Year+2+Art

Year 2 || =Mother Nature: T-shirts=
 * ART


 * Information ||

Objectives
• To explore and develop skills in using and applying colour • To communicate ideas about line, shape and colour • To represent ideas and feelings about nature

Prior learning
To benefit from this lesson, children should: • have been introduced to graphics software; • have made detailed observations of natural specimens and discussed line and shape.

Vocabulary
selection, abstract, bold, strong, undo, bright, vibrant, pure, calm

Resources
• data projector or interactive whiteboard linked to a laptop • ICT suite or set of laptops • digital images of specimens of natural material magnified or at true scale • graphics software that enables colour manipulation of selections (in this Example, //Revelation Natural Art//) • printer and printer transfer paper • plain T-shirts for printing

ICT skills needed by teachers
To teach this unit, teachers need to know how to: • use a computer microscope and transfer images to a computer; • use the selected graphics software; • transfer images to fabric.

Preparation for this lesson
Before this lesson ask children to undertake first-hand research by taking digital photographs of natural forms such as details of plants. Supplement these images with further images of specimens of natural materials, magnified or at true scale. Before the lesson, set up the relevant graphics software and the digital images on the shared area of the network or on the computers that the children are to use. Prepare the software on your own computer ready for display. Prepare a set of help cards, or prompts and diagrams, to help children to remember what to do when they are using the software.


 * Lesson extract ||

Introduction
Show some examples of accurate and analytical work such as botanical drawings of Joseph Hooker (1817–1911), botanist and friend of Charles Darwin, or Joseph Banks (1743–1820), botanist and explorer of the South Pacific with James Cook, or detailed drawings such as those made by Edith Holden. Q Looking at this illustration, how does the artist represent a leaf? Show some examples, such as Matisse. Henri Matisse, //Black Leaf on Green// Q How does this work compare with the illustrations we looked at? Encourage children to develop a vocabulary of colour, for example, bold, bright, vibrant, pure, calm. Q What is the effect of the colours? Q Do they contribute to the strength of the work?

Main activity
Demonstrate how the children can locate their files and also the main tools of the graphics software. Organise the class to work in small groups at the computers and to practise what you have demonstrated. They should use the undo button to explore alternative colour schemes. Show the children how to use ‘save as’ so that different versions of the same image can be stored, showing different stages of development and different characteristics. Ask children to respond to their choice of colour. Q Is the colour you have chosen exciting, peaceful, scary? Tell the groups that their task is to use a digital image from nature as a basis for creating a T-shirt design. They should make selections and choose colours. They should work together and discuss their choice of colour and selections. Most children should be able to use different brush sizes and different fill effects. Some children may be able to explore further to make transformations and add simple text. Help the groups to save their work.

Plenary
Bring the whole class together. Review some samples of children’s work. Q What do you like about this design? Q Is this design suitable for a T-shirt? Q What difficulties did you have in producing this design? How did you overcome them? Q Is there anything about this design that could be improved? You could if you wished use one example image and continue to develop the theme, working collaboratively with the children and sharing opinions in discussion. Demonstrate printing one image on transfer paper ready for printing on a T-shirt. Q How does the textile affect the image?

Next steps
Children should edit and complete their work for printing. The finished T-shirts could be displayed for discussion and celebration of achievements.


 * Notes ||

Links to QCA schemes of work
The lesson links to: QCA Art and Design Unit 2B: Mother Nature: designer

Context of this lesson
In this lesson, children explore changing a digital image by selecting, filling and over-painting. They also learn how to make selections and to use ‘undo’ to amend and develop different ideas. This is one of a series of art lessons inspired by nature. In the lessons, children collect samples of suitable natural materials, examine the specimens with a microscope and capture the magnified image. As part of their work, children may make sculptures using the materials, scan them to make a photo collage, or make detailed observational drawings from magnified images. The next step is to develop their own response to the images and to represent these feelings in a more abstract design.

Subject links
Links can be made to activities in: • literacy (for example, topic vocabulary, antonyms and synonyms); • history (for example, significant botanists or explorers); • science (plants and animals in the local environment).

Why use ICT?
The advantages of using ICT are as follows. • ICT allows teachers to project enlarged visual images and to model different compositions for whole-class demonstration and discussion. • Using graphics software, children can explore, draft and present pictorial information. Their work can be saved, and refined or added to later.

ART Year 2 || =Can buildings speak?=

Information ||

Objectives
• To use a digital camera to record a variety of architectural details • To use edit and paint tools to juxtapose and modify their photographs, creating a digital collage • To create a theme board, combining digital prints with mixed media and language

Prior learning
To benefit from this lesson, children should: • know how to use a digital camera; • have looked at a variety of buildings in their locality; • have discussed the buildings’ historical or contemporary significance and how architectural features can indicate the purpose of a building.

Vocabulary
digital, viewpoint, collage, architectural, texture, decorative, detail, scale, texture, function, atmosphere

Resources
• data projector or interactive whiteboard linked to a laptop • ICT suite or set of laptops • access to the Internet and a web browser • digital cameras • graphics software (in this Example, //Revelation Natural Art//) • collage materials • access to a local building of historical or contemporary interest • some examples of the work of Frank Gehry

ICT skills needed by teachers
To teach this unit, teachers need to know how to: • access and download information from the Internet; • use a digital camera; • use the selected software.

Preparation for this lesson
Use the Internet to find examples of the work of Frank Gehry. Save these in readiness to show the children. Get children to use digital cameras to record architectural details of a local building. Make sure that the photographs are taken from a variety of viewpoints. Before the lesson, set up the relevant software and the photographs on the shared area of the network or on the computers that the children are to use. Prepare the software on your own computer ready for display. Prepare a set of help cards, or prompts and diagrams, to help children to remember what to do when they are using the software.

Lesson extract ||

Introduction
Show the class the samples of the work of Frank Gehry. Then show the photographs of the architectural features of local buildings. Discuss the variety of details, juxtaposed, to show diverse viewpoints and scale. Q In what ways are these two buildings similar? How are they different? Open a blank page in the selected graphics software. Explain how to use the tools to select from photographs and combine elements of imagery. Demonstrate how to: • use the paint tools to modify the photographs; • incorporate text; • save and print an image.

Main activity
Organise the class to work in groups. Ask children to work with their digital prints and traditional mixed media to create a theme board which communicates something of the atmosphere and purpose of a building. Encourage the groups working with mixed media to experiment with materials to create textural fragments that describe elements of the building. Ask the groups using drawing media to draw decorative details such as gargoyles, brick, tile, mosaic or carved features.

Plenary
Display the children’s theme boards around the classroom. Ask the children to describe the variety of materials used, and to compare the digital collage with the traditional collage.

Next steps
Children could develop their digital collage further by applying filter effects. These could be combined with digital photographs of the completed theme boards. The digital elements of the collage could be combined with other materials to create texture and variety. Pupils could incorporate ways of collecting digital imagery and combining it with use of traditional media in the longer term development of sketchbook work.

Notes ||

Links to QCA schemes of work
The lesson links to: QCA Art and Design Unit 2C: Can buildings speak?

Context of this lesson
This lesson extract comes at an early stage in the unit. In the unit, children undertake visual research and incorporate the information into theme boards. These inform the development of a large-scale class piece, which explores and communicates children’s responses to the building.

Subject links
Links can be made to work in history on local buildings of historic interest.

Why use ICT?
The advantages of using ICT are as follows. • A digital camera can be used to undertake first-hand research, recording building features from a range of viewpoints. • The Internet can be used to locate images of different buildings, allowing comparisons to be made with the local built environment. • Using an interactive whiteboard enables the teacher to model ideas with the class. • Using graphics software, children can explore, draft and present pictorial information. Their work can be saved, and refined or added to later.