Lesson Overview:
Students will explore the connections between visual art and language arts, and how both are used to creatively tell stories and express emotions. Students will read the book Go Away Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley. They will be introduced to adjectives as descriptive words, and will choose an adjective to describe their own monster. Students will create a monster's face, using some paper sculpture techniques, and will learn about basic geometric shapes.
Length of Lesson:
Two 45-minute class periods
Notes:
This lesson is particularly suitable for grades K-2.
Instructional Objectives:
Students will:
- define the meaning of an adjective and choose one to use in his/her artwork.
- create a monster that reflects his/her adjective.
- recognize and name basic geometric shapes.
- use paper sculpture techniques.
Supplies:
- 12x18 black construction paper
- Construction paper of various colors (including scraps)
- Glue
- Scissors
- Light colored crayons or chalk
- Go Away Big Green Monster by Ed Emberley
Instructional Plan:
(Note: Prior to beginning this lesson, create four shapes (square, oval, circle, and triangle) using 9 x 12 construction paper.)
Begin the lesson by reading the book Go Away Big Green Monster to the students. After reading the book, discuss adjectives with the students. Explain how adjectives can be used to describe an emotion or describe an appearance, like, "grumpy" or "hairy." To illustrate this point, read the sentence from the book where these two words are used. Continue to reference the book, and make note of the adjectives used in the book like "sharp" and "squiggly." Always read the sentence that the adjective is used in so that the students can get a clearer picture of what an adjective is and how an adjective is used.
Create two lists on the board, one titled "Emotion" and the other titled "Appearance." Explain to students that if they volunteer an adjective for one of the lists, they must use the word in a sentence as well. These two categories of adjectives will be used in deciding what kind of monster the student will make. See how many words the students can list under these categories. If students are able to write or print, have them use the Adjectives List worksheet. Copy the words on the board for reinforcement.
Hold up one of the construction paper shapes, and ask the students if they know the name of the shape you are holding up. Review the names with students. Then, tape the shape to the board and write the name beside it. Do this for all four (4) shapes. Distribute the Geometric Shapes worksheet and have the students match the shape and name. Students then will be instructed to choose a shape for their monsters head from the four shapes they just learned.
Have students choose an adjective for their monster from the list they created at the beginning of the lesson. Refer to the lists on the board. Pass out a large sheet (12x18) of black construction paper to the students. Pass out a piece of light colored chalk or crayon to each student. Have students write "Go Away Big ___ Monster" at the top of their black paper. They will then fill in the blank with their chosen adjective.
Walk around the room and check for understanding. Then have students choose a shape that they will use for the head of their monster. Explain again that this shape will be the shape of their monsters face. Tell them that they should carefully consider that the shape and the adjective they are using would complement each other. Have students begin to cut out and design their monsters head using the construction paper. Encourage the students to use the entire 12x18 black paper—i.e. don't make a small little monster with lots of extra space.
Provide feedback and comments, explaining to students how they can make the features correlate to the adjectives. Ask the students to make the face of a "mean" monster and discuss with them what their eyes, eyebrows, and mouth do. Explain that when you make a mean face, the eyebrows point down to the nose, when you make a happy face, the eyebrows arch upwards, when you make a sad face, the eyebrows, dip down towards the ears, etc. Students can also make faces of their chosen adjectives with their neighbor and discuss the features and what they see happening on each other's face. Review the Ed Emberley book and make note of the simple shapes used. Ask them to also relate some of the things they noticed on their neighbors face when they shared emotions.
Explain to the students that they will be creating their features with construction paper and paper sculpture techniques. Visit Paper Techniques, which has a wonderful chart on various paper sculpture techniques. You may wish to print out multiple copies so that each student can have one to refer to. You may also wish to laminate each one so that it does not get destroyed and can be used again. Begin demonstrating the paper sculpture techniques to the students, like curling, rolling, folding and zig-zagging the paper to give some 3D effects.
Some suggested techniques are:
- Cut a small strip of paper and curl it around a pencil.
- Fold a small strip of paper in small accordion like folds.
- Cut the paper in small grass-like strips.
- Fold a small strip of paper in a zig-zag shape.
- Hair strands that pop out on the monster.
Add these to the monster for hair, 3D eyes, noses, etc. Encourage students to come up with their own ideas for sculptural effects.
Remind each student that his/her monster must have eyes, nose, mouth and ears, but may have multiple features. Monitor students' progress and remind them several times as they work to check for the addition of all the features. When all students have completed their monster face, ask them to group themselves into categories. One type of grouping can be shapes of heads. Students should explain their emotion individually. You could also keep a chart or graph listing shapes and emotions. When all students have finished presenting, you may wish to have students look at the chart and determine which shape and emotion was the most popular. You could also discuss which masks really gave you the feeling of the emotion.
Assessment:
Please use the Assessment Rubric for the assessment of the lesson.
Extensions:
Use the Ed Emberley book listed the Sources section below to do a similar lesson with 3rd or 4th grade. In the book, each feature of the monster is added page by page. By cutting out the shapes from each page as you continue through the book adding features, the last page has the complete monster. Students can create their own book by choosing a different adjective for each feature and write a more complete story.
Sources:
Print:
- Emberley, Ed. Go Away Big Green Monster, Boston, Little, Brown, c 1992.
Web:
Authors:
-
Barbara Gardner, Graduate Student
University of Houston
Houston, TX
