Alison Wilcox 

2nd - 5th Grade 

Craft 
 
Big Idea
Craft 
 
Rationale
Craft is a type of art that has traditionally been viewed as not being as important 
or as impressive as traditional art forms. By teaching students about craft I hope 
to dispute this stigma and inspire them to try new artistic mediums within a TAB 
setting. I brought in craft from other cultures to showcase a variety of 
unfamiliar viewpoints and had the students reflect on how craft connects to 
their own world. 
 
Standards
5th Grade 
Standard 4 (Relate and Connect to Transfer) 
GLE 1 (Investigate and interpret how diverse communities address issues) 
EO b (Discuss how art reflects diverse social values and beliefs) 
 
4th Grade 
Standard 4 (Relate and Connect to Transfer) 
GLE 1 (Investigate and discuss how diverse communities address issues) 
EO c (Compare how artists work in different cultures and at different times) 
 
3rd Grade 
Standard 4 (Relate and Connect to Transfer) 
GLE 1 (Recognize how works of art communicate meaning within a community 
and between diverse cultures) 
EO b (Connect the meaning of personal works of art to historical, cultural or 
community events) 
 
2nd Grade 
Standard 4 (Relate and Connect to Transfer) 
GLE 1 (Observe and discuss how visual art and design are evident in the everyday 
life of communities) 
EO c (Investigate the role of art and design in our communities and world) 
 
Studio Habit of the Mind
Understand Art Worlds 
 
Enduring Understandings
➔ Craft is a part of everyday life across the world 
➔ Different types of craft can inspire artists 
➔ Different cultures make art that we can connect to 
 
Essential Questions
➔ Where do I see craft in my world? 
➔ Is craft important? Why? 
➔ What is craft? Is it different from art? 
➔ How does craft inspire me? 
➔ What type of craft do I want to learn about? 
 
Unit Goals
Students should be able to gain some understanding of craft and how it relates 
to their everyday life, as well as how it relates to other cultures in the world. 
Students should experiment with different types of craft or be inspired by new 
ideas brought up in the lessons. Students should be able to form connections to 
the concept of craft outside of class.

Objectives 
➔ The artist will learn about fabric dyeing and shibori techniques 
➔ The artist will learn about folk art and how painting relates to craft 
➔ The artist will learn about guardian statues around the world and how to 
apply texture to clay 
 
Pre and Post Assessment
For the pre-assessment students will be asked questions at the beginning of each 
class; this will help establish how much students know about the themes of this 
unit and if they are able to form connections yet. The post assessment will be 
based on student reflection responses at the end of the unit. Students will not 
have computers, due to state testing schedule, so their responses may be written 
or an artistic creation. I will be grading their responses based on individual 
growth, as well as if they performed a reflection or not. I will be assessing 
student’s ability to understand how craft relates to their life and to the world. I 
will utilize seesaw in order to track student work throughout this unit to help me 
grade students on their post assessment reflection. 
 
Content Integration
Technology​: students will need to track what they work on in class. Students may 
also utilize technology to help them research or access online resources. 
 
Social Studies​: students will learn about the craft of other cultures and how it 
relates to everyday life or history. 
 
English​: students may respond with written reflections. 
 
Outline of Lessons
1.) Week 1  
a.) Teacher will introduce the concept of craft, asking questions and 
discussing fabric dyeing techniques with students. The teacher will 
remind students of the studio habit “Understand Art Worlds”. 
b.) Students will create art, possibly exploring deeper into the concept 
of textile craft. Students will track what they work on in class and 
upload examples of their work online. 
2.) Week 2 
a.) Teacher will introduce the concept of folk art and ask questions and 
discuss painting crafts. The teacher will demo painting techniques 
without brushes. 
b.) Students will create art, possibly exploring deeper into the concept 
of folk art or painting craft. Students will track what they work on 
in class and upload examples of their work online. 
3.) Week 3 
a.) Teacher will discuss clay crafts, specifically different types of 
guardian statues from different cultures. The teacher will demo 
methods of adding texture to clay. 
b.) Students will create art, possibly exploring deeper into the concept 
of clay craft. Students will track what they work on in class and 
reflect on the post-assessment question “What is craft?”. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Post-Assessment Rubric 
 
  3  2  1   

Reflection  Student’s reflection  Student’s reflection  No   

shows evidence of  shows little or no  reflection 
questioning, forming  evidence of questioning,  was 
turned in 
connections, or being  forming connections, or 
inspired by the overall  being inspired by the 
concept of “craft”.  overall concept of 
There may still be some  “craft”. Reflection 
small misconceptions  response may be 
or oversimplified  oversimplified or 
thoughts, but the  difficult to understand.  
reflection response 
shows growth.