Dare to Dream

Big Idea: Dreams & Nightmares

21st Art Education Approaches:
● Meaning-Making
● Psychological Safety

By: Corrine Delaney, Julie Jenkins, Sarah Marie Ramirez,

and Tatiana Washington
Lesson Overview
● Grade Level: 3rd
● Artists will investigate the difference between dreams and
nightmares by discussing, analyzing, and expressing these
experiences through our studio investigation. Our studio will cover
the difference between dreams and nightmares through learning
vocabulary and participating in discussions with peers. Students will
complete a dream journal that includes a written and painted
representation of a dream or nightmare they have had.
Lesson Objectives & Assessments
1. Content area 2 Literacy : The students will (TSW) be able to write a journal
entry about a dream or nightmare they have had.
● After reading the article we chose, students should have a better
understanding of what it means to write about something personal in a
journal format. Students will also learn how to connect two different
mediums (writing and painting). Students will complete their own journal
entry before the studio addressing a dream or nightmare they had. Students
will write 4-5 sentences where they explain in detail a dream or nightmare,
and how they either felt about the dream or nightmare or how they
overcame the dream or nightmare. The writing sample will be collected with
the studio, which teachers can access for understanding.
Lesson Objectives & Assessments Continued
2. Content area 1 Visual Art: The students will (TSW) be able to express their
dream or nightmare through painting and creating their own work of dream art.
3. Content area 3 Science: The students will (TSW) be able to understand that
dreams are apart of our everyday life and that dreaming occurs during REM
sleep.
● Students will complete the studio addressing a dream or nightmare they
have had. The teacher will walk around during studio time asking students
about their artwork. This will allow the teacher to assess whether or not the
student is addressing the key concepts of the studio.
Vocabulary
1. Daydreams
○ “A series of pleasant thoughts that distract one's attention from the present” (Oxford
University Press, 2018).
2. Dreams
○ “A series of thoughts, images, and sensations occurring in a person's mind during sleep”
(Oxford University Press, 2018).
3. Aspirations
○ “A hope or ambition of achieving something” (Oxford University Press, 2018).
4. Nightmares
○ “A frightening or unpleasant dream” (Oxford University Press, 2018).
5. REM Sleep
○ “A kind of sleep that occurs at intervals during the night and is characterized by rapid eye
movements, more dreaming and bodily movement, and faster pulse and breathing” (Oxford
University Press, 2018).
Essential Questions
1. What causes dreams and nightmares?
2. How do young learners achieve their dreams?
3. How do young learners overcome, work through or avoid
dreams and/or nightmares?
4. How do young learners make their dreams come true?
5. When do dreams and nightmares occur and why?
Inspiration Artist:
Salvador Dali

Have no fear of perfection - you'll

never reach it.
- Salvador Dali
More Salvador Dali
● Salvador Dali was born on May 11,
1904 in Figueres, Spain.
● He took a ton of influence from
Picasso, Magritte and Miro, which
later inspired his first and most
well-known painting “The
Persistence of Memory”.
● He quickly became one of the most
influential surrealist artists and
much later in life, passed at the age
of 84.
● He has numerous museums
dedicated to his work, in fact the
largest on the west coast is located in
Monterey, CA.

“Salvador Dalí.” Biography.com, A&E

Networks Television, 27 Oct. 2017,
www.biography.com/people/salvador-dal-
40389.
Dream Journal
1. Reflect on a dream, nightmare or goal that you have
2. Write 4-5 complete sentences where you describe in detail
the dream, nightmare or goal you had. Mention how it
made you feel, what you saw, if this was a reoccuring
dream/nightmare, etc.
Studio Instructions
1. Begin by sketching your dream or nightmare lightly with a pencil on the
paper provided on each table.
2. Once your sketch is complete, two members from each table group will grab
paint brushes/Q-Tips, put water in their cups, grab paper towels and get
small amounts of acrylic paint for them and their partner.
a. Make sure to only grab a small amount of paint at first, so artists don’t
waste any materials.
3. Now artists will begin painting their dream or nightmare using techniques
shown during the demonstration (using colors to show mood, using different
sized brushes depending on the line thickness, and using Q-Tips to add
texture).
Materials
● Paper
● Water Cups
● Paint Trays
● Paint Brushes
● Q-Tips
● Acrylic Paint - various colors
● Paper Towels
“A Star, a Wish, and Three things I Learned” Worksheet
A star: something you liked about this studio

A wish: something you wish was different with this studio

Three things I learned: about dreams/nightmares, goals,

Salvador Dali, or painting techniques
References
Lynn Sanders-Bustle (2008) Visual Artifact Journals as Creative and Critical
Springboards for Meaning Making, Art Education, 61:3, 8-14

Oxford University Press, (2018). The World's Most Trusted Dictionary Provider.
Retrieved April 13, 2018, from https://www.oxforddictionaries.com/

“Salvador Dalí.” Biography.com, A&E Networks Television, 27 Oct. 2017,

www.biography.com/people/salvador-dal-40389.