Module 9

Lesson 1

The Centrality of Visual arts Education

Art is a unique way of knowing and understanding the world. Purposeful visual arts activities expand
children’s ways of exploring, expressing and coming to terms with the world they inhabit in a structured
and enjoyable way. Children first learn to respond aesthetically to their environment through touch,
taste, sound and smell, and their natural curiosity suggests a need for sensory experience. Visual arts
education helps to develop sensory awareness, enhances sensibilities and emphasis particular ways of
exploring, experimenting and inventing. The visual arts curriculum provides for a wide range of activities
which enable the child to develop ideas through imagery, thus providing a necessary balance to the
wider curriculum. Learning in and through art can contribute positively to children’s sense of personal
and cultural identity and to their whole development.

The Visual Arts in a Child-Centred Curriculum

Each child possesses a range of intelligences and he/she needs a variety of learning experiences in order
to develop them fully. Visual arts activities enable children to make sense of and to express their world
in visual, tangible form. They can also be unifying forces in children’s learning and development:
drawing, painting, inventing and constructing bring together different elements of children’s experience
from which a whole new experience can develop. Understanding visual imagery opens additional ways
of learning for children and enables them to record real or imagined ideas and feelings. Opportunities to
explore and investigate the visual elements in their environment help them to appreciate the nature of
things and to channel their natural curiosity for educational ends. The confidence and enjoyment that
stem from purposeful visual arts activities can have a positive effect on children’s learning in other areas
of the curriculum. Children who have had experience in exploring and experimenting with a variety of
art materials and media are likely, as they develop, to produce art that is personal. A quality visual arts
program ensures that each child has a variety of enriching visual arts experiences in both two- and
three-dimensional media
Structure and Layout

The visual arts curriculum is structured to provide a broad-based and balanced program for each of four
levels: infant classes, first and second classes, third and fourth classes and fifth and sixth classes. Each
level has six strands, which are organized to ensure a balance between making art and looking at and
responding to art.

The strands are

• Drawing

• Paint and colour

• Print

• Clay

• Construction

• Fabric and fibre

Activities in each strand are interrelated and they involve the children in perceiving and exploring the
visual world and making art and in looking at and responding to the visual world and art works. These
activities help to develop sensitivity to the elements of the visual world and to develop the child’s ability
to communicate visually. They involve awareness of line, shape, form, colour and tone, pattern and
rhythm, texture and spatial organization.

The development of perceptual awareness helps children to see and to understand the world around
them and to express their ideas, feelings and experiences in visual form. Attentive looking helps them to
make connections between their own work and the work of others. It also helps to develop
concentration and the ability to focus attention generally. These experiences are an essential part of
every art lesson. A threefold structure is suggested for choosing thematic content or subject matter,
based on children’s

• experience

• imagination

• observation and curiosity.

This structure provides opportunities for children to give visual expression to inner concerns which may
be difficult to put into words, to give expression to the wonderful world of the imagination, and to
pursue their curiosity in the physical attributes of the world. Very often two or even three of these are
being drawn on in a single art activity or project, at varying levels of emphasis.
Lesson 2 and 3

The Strands

Drawing

Children soon discover drawing as a natural way of communicating experience. Through drawing, they
create and express imaginary worlds and give free expression to their imaginative powers. Older
children also use drawing to clarify, develop and communicate plans. As they progress they demonstrate
a developing visual awareness in their drawings and sensitivity to the expressive powers of other artists’
drawings.

Paint and colour

Children develop an understanding and appreciation of colour from observation of and delight in colour
seen in nature and in manufactured objects, and they use colour to express their experiences, interests
and imaginative ideas. As they progress they demonstrate a developing awareness of colour in their own
work, a growing sensitivity to other artists’ expressive use of colour and its impact on crafted and
designed objects.

Print

Through experiences in print-making, children learn to focus attention on and deepen their
understanding of graphic processes. They have opportunities to experiment with print-making
techniques, to use them inventively, and to produce prints for functional use as well as for their own
sake. As they progress they learn to take a more thoughtful approach to shape, edges, layout and
composition in print-making and develop sensitivity to the expressive qualities in the work of graphic
artists.

Clay

Children enjoy the freedom to form and change clay and to use it imaginatively. Through experience of
clay and from a need for expression, they learn the skills of forming and changing it in increasingly
purposeful ways. As well as sculptural expression, they have opportunities to design and make objects
for use and wear (the latter to a limited extent in the absence of a kiln), using their powers of invention
and expression. Developing sensitivity to underlying form in the environment and in art works enables
them to enjoy and appreciate great sculpture and to appreciate craft objects critically.
Construction

Construction activities provide opportunities for exploring imaginative worlds in three-dimensional

media. Children are encouraged to make imaginative and expressive use of materials for designing and
inventing and to make models to their own design. This involves exploring the possibilities of the
materials, experimenting with new ways of balancing and combining them, and developing
understanding of structural strengths and possibilities. Experience in construction helps children to look
with curiosity and enjoyment at structures in nature and to develop sensitivity to and appreciation of
the structures of great architects, sculptors, and craftspeople.

Fabric and Fibre

Work in fabric and fibre helps children to be curious about how everyday fabrics are structured and
develops greater sensitivity to colour and tone, texture, line and shape. They are encouraged to use
fabric and fibre as materials for imaginative invention in both two- and three-dimensions, for example to
use free stitching as a way of changing or developing a fabric surface; to create their own fabric, using
fibre imaginatively and with a developing range of techniques; to use fabric and fibre to interpret three-
dimensional natural forms, and to express imaginative play through puppets and costume-making.

Evaluation

1. Art is a unique way of knowing and understanding the world.

a. The centrality of visual arts Education
b. Structure and Layouts
c. The Visual arts in a Child-Centered Curriculum
d. None of the Above
2. The visual arts curriculum provides for a wide range of activities which enable the child to
develop ideas through imagery, thus providing a necessary balance to the wider curriculum.
a. Structure and Layouts
b. The centrality of visual arts Education
c. The Visual arts in a Child-Centered Curriculum
d. None of the Above
3. The visual arts curriculum is structured to provide a broad-based and balanced program for each
of four levels: infant classes, first and second classes, third and fourth classes and fifth and sixth
classes.
a. The Visual arts in a Child-Centered Curriculum
b. Structure and Layout
 c. The centrality of Visual arts Education
d. None of the Above
4. Each child possesses a range of intelligences and he/she needs a variety of learning experiences
in order to develop them fully.
a. Structure and Layout
b. The centrality of visual arts Education
c. The Visual arts in a Child-Centered Curriculum
d. None of the Above
5. Children develop an understanding and appreciation of colour from observation of and delight
in colour seen in nature and in manufactured objects, and they use colour to express their
experiences, interests and imaginative ideas.
a. Print
b. Drawing
c. Construction
d. Paint and Colour
6. Children soon discover _____ as a natural way of communicating experience.
a. Print
b. Drawing
c. Paint and Colour
d. Fabric & Fibre
7. Children enjoy the freedom to form and change clay and to use it imaginatively. Through
experience of ____ and from a need for expression, they learn the skills of forming and changing
it in increasingly purposeful ways.
a. Clay
b. Construction
c. Print
d. Drawing
8. ________ activities provide opportunities for exploring imaginative worlds in three-dimensional
media.
a. Print
b. Clay
c. Construction
d. Drawing
9. They are encouraged to use fabric and fibre as materials for imaginative invention in both two-
and three-dimensions, for example to use free stitching as a way of changing or developing a
fabric surface; to create their own fabric, using fibre imaginatively and with a developing range
of techniques; to use fabric and fibre to interpret three-dimensional natural forms, and to
express imaginative play through puppets and costume-making.
a. Clay
b. Construction
c. Fabric & Fiber
d. Drawing
10. They have opportunities to experiment with ____-making techniques, to use them inventively,
and to produce prints for functional use as well as for their own sake.
a. Drawing
b. Print
c. Clay
d. Construction
Module 10

Lesson 1 and 2

The Visual Elements

A basic understanding of the visual elements is essential to purposeful teaching in the visual arts. Line,
shape, form, colour and tone, pattern and rhythm, texture and spatial organization are the basics of
two-dimensional and three-dimensional composition. The teacher should be aware of the visual
elements and informally draw attention to them as they arise in the children’s work, in the work of
artists and in the observed environment. Awareness of the elements and their interplay is essential to
quality design in both two and three-dimensional work, including craft. A developing visual vocabulary
and a growing ability to think visually and spatially help to focus children as they strive for visual
expression.

Line

Line is the basic element in children’s early drawings. In art work, line can create shape, pattern,
movement and unity in a composition. Line can be thick, thin, textured, delicate, bold, curved, straight,
continuous or broken. Children soon discover that lines can make shapes and they use them to invent
their symbols.

Shape

Shape is created by merging, touching and intersecting lines. It can also be defined by colour and tone
and by texture. Everything has a silhouette shape as well as other internal shapes. The shapes that
emerge between shapes are called negative shapes. Shapes can be regular or irregular, closed or open.

Form

Form is the name given to three-dimensional shape. It is solid. Form can be modelled in clay, Plasticine
or papier mâché. Ways of suggesting three-dimensional form on a flat plane (surface) are explored
through drawing and painting
Colour and Tone

Colour in art is referred to in terms of hue, tone, intensity and temperature. The basic characteristic of
pure colour is called hue, for example yellow, red, blue. Tone is the lightness or darkness of a hue.
Intensity refers to the relative strength or weakness of a hue. Temperature in art terms (but not in
precise scientific terms) refers to the warm and cool halves of the colour spectrum. Developing
awareness of colour and its impact on everyday life is vital to developing children’s visual awareness and
awareness of the effects they can create with colour in their own work.

Pattern and Rhythm

Pattern is the constant repetition, with variation, found in everything from the pattern of sea shells to
the forms of hills and clouds. The teacher draws attention to pattern and rhythm in nature, in art and in
the children’s work as it arises. Children can use pattern and rhythm as a design element in two or three-
dimensional compositions to achieve unity, variety, movement and directional force.

Texture

Texture is the roughness or smoothness of a surface. Everything has texture. Surfaces may be silky,
shiny, hairy or bumpy, for example. Texture is an important aspect of the visual and not just the tactile
world. Children need opportunities to work on variously textured surfaces and to discover their own
ways of suggesting textures seen in nature.

Spatial Organization

Spatial organization in two-dimensional work is concerned with creating an illusion of space and depth
on a flat surface and also with organizing the flat picture plane. Three-dimensional work (construction,
for example) involves finding ways of working with various closed or open spaces or compartments to
create structures: this applies to non-representational as well as to representational or imaginative
structures.

Lesson 3

The Visual Elements in Context

Learning in art is activity-based and developmental and it builds on children’s previous experience in
different media. Children develop awareness of the visual elements and their interplay through making
art and through looking at and responding to art works. While they have relevance for all six strands,
attention should be drawn to them informally, in context and without undue emphasis at primary level.
Children learn to use line, shape, colour and tone, pattern and rhythm and texture expressively and for
design purposes through opportunities to look closely at the visual environment and to draw and paint
themes that have personal meaning for them. Simple print-making and creative work in fabric and fibre
help to further this development. Children acquire a very immediate sense of form through working
with clay. How people, objects or abstract elements relate to each other in space is a primary concern in
the art of children as well as in that of artists. Young children struggle very creatively with this and
invent their own ways of suggesting space. Older children, who generally want things to look ‘right’, will
be interested in seeing how artists solve spatial problems in non-representational as well as in
representational work. Careful planning ensures that opportunities for developing visual awareness are
built in to every art lesson.

The emphases in the curriculum

The emphases in this curriculum are:

• understanding the creative process children go through in making art

• understanding the stages of development in children’s art and their relevance for drawing in
particular

• the provision of a broad, six-strand curriculum to which drawing is central and which incorporates art,
craft and design activities in a balance of two- and three-dimensional media

• balancing opportunities to make art with opportunities to look at and make a personal response to art.

Evaluation

__________1._____ is the roughness or smoothness of a surface. Everything has texture. Surfaces may
be silky, shiny, hairy or bumpy, for example.

_________2. _____organization in two-dimensional work is concerned with creating an illusion of space

and depth on a flat surface and also with organizing the flat picture plane.

_________3. _____is the name given to three-dimensional shape. It is solid. Form can be modelled in
clay, Plasticine or papiermâché.

________ 4. _____is the basic element in children’s early drawings. In art work, line can create shape,
pattern, movement and unity in a composition. Line can be thick, thin, textured, delicate, bold, curved,
straight, continuous or broken.

________5. _____Pattern is the constant repetition, with variation, found in everything from the pattern
of sea shells to the forms of hills and clouds.

________6.______is created by merging, touching and intersecting lines. It can also be defined by colour
and tone and by texture.

________7. Children develop awareness of the _______ and their interplay through making art and
through looking at and responding to art works.
________8. ______ is the constant repetition, with variation, found in everything from the pattern of
sea shells to the forms of hills and clouds.

________9. ______ in art is referred to in terms of hue, tone, intensity and temperature.

________10._____is the lightness or darkness of a hue. Intensity refers to the relative strength or
weakness of a hue.
Module 11

Lesson 1 and 2

The Creative Process

In making art, the process of making is as valuable as the final product. The emphasis is on exploring
and experimenting with the expressive possibilities of different materials, tools and media and with the
choices they offer for different tasks. Talking about their work and, when appropriate, as they work is
central to this process. The atmosphere during the art class must always be challenging, motivating and
supportive and must allow the children to express understanding of their world in a personal way. The
teacher must constantly be alert to their needs and successes to ensure that they are involved in a
creative rather than in a passive or imitative way. To focus concentration and encourage effort as
children work, the teacher moves among them, discussing, questioning and, where necessary, directing
observation and helping to rekindle interest that has waned or courage that has failed. The teacher
should be sensitive to when such intervention would be helpful and when not. When children are
disappointed by their efforts, their difficulties are discussed to help them pinpoint the problem area.
Positive aspects should also be discussed, for example how well they saw and interpreted a particular
curve, shape, colour or mood. Questions should be designed to elicit a visual and at times kinesthetic
response and to stimulate the children to further concentration and involvement:

• I like that colour: how did you make it?

• Was that your favorite jumper/dress? Did it have a design on it?

• Do you remember how your legs went when you were running?

• Can you show me the way the dog’s mouth went when he snarled at you?

• Can you make a big movement with your hand to show me the way that twig curves/the flow of your
friend’s long hair/water going down the sink?

The task of the teacher is not to teach clever techniques or to demonstrate ways of producing images
and forms he/she finds acceptable but to build on interests and strengths by drawing the children out
and making suggestions as appropriate. Children should not be taught to follow instructions
unquestioningly, as this is likely to hinder creativity and spontaneity. They should be helped to
appreciate the value of working independently and on their own initiative, and experimentation and
interpretation should be encouraged equally in two and three-dimensional work. In an art lesson, the
children should remain the designers: this role should not be taken from them.

Extra care should be given to considering the creative process when integrating with other curricular
areas: it is possible to combine different sets of objectives without losing the integrity of any.
Lesson 3

The Stages of Development in Children’s Art

Patterns of development are discernible in children’s art up to the end of primary schooling. They are
most evident in children’s imagery and they provide a broad outline of typical progress. They begin with
mark-making and so-called ‘scribble pictures’ and may develop to where realistic representation is the
main concern. A personal set of symbols (their own visual interpretations) will typically evolve for
familiar objects and figures, such as a person, a tree or a house. The development of a ‘scheme’
(schema) for expressing ideas may result and may be used in their story-telling. As they progress, it is
important to help them develop beyond symbols which are used with little variation. They should also
be encouraged to use drawing to plan their art activities, for example if the theme is to be carried out in
another medium. An understanding of the stages or patterns of development in children’s art is crucial
to the objective assessment of children’s visual expression, and to planning.

The Six-Strand Curriculum

The curriculum provides opportunities for activities that incorporate art, craft and design in two- and
three-dimensionalmedia, both in making activities and in responding to works of art, craft and design.
The two-dimensional media are drawing, painting and print, and they include collage. The three-
dimensional media are clay, construction and work in fabric and fibre, some of which have traditionally
been referred to as craft activities and are now further developed as a creative process. It is important
to maintain a balance between activities in two- and three-dimensional media to give children a real
sense of the three-dimensional nature of the world they live in as well as an imaginative capacity for
expressing it on a flat surface. Drawing has primary importance in this curriculum. It is through drawing
that children’s development in art is most evident. Because it is something most young children do
naturally, it is particularly important in promoting visual awareness and the ability to record what is
seen, felt or imagined. Drawing activities also help to develop a confident and expressive use of
materials and tools.
Evaluation

Create 3 kinds of any art and write down the process/procedures on making

Art 1

Name of the Art:

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

Art 2:

Name of the Art:

A.

B.

C.

D.

E.

Art 3:

Name of the Art:

A.

B.

C.

D.
Module 12

Making Art and Responding to Art

The curriculum places much emphasis on attentive looking, both in making art and in responding to art.
Art activities are structured to help children develop sensitivity to their visual surroundings and to art
works and to make connections between what they observe and their own work. Children’s developing
ability to observe closely and to interpret what they see is the basis for expression and design. They
need opportunities for close observation of the natural and living environments as well as opportunities
to see how artists, craftspeople and designers interpret them. They should have access to a variety of art
styles from different times and cultures as stimulus for their own art activities, as a way of making
comparisons between different interpretations of an idea or theme, or simply for the pleasure they give.
The emphasis should always be on art as inspiration, and not as something to copy.

Children are constantly bombarded with aggressive advertising images which are designed to deliver
their message in the shortest possible time. The deeper, subtler and more meaningful values that can be
appreciated in art, however, take more time. The teacher’s task is to help them to look at art works for a
longer period and with a more open attitude than they might otherwise have done. Openness to art
enables children to evaluate art works in a critical and personally meaningful way. Their attention span
and powers of concentration expand and deepen with continued exposure to a wide variety of art
works.

Preparation could include deciding on

• how much information to give on the artist’s life and methods

• at what point in the class to give this information

• compiling a list of questions based on the art work and designed to stimulate the children’s visual
faculties

• whether to follow up with a practical activity.

Craft

It is important that children are introduced to a wide range of craft processes to help develop sensitivity
to and appreciation of beauty, good taste and good workmanship. As well as being intensely enjoyable,
experiences in looking at and handling well-designed craft objects help to develop discrimination and a
critical faculty. Children should also become familiar with traditional Irish crafts, especially with living
local crafts: visits to local or regional craft workshops could well be among their most memorable
learning experiences. Experimental ways of working with craft materials should be explored.
Design

Design has a very important role to play in the primary curriculum, and can be defined as active
planning, inventing, making and relating parts to a whole in either two- or three-dimensional media. It is
not an isolated discipline but underlies every art and craft activity, whether the end in view is expressive
communication or the creation of a useful object.

Children make design-related decisions when, for example, they

• make decisions about the layout of their work

• enrich a surface with pattern and detail

• change a piece of fabric purposefully by removing from or adding to it, even in infant classes

• choose scraps of cloth or paper for a collage and make decisions about where to position them

• rework a sketch for use as a design in another medium, for example making changes to a drawing
from nature for use as a print

• plan to make something to their own design: trying to visualize it; making sketches and plans for it;
thinking about the materials they might use and how they might use them, for example a costume for
use in drama, or a working three-dimensional model

• plan to make a functional object in clay, for example, and make decisions about how its functional
demands might be met. It is in these contexts that design awareness has an important part to play in
primary school art.

Evaluation

A. How does design affect the arts?

______________________________________________________________________________
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________________________________________________________________________
B. What is your responds if one of your student shows a talent in art?
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
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