A Winter Wonderland

Grade Level/Cycle: Grade 1/Cycle 1Time Frame: 3 DaysRATIONALE— Students will be able to appreciate the beautiful elements winter has to offer by observing it through the elements of art. They will be able to apply their favorite winter elements to create a beautiful palette knife painting that incorporates various elements of art.

PedagogicalObjectives

● Students will explore and be able to identify art elements found in winter in relation color and texture

● Students will explore the characteristics associated with winter● Students will learn how to create different color shades/hues by

adding small increments of white and black paint● Students will learn what palette knife painting entails● Students will acquire how to palette knife paint (using popsicle

sticks)● Students will create a palette knife winter scene using acrylic paint● Students will be able to describe their final products using the art

elements and characteristics found in winter● Students will be learn to work collaboratively by sharing their

ideas, sharing materials and by offering feedback● Students will be respectful of their classmates choices

Art MakingMethod/Media

● Students will create their own winter scene incorporating colors, textures and characteristics associated with winter

● Students will use thickened acrylic paint as their painting medium

● Students will be using a painting technique using a palette knife (popsicle sticks) to create a textured winter painting

Art MaterialsEquipment

● Popsicle sticks● Tinfoil covered cardboard● White, blue and black acrylic paint mixed with cornstarch● Painting smock● Table cloth

Prototype/process

Prototype Set-up:

Prototype Beginning:

Prototype Middle:

Prototype Final Result:

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MEQ Visual ArtsCompetencies

Competency 1: To produce individual works in the visual arts

● Through this lesson, students will:a. Use their interpretation of what winter is as inspiration to

create a winter sceneb. Participate in a guided step by step process to create their

final productc. Share their creative process and be able to explain the

meaning behind their final product with their classmatesCompetency 3: To appreciate works of art, traditional artistic objects, media images, personal productions and those of classmates

● Through this lesson, students will:a. Examine examples of palette knife paintings and discuss

what they notice through guiding questionsb. Be introduced to certain art elements and how to

differentiate them and use them appropriatelyc. Begin to use appropriate art vocabulary (color, hues/shades,

palette knife, texture)

Vocabulary/Concepts ● Palette knife painting

○ A painting technique that is used to achieve different 3

textures. It is often done with oil paints of acrylic paints with mediums mixed inside (Artist Network)

● Palette knife○ “A knife with a thin flexible blade, used by artists for

mixing, scraping, or applying paint.” (The Free Dictionary)● Color

○ “An element of art made up of three properties: hue, value, and intensity. “(Oberlin College of Arts and Sciences Conservatory of Music.)

● Color hue○ “Name of color” (Oberlin College of Arts and Sciences

Conservatory of Music.)● Color value/shade

○ “hue’s lightness and darkness (a color’s value changes when white or black is added)” (Oberlin College of Arts and Sciences Conservatory of Music)

● Texture○ “An element of art that refers to the way things feel, or look

as if they might feel if touched” (Oberlin College of Arts and Sciences Conservatory of Music.)

ACTIVITY PROCESSES TIME

MotivationClass 1:Book● I will start the lesson by reading a book called “White

Snow Bright Snow” by Alvin Tresselt● It is a book that talks about all the wonderful

colors, textures and winter characteristics a childwill experience during a winter snowfall

● Children will be asked to listen carefully andremember the words that remind them of winter

● Students will be able to experience a winter day through descriptive sentences such as:

○ “white snow bright snow, smooth and deep” (Tresselt & Duvoisin, 1947)

○ “down down to the frozen ground” (Tresselt & Duvoisin, 1947)

○ “while children watched the low grey sky” (Tresselt & Duvoisin, 1947)

20 minutes

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○ “cold tree branches” (Tresselt & Duvoisin, 1947)

○ “the air filled with soft powdery snowflakes” (Tresselt & Duvoisin, 1947)

○ “icy snowflakes sparkled in the light of the street lamps” (Tresselt & Duvoisin, 1947)

○ “in the morning a clear blue sky was overheard and blue shadows” (Tresselt & Duvoisin, 1947)

○ “the wind pushed light puffs of white from the branches” (Tresselt & Duvoisin, 1947)

● These sentences emphasize and tie nicely with the art elements of winter we are exploring

Brainstorm & Chart Making● Students will be asked to brainstorm the words that

they believe describe winter from either White Snow Bright Snow or from their own experience

● We will categorize our descriptive words into three categories: texture, color and winter characteristics

● We will create a chart document our responses● Example of chart can be found in Appendix 1

Class 2:

Day Dream● We will refer back to the chart we created last class● Students will close their eyes and create a winter

scene in their minds as I reread the words we wrote down

● This will allow students to begin to form their own representation of a winter scene keeping in mind the art elements and characteristics we have discussed

●

20 minutes

10 minutes

Media ExplorationClass 2-3:

Introduction:● I will show students a palette knife painting to

introduce the type of painting we will be creating.● This painting was painted by the artist Pat 20 Minutes

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Kosciensky and it is an acrylic palette knife painting.● Image of painting shown can be found in Appendix 2● I will ask students to observe the painting as I ask

them:○ When you look at this painting, what comes

to mind?○ Is this painting similar to the winter scene you

created in your mind?○ What do you notice about the colors used in

this painting?○ What do you notice about the texture of this

painting?● I will the show students a closer view on palette knife

paintings to really emphasize the textures this type of painting produces.

● I will tell them that this is the effect that we are hoping to achieve through our paintings.

● These additional paintings can be found in the Appendix 3

Demonstration:● I will show students the tool that artists use to create

palette knife paintings.● I will tell them that it is similar to a knife but very

dull as in not sharp.● I will tell them that for our paintings, we will be

using popsicle sticks as an alternative however it will give a similar effect.

● I will show them that there are different palette knife shape and sizes to create different textures.

● I will demonstrate an example of how to use the popsicle stick as a painting tool

● I will give students some technique such as:○ Start of will a small amount of paint and

gradually work your way to adding more paint

● This lesson will span over 2 classes to avoid students from rushing and to give students time to enough time to put effort into their paintings

● We will then have a quick lesson on color mixing:○ We will experiment the possible color

10 minutes

15 minutes

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outcomes that will occur by mixing blue and white, blue and black and white and black.

○ We will also explore what would happen if we add, for example, two scoops of white paint to blue paint compared to adding 1 scoop of white paint to blue paint.

○ A color chart will be placed on the SmartBoard as a reminder/reference of how to create different shades of blue, black and white.

○ Students will be able to use this chart as reference when creating their own color shades.

○ Chart can be found in Appendix 4

Art Making Time:● Paint can get very messy if it is set up in an

unorganized fashion, especially with younger students

● Students will be placed in small groups of four and given paint smocks to avoid getting paint of their clothes

● Each table will have four pieces of paper covered in tinfoil which will serve as the template for their paintings.

● I chose to cover the paper in tinfoil to give their paintings an extra wintery feel.

○ Rather than give students colored or white paper to paint on, I chose to use cardboard which is a sturdier surface to paint on and I chose to cover it in tinfoil to add an extra wintery characteristic that would compliment the painting well.

○ Even if students don’t paint the whole surface, the tinfoil acts as a complementary background and adds something special to their painting.

○ This is evident in the final products which will be shown in a bit.

● Students will then be asked to sit at a spot that has a

2 classes(around 2

hours total)

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tin foil paper.● Once students are all seated, the paint and popsicle

sticks will be distributed to each table.● Empty containers and extra popsicle sticks will be

distributed to allow students to create their own color shades

Art Making

● Students will create their own representation of winter using the art elements and characteristics we have discussed as well as prior interpretations and observations of what represents to them.

● Each student will create their own individual painting however they will be placed in groups of 4. Students will be allowed to collaborate with their classmates and share ideas.

ProcedureA step by step process can be found in the above sections which include specific materials used and a clear demonstration on how to proceed with the activity in a sequential manner. I decided to combine the procedure with the sections above therefore the procedure can be found there.

Fast Finishers:● “Fast finishers will be able to begin working on their

handout when finished with their palette knife paintings.

● Students who are finished earlier will be assigned specific tasks to help with the clean up

● Students who are finished earlier will be encouraged to help their peers if they need help

Strategies to Re-motivate Students:● In order to re-motivate students, I will tell them to

think back to when we day dreamed about a winter scene. I want them to do the same and then paint what they see in their minds.

● Another way I can re-motivate students is to have them daydream of a perfect winter day. I will ask them what that entails.

○ For example, is it snowing?8

○ Are they playing in the snow?○ Are they building something with the snow?○ Are they doing any winter activities such as

skating or tobogganing?● Once students have a clear focus and pathway, they

will be able to continue painting. I will circulate the room and make sure to check up on them should be struggling.

Response to Art

● Which colors will my painting have?● What type of textures do I want to include in my

painting?● Which colors did I mix to achieve certain colors in

my painting?● Which winter characteristics do/did I want to

highlight in my painting?● Did I use a variety of different colors/shades in my

painting?● Did I use a variety of winter characteristics in my

painting?● Does my painting include a textured effect similar to

the ones we observed in class?● How does my painting represent a winter scene?

Studio Etiquette

● Students will be minded on the rules of art in the classroom

○ Respect each other○ Properly use tools as shown in class○ Be respectful of art materials○ Remain seated while painted○ Clean your work space○ Always do your best○ Be creative and have fun!

● Students will be assigned specific tasks that they must do when we are cleaning up

○ Close paint lids○ Throw popsicle sticks in garbage○ Collect painting smocks

Closure● Once students finish their paintings, they will be

asked to fill out a handout.20 minutes

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● Handout can be found in Appendix 5● Example of handout filled out can be found in

Appendix 6● Students will have to create a sentence that represents

their painting use 1 texture word, 1 color word and 1 winter characteristic).

● Students will be able to refer to the categorized chart we created earlier in the lesson for colors, textures and winter characteristics

● Students will fill out the handout that will accompany their final product

● In their groups, students will have informal discussions about the three words they’ve chosen, one thing they enjoyed most and one thing they found the most challenging about this activity

● Paintings will be displayed outside of the classroom for all to see

BIBLIOGRAPHY / RESOURCES

Artists Network. How to use a painting knife. Retrieved from http://www.artistsnetwork.com/articles/art-demos-techniques/painting-knife-techniques

Ebay. How to thicken acrylic paint for more texture. (2016, March 2016). Retrieved from http://www.ebay.com/gds/How-to-Thicken-Acrylic-Paint-for-More-Texture-/10000000178722248/g.html

The Free Dictionary. Palette knife. Retrieved from http://www.thefreedictionary.com/palette+knife

Ministry of Education (MELS) (2001). Quebec Education Program. Retrieved fromhttp://www1.mels.gouv.qc.ca/sections/programmeFormation/primaire/pdf/educprg2001/educprg2001.pdf

Oberlin College of Arts and Sciences Conservatory of Music. Vocabulary elements of art. Retrieved from http://www.oberlin.edu/amam/asia/sculpture/documents/vocabulary.pdf

Photographer, Koscienski, P. (2013, January 14). Blue Spruce and Winter Snow - acrylic palette 10

knife painting by Pennsylvania Artist Pat Koscienski. [Digital Image]. Retrieved from http://patkoscienski.blogspot.ca/2013/01/blue-spruce-and-winter-snow-acrylic.html

Photographer, Spacir, J. (2015, December 7). Water dragon - acrylic painting. [Digital Image]. Retrieved from https://josipasart.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/81.jpg

Photographer, Spacir, J. (2015, October 29). Ice dragon - acrylic painting. [Digital Image]. Retrieved from https://josipasart.files.wordpress.com/2015/10/71.jpg

Tresselt, A., & Duvoisin, R. (1947). White snow, bright snow (3rd ed.). New York: Lothrop, Lee & Shepard Books.

REFLECTIONS/ASSESSMENT

● Students will be able to reflect on their paintings when they share their painting with their groups. They will be able to explain why they decided to paint that scene and the different colors, textures and characteristics they used in their painting. They will have their handout to assist them

● Students will be assessed through self-assessment and through a checklist that the teacher will complete

● Rubrics can be found in the Appendix 7 & Appendix 8

Appendix

Appendix 1: Winter Chart Example

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Appendix 2: Pat Image

Appendix 3: Additional Palette Knife Paintings

Appendix 4: Color Chart

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Appendix 5: Closure Handout

Appendix 6: Closure Handout example

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Appendix 7: Student Self Assessment

Did I include a variety of colors/shades?

Did I use include texture in my painting?

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Did I use a variety of winter characteristics in my painting?

Did I mix colors to achieve different color shades?

Does my painting represent a palette knife painting?

Does my painting represent a winter scene?

Appendix 8: Teacher Observation Assessment

Student Name: ___________________________________

Developed Developping Not Developed

Student actively participated in group brainstorming activity

Student has a good understanding of winter colors and shade

Students used at least two different colors in their painting

Student attempted to mix

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colors to achieve different shades

Student has understanding of texture

Students achieved texture in their painting

Student put effort and time into their painting

Student’s painting shows use of palette knife technique

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