INTRODUCTION TO THIRD GRADE ART
FOUNDATIONAL SKILLS AND EXPECTATIONS
At this stage in life, our young artists are further developing their capabilities. They’ve mastered quite a few skills and techniques, they know how to use the elements of art effectively in their artwork, and they have enough knowledge of color theory to begin experimenting various techniques independently. In addition to the projects provided here, it is now time to focus on teaching principles of design. It is best to begin the school year with easy projects, then make them challenging as the year progresses, to help build the child’s self confidence. Introduce new ideas like perspective drawing, and encourage students to form a habit of sketching their ideas, feelings and thoughts in a sketchbook. Introduce the idea of doodling to develop mindfulness and express their emotions. This is a beautiful age to experiment with a variety of artistic styles from different cultural backgrounds around the world. You can choose to alternate structured lessons with student choice based art centers.
GRADE 3 ART PROJECT INDEX
| THEME | INSPIRATION | TECHNIQUE | ART CONCEPT | ART PROJECT |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wilāyah | “Indeed in the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the alternation of night and day, and the ships that sail at sea with profit to men, and the water that Allah sends down from the sky—with which He revives the earth after its death, and scatters therein every kind of animal—and the changing of the winds, and the clouds disposed between the sky and the earth, there are surely signs for a people who exercise their reason.” Noble Qurʾān (2:164) | Painting with watercolors | Tones, Texture(inspired by artist Jane Cabrera) | Allah’s Creation |
| Trust | "Because we know that Allah is the All-Wise, and He wants us to reach Heaven, we have to trust that whatever He asks us to do is for the purpose of helping us reach Heaven.”(Steps To Perfection, ʿAQĀʿID, Lesson 2.4: Allah is al-Ḥakīm) | Student Choice (coloring media) | Color Value, Directional Lines | Cupcake |
| Patience | “Ramaḍān burns sins and mistakes just like fire burns wood.”Prophet Muḥammad (ṣ) (Steps To Perfection, FIQH, Lesson 5.1: The Month of Ramaḍān) | Painting with tempera | Layered Landscape, Warm & Cool Colors | Campfire |
| Respect | “Establish ṣalāh, from the declining of the sun until the darkness of the night, and the morning recitation; surely the morning recitation is witnessed.” Noble Qurʾān (17:78)(Steps To Perfection, FIQH, Lesson 4.2: Timings of Ṣalāh) | Painting & foil printing | Silhouette, Geometric Shapes | Masjid |
| Justice | “Allah does not task any soul beyond its capacity. Whatever [good] it earns is to its own benefit, and whatever [evil] it incurs is to its own harm.” Noble Qurʾān (2:286)(Steps To Perfection, ʿAQĀʿID, Lesson 3.1: ʿAdālah) | Cartography | Organic Shapes | Island |
| Gratitude | “We bestowed wisdom on Luqman that he may be grateful to God. Whosoever is grateful is so for his own good, and whoever is ungrateful (should remember) that God is above all concern, worthy of praise.” Noble Qurʾān (31:12)(Steps To Perfection, ʿAQĀʿID, Lesson 2.5: Allah is ar-Rāziq) | Painting with Watercolors | Complementary Colors | Frog, Ant & Worm |
| Mercy | “He is the All-Gentle and All-Aware” Noble Qurʾān (67:14) (Steps To Perfection, ʿAQĀʿID, Lesson 2.3: Allah is al-Laṭīf) | Handbuilding with clay | Texture | Hens & Chicks |
LESSON PLAN STRUCTURE
Here’s a brief outline of the lesson structure. Please refer to the section in the main curriculum about the Studio Thinking Framework by Project Zero for more information.
| LESSON SEGMENT | EXPLANATION | VIEWER |
|---|---|---|
| THEME | This section mentions the name of the specific Root of Risers, on which the art lesson is based. | Students |
| ART PROJECT | This section shows the name of the art project as well as a sample image of the project. | Students |
| OBJECTIVES | There are usually three kinds of objectives we aim to achieve through teaching the art project - a spiritual objective, a technique/skill based objective and an art concept based objective. | Students |
| INSPIRATION | This section contains the Qur’anic verse, hadith or other spiritual content which inspires the creation of the art project. It is a literary branch of the main Roots of Risers theme. | Students |
| THE LESSON | This section elaborates on the inspiration verse. It discusses the spiritual dimension of the art project. | Students |
| THE ART CONCEPT | This section discusses the art skills, techniques and ideas that will be introduced to students in the art project. | Students |
| PROJECT PREPARATION | This section has four main components.It has a list of art materials needed for the project. It also has a ‘Background Prep’ section, with information on what the teacher needs to do before the lesson begins. It has an estimate of the time needed to work on each project.It also has suggestions for project modifications and adaptations for the benefit of all types of learners in the classroom. | Teacher and/or Students. Online students may need to see this slide. |
| CREATION PROCESS | This section shows the step by step process of project creation. It has sample images to guide students, as well as tips on modifications. Students should always be given a choice to add or subtract ideas in the creation process, and be encouraged to personalize their artwork to reflect their own ideas. | Students |
| PRESENTATION | This section is about students displaying and presenting their work. It also encourages students to provide positive and valuable feedback to their peers. | Students |
| REFLECTION | This section has been set up as a ‘circle time’ for the teacher to ask students questions about their projects, to review the art concepts and wrap up the lesson with a reference to the spiritual context of the lesson. The teacher may choose to revisit the inspiration verse at this time. | Students |
| HOLISTIC ASSESSMENT | This section has a guide to help assess each student holistically. It has pointers for formative assessments. Teachers may also use other types of assessments to grade students. Please refer to the ‘Sample Assessments’ section in the main curriculum. | Teacher |
| NCAS | This section mentions the National Core Arts Standards implemented in the lesson plan. | Teacher |
| INSPIRATION IMAGES | This section has a larger view of the images that were used as visual inspiration for the art project. | Students |