in Art Centers
Exploring Art Elements in Multicultural Units
Overview of Centers
Each art element is explored in choice centers.
Center themes based on art from each of the Olympic ﬂag’s
color continents (Africa, Asia, Europe, Americas, Australia).
Students ﬁll out a passport (ArtPort) as they complete each
I usually do the centers for two or three hours so students
can do at least three of the ﬁve choices.
Use of technology in centers:
iPODs and earphones, speakers
Discovery Education videos, images
Student produced podcasts Imported podcasts
iMovie/Frame student productions
SmartBoard interactive games, tools
Paint programs, online plus KidPix, Pixie
Looking at line as the basic art element
Discovery Education video segments
DVD on boom box
SmartBoard game quot;om online
Calligraphy symbols of the
Students review movies on
IPod before painting
daVinci as inventor
Game on SmartBoard
drawings by daVinci
Game found on internet
Museums have excellent
National Gallery of Art
has exceptional activities
Line designs starting at a center point
Use mirror feature in Pixie
Australia traditional painting
with dots, dotted lines
Three major units:
Musical instruments incorporating shapes in decoration and
structure Technology: iMovie production
Masks and animal sculptures: Taking shapes into a three-
dimensional form Technology: use Discovery Ed images
Circles in many cultures Technology: Kaleidoscope soware,
Travel to Italy and Venice: DE video segment
Wooden masks imitated in clay and plaster
SmartBoard Notebook 10
Map of Africa used to learn countries. Students then
matched mask images from DE to country.
Mask by Picasso
Hot/cold emotions based on African design
Paint from images found in DE collection as well as
photos from the DIA; live podcasts from the DIA
Masks from recycled supplies
These were used with Frames to make movies
1) Students created mask or puppet on
2) Students took at least four digital
photos, moving mouth, eye, brows
to show comment on background
3) Students used “Frames” green screen
to add audio, artwork
Where did the “paisley”
Study of paisley,
Shape to form
relationship explored in
Flowers and plants as
Color as the art
“All the Colors of the
Earth” DE video to
introduce color to
SmartBoard Notebook 10 presentation
on color used at one center
This podcast was shown on a large screen.
Students then watched the enhanced student feature on
VanGogh before painting their complementary landscape or sti' life in V Gogh’s style.
Some students then produced their own podcasts using step by step digital photos of their work.
Student enhanced podcasts about artists:
based on Art in Story by Marianne Saccardi
sounds as well as
Students narrate podcasts on complementary
colors as they paint like Van Gogh.
Exploring how artists use shadows
and light: DE video on science
Research artists: Student podcasts
Paint/draw in the style of the artist,
demonstrating understanding of use
of shadows and light
Dress up as an artist/character in a
painting to present ﬁndings
Creatures: Fur, Feathers, and Fins
Art Happenings: Artists
Christo and Jeanne-Claude
Bubbles, Enclosures, Mobiles
Angel Unit Inspired by
Students viewed PowerPoint on angels in
European art. They came up with questions
to be used in a Clicker Game the following
week, for review of concepts.
Artwork Angels in glue glass and
fabric dipped in thinned white glue
REcycled Art: Using junk,
100 ways to use a CDrom
Younger grades worked
in two or three centers.
Line deﬁned with leftover
beads, yarn and felt.
Shapes explored in “Snow
Globes” with CDs, felt, glitter,
Go to ArtSonia:
School to see lesson
plans and artwork
How do you keep track of it?
video clips and
A particular slide catching your eye?
Clipping is a handy way to collect important slides you want to go back to later.