Sarah Worth

 

Lesson Plan

 

Title:  Visual Culture Collage

 

Grade Level:  Middle School

Unit Content:  Visual Culture/Pop Culture

 

Class time 50/90 minutes: ­­__50___ Number of class periods: ­­__2___

 

Michigan Content Standards: (II and III) All students will apply skills and knowledge to create in the arts.  All students will analyze, describe and evaluate works of art.

Objectives/Outcomes:

1.  Select materials, techniques, and processes to effectively communicate ideas.

2.  Use subjects, themes, and symbols that communicate intended meaning in the artworks.

3.  Describe and compare the characteristics of personal artwork to the artwork of others.

4.  Describe how personal experiences influence the development of specific artworks.

National Standards:  Understanding the visual arts in relation to history and cultures.

 

Prior skills and prior learning:  Students will learn the meanings of Visual Culture and Pop Culture.

 

Materials needed:

  • Magazines (cut-outs)
  • Newspaper clippings
  • Photographs
  • Collected objects that represent Visual/Pop Culture
  • Poster board (9” X 12”)
  • Scissors
  • Glue
  • Markers

           

Teacher Preparation:  As a class, we will discuss what Visual/Pop Culture is and present examples.  We will discuss how images in culture make us feel, and whether or not there are certain “themes” found in Visual Culture (sex, food, politics, etc.)

 

 

 

Vocabulary concepts:

  • Visual Culture
  • Pop Culture
  • Icon
  • Mass Media

 

Visuals and resources:

  • Popular Magazines
  • Newspapers (current and dated)
  • Pop culture prints (Andy Warhol)

 

 

Procedures for the classroom:  The class will be notified approximately a week before the assignment begins so that they have time to research and gather materials for their collage.

 

Setting the stage:  As a class, we will look at and discuss examples of collages that deal with Visual/Pop Culture.

 

Demonstration of techniques or processes:  As a class, we will discuss how to create an aesthetically pleasing collage.  We will discuss the use of overlapping, mixed media, positive/negative space, etc.

 

 

Instructions to students:  Gather materials to use in your collage, such as magazine cut-outs, newspaper clippings, photographs, drawings, cartoons, or objects that represent pop culture.  It would be a good idea to keep materials in an envelope so that they don’t get lost.  Arrange them on the poster board and glue them in place. Write a short explanation of why you chose the items in your collage and what this collage tells us about Visual/Pop Culture in the United States.

 

Time to work:  Students will work on their collages for one 50 minute class period.  At the end of the class, we will decide if the students need another 50 minute class to finish, or just the first half of the next class. 

 

Clean up:  After each class, students will return their materials to their envelopes and put glue and scissors back in the proper place.  All glue will be wiped from the tables and the collages will be collected and put on a drying rack.

 

Closure:  Depending on when the class finishes their collages, we will spend either a full class period or half of it displaying the finished artworks and discussing them in a critique format.