Stage One: Lesson Planning Considerations

1. What might students know and understand in visual art

Artists can make are using the materials found in their environment (leaves, moss, rocks, twigs etc.) Depending on the scale and the materials, this artwork may be temporary or permanent like Stonehenge.

2. What skills might students develop in visual art?
Students will develop observational skills and creative skills in selecting and organizing their artwork. They will develop knowledge about construction techniques and how materials of various kinds interact with each other.

3. How might students think creatively in visual art?

C. Thinking creatively:
ii) demonstrate a range and depth of creative-thinking behaviors
"Students will have to find creative solutions to a few challenges"

• How will the artwork fit into the environment and space around it with respects to location and scale?
• What locally sourced materials can I use for my artwork?
• How will the characteristics of these materials help me or challenge me in realizing my idea? e.g. On a windy day, you may have to worry about part of the artwork blowing away, or if the artwork is on a slope, they may have to come up with a creative solution to prevent it from sliding down.

4. How might students respond to, or through visual art?

D. Responding
i. construct meaning and transfer to new settings.
Students will take their artistic energy, creativity and prior knowledge and transfer it to an unknown setting like a part or local nature environment. Depending on the time of year or location, students may "initiate changes as well as being a response to change" by for example making a sculpture by taking leaves of assorted colors and depicting the change of seasons from summer to fall.

It's important for teacher to nurture the creative impulses of students. From building sandcastles and drawing in the dirt (using materials on site), to making scribbles and patterns in their notebooks, children from a young age have an impulse to be creative with little regard or care about creating a finished work of art that they know from the start will be temporary. They are used to working on a project over multiple classes, but this would be a single-day event. It also allows them to remove many layers of complexity from the art making process, such as preparing their workstations, paper, mixing cleaning etc. Instead, the art making process becomes about immediate exploring and connecting with their environment. Kids enjoy going on field trips, and this would be a chance for them to be outside the classroom while still having a valuable and creative learning experience. Depending on the site chose, the Science department may also want to get involved for some of their biology-related units.

While working on the project, important IB learner profile skills may be developed. For example, students would have to be communicators and "collaborate effectively" on collecting and organizing supplies. They would have to be "risk-takers" and enter a brand new learning environment with "forethought and determination, working independently and cooperatively to explore new ideas and innovative strategies".

It's important for teachers to nurture the creative impulses of students.

From building sandcastles and drawing in the dirt (using materials on site), to making scribbles and patterns in their notebooks, children from a young age have an impulse to be creative with little regard or care about creating a finished product for display in the year-end art show.

The aim of creating a temporary work of art in nature, is to allow students to tap into their playful nature and create a work of art that they know from the start will be temporary. They are used to working on a project over multiple classes, but this would be a single-day event. It also allows them to remove many layers of complexity from the art making process, such as preparing their workstations, paper, mixing, cleaning etc. Instead, the art making process becomes about immediate exploring and connecting with their environment. Kids enjoy going on field trips, and this would be a chance for them to be outside of the classroom while still having a valuable and creative learning experience. Depending on the site chosen, the Science department may also want to get involved for some of their biology-related units.

While working on the project, important IB learner profile skills may be developed. For example, students would have to be communicators and "collaborate effectively" on collecting and organizing supplies. They would have to be "risk-takers" and enter a brand-new learning environment with "forethought and determination, working independently and cooperatively to explore new ideas and innovative strategies". Students would also have to "Principled" - "Thinkers" so that they make "reasoned, ethical decisions" on what materials should be used. Damaging trees by breaking off their branches to use for the art project would not be OK, but plucking a few leaves here and there may be acceptable depending on the age of the tree.

Origins:

"Land Art/Earth Art/Environmental Art" in the contemporary sense traces its origins to 1960's and 1970's artists such as Robert Smithson, Nancy Holt, Andy Goldsworthy, and others. Today, a notable artist whose works I enjoy and would show to students are from a living artist called Strijdom van der Merwe.

It's important to note that while the art movement is most relevant to this unit, students will also be made aware that prehistoric artworks (sometimes temporary, other times less so) were by default made from locally sourced natural materials.

The first lesson would be more theory and discussion based, so that students know what they will be expected to do once they go to the location.

Depending on the school campus, the area may be a place with nearby trees or wooded areas. Or it may be a one-day field trip to a large park or nature reserve.

FORMATIVE ASSESSMENT

Visual Representation (Web or Concept Map) Ask students to create a visual representation (e.g., web, concept map, flow chart, or timeline) to show the elements or components of a topic or process. This technique effectively reveals whether students understand the relationships among the elements.

Source: Techniques to Check for Understanding from “Understanding by Design” by Grant Wiggins and Jay McTighe

After describing the location where students will be creating their summative artwork, they can fill out the following table:

1. Category 1: Things that are OK to use as part of my artwork. Why?

2. Category 2: Things that are not OK to use as part of my artwork. Why?

Art Process journal entry:

Instructions for Students:

Using lines and shapes and even textures, make a few sketches of what you could build on our field trip, but keep in mind “Things that are OK to use, and things that are NOT ok to use”

SUMMATIVE ASSESSMENT:

1. Part 1 of 2.

An on-site artwork which shows the students ability to ethically use found materials and re-arrange them in a creative way. The teacher takes a photo of each student's artwork which is then printed and pasted into their art process journal and used for part 2 of 2.

2. Part 2 of 2.

An Art Process journal entry detailing the steps taken to create the artwork and their interpretation of it.

3. (Optional) a critique of a friend's artwork.

1. Knowing And Understanding
   “Demonstrate knowledge and understanding of the art form studied, including concepts, processes, and the use of appropriate language.”

• How do the artists choose their materials?

• When artists choose plants for their artworks do they select living (rooted) plants, or dead (uprooted) plants or fallen leaves?

• Do the artists change the environment a little bit or a lot to make their artworks?

• Does the artwork look best when viewed from a particular angle?

• Could this artwork have been made in a different time of year or under different weather conditions?

2. Responding
   “Construct meaning and transfer learning.”

• What are some familiar elements of art that we see in the artworks made by Andy Goldsworthy?

• How does color and texture play a shape in the works of these artists?

• How do varied materials and objects help the artist create a beautiful artwork?

"State of the planet awareness and awareness of human choices (Hanvey 1976) will actively develop students' ability to consider varying points of view."

A focus will be made on the responsibility of artists to be aware of how their activities impact the environment and how artists can make decisions that will lessen the negative outcomes of their work.

1. Factual Question:

What approaches, methods or elements can be identified as specific to the "land art" genre?

2. Conceptual Question:

Is it possible that a work of land art could influence a society or group of people; in what ways could that happen?

3. Debatable question:

How much should an artist be allowed to change the environment to create a work of art?

Classroom discussion topics:

Strijdom Van Der Merwe - "Using my pocket knife to scratch a thin layer of moss from a tree. Kamiyama, Japan" - Image Source

With the teacher controlling a slideshow presentation of selected artworks such as the one shown above, students analyze examples of Land/Environmental Art which includes works done on a large scale (i.e., Spiral Jetty by Robert Smithson) and smaller scale works by artists such as Andy Goldsworthy and Strijdom van der Merwe.

The teacher uses a mix of direct teaching and Socratic questioning to guide the discussion. The aim is to include a review of common elements of art which are exhibited in the examples (students recognizing shapes, lines, textures), as well as an emphasis on the ethical use of both non-living and living materials for the purpose of making art.

(5 minutes to explain assignment, 25 minutes for student work)

Classroom assignment: Working individually or in pairs, students select their favourite example and write about why this artwork impacted them.

The teacher asks students to create a visual representation (e.g., web, concept map, flow chart, or time line) to show the elements or components of land art/earth art. The visual representation should include branches that deal with the outward appearance of the examples given in the slide show, as well as the significance and environmental/ethical aspects of the genre. (The table "Land Art" has been used in place of a diagram for simplicity)

The teacher walks around the room and helps guide students where appropriate to facilitate learning.

If students finish early, they can fill out the following table, after which they can brainstorm or sketch out ideas in their Art Journals about what kinds of art they may like to make on location:

Inquiry Statement Questions:

1. Factual Question:

What approaches, methods or elements can be identified as specific to the "land art" genre?

2. Conceptual Question:

Is it possible that a work of land art could influence a society or group of people; in what ways could that happen?

3. Debatable question:

How much should an artist be allowed to change the environment to create a work of art? Should the artist be able to use any living organism to create their artwork?

• In the “Rationale” section – I referenced the “IB Student Profile”

• The Aims/Objectives of the Lesson part 1 (Basics) were referenced from the “MYP Arts Guide”

• Formative Assessment “Visual Representation – Web or Concept Map” was sourced from Wiggins and McTighe – Extract: Formative Assessment Technique and was found in the “MYP Arts Teacher Support Material 2022-2023"

• Artist Webpage - strijdom.com