
illusion of space on a two-dimensional surface
using vanishing points and lines.
Medium Material applied in creating a work of
art, such as a pencil, paint, wood, ink, metal,
clay, or food.
Middle ground Area appearing between the
foreground and the background.
Mixed-media A work of art using more than one
medium.
Mobile A suspended construction moving about
in space, creating variations of shapes, spaces,
and shadows.
Mola A work of art made by the Cuna Indians of
the San Blas Islands off the coast of Panama.
Reverse appliqu.
Monochromatic color One color used in varied
values and intensities.
Monoprint Printing process that produces one
unique copy of the same design that cannot be
printed more than once.
Mosaic Artwork made by adhering small pieces
of stone, ceramic tile, etc., to a background.
Multimedia Referring to various media such as
a camera, television, video, tape recorder, CDROM, computer, or slide projector.
Negative space or shape The space surrounding
shapes or solid forms in a work of art.
Neutral color Black, brown, gray, and white.
Nonobjective art A style of art bearing little
resemblance to natural, realistic, or
recognizable forms.
Objective art A style of art that has
recognizable subject matter.
Portfolio Samples of an artists work assembled
for review.
Positive space or shape Objects in a work of art
that are not the background or the space
around them.
Primary colors Red, yellow, and blue.
Principles of design Guidelines artists use to
create works of art and control how viewers
react to these works. The principles of design
are balance, repetition or rhythm, unity or
harmony, movement, emphasis, variety, and
proportion.

138

Balance Arranging visual elements in a

work of art equally. Three types of
balance are formal (symmetrical),
informal (asymmetrical), and radial.
Repetition or rhythm Repeating lines,
shapes, colors, or patterns.
Unity or harmony The oneness or
wholeness of a work of art.
Movement The arrangement of
elements in an artwork organized to
create a sense of motion.
Emphasis Accent, stress, or importance
of a part of an artwork.
Variety Principles of design concerned
with difference or contrast.
Proportion The placement or ratio of
one part of an artwork to another
part or to the whole.
Printmaking Producing multiple copies of an
original work of art from blocks or plates.
Relief A sculptural form such as a frieze that is
raised from the surface.
Rubbings A technique of transferring the
textural quality of a surface to paper.
Secondary colors Orange, green, and violet.
Shade A dark value of a hue made by adding
black to the color or its complement.
Opposite of tint.
Stabile A metal sculpture, usually abstract, with
no mobile parts.
Style Refers to the artists unique manner of
expression.
Technique The style or manner in which the
artist uses media.
Tertiary colors (intermediate) Colors made by
mixing equal parts of a primary and secondary
color (red-orange, yellow-orange, blue-green,
blue-violet, violet-red).
Tessellation A mosaic pattern made by
interlocking repetitive shapes to form a work
of art.
Tint A tone of color made by adding white to a
basic hue.
Vanishing point The point or points where all
parallel lines appear to converge.
Warm colors Reds, oranges, and yellows.

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