GLEN RIDGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Curriculum Guide

 

 

 

Course Title:                                         8th Grade Art Cycle

 

Subject:                                                Visual Art

 

Grade Level:                                         8

 

Department/School:                              Visual Art/ Middle School Program

 

Duration:                                              6 to 8 weeks

 

Number of Credits:                               N/A

 

Prerequisite:                                          None

 

Elective or Required:                             Required

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Author:  Anne P. Malone

Date Submitted:  Summer 2005

 


Course Description

 

 

The 8th grade art cycle course will continue to emphasize the use of the various art elements and principles of design, as well as encourage the students to incorporate their own personal experiences, background, imagination, and aesthetics within their designs.  In the creation of 2 and 3 dimensional artwork, students will explore the art categories of realism and abstraction using a variety of conventional and non-conventional media.  Artists’ aesthetic view(s), personal history, influences and purpose of creating their art will be investigated through select readings, written analysis and class discussions.  Students will also exemplify their heightened awareness of art criticism within both oral and written analysis of their own artwork and the artwork of others.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


GLEN RIDGE PUBLIC SCHOOLS

VISUAL ARTS MISSION STATEMENT

 

 

An education in the arts is an essential part of the academic curriculum for the achievement of human, social, and economic growth.  An arts education enables personal, intellectual, and social development for each individual and strives to enhance the student’s sense of confidence and self-esteem.  The visual arts are uniquely qualified to cultivate a variety of multiple intelligences with powerful ways of communicating ideas, thoughts and feelings.  A well-rounded program for intellectual growth must support the development of spatial, kinesthetic, interpersonal and intrapersonal intelligences.  Creativity in solving art-related problems provides students with values that will prepare them for leadership positions in future endeavors as well as an enriched quality of life.

 

 

 

 

 

 


New Jersey Core Curriculum Content Standards

 

 

Visual Arts

 

STANDARD 1.1 (AESTHETICS)

ALL STUDENTS WILL USE AESTHETIC KNOWLEDGE IN THE CREATION OF AND IN RESPONSE TO DANCE, MUSIC, THEATER, AND VISUAL ART.

 

STANDARD 1.2 (CREATION AND PERFORMANCE)

ALL STUDENTS WILL UTILIZE THOSE SKILLS, MEDIA, METHODS, AND TECHNOLOGIES, APPROPRIATE TO EACH ART FORM IN THE CREATION, PERFORMANCE, AND PRESENTATION OF DANCE, MUSIC, THEATER AND VISUAL ART.

 

STANDARD 1.3 (ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES)

ALL STUDENTS WILL DEMONSTRATE AN UNDERSTANDING OF THE ELEMENTS AND PRINCIPLES OF DANCE, MUSIC, THEATER AND VISUAL ART.

 

STANDARD 1.4 (CRITIQUE)

ALL STUDENTS WILL DEVELOP, APPLY, AND REFLECT UPON KNOWLEDGE OF THE PROCESS OF CRITIQUE.

 

STANDARD 1.5 (HISTORY/CULTURE)

ALL STUDENTS WILL UNDERSTAND AND ANALYZE THE ROLE, DEVELOPMENT, AND CONTINUING INFLUENCE OF THE ARTS IN RELATION TO WORLD CULTURES, HISTORY, AND SOCIETY.


Course Description

 

UNIT 1: AESTHETICS AND CREATIVITY

 

CCCS: 1.1.A.4, 1.1.A.5, 1.1.A.7, 1.1.B.1, 1.1.B.2, 1.1.B.3, 1.1.B.4, 1.3.D.2, 1.3.D.3, 1.3.D.4

 

Objectives:

The students will:

1.      Describe a compositional work of art including its principles of design, aesthetic form, and evidence of elements in every day life.

2.      Apply the principles of art to interpret various masterworks of art including its significance to cultural beliefs and/or set of values.

3.      Analyze in an oral or written response how art is often defined by its originality and how exposure to cultures and styles can influence an individual’s feelings toward an art form/artwork.

4.      Express how art is inspired by an individual’s imagination.

5.      Communicate ideas about the social and personal value of art by incorporating personal life experiences into an aesthetic response about various artwork.

 

Activities:

 

The students will:

-         Learn, analyze and discuss the 3 forms of aesthetics, subject, content, composition, by observing various artists’ prints and discovering the historical background of each artist, especially the artists’ cultural beliefs and/or a set of values which may dictate their aesthetic choices. 

Example: Van Gogh’s blue/green wavy self-portrait suggests that he was conveying a message, mood or feeling of uneasiness in his life, hence his dominate aesthetic view is content. 

Time: 1 class and intermittent follow-up throughout the cycle.

-         Interpret a masterwork of art including the use of art principles and aesthetic form into a written analysis. 

Example: Homework – a written report on an artist who has created a self portrait. This includes a description of the artwork, analysis of the aesthetic view(s), historical background including social and political influences, and student’s opinion of artist’s work. 

Time: 2 weeks at home, 1 class for review.

-         Examine and describe various artwork of artists and other students including the use of art principles, originality, imagination, and evidence of everyday life, as well as determining its social and personal aesthetic value based on the students’ life experience. 

Example: Students’ examination and discussion of previous students’ portrait artwork for personal reflection and determining aesthetic value. 

Time: 2 to 3 classes.

 

UNIT 2:  CREATING/PERFORMING

 

CCCS: 1.1.B.7, 1.2.D.1, 1.2.D.2, 1.2.D.3, 1.2.D.4, 1.2.D.5, 1.2.D.6, 1.2.D.7, 1.3.D.1

 

Objectives:

The students will:

1.      Develop original works of art that explore art elements and principles, various media, technologies and processes in the production of two and three dimensional art.

2.      Incorporate the art elements within a design as a way of conveying a mood, a meaning or a feeling that is personal.

3.      Distinguish the physical properties of the various 2 and 3 dimensional artwork and explore these attributes within their own designs.

4.      Demonstrate an understanding for realistic and abstract art through the process of creation and appropriate use of terms during oral and written work.

5.      Express through visual communication how art inspires an individual’s imagination.

6.      Identify and investigate art-related careers by experiencing in the development of a middle school student gallery.

 

Activities:

 

The students will:

-         Develop drawing skills and ability through the process of practice, visual awareness, and experimentation. 

Example: Creating a self-portrait, including step-by-step instruction of facial proportion, observations of personal nuances, and exploration of creating facial expressions. 

Time: 1 week.

-         Create a personal work of art that is reflective of the aesthetic view of content, demonstrates an awareness of the art principle of balance/proportion, and utilizes the art elements as a means of conveying a mood, a meaning or a feeling. 

Example: Self-portrait composition reflective of the student’s personal life. 

Time: 3 weeks.

-         Explore unconventional mediums and discover their unique properties in creating 2 and 3 dimensional designs. 

Example: The use of cardboard in 3-D designs. 

Time: 1 to 2 classes.

-         Design a work of art that explores the properties of 3 dimension and utilizes their imagination to create an original abstract design. 

Example:  A sculpture in the round of a musical instrument or an animal that is abstract. 

Time: 2 weeks.

-         Participate in the development of a middle school student gallery, selection committee, matting/tagging, displaying, etc…, and discuss how this is relative to career opportunities. 

Time: duration of 2 to 3 days.

 

UNIT 3:   CRITIQUE

 

CCCS: 1.4.A.2, 1.4.A.3, 1.4.A.5, 1.4.B.1, 1.3.B.3, 1.4.B.4, 1.4.B.5

 

Objectives:

The students will:

1.      Apply domain-specific arts terminology to express statements of both fact and opinion regarding their works of art and evaluate the judgment of others based on the process of critique.

2.      Compare and contrast through oral or written description the technical proficiency of the artist’s work.

3.      Compare artistic content among contrasting art works in the same domain.

4.      Critique performances based on the application of the elements of the art form.

5.      Consider the impact of traditions in the critique of works of art.

 

Activities:

 

The students will:

-         Use learned terms to describe facts, opinions, and technical proficiency of their own art work and art work of others, as well as refute or agree with the judgment of others during class critique discussions. 

Example: A class critique evaluation of their self-portraits that utilizes the rubric goals, personal opinions, use of facial proportions in the discussion of their achievement within their design. 

Time: 1 class.

-         Evaluate their own work through written or oral analysis of the application of the elements of the art form.

Example: A worksheet will be provided for the students to evaluate their own work based on the project’s rubric goals. 

Time: ½ class or homework.

-         Discuss the works of various artists that reflect a particular style of art or subject matter by comparing their use of content within the designs. 

Example: Van Gogh, Chuck Close, Louise Vignee-LeBrun, etc., self-portraits.

 Time: 1 class and intermittent follow-up throughout the cycle.

-         Share how their own personal traditions and experiences impacted the creation of their artwork. 

Example: During the class critique, students will share their concepts of how their personal experiences and traditions affected their design choices.

Time: 1 class.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

UNIT 4:  HISTORY OF ART

 

CCCS: 1.5.A.1, 1.5.A.4, 1.5.B.2, 1.5.B.4

 

Objectives:

The students will:

1.      Reflect on a variety of works of art representing important ideas, issues, and events in a society.

2.      Examine how the social and political environment influences artists in various social/historical/political contexts.

3.      Hypothesize how the arts have impacted world culture.

4.      Discuss how cultural influences add to the understanding of works of art.

 

Activities:

 

The students will:

-         Read about, view and reflect on a variety of works of art that represent the idea of aesthetics, subject, content, and composition, in design. 

Example:  Exploring Art chapter 2: Aesthetics.  Students will discover a variety of works of art that represent each aesthetic view or combination. 

Time: 2 classes.

-         Make connections in either written or oral form between the artist’s social and political environment and its influences of the artist’s work.

Example: Homework – a written report on an artist who has created a self portrait. This includes a description of the artwork, analysis of the aesthetic view(s), historical background including social and political influences, and student’s opinion of artist’s work. 

Time: 2 weeks at home, 1 class for review.

-         Theorize how the arts impact their own lives and the lives of others, especially the need for self-expression. 

Time: throughout the course of the cycle.

-         Share the importance of knowing the cultural, political and social background of an artist in understanding a work of art.

Time: 1 class.

 

 

 

Texts, Resources, and/or Literature

 

·          Text: Exploring Art, Glencoe McGraw-Hill, copyright 1999, ISBN 0-02-662356-0

·          Resources: prints, slides, and the Internet

·          Literature: Art and Man magazine, Scholastic Art magazine, and others.