Fall 2009 Lesson Plans

1. September 28, 2009
Title: Creating Your Own Daily Journal

Project: Have our students create their own journal that they’ll use each class period. At the beginning of each lesson, we’ll ask a question that the students will write about (I.E. highs/lows of their school day, etc.). Once the students have finished, we’ll take the books home and write encouraging feedback for each one. For the cover, they may draw whatever they feel represents them.

Some other questions may be:
What are you thankful for?
What was the best dream you’ve ever had?
Who do you look up to and why?
What would you like to ask your best friend? / What would you tell them?
Favorite color, animal, teacher, etc. and why?
What are you afraid of?
How do you think you’ve changed as you’ve grown up?
Etc.

Goal: Allow our students to reflect on their day and release any tension that may have been brought up in a positive and creative way. We hope to get to know them on a more personal level and get a taste of what their daily lives are like. This will hopefully be something they can look back on and remember about being in elementary school.

Skills: Threading, coloring, writing, expressing, making collages

Materials: Paper
Hole-punch
Markers/crayons/pens/pencils
String

Process: 1. Cut wide strips of paper (number of pages per students is to be determined)
Hole punch twice or three times along the spine in order for the students to thread through them and bind the pages together
Once the pages are in place, the students will pick out their supplies. Once they return back to the their seats, they can create the cover of their journals.
We’ll ask them the daily question for them to elaborate on in their notebooks.
If we have enough time, we’d love for them to share what they wrote with the class.


2. October 5th, 2009
Project: Pinch Pots!

Goals:
1. Students will learn about substances that come from the earth, like rocks and minerals
2. Students will learn how to create a three-dimensional, rounded pot-form from clay.
3. Students will learn how to use clay in an appropriate manner.

Materials:
- Steph's camera (for student photos)
- carving materials (bbq skewers, kitchen utensils, etc.)
- 20 pounds of soft, low-fire clay (from ceramics studio)
- paper towels
- wetwipes for clean-up
-Cardboard box for carrying pots home
- poster of rocks and minerals

Classroom Prep:
-Put paper on each table
-Put Journals at every seat
-Create 15 small amounts of clay (keep at front table for now)
-wetwipes and extra clay at front table

Pre-Activities:
1. Sit and respond to this weeks Journal Question
2. Collect Journals
3. Go outside
4. Take students individual photos against brick wall
5. Sit in circle in dirt
6. Discuss with students where clay is found (in the earth)
7. Show poster of other substances found in the earth (gold, iron, silver, diamonds

(return to classroom)
8. Discuss with students the need to prevent trapping air bubbles into the clay body, as it will create pockets which will expand in the kiln and cause pieces to blow up.
9. Explain how to make a pinch pot

Process:
1. Turn clay into spehere
2. Press thumb into center
3. Pinch up sides
4. Use carving materials to make designs
5. Bring pots to cardboard box at front table

*Journal Question of the Week*
"There are many careers in art. For example, some artists choose to be fashion designers, toy designers, art teachers, tattoo artists, or cake decorators. What type of artist might you like to be someday?"


3. October 12, 2009
Project: Painting Rocks

Goals:
1. Continue the theme from last week's lesson about how certain mediums from the earth are taken directly from the earth.
2. Students will learn how mix colors and paint an animal of their choice onto rocks.

Materials:
- Steph's camera (for student photos)
-paper plates
-red, yellow, blue paints
-glue
-paintbrushes
-smocks
-pictures
-rocks
-examples
-pencils
-artsy facts book
-bowls for water (tell them about rinsing out the brushes whenever they change colors)
-box to place rocks in

Classroom Prep:
-Put paper on each table
-Put Journals at every seat
-Set out red, yellow, blue paints at each table along with bowls of water and paint brushes

Pre-Activities:
1. Sit and respond to this weeks Journal Question
2. Collect Journals
3. Sit in circle
4. Read excerpt from Artsy Facts Book (Steph will set up painting supplies while Cin finishes reading)
5. Steph will do demo on color mixing
6. Pass out rocks
7. Begin!

Process:
1. Each student will have paint set out on their table
2. Each student will choose the animal they want to paint and have them sketch them onto their rocks
3. Begin mixing colors (tell them not to mix brushes with other colors)
4. Begin painting their rocks
5.Return to circle at the end

*Journal Question of the Week*
What is your favorite animal? Why?

Conclusion:
-end in a circle
-pass out snack
-share rocks and "something you learned today"
-hand back fired pinch pots from previous lesson


4. Monday, November 2, 2009
Project: Acrobats

Goals:
1. Students will learn about skeletons, joints, and muscles

Materials:
- Steph's camera (for student photos)
-colored paper
-crayons
-paper fasteners
-scissors

Classroom Prep:
-Put Journals at every seat
-have crayons and scissors at every table
-have paper at front

Pre-Activities:
1. Sit and respond to this weeks Journal Question
2. Collect Journals
3. Sit in circle
4. Read excerpt from Artsy Facts Book (about joints and levers - pg. 9)
5. pass out paper (they choose colors)

Process:
1. students color the body parts, but them out, and put together with paper fasteners.

*Journal Question of the Week*
"List as many holidays as you can. Which one is your favorite?"

5. November 2, 2009
Project: What do you want to be when you grow up video

Goals:
1. Students will participate in mica video 2 final project
2. let students know that there is a wide variety of jobs

Materials:
video:
-hand held camera
-mini DV tapes
-Lav mics (make sure they're working!)
-tripod
-List of questions
-backdrops (?)

craft:
-craft sticks - buy
-pipe cleaners - buy
-markers
-paper

Classroom Prep:
-put paper down
-Put Journals and drawing materials at every seat

Pre-Activities:
1. Sit and respond to this weeks Journal Question
2. Collect Journals
3. Sit in circle
-what jobs do your family members have?
-read, show, discuss "odd jobs" books.

Process:
*cinnamon will take students out one at a time to film them and interview them about what they want to be when they grow up"
1. color their craft sticks as the worker they want to be when they grow up
2. glue pipe cleaners to sticks
3. draw environment for your people on the paper on the table!
4. regroup in circle. share projects. snack.

*Journal Question of the Week*
-What do you want to be when you grow up?

6. November 23, 2009
Project: Thanksgiving cookies

Goals:
1. Students will learn about the food pyramid
2. Students will discuss the levels of the food pyramid
3. Students will follow a step-by-step guide to decorating the cookies

Materials:
-Pre-made sugar cookies
-plastic sandwich bags
-scissors
*buy on way there:*
-plates
-chocolate icing
-candy corn
-orange icing (or vanilla and orange food coloring)

Classroom Prep:
-put paper down
-Put Journals and drawing materials at every seat

Pre-Activities:
1. Sit and respond to this weeks Journal Question
2. Collect Journals
3. Sit in circle
-Show example of a food pyramid
-Have discussion on certain foods and the importance of having a balanced diet
4. Explain that well be making cookies which are on the op of he food pyramid
5. Students will return to their seats and we'll pass out the cookies and decorations along with the handout
-Explain that all the steps are on the handout and they have to figure out what they're making and how to make it

Process:
1. Start with a blank sugar cookie
2. Use sandwich bag full of chocolate icing to spread along the top of the cookie
3. Place candy corn on top of the chocolate icing
4. Use the chocolate icing to make two dots for the eyes
5. Use the orange icing to make a 'V' for the beak and feet in the bottom half of the cookie

*Journal Question of the Week*
-What's you're favorite food?


8. Dec. 4th, 2009
Project: picture frame magnets

Goals:
1. learn about giving
2. Construct a frame

Materials:
-craft sticks
-glue (might have to bring some)
-markers
-construction paper/ assorted papers
-sticker letters
-magnets


Classroom Prep:
-put paper down
-Put Journals and materials at every seat
-Pour glue into bowls for each table

Pre-Activities:
1. Sit and respond to this weeks Journal Question
2. Collect Journals
3. Sit in circle
-Talk about the people we chose
4. Steph will do demo of making the frames
-Explain that a a dot of glue goes a long way!
-tell the kids to put their craft sticks together and them set it aside while they pick out their decorations
5. Take pictures of each of the kids

Process:
1. Kids will return to their seats and lay out their craft sticks
2. Students will glue frame together and set it aside to dry
3. Students will pick out decorations for the frame
4. Once the frame is dry, or somewhat dry, they can start pasting their decorations on the frame
5. When they finish, we'll go around and stick the magnets onto the backs


*Journal Question of the Week*
-If you could nominate someone in your life to be "Person of the Year", who would it be? Why?