SMAC Lesson Plan

Skylar Coleman and Darsey Renz

UNIT TITLE
Storytelling
LESSON TITLE
Collaborative Quilt: An autobiographical story about personal experiences and
memories
GRADE LEVEL
Grades 6-12
STANDARDS OF LEARNING
6.3

The student will communicate personal ideas, experiences, and narratives

through the creation of works of art, using a variety of media.

AIII.7

The student will select art-making media and techniques to create personal
works of art.

GENERAL UNIT GOAL

It is important for students to understand how to use symbolism to tell a story. Students
should develop an understanding of how to express their life experiences through art.
Within this unit, students will accomplish this through the use of multi-media materials
and other works of art for comprehension, ideas, and inspiration. Students should be able
to display their learned skills, use symbolism and design to represent their own personal
memories, and develop the ability to tell stories without using words.
GENERAL LESSON OBJECTIVE
After viewing and studying about the concept of storytelling through Places by
Raymond Saunders and Thalassa by Swoon, students will examine their life
experiences/memories and discover ways to define themselves. Students will express this
understanding through a studio project utilizing multi-media.
MATERIALS
Teacher Materials:
Name tags
Rule posters

Teachers example of project

Tape

Student Materials:
Pencils
Pens
Charcoal
Oil pastels
Paint
Paint brushes
Palettes
Cups
Erasers
Scissors
Scratch Paper
Unprimed canvas
Decorative paper
Mod podge
Elmers glue
Hot glue guns
Magazines
Books
Tea/Coffee (to stain canvas)
Blow dryer
Found objects (i.e. feathers, pom-poms, puzzle pieces, etc.)
VOCABULARY
Autobiographicalmarked by or dealing with one's own experiences or life
history; of or in the manner of an autobiography
Multi-media(of art, education, etc.) using more than one medium of expression
or communication.
Storya narrative that can be fact or fictitious; a narration of the events in the life
of a person or the existence of a thing, or such events as a subject for narration.
Symbolismthe practice of representing things by symbols, or of investing
things with a symbolic meaning or character.
Collagea technique of composing a work of art by pasting on a single surface
various materials not normally associated with one another, as newspaper
clippings, parts of photographs, etc.
Reflectiona fixing of the thoughts on something; careful consideration.
Mytha traditional or legendary story, usually concerning some being or hero or
event, with or without a determinable basis of fact or a natural explanation,

especially one that is concerned with deities or demigods and explains some
practice, rite, or phenomenon of nature.
TRANSITION/MOTIVATION
We will show the students examples from the museum and ask them questions relating to
the artwork. After our group discussion, we will tell them the meaning behind each piece:
Places by Raymond Saunders
o What kind of story is this?
o What kind of art is this? (Define multi-media)
o Can anyone define symbolism?
o Where and what are the symbols included?
o What kind of objects do you see?
o What story do you think the artist is trying to tell you?
Places is an assemblage, or a work of art made from a combination
of different materials. The artist, Raymond Saunders, selects
interesting objects from streets around the world to include in his
art. In this work you will see references to China, France, Mexico,
and other places he has traveled. In addition to found objects, his
work features graffiti, carefully drawn symbols, and brightly
painted geometric forms. By arranging these elements in different
ways, Raymond Saunders shares his memories with us and invites
us on a journey of our own.

Thalassa by Swoon
o Does anyone know what the word myth means? Give me an example.
o What symbols and creatures do you see?
o What do you think they mean?
o How do you think it ties in with myth?
Thalassa is the mother of Aphrodite and personification of the sea.
She rises up from the sea bringing marine life with her. Swoon
created this piece in response to Hurricane Katrina and the BP oil
spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Crazy Quilt by Unknown

o What symbols do you see?
o What do you think this story is about?
o Who are the characters?

Once returning to the class after viewing the artwork, we will have students fill out a
worksheet with questions about their life:
What is the best thing that has happened to you? What is the worst?
What is your favorite animal and why?
What is your favorite color and why?

Can you think of a time that you were extremely happy or excited? Explain.
Can you think of a time you were really sad or scared? Explain.
Can you think of a time you were angry? Explain.
Who is someone you look up to and why?
What is your favorite book and why?
Does your family or friends have a place you always meet? Explain.
What is your favorite place and why?

ADVANCED ORGANIZER

Organize supplies into set stations on two tables set up on one side of the
classroom.
Cover tables with paper.
Students will each have their own chair at the long table.
Reproductions (teacher examples) will be set out for display.
Class rules and clean-up procedures will be hanging at the front of the classroom.

LESSON SEQUENCE
1. Intro
a. Teachers introduce themselves
b. Teachers hand out name tags for students to write names on and wear
c. Give students brief overview of what we will be doing that day (tell
students what will happen with their finished pieces)
d. Go over museum rules
i. No touching the artwork
ii. Stay together (ex: single file line between the two teachers)
iii. Be respectful of others (ex: dont interrupt while someone else is
talking)
2. Gallery Tour
a. Places by Raymond Saunders, ask questions and discuss
b. Thalassa by Swoon, ask questions and discuss
c. Crazy Quilt by Unknown artist, ask questions and discuss
3. Getting started
a. Go over class expectations
i. Listen and follow directions when teachers are speaking
ii. Respect each other (ex: dont touch other students artwork)
iii. Properly use supplies, tools, and materials
iv. Have fun and be creative
b. Go over work station/clean up rules and regulations
i. Clean up after yourself (work area and floor)
ii. Put materials back in their assigned location
iii. Clean sinks

c. Worksheet (brainstorming activity) NOTE: See Transition/Motivation

d. Students sketch ideas on scratch paper
e. Demo (teacher examples, showing proper use of materials)
4. Begin Working
a. Pass out canvas
b. Assist and observe students
5. Clean up
a. Reiterate clean up rules
b. Have students clean up
6. Day 2
a. Briefly go over rules and expectations again (class/workstation/clean up)
b. Students continue working on pieces
c. Clean up (12:00)
d. Collaboration (12:10): Students will work together to combine their pieces
to create their crazy quilt
e. If time, students will individually explain the story behind their section of
the quilt
CLOSURE
1.
2.
3.
4.

Review vocab and museum examples while students are still working
Alert students 30 minutes prior to end of class that it is time to clean up
Assist and observe students while cleaning
Collect students work (make sure name is on paper)

Individual students will be in charge of their own work space clean up. Teachers will
finish cleaning and organizing each work station:
Pens/pencils/sharpies/charcoal/erasers/oil pastels
Paint/paintbrushes/palettes/water cups
Coffee/tea
Magazines/books/scissors/found objects
Hot glue
Mod podge and Elmers glue
TRANSITION
In this lesson, we explored storytelling through multi-media. We discussed artwork by
Raymond Saunders and Swoon and how they relate their works to personal experiences
and memories through the use of symbolism. Using these concepts, we began creating
our own representations of ourselves. Next time, we will continue working on our multimedia autobiographical stories. We will leave time at the end to collaborate as a class and
combine everyones pieces into one big crazy quilt.

EVALUATION

Student Evaluation
o Students will be evaluated according to (1) how well they demonstrate an
understanding of story telling through multi-media; (2) the connections
they make between themselves and symbolism; (3) their ability to
communicate their ideas about their experiences through their section of
the quilt: i.e. does the image in the quilt section relate to the story the
student is trying to tell?, does the image include symbolism?; and (4) if
their work demonstrates the use of various materials, planning, and
organization.

Lesson evaluation
o The teacher will need to provide good definitions of the concepts of
storytelling, symbolism, and multi-media. If this part of the lesson is not
accomplished, the rest of the lesson will fail. Also, the teacher should not
spend too much time reviewing the works from the last lesson because
there needs to be plenty of time for students to finish their creations.

MODIFICATIONS
If this lesson will not be taught in an art room, the teachers will need to have plenty of
buckets for water since there may not be a sink available. Extension cords might be
necessary due to outlets being out of reach.
REFERENCES
Crazy Quilt. Late 19th Century - Early 20th Century. Fabric. Chrysler Museum, n.p
Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com, 2015. Web. 10 Nov. 2015.
Saunders, Raymond. Places. 1991. Mixed media. Chrysler Museum, n.p.
Swoon. Thalassa. 1977. Screenprint, paint, coffee on paper. Chrysler Museum, n.p.
The National Visual Arts Standards. Reston, VA: National Art Education Association,
1994. Virginia.gov. Virginia Department of Education, June 2013. Web. Nov.
2015.

REPRODUCTIONS

Places, Raymond Saunders, mixed media on canvas, Chrysler Museum, 1991

Thalassa, Swoon, multi-media: screen print, paint and coffee on paper,

Chrysler Museum, 1977

Crazy Quilt, Artist Unknown, fabric, Chrysler Museum, Late 19 th- Early 20th
century