Teacher: Katelyn Kittilson (Ms.

Kittilson)
High School Visual Art Beginning Jewelry 9 th-12th

Title of Unit:
Skill Builders Booklet

Big Idea:
Experimentation Developing craft and creativity

Rationale:
Artists will be given the task to experiment with the tools and the techniques we will be
discussing and learning about in the beginning jewelry class. By creating this booklet
the artists will be given the chance to throughout the year try out the new tools
introduced to them before beginning their final graded assessment for a project.

Standards:
Colorado Visual Art Standards (High School Grade Level 2020 Standards)
Standard 1. Observe and Learn to Comprehend
3. Use artmaking processes as forms of inquiry to increase independent
reasoning and perception skills to increase knowledge.
d. Investigate and articulate the aims of disparate art
practices to foster critical thinking about visual art and design.
Standard 2. Envision and Critique to Reflect
1. Use criteria and personal discernment to evaluate works of art and design, taking
into consideration the variables that influence how work is perceived.
c. Provide explanations that support critical judgments
and discuss the value of competing opinions to support learning.
Standard 3. Invent and Discover to Create
1. Establish a practice of planning and experimentation to advance concepts and
technical skills.
b. Research and consider various iterations of an idea and draft
possible solutions using a variety of media.
c. Practice techniques and improve skills by testing media to
consider constraints and potential of materials.
2. Ideate and build works of art and design to demonstrate growth and
proficiency in traditional and new art media.
d. Resolve artmaking problems by persisting through failure and
making revisions.
3. Articulate and demonstrate that the making and study of art and design can
be approached from a variety of perspectives.
b. Receive and reflect upon feedback and integrate into artwork as
 Needed.
c. Use knowledge and developed skills to inform future works of
visual art and design.
Standard 4. Relate and Connect to Transfer
2. Develop proficiency in visual communication skills that extends learning to new
contexts.
a. Use reasoning to identify problems and conceive solutions in
artmaking that demonstrate independent judgment.

Enduring Understandings:
~Artists create works of art that demonstrate increasing levels of mastery in skills and
techniques.
~Artists persist in the creative process and innovate from failure.
~Artists visually and/or verbally articulate how visual art and design is a mean of
communication.

Objectives/Unit Goals:
~ Artists will document and apply investigations into a range of traditional and
nontraditional studio practices to personal expression.
~ Artists will investigate and document a wide range of traditional, advanced, and
evolving media used in creating images that communicate ideas.
~ Artists will create works of art representing traditional subject matter that use new
media.
~ Artists will skillfully use a variety of techniques and media to create works of art.
~ Artists will discern and articulate the quality of personal works of art using a variety of
reflective processes.

Pre and Post Assessment Plan:

Pre – The artists will be given their assignment for the skill builder booklet and this is to
be a continuous project to help the students continue to learn and build on their own
artistic skills for this classroom. Before each “graded project” students are learning new
skills and those new skills will be experimented with in the skill builder booklet. They will
watch videos or demos provided online and in class and then have to take quizzes that
consist of several questions that the students answer and go over before beginning with
sketching out their ideas. Upon the quizzes they will begin sketching out what they are
planning to do for their page in the booklet for that technique or skill.
Post – The end result will be a page with the assigned techniques needed to be used
and experimented with. When they turn in a page, they will talk about their artwork; what
was their favorite part and why? What was their least favorite part and why? What
techniques they’d like to take to the next project and why? This is only experimentation
with the materials, so we do not grade their artwork, but we grade the participation and
their response level. This project will be continuing throughout the whole semester the
students are in the classroom. Each time they are about to begin a new graded art
project they will have the ability to test and experiment with the materials in this same
fashion.

Content Integration:
Artists can articulate a variety of thoughts, ideas and contexts in visual art and design.
They will also be effectively using verbal, written and nonverbal communication skills in
the making and studying of art and design. These skills tie directly into civic and
interpersonal skills of communication for the student. Adding into the students
entrepreneurial skills needing to be developed the artist can generate questions to
guide their artmaking as a practice of research, gather information from various
sources, determine biases and credibility of sources, cite sources as appropriate and
use evidence to advance concepts and technical skills. We can tie this into critical
thinking and problem solving for the students as the artist must interpret visual art and
design information to draw conclusions based on the best analysis.

Visuals/Resources:
Several PowerPoint’s, demos, quizzes will be presented to the students throughout the
process that they have complete access to during any point in their creative process.

Outline of the Lesson:

Teachers Will… Students Will…

Class Period 1 Introduce the lesson plan. Using the Learn about the new project from
PowerPoint provided they will present a the teacher. They will ask
written explanation of what is expected questions and make comments
in the project. They will provide quizzes about what is expected for it.
about the tools and techniques with They will begin their quizzes on
videos and articles on everything. They the tools and techniques retaking
will provide examples of what it COULDall and watching provided videos
look like at the end result. and articles in order to get 100%.

Class Period 2 Review the unit plan in a shorter
manner. Do a “mini” demo on how to
use the drill press for their project
and on the metal in general. Go
around to students and provide
support for questions or problems.
Continue working on their
quizzes, watching and reading
about the tools and techniques.
They will observe a “mini” demo
on a drill press halfway through
class.
Class Period 3 Review the unit plan in extra short
manner to allow students more work
time. Give students who are
completed with their quizzes and
sketches their metal for the piece. Go
around to students and provide
support for questions or problems.
Class Period 4 Go around to students and provide
support for questions or problems.
Class Period 5 Go around to students and provide
support for questions or problems.
Class Period 6 Go around to students and provide
support for questions or problems.
Class Period 7 Go around to students and provide
support for questions or problems.
Class Period 8 Talk to students about ending their
project and turning it in for the grade.
Demonstrate those final steps for the
grade. Go around to students and
provide support for questions or
problems.
Class Period 9 Talk to students about turning in their
projects for that grade. Double check
online that they are turned in and
have both the photograph and written
explanation on the process.
Continue working on their quizzes
and start on sketches for the
project in provided sketchbooks.
If completed sketches show
teacher and get approved for
metal.
Finish quizzes and finish
sketches. Get approval and metal
from teacher to begin the process
of artmaking.
Start working with metal if haven’t
yet. Otherwise continue working
on metal project.
Continue working on metal
project.
Continue working on metal
project.
Continue working on metal
project. If completed turn in online
with photograph of metal piece
and a written explanation of the
process.
Finish metal project and turn in
online with photograph of metal
piece and a written explanation of
the process.