Printable Lesson Plans
The raccoon toilet paper roll craft is a fun and easy cut and paste craft that uses a toilet paper roll as a base to give it a three dimensional effect.
Grade Level: K - 5
Materials:
- toilet paper roll
- colors, (crayons, paint, makers)
- scissors
- glue
- cardstock paper
- pictures of raccoons
Instructions:
- Simplify, and draw the raccoon head, face, forearms, tail (draw two tails), and hind legs on cardstock paper.
- Color and cut out the pieces
- Wrap a piece of cardstock around the paper roll and color appropriately.
- Glue on the head, forearms, and hind legs.
- Cut out the tail pieces and glue them together leaving the ends next to the body open.
- Bend and glue the open ends to the back of the paper roll
We typically make the raccoon crafts as if they're sitting up on their haunches!
Raccoon Craft Lesson Plan
Animal Habitats
Grade Level: 4 - 12
Cross-Curricular-Art & Science
Description:
Each student will choose an animal and its habitat.
Objectives:
- Students will research and represent an animal in its natural environment.
- Students will use objects from nature to create texture. These objects will be used to construct their animal's habitat
Materials:
- Leaves, tree bark, and/or other natural items
- Slides or photos of animals in their natural environment.
- Watercolor
- Brushes
- Watercolor Canvas
- Thin paper to use for rubbings to obtain textures.
- Glue
- Pencils
Directions:
- View and discuss pictures of animals and the animal's habitat
- Discuss natural colors and the animal's coloring.
- Discuss how to layer objects to create a 3D effect.
- Color, glue and construct
National Art Standards;
Content Standard #1: Understanding media, techniques and processes
Content Standard # 2: Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter
Radial Balance in Nature
Grade Level 4 - 12
Cross Curricular Art, Science, and Math
Description:
Radial balance has appeared in designs and structures throughout history
Students will create a radial balance design based on object found in nature.
Objectives:
- Students will observe natural occurring radial balance
- Students will understand the definition of radial balance and the connections to science and math.
- Students will create a radial balance collage inspired by nature.
Materials:
- Glue
- Scissors
- Multicolored paper
- Magazine Pages
- Poster board
- Sketch book
- Pencil
Directions:
- Students will take a nature hike and identify radial balance they encounter.
- Students will sketch the items
- In the Classroom, students will discuss the different natural occurring examples of radial balance.
- Students will choose one example of radial balance they sketched from nature and reproduce the design using their own artistic flare in a collage.
National Art Standards:
Content #1: Media Technique and Process
Content # 6: Making connections between visual arts and other disciplines
Animals Made from Rocks
Grade Level (Lesson Plan Process can be adapted for all age levels.)
Description:
Rocks can be painted in a number of ways to accommodate any age and skill level. Rocks make an ideal painting surface and painting, 'in the round' is both easier and more fun than 'painting flat'!
Objectives:
Students will learn about animals, their body shapes and color by creating a 3D sculpture of an animal with rocks.
Materials:
- Various size rocks
- Epoxy glue
- Acrylic Paints
- Brushes
- Newspaper
Directions:
- Students will observe various animals.
- Students will choose rocks in proportion to the animal body parts they will create.
- Students will glue the rocks(body parts) together to create the animal
- Students will paint the rock sculpture appropriately.
National Art Standards
Content #1 Media, Technique and Process
Content # 6 Making connections between visual arts and other disciplines
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Tessellations-Puzzling Wildlife
Grade Level 4 - 12
Cross Curricular Art, Science, Math
Description:
Students will create a tessellation.
Tessellation is defined as a filling of a flat, two dimensional surface without any gaps or overlaps, by a pattern of one or more congruent shapes having exactly the same shape and size. (A geometric puzzle.)
Objective:
Students will use congruent tessellation shapes to develop the pattern for an original composition portraying real animals.
Materials:
- Scissors
- Ruler
- Pencils
- 9" x 12" white drawing paper
- Poster board
- Pack of multi-colored markers
- Masking tape
Directions:
Step 1:
Cut a piece of poster board in a 3 1/2" by 3 1/2" square.
Step 2:
Cut out a shape and slide the cut out shape across the square
and tape it to the opposite outside edge.
Step 3:
Place the poster board shape in the corner of the white paper and trace the shape.
Step 4: Pick up the poster board shape and place the shape into the drawed shape. It should fit like a puzzle piece.
Step 5: Continue to trace and place the shape until
you have filled the whole page.
Step 6: Decorate the shape to replicate an animal of your choosing. (eyes, nose, ears, fur, scales, etc.
Early Caveman Drawing
Grade Level 3 - 8
Cross Curricular: Art ,Language, Social Studies, Science, Performing Arts
Description
Students will create art in a technique that mimic the style and subjects of cave paintings.
Objectives:
Students will learn about prehistoric cave art by mimicking the style and subjects on (paper sack) bear skin.
Materials:
- Colored Pencils
- Ebony Drawing Pencils
- Large Brown Lunch Bags
- Scissors
- Examples of early caveman drawings
- Template of a bear skin
Directions:
- Display pictures of cave art around the room for students to view.
- Discuss what materials cave artist had to draw and color with, (make a list on the board: (moss, plant pigments, charcoal, soot from lamps, berries, animal fat, chalk rocks)
- Discuss the animals cave artists created on the walls. (List the animals on the board.)
- Discussion, ask the students, 'why were these animals important enough in the lives of the cave artists to paint them on the walls?'
- Hand out bear templates, trace templates on paper bag, cut out image.
- Students sketch the animals that are important to them in their own lives on the paper sacks.
Resources:
Book: Marcus, Rebecca B. Prehistoric Cave Paintings, New York, New York; Franklin Watts, 1963
Movie: Animated, Ice Age
Variations:
Create a play-skit depicting a cave artist telling a story by drawing pictures on a dry-erase
board (cave wall)
Bizarre regal Beetles
Grade Level K - 6
Cross Curricular Art and Science
Description:
Students will create a 3D Beetle.
Objectives:
Students will gain an understanding of beetles' body segments, symmetry and markings as they create imaginary regal beetles.
Materials:
- Scissors
- Metallic colored pencils
- Glue
- Paper Plates
- Gold Tempera Paint
- Colored construction paper
- Tissue Paper
Directions:
Motivate the kids with actual beetles or beetle models, magazines, slides, and websites.
- Squeeze approximately 2 tablespoons of gold tempera paint onto a paper plate
- Choose one sheet of colored construction paper and a sheet of colored tissue paper of contrasting color.
- Crumple a piece of paper towel, dab it into the gold paint, then dab it randomly over the colored construction paper. Dab a small amount of paint onto the tissue paper. Leave some areas unpainted. Let the paint dry.
- Embellish the construction paper only with metallic colored pencils.
- Add: swirls, squiggles and lines
- Decide what shape your beetle will be. Gently fold the construction paper in half, painted side inside.
- Cut half of the symmetrical beetle's body away from the fold, using the fold as the body's center axis. Indicate the beetle's three basic body parts as you cut .
- Open to reveal the entire body.
- Use the remaining construction paper scraps to cut the beetle's wing covers.
- Legs and antennae may be accordion pleated if desired
National Art Standard # 6 Making connections between visual arts and other disciplines.
Claymation Metamorphosis
Grade Level 7-12
Cross Curricular Art, Science, Technology
Objectives:
- Students will learn to communicate their ideas and imagery through a visual technique popular with mass media.
- Students will gain an understanding of the planning and production required for claymation animation.
- Students will be able to connect their ideas and visual art skills to communications in other subjects, such as math, science, and literature.
- Students will learn to manipulate modeling clay over a wire armature to provide animation to a character.
Process:
- Storyboard: Divide class into teams of six and have two students on each team responsible for planning a stage of development.
- Characters: Teams will create the characters for each stage.
The young larvae can be simple clay shapes. For the mature larvae Caterpillar), for five 1/8" dia balls of black, white and yellow. Flatten to a disk. Bent a loop on one end of a 4" wire and thread the disks on in sequence. Because the mature larvae will be in many frames and will have clay wrapped around it for the chrysalis, it's a good idea to make two or three of these.
- For the pupa stage, plan to wrap clay around the mature larvae during filming.
- For the adult butterfly, make two versions: one with folded wings as it emerges from the chrysalis and one with extendable wings.
- Studio: Position digital camera on a tri-pod, shooting straight down. Turn off flash. Do not move the camera, move the characters.
- Film: Capture the Metamorphosis, one frame at a time, making small adjustments to the characters between frames. The more frames, the smoother the transitions.
- Upload digital images into a computer software program.
Powerpoint--insert the pictures into large photo slides, on the transition palette, set slides to change automatically every 0 seconds.
IMovie--import photos as clips. Assign a time frame of .01 seconds to each clip.
National Standards:
Content Standard #1-Understanding and applying media, techniques and processes.
Content Standard #3-Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols, and ideas.
Content Standard #6-Making connections between visual arts and other disciplines
