UNIT INSTRUCTION PLAN

utilizing the
MU Art Education Lesson Plan Format
Developed by Dr. Kathy Unrath

Name: Alison Caselman

TITLE OF UNIT: Play GRADE LEVEL (S): 6-8 Grade

NATIONAL VISUAL ARTS STANDARDS

(http://nationalartsstandards.org/sites/default/files/Visual%20Arts%20at%20a%20Glance%20-
%20new%20copyright%20info.pdf) :
VA:Cr1.1.7a VA:Cr1.1.8a
VA:Cr1.1.6a VA:Cr1.1.Ia
VA:Re.7.2.7a VA:Cr2.1.8a VA:Cr2.3.6a
VA:Cr1.2.6a VA:Cr3.1.7a VA:Re8.1.7a
VA:Cr2.1.Ia VA:Re.7.1.6a

NETS (http://www.iste.org/standards/standards/standards-for-students):
ISTE 1A ISTE 2D ISTE 5B
ISTE 1B ISTE 3D ISTE 6B
ISTE 2A ISTE 4 B ISTE 6C
ISTE 2B ISTE 4D ISTE 6D

RATIONALE and GOAL(S) FOR THIS UNIT:

For this quick unit, I am taking inspiration from Kathy Unrath and Daniel Pink to get my students to
start creating without having a set final product in mind. I believe this is important to teach because it
allows students to release the pressure of a final product and be able to focus on the specific task at
hand. This will also help students understand the meaning of pre-thinking and play throughout other
units in the upcoming quarter. Students that are able to open their minds to the possibilities of the
unknown outcomes rather than being stuck on a final image is what I hope to accomplish. They need
to allow the material to talk to them to figure out what might work better. This unit becomes
meaningful within the rest of the curriculum by being a stepping stone to help students keep an open
mind when thinking and creating their art.

ENDURING BIG IDEA:

PLAY is the big idea within this unit. Within this short unit, I ask students to collaborate with their
peers, parents, and/or friends to create a couple pieces of artwork. The artist looked at within this unit
is Nathalie Miebach and her weather data driven artworks.

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS:
What does it mean to create something that is visually interesting?
Why is it important that we not consider out in process/pre-thinking artwork precious?
When asked to collaborate with peers, what should happen first?
Why should you not always use your favorite medium/media to create all of your artwork?
What about PLAY allows your mind to be open to new ideas?
KNOWLEDGE BASE and KEY CONCEPTS:
Students will know:
How to work in small groups to collaborate on a project.
That color can be refracted onto white paper with light.
How to pick a medium that isnt their favorite and to work through the process of something
new.
How to pick a theme for their artwork
How to articulate their thoughts about the lesson through a blogs
How to turn in their images after they crop/edit them

OBJECTIVES:
Students will:
Create as many of their own 3D paper structures and then use those paper structures to form
a single structure.
Alter a peers structure to make it their own.
Collaborate together in small groups to take their new, altered structures to change and make
into on group structure.
Investigate how to get color onto their paper structures with flashlights, tissue paper,
construction paper, and other assorted items.
Photograph these investigations.
Create an artwork with a medium that they arent the most comfortable with.
Articulate their thoughts and actions they took within these projects through a blog/vlog
Turn in their images to blackboard to be assess
Will reply to peers to give a WOWIE and WHAT IF.

UNIT AND LESSON VIGNETTE:

Note: With online education there are no transitions to consider. Our agenda is set up weekly, so Ill
be breaking the unit plan into weeks so it is realistic and applicable for my current teaching situation. I
estimate students spending around 3-5 hours working on their art each week (45-60 minutes per
day). Each weeks structure will look similar because my students work better when they have a
routine that they have already become familiar with. Students are also allowed to work in an
alternative setting if they determine that it better fits their design and after communicating this to me.

Middle School
WEEK ONE
Try to complete all assignments by Friday.
Folder Read Watch Do
Week 1 Understanding
of Play

Week 1 Direction for Complete Getting to Know Each Other Discussion

Getting to Board
Know Each Comment to 3 peers post
Other

Middle School
WEEK TWO
Try to complete all assignments by Friday.

Folder Read Watch Do

Week 2 Basics of Take 30 minutes and sketch, draw, color,
Achieve or write what your hopes are for this class.
Onlines Art - Some things that could help you get started: Do you
feel like an artist? Why or why not? Are you happy to
Class be in this class? Why? If you aren't excited for this
Art Made of class, what could make it better? Why do you not
Storms want to be in this class? What is your favorite thing
to use to create art? Do you create in your free
time?
- This means you need to have more than 3 things on
a list. Really take the time to complete this. If it looks
like it lacks the full 30 minutes, points will be
removed
Week 2 Either watch Either:
this or be at
school to Follow directions during class(6th-8th grade
complete all together) and turn in your images and
project blog over the experience
Follow the directions in the videos and
complete questions and turn in your images.

Week 2 Helpful Links Play Project Turn in Play Project

Words with
play in them
Another
Website with
words containing
play

STUDENT ENGAGEMENT AND ADAPTATIONS FOR SPECIAL NEEDS:

 Differentiate Tools for My Diverse Classroom:
o Text to Speech apps for their readings
o Students using Speech to Text apps for their blogs
o Making sure the materials that students use fit their small and large motor abilities
o Allowing the students to create what has meaning to them and being open to the
unknown outcome.
Keeping Students Engaged:
o By allowing them to create artwork for personal reflection
o By making computer art lessons more hands on with less text to read
o By giving them the ability to make choices and problem solve for themselves.
Challenge Highly Talented Students:
o Ask them to try an unfamiliar medium
o Encourage them to continue to research the Big Idea and to dig deeper into the
content.
When Students Finish Early:
o One great thing about online education is student can finish early without needed busy
work to keep them from bothering others.
o They need to make sure to login each day for attendance
o Work on other work from previous units
o Work on other work from a different class

ASSESSMENT STRATEGIES:
With this class being online, it is hard to really get substantial formative assessments. I am
able to see what they are thinking and the steps students take by reading and responding to their
blogs. How the student receive points is if they hit the word count and stay on topic for their
discussion board writings and explanations of what they did that week and turned in their image(s). If
they do both of these tasks, 100% is awarded to the students.

Examples of Summative Assessment for this Unit:

When students complete the Play as Creative Research and Play Project, they will be graded
on if their project followed the objectives within in the videos and if their blog was on topic and met the
word count minimum.

EXEMPLARS:

My Exemplar
Student Examples:
RESOURCES AND LINKS PAGE

Link for Ted talk of Nathalie Miebach: http://www.ted.com/talks/nathalie_miebach

Links to videos created specifically for my class and students:

Understanding of play: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qpqsz_v7tUY
Basics of Achieve Onlines Art Class: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47UaYfSCJC0
Play Project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L94qMBcFIO0

Link to my video adapted from Play as Creative Research:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mjuKVFl9CJU

Links for students to help see what words have play in them:
http://www.morewords.com/contains/play/
http://www.wordfind.com/contains/play/