Identity and Self-Awareness
Target Grade Level: High School 9-12
1. What overarching understandings are desired?
2. What are the overarching “essential” questions?
3. As a result of this unit, students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of:
4. What “essential” and unit questions will focus this unit?
5. What evidence will show that students understand the connections between art and identity?
6. Student Self-Assessments, Quizzes, tests, and other academic prompts
Class Critique
WHY keep a Sketchbook or a Visual Journal?
Most artists keep sketchbooks. In them, they experiment with ideas and collect drawings of things around them and things that they enjoy. Sketchbooks are like visual diaries for artists. Artists often use them for planning and developing their work.
· The most famous sketchbooks are those of Leonardo da Vinci. His sketchbooks are filled with drawings, diagrams and written notes of things he saw and ideas he came up with.
· Picasso produced 178 (!) sketchbooks in his lifetime! He often used his sketchbooks to explore ideas and make compositional studies until he found the right idea or subject for a larger painting.
· I didn’t realize until I was in college that sketchbooks are for more than just drawings! They can be a journal…a diary of my thought process – I can refer back to for more ideas later. I used to just draw in sketchbooks, NOW: I draw, paint, write, collage, and attach anything that gives me an idea or expresses who I am as an artist and person! Pictures, photos, poems, lyrics, etc…
SKETCHBOOK/Visual Journal GUIDELINES (how you will be graded)
+’s = excellent, went over and above, successful
v’s = did what you were asked, tried something new, good work, could use some verve with design
v-’s = lacking, could have put more effort and thought into work
0 = no work, not completed, absent and showed no work when returned
I want your sketchbook to be a storehouse FULL of pages to trigger your creativity and ideas!
You can mess up as much as you want as long as you fill the page and try again.
How to “mine” for ideas and get started:
“Mine” for items in your magazines, purse and various places within your personal space. Put them in a large envelope or shoebox. Once you’ve gathered a good collection, whenever you need to “journal” an idea, go and select an image. Paste in into the sketchbook and write about it. What do you think drew you to the image at this particular time in your life? What message does the image have for you? What other images does this on call to mind? What memories, hopes, dreams does it evoke? And move on from there…let your imagination soar!
Each page should include 3 distinct “parts”:
Bring your notebook and visual journals to class EVERYDAY.
You will be able to complete class assignments in these sketchbooks as well.
Sketchbook Prompts
Project #1 Cartoons with your character
Project #2 Characters from your story
Project #3 Symbols that characterize your life
Project #4 Portraiture practice
Project #5 Contour Line drawings
Project #6 Textiles and Textures
Project #7 Magazine cut and paste
Project #8 Down the memory lane
Grades 9-12
Level:
Points are awarded based on criteria met
Advanced
4
Proficient
3
Basic
2
Minimal
1
Content:
All that is contained or expressed.
All criteria has been met, the student has added more “content’ than was required – gone above and beyond.
All criteria has been met and developed properly, though no “extras” have been added.
Several criteria in the assignment have been met, while some were not developed.
Only one or two criteria in the assignment have been met, and the rest were either not developed or missing.
Craftsmanship:
Skillful use of techniques and materials.
The art work demonstrates a mastery of both the skill and medium.
The art work demonstrates strong skill and handling of the medium.
The art work is finished, but needs more refinement.
The art work is incomplete.
Communication:
The visual message that is conveyed.
The visual message is clear, concise, and readily apparent, even without “knowing” the assignment.
The visual message is communicated well.
The visual message is communicated, but not completely clear, even with “prior knowledge” of the assignment.
The visual message is not communicated through the work.
7. Given the targeted understandings, other unit goals, and the assessment evidence identified, what knowledge and skills are needed?
Students will need to know:
Students will need to be able to:
8. What teaching and learning experiences will equip students to demonstrate the targeted understandings and skills?
Target Grade Level: High School 9-12
1. What overarching understandings are desired?
- Artists often explore identity concepts in order to express social and socioeconomic concerns
- Identity can be influenced by personal, social, and cultural dimensions of ones life
- Personal identity can explore socially constructed boundaries
- Art can attain value, purpose, and meaning from life’s endeavors
2. What are the overarching “essential” questions?
- How can identity be explored through works of art?
- Why is identity an important concept in art?
- How can a collective identity influence individual perceptions of self?
- How does culture influence self-awareness through identity concepts?
3. As a result of this unit, students will be able to demonstrate an understanding of:
- How collective identity can be explored through works of art
- How art works are influenced by one’s existential condition, social, historical and cultural backgrounds
- How self-awareness can expand, record or create artistic expression
- How to create artwork by exploration of one’s own identity
4. What “essential” and unit questions will focus this unit?
- How can character development influence artwork through self-awareness?
- How can cultural identity be incorporated or commemorate through student artwork?
- How can personal identity be represented visually?
- How can tradition promote self-awareness?
- How can identity be explored through socially constructed stereotypes?
- What are the many ways identity can be interpreted through artworks?
5. What evidence will show that students understand the connections between art and identity?
6. Student Self-Assessments, Quizzes, tests, and other academic prompts
Class Critique
- Peer review showing appropriate vocabulary:
- How well students apply learned concepts of identity in relationship with social, cultural, economic and political context in the artwork created in throughout the unit. How well students use stereotypes and allegories to represent their thoughts and feelings in their work.
- Sketchbook work showing students progress
WHY keep a Sketchbook or a Visual Journal?
Most artists keep sketchbooks. In them, they experiment with ideas and collect drawings of things around them and things that they enjoy. Sketchbooks are like visual diaries for artists. Artists often use them for planning and developing their work.
· The most famous sketchbooks are those of Leonardo da Vinci. His sketchbooks are filled with drawings, diagrams and written notes of things he saw and ideas he came up with.
· Picasso produced 178 (!) sketchbooks in his lifetime! He often used his sketchbooks to explore ideas and make compositional studies until he found the right idea or subject for a larger painting.
· I didn’t realize until I was in college that sketchbooks are for more than just drawings! They can be a journal…a diary of my thought process – I can refer back to for more ideas later. I used to just draw in sketchbooks, NOW: I draw, paint, write, collage, and attach anything that gives me an idea or expresses who I am as an artist and person! Pictures, photos, poems, lyrics, etc…
SKETCHBOOK/Visual Journal GUIDELINES (how you will be graded)
+’s = excellent, went over and above, successful
v’s = did what you were asked, tried something new, good work, could use some verve with design
v-’s = lacking, could have put more effort and thought into work
0 = no work, not completed, absent and showed no work when returned
I want your sketchbook to be a storehouse FULL of pages to trigger your creativity and ideas!
You can mess up as much as you want as long as you fill the page and try again.
How to “mine” for ideas and get started:
“Mine” for items in your magazines, purse and various places within your personal space. Put them in a large envelope or shoebox. Once you’ve gathered a good collection, whenever you need to “journal” an idea, go and select an image. Paste in into the sketchbook and write about it. What do you think drew you to the image at this particular time in your life? What message does the image have for you? What other images does this on call to mind? What memories, hopes, dreams does it evoke? And move on from there…let your imagination soar!
Each page should include 3 distinct “parts”:
- Visual Ideas: Somewhere in the work should be direct visual transfers, such as cut and paste or collaging, think about using Xerox copies, newspapers, magazine images, and the internet to find things that interest YOU!
- Your Response: IN WORDS: Somewhere in the work should be words incorporated, YOUR writing about the visuals, WHY is it important? WHY is it good, or bad? WHAT does it say about you? quotes, lyrics, etc…
- Your Response: VISUALLY: Somewhere in the work there should be some kind of sketches, drawings, painting responses from YOU. Maybe you will make a composition from the idea…translate the idea into your own visual style…I want you to EXPERIMENT with media!
Bring your notebook and visual journals to class EVERYDAY.
You will be able to complete class assignments in these sketchbooks as well.
Sketchbook Prompts
Project #1 Cartoons with your character
Project #2 Characters from your story
Project #3 Symbols that characterize your life
Project #4 Portraiture practice
Project #5 Contour Line drawings
Project #6 Textiles and Textures
Project #7 Magazine cut and paste
Project #8 Down the memory lane
- Select final works according to unit’s objectives
Grades 9-12
Level:
Points are awarded based on criteria met
Advanced
4
Proficient
3
Basic
2
Minimal
1
Content:
All that is contained or expressed.
All criteria has been met, the student has added more “content’ than was required – gone above and beyond.
All criteria has been met and developed properly, though no “extras” have been added.
Several criteria in the assignment have been met, while some were not developed.
Only one or two criteria in the assignment have been met, and the rest were either not developed or missing.
Craftsmanship:
Skillful use of techniques and materials.
The art work demonstrates a mastery of both the skill and medium.
The art work demonstrates strong skill and handling of the medium.
The art work is finished, but needs more refinement.
The art work is incomplete.
Communication:
The visual message that is conveyed.
The visual message is clear, concise, and readily apparent, even without “knowing” the assignment.
The visual message is communicated well.
The visual message is communicated, but not completely clear, even with “prior knowledge” of the assignment.
The visual message is not communicated through the work.
7. Given the targeted understandings, other unit goals, and the assessment evidence identified, what knowledge and skills are needed?
Students will need to know:
- How to plan and utilize their sketchbooks
- Basic drawing skills
- Core media techniques such as colored pencil, graphite and crayon
- Technology use such as internet and media services
Students will need to be able to:
- Abstract thinking and discussion about personal relationships
- Create artwork from those thoughts and discussions
- Challenge themselves with new media and creative processes
- Research what other artists use as inspiration for their art
8. What teaching and learning experiences will equip students to demonstrate the targeted understandings and skills?
- Illustrations of different types of art and representations dealing with identity and self-expression
- Examples of artwork reflecting identity and relationships (cartoons, photography, paintings, anime, etc.)
- Sample cartoons and television shows reflecting storylines
- Other student work relative to the subject of identity and self expression
