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LBS 405: Engineering & the Arts in the Elementary Classroom

The Visual Arts Note-taking & Assignment Guide

Name: Tiana Scott

Class Section: 02
Instructor Name: Dr Navarro
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Section I: What are the Visual Arts?

I. Slide 3: Quick Write. Before beginning this module, write your responses to the following
questions in your own words:
a. What is visual art?
b. What types of experiences have you had with the visual arts?
c. How do you feel about visual arts, either as a participant or as an observer?

A. Visual art is the many different forms of art like paintings,

photography, drawing, etc.
B. The only experiences I’ve had with visual arts was when I
was in elementary school and they had an art teacher come
teach us different painting styles from various artists and
the teacher taught us how to do the art like the artist.
C. I love visual arts as an observer but I do not like it as a
participant. Art was never my strong suit and I would get
frustrated.

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II. Excerpts from the California Frameworks about the Visual Arts

Slide 4: Based on the framework excerpt from Kindergarten, what are some things
kindergarten students should be doing in visual arts?

In kindergarten, the students should be able to identify patterns, textures, shapes, and sizes.
They also begin learning how the closer an object is, the bigger it looks and the further away it
is, the smaller it looks. They begin to see how artists use patterns, shapes, etc. in their
artwork.

Slide 5: Based on the framework excerpt from Grade 2, how does the teaching and learning
of visual arts change by grade 2?

They start learning the process of making art such as print-making and collages. They can
explain what art pieces came from a certain time period and they critique their own paintings
to see if they succeeded in painting what they meant to paint.

Slide 6: Based on the fifth grade framework excerpt, what are students doing by fifth grade?

They learn principles of design and improve their visual arts vocabulary. They have a varied
understanding of art as they have different means of creating it such as digital media,
videography, sculptures, etc. They are better at critiquing their own work.

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III. Slides 7-8: Elements of Art: Watch the videos on the elements of art and take notes (and
draw if you want) about each element
Element Notes

Line -path created when an object moves from one point to another
-created when you make marks on a paper or wood/metal are bent
-can be horizontal, vertical, free form, thick thin, light, dark, straight,
diagonal
-can be described as zig zag, dashed, dotted, rough, smooth, implied,
bold, jagged
-a way of expressing individual style
-communicate messages you want the viewer to think about

-connects with its own end or intersects with another

Shape -visual art shapes are flat or 2 dimensional
-shapes fall into geometric or organic
-geometric shapes are squares, hexagons, rectangles, or circles
-organic shapes are free form or one of a kind
-inherit the quality of lines that were used to construct them

Form
-fools the eye and makes you question if what you are seeing is real
-third dimension of depth
-circles become spheres, triangles become cones
-forms take up space in a real or implied way
-use light and shadow effects to create the illusion
-form gives you unlimited options

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-made to stimulate sense of touch

Texture -the look or feel of a surface
-can be real or implied
-can be created through use of shapes
-paintings can have actual texture and sometimes created from so much
paint
-feature the natural textures of the features they use
-how light or dark a given color or hue is
Value -better visualized as a scale or a gradient
-any tone has a scale from dark to light
-darken with black or can lighten it
- high contrast photo has few tonal values between black and white
-texture can play a role in how we see value
-when light hits an object color is absorbed or reflected
Color -the light thats reflected is what we see as color
-red, yellow, and blue are primary colors
-they can be mixed to make all other colors
-green, orange, and violet are secondary colors
-when you mix a primary color with a secondary color you get a tertiary
color like red-orange, or blue-green
-can change value through tinting or shading or toning
-tint is any color with white added to it
-shade is created by adding black to any color
-adding white and black is adding tone
-monocromatic color scheme is made up of tints, shades, and tones of
only one color
-people categorize colors by temperatures (e.g. red, oranges, and
yellows are considered warm and blues, violets, and greens are
considered cool)

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-always part of an artwork

Space -sight specific work is designed exclusively for space
-space and how to transform it is the artwork
-area in which an artwork is organized
-the area immediately outside of or around the art, contained within the
border or paper its on
-main objects take up positive space and area around them is negative
space
-with sculptures positive space is area object is occupied
-many 2 dimension create look of 3 dimensional space
-overlapping gives a sense of 3 dimensional space
-some artists use relative size to incorporate space
-varying hues and values give the illusion of real space
-objects get smaller to seem more distant
-dense, open, cluttered, symmetrical, shallow, flat to describe space
-space can create unique style
I. Slide 9: Principles of Art: Watch the You Tube Video on the elements of art and take notes
(and draw if you want) about each principle.
Principle Notes Describe how this principle can
applied to the painting Starry Night
by van Gogh
-has to do with opposites like
Contrast fluffy clouds with a cactus or by -in the orange highlights within the
color stars to the blue
-orange and blue are contrasting
colors
-through use of all cool colors -unifed by swirling motion
Unity -unify by shape.. all different -swirl in sky, swirl in mountains,
circles swirl in tree
-linking all the shapes together -overall use of blue
-making a color monocromatic or
all one color
-all elements in one environment
-equal amounts and sizes on each -asymmetrically balanced
Balance side (symmetry) -tree is balanced by many houses
-all over pattern, weight is and mountains on other side if you
distributed evenly cut the painting in half

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-highlighting can emphasize text

Emphasis -by making something different or -moon is brightest thing in sky
highlight with a color -sky sweeps in direction of moon
-have things point to it
-making one thing stand out more
than the others
-differences -different objects (trees, stars,
Variety -different colors hills, town)
-different sizes -variety of brush strokes, color
-different patterns

-someone moving within a picture -sense of waves in background

Movement -suggested movement which give us hills
-sense of movement -parts seem to be moving
-our eyes move as we look at
something

-predictable or mechanical -unpredictable pattern of stars an

Pattern pattern lights/windows in the town
-natural pattern of leaves -pattern of all over brush strokes
- natural & unpredictable vs.
mechanical and predictable

Slide 11: There are some variations in the list of art and design principles. How is the list of design
principles from the Getty different than the list above?

This list is different because it also has repetition, proportion, and rhythm.

Slide 12 & 13 Read the article Direct Instruction vs. Arts Integration: A False Dichotomy by Arnold
Aprill which discusses the issue of direct instruction (art discipline centered) in the arts versus
integration.

Respond: Write a short paragraph using the following two questions as a guide:
• Why does Aprill call it a false dichotomy?
• What does he believe about arts instruction

In the article, “Direct Instruction vs. Arts Integration: A False Dichotomy” Aprill explains why he
calls it false dichotomy. He believes it is a dichotomy because it is being thought of a either Direct
Instruction or Arts integration when he feels that they are connected and should go hand in hand.
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He states how arts integration and a lack of planning/leadership is missing in the curriculum. The
arts integration programs that have been in place lack depth and schools have used quick fix
activities that do not necessarily benefit the students in instruction. Arts can help connect other
areas and help with the learning and understanding. Schools have limited funding which is why they
thought they had to choose between direct instruction and arts integration but with proper
planning and taking extra time on lesson plans, they can be taught together without requiring more
funding. Having the arts being taught exclusively by arts professionals limits the potential
connections students may have. Aprill believes arts instruction is about content standards, better
human relationships, and increasing the creative capacity of teachers and students.

Slide 14: Classroom Example 1

Watch the 12-minute video Elements of Art: Color, Space, and Texture (K-2) https://
www.teachingchannel.org/videos/elements-of-art-lesson

Response Questions:
1. What are some of the objectives/goals of Mrs. Davidson’s lesson?

The objectives/goals of Mrs. Davidson’s lesson is to get her students to be familiar with the
elements of art and how they are important in analyzing a landscape piece.

2. What painting did the students analyze the day before?

The students analyzed Russo and his exotic landscape. They reviewed the elements of art the
day before.

3. What are some of things that Mrs. Davidson modeling during the different parts of her
lesson? Why is modeling important?

Mrs. Davidson modeled the art by going over different elements of the art before they began
working. She explained how some of the fish looked further away because of overlapping. As the
students began she also grabbed some salt and added it to the painting showing that it pulls some
of the color up, by doing this she showed the students that they are able to do this too. She also
sat and explained exactly how she was able to draw some of the fish. She used one of the students’
sketches to show examples to the class as to how they could Draw their fish. Modeling is important
because some children need to see how to do the instructions because they are visual learners.
Modeling gives them more ways to better understand what it is the teacher is asking them to do.
Modeling for them and allowing them to do the steps along with her also ensured that the students
were doing it correctly.

4. How do the students apply the elements of art to a mixed media art project?

One way they apply the elements of art is by overlapping so that some fish appear further away
than others and they can use different materials to emphasize different elements like color or
texture. 


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Slide 16: Classroom Example 2

Watch the video Studying Balance in Art and Science

https://www.teachingchannel.org/videos/integrating-science-with-art-getty

Response Questions:

1. What art and design principle does this art lesson focus upon?

The lesson is centered on the analysis of an oval basin. The objective is to make claims about the
health of an ecosystem based on the observation of an art piece. This discusses sustainability. This
art lesson focuses on balance.

2. How does analyzing art enrich students' learning about ecosystems?

Art gets them thinking and questioning. As they are asking questions they are engaged in the
science portion of it. Being able to discuss balance helps them in learning about ecosystems
because they can point out details of the ecosystem using specific terms and trying to make them
be balanced in regards to how many/what kinds of consumers can they add to the painting to
balance it out. This enhances their knowledge of ecosystems while understanding balance. The
teacher’s methods encourages them to talk more and see different points of view which help them
understand in more depth.

Resources: See slides 17-19 for resources for your lesson plan and for later when you are teaching.