Catch fish fever!Children love fish. The creation of aquatic art in a variety of artistic traditions and forms provided a rich field of expressive possibilities for the fifth through eighth grade students in our school. During a six-week period, these students were repeatedly exposed to inexpensive fish-focused projects. The artwork that resulted from this exposure was creative and original. To see a student break away from long-held conventions of form and to see ideas blend to create unique and beautiful works is satisfying for both teacher and student. Get Hooked! To begin the unit, the students first viewed realistic and nonrealistic reproductions of fish forms. Then, a discussion followed in which we explored the artworks with the students. The discussion focused on the techniques and processes that artists from other cultures used in their works. Following the discussion, we embarked on a series of fish projects. These projects included works completed in a variety of media, such as soft sculpture soft sculpture n. A sculpture made of pliant materials, such as cloth or foam rubber. , giant stuffed paper fish, soft linoleum linoleum (lĭnō`lēəm), resilient floor or wall covering made of burlap, canvas, or felt, surfaced with a composition of wood flour, oxidized linseed oil, gums or other ingredients, and coloring matter. printmaking printmaking Art form consisting of the production of images, usually on paper but occasionally on fabric, parchment, plastic, or other support, by various techniques of multiplication, under the direct supervision of or by the hand of the artist. , Japanese fish printing (Gyotaku), clay fish vessels, aluminum foil Noun 1. aluminum foil - foil made of aluminum aluminium foil, tin foil foil - a piece of thin and flexible sheet metal; "the photographic film was wrapped in foil" reliefs, watercolor, wood sculpture influenced by Oaxacan carvings, interlocking interlocking /in·ter·lock·ing/ (-lok´ing) closely joined, as by hooks or dovetails; locking into one another. interlocking Obstetrics A rare complication of vaginal delivery of twins; the 1st mobiles, tempera tempera (tĕm`pərə), painting method in which finely ground pigment is mixed with a solidifying base such as albumen, fig sap, or thin glue. batik batik (bətēk`), method of decorating fabrics practiced for centuries by the natives of Indonesia. It consists of applying a design to the surface of the cloth by using melted wax. paintings, and surrealistic sur·re·al·is·tic adj. 1. Of or relating to surrealism. 2. Having an oddly dreamlike or unreal quality. sur·re compositions. Testing the Waters We encouraged experimentation in each project and challenged the students with incongruous ideas, such as the creation of a merged mammal and fish. To maintain the students' motivation, we set a level of expectancy for them through the use of examples and demonstrations of techniques for each project. All of the projects in the unit stressed the development of particular skills and were linked to previously taught material. Each project had guidelines, such as filling the entire page or requiring the representation of a minimum of three textures. A School of Fish The effectiveness of the students' intent was assessed at the conclusion of each project through verbal dialogues and written essays. When the students' "fish fever" escalated into an epidemic, we decided a fish exhibition was in order. The school's learning center was the perfect place for our fish gallery. The librarians contributed to the theme by creating a display of books and resources on fish and marine life. The learning center was transformed into a wonderland of creative expression. Our students have now recovered from their "fish fever" but are not immune to future exposures! Barb Hansen is an art teacher at Central Middle School in Plato Center, Illinois. Steve Perrault was a student teacher in the same school. |
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