In the series, The Organized Art Teacher, I will offer creative ways to start the year off with an organized mindset. Ever wondered how other art teachers store their old lesson plans and samples? What about creating a balanced art curriculum or how to track what each class created? And what about inside the art room…what’s the best way to plan a theme-based art unit? This series will show you how starting with how to organize and store your art lessons. Today, we take a look at lesson planning…
Lesson Planning
I love the New Year. The urge to clean out my kitchen drawers and edit my paint-splattered t-shirts only happens in January. And with all the resources available through my lovely computer, I don’t even need to leave home to purchase a calendar or find inspiration for tidy shelves. In this second post of my series, The Organized Art Teacher, I will offer you some things to print out, to help you get a leg up on your lesson planning for the rest of the school year.
I’ve posted about lesson planning many times, how to develop a curriculum to the basics of lesson planning and there is one thing I’ve learned; everyone does it differently. I’ve looked at other art teacher blogs, organizational blogs and even read a few books on art lesson planning and it always comes down to this: be inspired by someone but then add your own twist.
When I plan my lessons, I use techniques as a guideline. I often teach the same technique to a grade level but use a different subject matter for different classes. For example, if I’m teaching a double-loading technique with my fifth grade students, I might do a classic Van Gogh style flower and vase with one class and a Royal King and Queen with another. It benefits me in two ways: I don’t get bored (which I often do with teaching the same lesson over and over) and it provides me more opportunity to test and try new art lessons for my readers!
Planning and documenting is important, mostly because my memory just isn’t what it used to be and I do so many different lessons. I don’t like to be too strict and unforgiving with my lesson structuring because a lesson just might not be as successful as I thought, it could take more class sessions than I had planned, etc. So I keep it loose and easy. Here is a copy of a simple worksheet that I’ve been using this year. I like it because I do different lessons with each class and this worksheet helps me visually remember if I did a watercolor resist with all my Kinder classes.
(Note: The files above are in Microsoft Word so that you can alter them to suit your needs. If you want a PDF version, click below…)
Lesson Planner 4-6 worksheet PDF
Planning Units
I have never been a “units” type of art teacher. And it’s for good reason: it’s hard! Some of my blogging art peers, like the fabulous laura from Painted Paper is a unit genius. What art teacher hasn’t marveled at her African Safari Unit or Fairy Tales and Fables? I know I have. Units are hard for me because I don’t teach all grade levels every week. In fact, my rotations are mixed by grade levels, so I see my Kinders, Fifth and Sixth graders for 8 weeks and then boom…gone for another 8 weeks.
But I have tried this year and have figured out the best way for me to organize a unit: mood boards! I posted about the mood board exercise last fall. The whole idea is to gather pictures, stickers, visuals, illustrations and even typography of items that interest you. I used Pinterest as a starting point, pinning then organizing themes into boards. For my State Farms and Fairs I found an adorable cow painting. The perspective was different and I knew that my older students would really enjoy drawing a cow from this angle and playing with pastels to achieve the dewy appearance that makes this artwork unique.
Something for You…
What’s the new year without a new calendar? I love printing mine instead of purchasing one. I can mix and match months from various sites to create my own custom calendars. Here is a very nice calendar printable from TomKat Studios. And this Owl Calendar is too cute for words.
The Organized Art Teacher Series…
Missed yesterday? Organizing and Storing Art Lessons
Up next in the series? The Organized Art Teacher: Trying New Things!
You always have the best art ideas and I enjoy seeing what you do with your classes! I think I might have been an art teacher in another life =)
Jennifer
Thanks Patty for the compliment. I store my units in large tubs. When I return to school in Jan. I will take a photo of the wall of units.
The health inspector did not like them stored in my kiln room so I have a “wall” of large plastic containers out in my classroom. Everything is stored in them- books, examples, and lesson plan notebooks.
I also use tubs for my units…I use the kind that you put in the kitchen sink because I can get them cheap at the “big box” stores. I keep related books, visuals, etc in these bins but the lessons are in the binders on my desks.
I catagorize my units mostly by media but also by themes that I am required to cover (Rodeo Art, Christian Art) or that integrate with my classroom teachers (Hispanic Heritage month, Egypt, Native American, etc) or art historical periods (Architecture, Impressionism, Classical,etc.) or by other random themes that I like to cover (Folk Art, Asian Art, Christian Symbolism, etc.)
I keep these tubs out all year in my art library so that my students can look at them at any time…part of my efforts to meet the interests of all my students all year long
Keri
texasartteacher.com
I’m always somewhat surprised when I hear other art teachers talking about writing their own curriculum or not being a “unit” teacher. My town provided me with a curriculum the day I got hired. It’s updated once every 4 years to maintain accreditation.
My lesson plans are in binders by grade. Each binder has three sections – one for each marking period. Each section is devoted to the unit that the curriculum dictates under that marking period. For example, my kindergarten binder has in its first section all my kinder lessons devoted to line, the second section my lessons devoted to shape, and lastly, my lessons devoted to color. Within each section is one master artist that they are required to know and a set of vocabulary words to begin building on. This holds true for every grade – although the unit element or principle will change depending on grade level and time of year. The focus of a unit is ALWAYS either an Element of Art or a Principle of Art.
The lessons themselves I can design myself, but I have a specific timeline for when that concept is covered. This was done to universalize our town. We have a very transient population – however most of the kids moving into our schools that move back out are moving to other schools within our system. This way if they’re supposed to know who Paul Klee is in Kindergarten they’ll learn that artist no matter which school they’re in. The theory is that students won’t miss out on content just because they moved. It also helps to provide concrete proof to the NCLB people that we are providing “academic rigor” within the specialist content areas.
My town also has a universal lesson plan format that we all must use regardless of content area or grade level. I’m using the same lesson plan blank in elementary art that a high school science teacher uses. It’s a bit of a pain because the blank doesn’t really account for specialists’ needs.
I know this practice is quite common in towns and cities across CT. Is it really that unusual everywhere else?
It is surprising, isn’t it? California has no set standards for art and most districts do not hire art teachers. My district provides each school with a small budget but the rest is funded through PTA support. So if there is no art funding, there sure isn’t an art curriculum. It varies according to teachers. I happen to like this approach because it allows me a great deal of flexibility but I know it doesn’t work for many art teachers who struggle with developing a curriculum. It’s hard to say what the happy medium is. Thanks for your great comment!
I also work in CT but I was not given a curriculum or lesson guidelines other than following State standards. It varies greatly town by town. Each is individual depending on the school board. As a new teacher developing a pre k – 5 curriculum it’s daunting but I know next year will be so much easier. Thank you Patty for all of the great advise, I refer to your site for ideas all of the time. I especially like your organization ideas!
I’m curious now, but given this thread, what would you prefer? A standardized art curriculum or the freedom to create your own?
Oh, the freedom to create my own, for sure!!! I think you can do so many things in art, and still be teaching the basic ‘stuff’. In NY we have the “frameworks for the arts” but it is vague enough, in my opinion, to really flex it for your own program. So I have developed “exit goals” – the abbreviated version is that by the time the kids leave me at the end of 6th grade they will have had art experiences working w/all the elements and principles, they will have experience working with a broad variety of art materials both 2-D and 3-D, they will have been exposed to a broad range of artists and art trends both current and historical (from cave art to surrealism to pop art to abstract expressionism to impressionism etc), and have been exposed to varied cultures from around the world etc. They will have tackled portraits, landscapes, still life, and abstraction, will have drawn from life and from imagination, worked independently and collaboratively, and hopefully have a large art vocabulary.
My exit goals being as broad as they are have given me the freedom to repeat some lessons annually and to do totally new stuff, and different artists, every year. Everyone seems happy, so I am too!
Exit goals are a great way to view a curriculum and perhaps really the most important. Thanks for sharing!