Third Grade Art begins in September with a review of the six elements
of art (Lesson 1). Students are invited to recall and apply information
they have learned in earlier grades regarding color, line, shape, light,
texture and space. Students are asked to complete a sampler containing
examples of the elements and through this exercise begin to recognize themselves
as artists. They are further encouraged to explore the world around them
and respond to it in their own artistic ways.
Three lessons exploring Native American art follow. Lesson 2 looks
at Navajo Sand Painting and Rugs, Lesson 3 is about Kachina Dolls and Lesson
4 investigates Masks. A number of the six elements of art are referenced
in each lesson and symmetry and pattern are reviewed as well. Students
participate in these lessons by doing as well as looking.
The challenge in presenting these lessons will be in finding the examples
of Native American art to present to the students. It is essential that
the students be able to see the art in order to respond to it both as observers
and artists. It is hoped that the Suggested Books and websites will provide
a sufficient list of resources.
Third Grade - Visual Arts - Lesson 1 - Introduction
Objectives
Recall elements of art: color, texture, shape, line, space, light.
Recognize self as an artist.
Materials
Art objects (drawings, paintings, sculpture, mobiles, stained glass,
masks, weaving, quilts, masks, collages) and photographs of murals, cave
paintings, architecture
Crayons, manila paper (each student may work with one 9x12" sheet of
paper folded into six sections or six separate sheets of paper)
Suggested Books
Collins, Pat Lowery. I am an Artist. Brookfield, CT: Millbrook
Press, 1992.
An artist tells of finding beauty in nature, includes all the elements
of art.
Heller, Ruth. A Cache of Jewels and other collective nouns.
New York: Grosset and Dunlap, 1987. Colorful drawings appropriate
for discussion of line, color, shape, space, texture, and light.
Line and Shape
Ehlert, Lois. Color Zoo. New York: Lippincott, 1989.
Vibrant colors and shapes.
Hoban, Tana. Spirals, Curves, Fanshapes & Lines. New York:
Greenwillow Books, 1992.
Photographs that reinforce the concept of spirals, curves, fanshapes
and lines within the city.
MacAgy, Douglas and Elizabeth. Going for a Walk with a Line...a
Step into the World of Modern Art. New York: Doubleday & Co., 1959.
Interesting opportunity to view lines and shapes within modern art.
Yenawine, Philip. Shapes. The Museum of Modern Art, New York:
Delacorte Press, 1991.
Discusses shapes as they are incorporated in art works. Useful with
mosaics, pointillism.
Color
Jonas, Ann. Color Dance. New York: Greenwillow Books, 1989.
Beautiful illustrations of how primary colors mix to make secondary
colors
Spinelli, Eileen. If You Want to Find Golden. Morton Grove:
Albert Whitman & Co.,1993.
Colors are viewed throughout the city. Colorful paintings enhance text.
Westray, Kathleen. A Color Sampler. New York, Ticknor &
Fields, 1993.
Patchwork patterns are used to show how colors recede and advance.
Yenawine, Philip. Colors. The Museum of Modern Art, New York:
Delacorte Press, 1991.
Discusses how color contributes to art by conveying the feelings and
thoughts of the artist.
Texture
Bunting, Eve. Smoky Night. New York: Harcourt Brace & Co.,
1994.
Collages by David Diaz make stunning visual statements.
Seidelman, James E. The Rub Book. New York: Macmillan, 1968.
Good reference for techniques for doing rubbings.
Teacher Background
This lesson is intended as a review of the elements of art learned
in the earlier grades. In order to foster the student's recognition of
self as artist this lesson is presented with a hands-on activity. Students
are asked to draw something representative of each of the elements rather
than simply review and define them. The Suggested Books provide photographs
and illustrations of the elements referenced in this lesson.
Provide a variety of artworks for this lesson. If you are limited to
photographs and reproductions in books try to show as many different examples
as possible. Obviously the genuine item (statue, mobile, mask, weaving,
etc.) is most desirable, however a book with striking illustrations (Ruth
Heller's are great) is preferable to no example.
Teacher Note: In the procedure, directions are given for one
sheet of paper folded into six sections. If you wish to have your students
use a separate sheet for each element, simply direct them in this way.
Also, you may wish to have the students print the name of the element illustrated
within each box, or at the bottom of each of the sheets.
Procedure
Write the words Elements of Art on the chalk board or on chart
paper and tell the students that they will be your focus today. Remind
the students that there are six elements and ask the students to recall
as many of the elements as they can. Write their responses on the board
under the heading making sure that the list includes color, light, line,
shape, space and texture.
Ask the students to think of all the different categories of art they
have studied. Remind them that drawings, paintings, sculpture, mobiles,
stained glass, masks, weavings, quilts, murals, collages, cave paintings
and architecture can all be included. If you wish, challenge the students
to name as many as they can and list these on the board. Display examples
from as many different categories as possible and encourage the students
to recall the artworks introduced in previous grades.
Tell the students to think about how all the different categories of
art contain the elements that you have listed above. Remind the students
that while the pieces of artwork can be very different: some are two-dimensional
and some are three-dimensional; some are large and some are small; some
are simple and some are very complicated, they all share the same six elements
of art.
Give each student a sheet of manila paper (or 6 sheets, using one for
each element) and direct them to fold the paper in half lengthwise and
then in thirds, to form six equal sections. Then tell the students to again
look at the list of elements. Begin with color. (You may wish to write
a brief description next to each element or draw examples.)
Color - Ask the students to tell what they know about color.
They should be able to recall there are 3 primary colors: red, yellow,
blue; which when combined (2 at a time) produce the secondary colors: green,
orange, purple. Brown is made by mixing all the colors together. Black
and white when mixed with a color, darken it or lighten it respectively.
The warm colors are the reds, oranges and yellows; the cool colors are
the blues, greens and purples.
Have the students hold their papers vertically and beginning in the
upper left box draw a triangle very lightly with their pencils. At the
triangle's top point have them color a red ball, on the right point a blue
ball, and on the left point a yellow ball. On the center of the line between
the red and blue balls have them color a purple ball, on the center of
the line between the blue and yellow balls have them color a green ball,
and on the center of the line between the yellow and the red balls color
an orange ball. You may wish to have them join the secondary colors with
lines to form a triangle that is the reverse of the first.
Light - Ask the students to tell why light is such an important
element (without it we cannot see any of the other elements). Light can
be natural (sun) or artificial (electric light, candlelight). Light can
make things look very sharp, or very soft. Remind students how different
our surroundings look in the light of midday compared to early evening.
Tell them to think about how different an object can look when light is
projected on it from above, below, in front, or behind. In a painting,
lighter colors appear to come forward, while darker colors recede. Light
puts shadows in our world and our art. Remind students that a picture can
look bright and cheery or dark and gloomy or scary.
In the upper right box have the students draw an umbrella, telling
them to either make a sunny beach umbrella or a dark stormy-day umbrella.
Remind them to be sure to show the sun or rain and to use colors that are
warm and sunny or cool and dark.
Line - Remind the students that a line is formed by movement.
A dot moves and leaves a line. A line can be straight, wavy, zig-zag, curved,
angular, thick, thin, solid, or broken. Lines can be diagonal, vertical,
horizontal or spiral. Point to lines in the classroom, ask for voluteers
to assist you. Have the students think of other places they have seen lines
(on roads and highways, on sports fields, as fenceposts, as columns on
porches). Discuss how bold straight lines in a picture cause the viewer
very different feelings from those caused by gentle curving lines.
Tell the students to choose one crayon and use it to draw several lines
in the center left box. Encourage them to draw several different kinds
of lines and to vary their width and intensity.
Shape - Point to several shapes in the room. By tracing around
one show that a shape is a line enclosing a particular space. Have the
students recall that shapes can be geometric or free-form and they may
be two- or three-dimensional. Ask students to name some shapes or come
to the board and draw a shape. Point out that shapes may stand alone or
overlap. Shapes can give us the feeling of movement (circles) or of something
not easily moved (a pyramid). The way that shapes are organized can make
them appear balanced or about to topple.
Have the students draw a shape (or several) in the center right box.
You may want to let the students use a different color for each shape.
Suggest that they try both geometric and free-form.
Space - Show the students two distinctly different sized objects.
Ask them to tell which takes up more space. Point out that space has no
limits. It extends in all directions. We consider space when we decide
what size to make a work of art and we consider space when we decide where
to display the work. Within an artwork we consider the space we use (positive)
and the space we do not (negative). In a picture we can place objects so
that they appear very close or very far away. Ask the students to recall
some of the largest artworks they have seen. They may recall a mural or
a sculpture. What do they recall as the smallest? Do they recall scrimshaw?
In the lower left box ask the students to draw a shape that takes up
most of the space and within it draw an object that takes up very little
space.
Texture - Name a variety of textures and ask students to give
an example of each (smooth, slimy, fuzzy, rough, bumpy, prickly, etc.)
or you may wish to show an item and ask the students to identify the texture.
Remind the students that when we touch something we feel its texture. Sometimes
a rubbing can be done that shows the texture of an item. Suggest that a
sculptor may add bits of material to a sculpture just as a weaver might
add beads and feathers within a weaving. An artist making a collage often
takes items with many different textures and combines them (Smoky Night
has great collages.).
Ask students to think about how an artist shows texture in a painting
or drawing. The artist may show the scales on a fish by overlapping lines;
an animal's fur may be made by using light gentle strokes, and rocks may
be made with dabs of paint put on with a palette knife.
In the lower right box ask the students to draw something to show texture.
Suggest that they might show waves or fish scales, snake-skin, tree bark,
net, a field of grass bending with the wind.
Conclude the lesson by reading the book I Am an Artist to the
class. Tell the students to look for examples of all the elements of art
mentioned in the book. If you are unable to obtain the book tell the students
the book says that artists are simply people who find the "stuff of art"
in everyday life. The author of the book, Pat Collins says for her it happens
when she follows a line, or makes a collection of objects, or sees a rainbow
in a drop of water or feels the difference between something smooth and
something rough.
Walk around the classroom touching various things and telling the studentswhat
you are doing that makes you an artist. For example, I am an artist
when I see the smooth surface of a desk top, I am an artist when I feel
the cylindrical shape of a stick of chalk in my hand and roll it over my
palm. I am an artist when I feel the warm sunlight coming through the window
and hear children's voices on the playground.
Ask for student volunteers to do the same. Encourage the students to
look around the classroom at the things they see daily. Tell them to try
to really notice colors (when I see bright blue shirts), lines (when I
run my hand over the curves of my chair), textures (when I bump into the
rough concrete wall), shapes (when I notice that the chalkboard and my
desk top are both rectangles), space (when I look up at the ceiling and
it seems so far away, or hear voices that are far away) and light (when
I watch the afternoon shadows make the room seem gloomy compared to the
way it looks when the sun is shining in). Ask them to think what it is
about each of these observations that helps make them artists.
You may wish to have the students write about the things that make
them feel like artists. They may give examples for all six elements or
only one or two. Reinforce the concept that each person is an artist in
his or her own way. Some of us use color well, some of us can draw well,
some of us put things together in interesting ways, some of us see shapes
in clouds that no one else can see.
Tell the students that throughout this year they will look at artworks
and think about what the artists were doing and how they were able to show
us what they were thinking and feeling. They will also have many opportunities
to produce their own works of art.
Third Grade - Visual Arts - Lesson 2 - Navajo Sand Painting and Rugs
Objectives
Recognize patterns and symmetry in the rugs.
Identify symbols used in sand painting.
Make a simple weaving limited to four colors (optional).
Make a sand painting (optional).
Design a geometric pattern.
Materials
Photographs and illustrations of Navajo sand painting and weaving from
the Suggested Books
Grid containing a variety of shapes and designs (attached, for transparency)
Blank grid for student activity (attached)
See specific craft activity for materials needed
Suggested Books
The following books include photographs:
Bancroft-Hunt, Norman. North American Indians. Philadelphia:
Courage, 1992.
Photographs and illustrations show the people and their art. Striking
full-page photographs of masks, blankets, pottery, jewelry and other artifacts
are included.
Ciment, James and Ronald LaFrance. Scholastic Encyclopedia of the
North American Indian. New York: Scholastic, 1996. Excellent source
for information on Native American tribes. Photographs and illustrations
are included, but there is no color.
Doherty, Craig A. and Katherine. The Apaches and the Navajos.
New York: Franklin Watts, 1989. Great photographs of sand paintings and
weaving.
Glubok, Shirley. The Art of the Southwest Indians. New York:
Macmillan, 1971.
Striking black-and-white photographs of Navajo sand paintings and rugs,
kachina masks and dolls are interspersed with simple informative text.
Wonderful color photographs on the cover of a kachina and a rug.
Haslam, Andrew and Alexandra Parsons. Make it Work! North American
Indians. New York: Thomson Learning, 1995.
Craft book written for student use. Photographs of people and artifacts
are interspersed with how-to crafts. Good picture of a weaving frame included.
Murdoch, David. North American Indian. New York: Alfred A. Knopf,
1995.
This Eyewitness Book contains a wonderful full-color photograph of
a Navajo blanket on a loom.
Thomson, Peggy. Katie Henio: Navajo Sheepherder. New York: Cobblehill
Books, 1995. Excellent resource, photographs show sheep shearing, carding
combs, spindle, loom and weaving patterns.
Yenne, Bill. The Encyclopedia of North American Indian Tribes: A
Comprehensive Study of Tribes from the Abitibi to the Zuni. London:
Bison Books, 1986.
Oversize book that contains wonderful photographs of Navajo looms and
rugs, kachina dolls and masks from many different tribes.
The following books include illustrations:
Cohlene, Terri, written and adapted by. Turquoise Boy: A Navajo
Legend. New York: Watermill Press, 1990.
Illustrations show a loom, the symbols used in artwork and sand painting.
Photographs included in section that gives factual information on the Navajo,
show a loom, a blanket, sand painting and masks.
Cohn, Amy L., compiled by. From Sea to Shining Sea: A Treasury of
American Folklore and Folk Songs. New York: Scholastic, 1993. Wonderful
illustrations on pp. 24-25 in the style of sand paintings.
Duncan, Lois, retold by. The Magic of Spider Woman. New York:
Scholastic, 1996.
Navajo story of a girl who learns to keep her life in balance. Explains
the pathway created in Navajo weaving.
Grossman, Virginia and Sylvia Long. Ten Little Rabbits. San
Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1991.
Beautiful illustrations, ten different tribes are represented in this
counting book. The final pages of the book show illustrations of weaving
patterns.
Sneve, Virginia Driving Hawk. Dancing Teepees: Poems of American
Indian Youth. New York: Scholastic, 1989.
Collection of poems with beautiful illustrations by Stephen Gammell;
sand painting and rugs represented.
Teacher Resources
Baer, Gene. Paste, Pencils, Scissors and Crayons. West Nyack,
NY: Parker, 1977.
Excellent resource. Easy-to-follow instructions with simple line drawings.
Hoven, Leigh. Native Americans Thematic Unit. Huntington Beach,
CA: Teacher Created Materials, 1990. Contains several art projects including
step-by-step directions for
weaving on a box loom; reproducible pages included.
Kennedy, Paul E. North American Indian Design Coloring Book.
New York: Dover, 1971. Beautiful collection of drawings suitable for coloring.
Scholastic Integrated Theme Units "Native Americans" includes worksheets
on sand painting and colors that come from nature.
Websites that provide additional information and graphics
http://hanksville.phast.umass.edu/misc/NAresources.html - Every
aspect of Native American life is available through this site.
http://www.MesaVerde.org - Mesa Verde museum
Teacher Background
In order for students to truly appreciate the art of the Navajo it
is necessary for them to view Navajo artifacts. If you are unable to find
the Suggested Books that contain photographs, use the books with illustrations.
Consider also the books you select to complement the literature and history
lessons for this month. You may find Navajo listings under the name Dine
(dih-NEE) which means "the people" and is the name that they have always
called themselves.
As you introduce your students to the artwork of the Navajo be sure
to help them understand that the weaving, sand painting, kachina dolls
and masks you will study this month are (or were) used by the Native Americans
who made them. These items are (were) functional and are (were) used in
religious ceremonies as well as everyday life.
Copies of many Native American art objects are commercially mass produced
today. Be sure that the students are not confused into thinking that they
are the same. Explain that they are
based on designs taken from objects that were used in very special
ways. Also tell the students that Native Americans do make and sell some
artworks today but these are not items that are used in religious ceremonies.
Because this lesson is lengthy it is divided so that parts of the lesson
may be done independently. Choose only the student art projects you wish,
but show pictures of the Navajo rugs and sand paintings and explain the
background information.
Procedure
Navajo Weaving
Display pictures of Navajo rugs. Tell the students to look closely
at the pictures and think about how the elements of art are present. Have
volunteers recall the six elements (color, line, shape, texture, space,
light).
Take a few moments to allow the students to comment while you show
the pictures. Tell the students the Navajo first learned the skill of weaving
from Pueblo weavers. Only men did the weaving in the Pueblo society. In
Navajo society weaving is usually done by women. The weaver is responsible
for all parts of the process from shearing the sheep to carding (a process
which draws out the individual hairs) and spinning the wool to the actual
weaving. This process takes about 400 hours to complete a rug of 3 feet
by 5 feet. Designs that are used have been memorized and passed down within
families.
Explain that a rug may be regular weave, which has the same pattern
on both sides; double weave or twill, which has a design on one side and
the reversed pattern on the other side; or double-sided, which has different
patterns on each side. Ask the students which weave they think takes the
longest (double-sided).
Tell the students that if they could carefully examine a weaving they
would find one tiny mistake. That is because the Navajo believe that the
inner spirit of the weaver goes into the work. If the work was perfect
when completed, life would end because the spirit would be enclosed forever.
(You may wish to read The Magic of Spiderwoman at this time.)
Have the students look at the colors that are used in the weaving.
A variety of colors are achieved by using plants to dye the wool. The earliest
Navajo rugs contained only the colors brown, black, gray and white--the
natural colors of sheep. Red is favored in many rugs made later and the
colors black, yellow and white are combined with it. Dyeing the wool adds
another step in the lengthy weaving process. Using an upright loom, the
weaving is done by hand and is slow and difficult.
Write the words pattern and symmetry on the board. Ask
the students to identify the shapes that they see in a weaving. They should
notice that the shapes are geometric (in most cases) and may have been
repeated to make a pattern. A design is created when the shapes are woven
into the rug. Students should also notice the symmetry of the design. (A
design has symmetry if when folded down the center both halves match exactly.)
The students may recognize stripes, zig-zags, and diamonds within a
design. Use a transparency of the grid containing shapes and patterns.
Demonstrate that each of the shapes is geometric and symmetrical, and if
you wish, also show that it is possible to draw diagonal lines and make
arrow shapes as well. It may be helpful to have the students count the
number of blocks that make up a particular shape to see if they can develop
any theories about the number of blocks and the symmetry.
Distribute copies of the blank grid to the students. Tell them to try
making a shape that is
geometric and symmetrical. Be sure they recognize that a continuous
design (like the final one on the grid) is also symmetrical.
Third Grade - Visual Arts - Lesson 2 - Navajo Sand Painting and Rugs
Weaving
Materials
Red, black, white and yellow 9x12" construction paper (1 sheet each
color per student)
Ruler, scissors
Glue or tape
Tell the students that they will now get to try their hand at weaving.
Explain that they will all be using the same four colors, but it is possible
for their weavings to look very different and you will show them how. Tell
them that the order of colors used will make a difference, as will the
series in which they weave each color.
Have the students first select one color to be the warp of their weaving.
Explain that the long threads make up the warp and on a Navajo loom the
warp is one continuous piece. Because you are using paper to do your weaving,
the framing piece of paper will form your warp.
Have the students do the following:
1. Using the ruler draw a line as wide as the ruler is wide along one
of the short edges of the paper.
2. Fold the paper in half width-wise so the pencil line shows.
3. Draw a series of lines perpendicular to the first line, making each
one as wide as the ruler is wide.
4. Cut on the perpendicular lines, and when the paper is opened the
warp is formed.
Tell the students that the short threads (or strips of paper) are called
the weft. The weft will be made from the three colors of paper that remain.
1. Draw width-wise lines as wide as the ruler is wide on each of the
remaining pieces of paper.
2. Cut on these lines to form strips.
The weaving process takes place by taking the weft (the strips) in
and out the warp. The design may be varied by going over (or under) two
(or more) of the lines of the warp. Of course the design may also be varied
by the order and quantity of the colors of the weft. Remind the students
that they must use all four colors, but the combination is totally up to
them. When the weavings are completed you may wish to have the students
glue or staple the ends of the weft to the warp.
Navajo Sand painting
Sand paintings are created in the home of a sick person by a medicine
man or woman. Prayers or chants are spoken as the sand is poured. The sand
painting is considered to be sacred and its design contains the gods and
heroes whose help is requested. As in the weaving, some small mistake is
included. This imperfection insures that the gods are not offended.
There are over 400 designs used in this ritual. Corn pollen, charcoal
and colored powdered stones are all used to create the design. The painting
is destroyed by sunset of the day it is begun, or if begun at night, it
is destroyed before sunrise. As part of the ceremony, after prayers have
been said, the sand is rubbed on the body of the patient. Each person present
at the ceremony takes a pinch of the colored sand.
Sand paintings can be as small as 12 inches across, or as large as
20 feet. The top of the painting always faces east, because this is the
direction it is believed the gods come from. The designs are very intricate
and usually include symbols of nature like the clouds, sun, moon, stars,
lightning, rainbows, mountains, plants and animals. Together with the picture
of the god or hero they are considered to be very powerful.
As you display photographs or drawings of sand paintings have the students
consider the colors that are used and the design. Do they notice anything
about symmetry in a particular design? Are there particular symbols that
they recognize? Are the lines straight with geometric shapes, or rounded
with freeform shapes? If you are able to obtain a photograph of a sand
painting being made, ask the students if they notice any particular tools
being used or is the painting done by hand (by hand).
You may wish to give your students the opportunity to experience sand
painting. This can be achieved by simply having them try pouring sand to
make a design or systematically adding sand onto specific areas of a paper
where glue has been applied.
Caution the students to outline a very simple design that requires
no more than two or three colors. An area that has sand applied needs to
be completely dry before another area is begun. Remind the students that
their attempts are not to be confused with true Native American sand painting.
This is done as a specific part of a healing ceremony and not simply as
an art activity.
Materials
Sand in three different colors (commercially available, or follow directions
below)
Glue
White paper
Directions for coloring sand
Fill lidded jars with clean sand and add several drops of food coloring
to each. Screw the lids on tightly and shake to distribute the color.
Organize an area where the sand painting can be done with a minimum
of clean-up. Cover the desks with newspaper (or a protective cloth) and
provide shallow lids (one for each color used) large enough to contain
the white art paper.
A student should bring the design paper with glue already applied and
place the paper inside a lid. A single color of sand should be applied
(by gently pouring) to the paper and the excess sand should be gently shaken
off into the lid. Caution students to not use large amounts of glue or
the excess sand will become contaminated easily. The excess sand should
be able to be easily poured out of the lid back into the container
Tell the students do the following:
1. Draw a very simple design on the paper. Remind them that areas should
be open so that the sand may be poured into them easily.
2. Apply glue in one area and pour one color sand on this area.
3. Allow the glue to dry completely before applying more glue and another
color sand.
4. Repeat the process until the painting is completed.
The shapes above are geometric and symmetrical. Each one may be folded
in half to form two identical halves (row 2 needs to be folded top to bottom).
You may also wish to show students that diagonals may be drawn across the
boxes so that arrow shapes may be made as well.
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Third Grade - Visual Arts - Lesson 3 - Kachina Dolls
Objectives
Recognize the use of the kachina dolls in Native American education.
Identify the colors and symbols frequently used on the kachinas.
Draw symbols frequently used on kachinas (optional).
Materials
Drawing paper
Crayons or markers
Kachina symbols sheet (attached) for transparency
Suggested Books
Bancroft-Hunt, Norman. North American Indians. Philadelphia:
Courage, 1992.
Photographs and illustrations show the people and their art. Striking
full-page photographs of masks, blankets, pottery, jewelry and other artifacts.
Behrens, June. Powwow. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1983.
Wonderful color photographs of kachina dolls.
Glubok, Shirley. The Art of the Southwest Indians. New York:
Macmillan, 1971.
Wonderful black and white photographs of masks, rugs, baskets, kachina
dolls and weaving, the pictures re sharp and detail is easy to see.
Hanauer, Elsie V. Dolls of the Indians: A Book of Kachina Effigies.
New York: A. S. Barnes and Co., 1970.
Complete information on kachina spirits, dolls and masks; black and
white illustrations.
Haslam, Andrew and Alexandra Parsons. Make it Work! North American
Indians. New York: Thomson Learning, 1995.
Craft book written for student use. Photographs of people and artifacts
are interspersed with how-to crafts.
Murdoch, David. North American Indian. New York: Alfred A. Knopf,
1995.
This Eyewitness Book contains wonderful full-color photographs of kachina
dolls.
Yenne, Bill. The Encyclopedia of North American Indian Tribes: A
Comprehensive Study of Tribes from the Abitibi to the Zuni. London:
Bison Books, 1986. (0-86124-271-8) Oversize book that contains wonderful
photographs of Navajo looms and rugs, kachina dolls and masks from many
different tribes.
Teacher Resource
Kennedy, Paul E. North American Indian Design Coloring Book.
New York: Dover, 1971. Beautiful collection of drawings suitable for coloring.
Teacher Background
Kachina means "spirit father." The kachinas are spirits who guided
people from a previous underground, leading them through a hollow reed
high up into the mountains. Students may recognize this as the "spirit
hole" in pictures of Pueblo dwellings. They taught ceremonies and gave
everything to their people that was needed to sustain life. They promised
to return for part of the year to help in a number of ways such as planting
crops, dancing for relief from a drought, or decision making.
Kachina dolls are representations of the actual kachinas. They are
given to children to
help them to learn the names of the various kachinas and the powers
they have. Sometimes kachina dancers give them to the children in exchange
for food during the ceremonies .
Procedure
Tell the students that many Native American people of the Southwest
(Pueblo, Hopi, Zuni) believe in kachinas. They believe the kachinas are
spirits who guided the people from the underground (where some Native Americans
believe people once lived) to life high up in the mountains.
Explain that the kachinas have many powers and return to earth to help
the people, or to punish those people who break the laws. There are over
200 kachinas, each having its own name, character and costume. Some kachinas
return every year while others are seldom seen. The kachinas dance for
rain and ensure a good corn harvest for the Hopi and Zuni.
Kachinas are not worshiped but they are respected. The Hopi believe
that when a man puts on the costume of a kachina, the spirit of the kachina
enters his body and is present. His dance is the dance of that spirit.
During the dance the kachinas give gifts to the people; food and baskets
for the adults, and rattles, bows and arrows and bulrushes which are chewed
like gum are for the children. One more gift is given, too. It is a kachina
doll which is handed to a child to help that child learn about the beliefs
of his people. If possible, show photographs and illustrations of kachina
dances and kachina dolls.
Kachina dolls are carved from the root of the cottonwood tree. The
wood is light in weight and easily carved. The dolls may be carved as one
piece and have no moving parts or the arms may be carved separately and
attached. Ears, eyes and noses may be added and the figure is then painted.
Feathers, fur and bits of cloth are added as final touches.
There are certain symbols and colors that are part of the kachinas.
If students are able to identify any from the photographs, list them on
the board. Remind the students that the kachinas are associated with the
growth of plants and harvests; which symbols should they expect to see?
(plants, corn, rain, clouds, sun, lightning) Likewise, what colors do they
associate with nature? (green, blue, yellow, red, white, black) Be sure
to have them consider the part of the country where these people live.
If you are able to obtain any close-up pictures of kachinas have the
students look at the symmetry of the designs on the masks. Many designs
are individually symmetrical as well as instances where the entire face
design is.
Students should notice that eyes are frequently rectangular or circular.
Mouths are frequently triangular or circular. The facial symbols are related
to the kachina's powers and purpose.
You may wish to have students draw some of the symbols used on kachina
masks. Draw examples yourself or use the attached sheet to make a transparency.
As you look at the symbols together remind the students of your earlier
discussion of the colors that would be used. Tell them that as well as
being related to nature, the colors used are related to directions. Yellow
means north because winter storms come from a yellow sky. White means east
referring to the rising sun. Red means south and the warm summer. Blue
means west referring to the Pacific Ocean. Green means life, blue-green
the sky, and black means the underworld (the origin of the people).
Students may enjoy knowing that there is a clown kachina named Koshare
who wears black and white stripes on his body, a headpiece with soft black
and white striped horns and a white face with a black frowning mouth and
eyes.
Third Grade - Visual Arts - Lesson 4 - Masks
Objectives
Identify the uses of masks in Native American culture.
Identify the materials used in making masks.
Make a sun kachina mask (optional).
Materials
Photographs or pictures of Native American masks
Paper plates, one per student
Patterns for feathers and face (attached)
Construction paper in white, black, red, yellow and blue
Scissors, glue
Suggested Books
Bancroft-Hunt, Norman. North American Indians. Philadelphia:
Courage, 1992.
Photographs and illustrations show the people and their art. Striking
full-page photographs of masks, blankets, pottery, jewelry and other artifacts.
Baylor, Byrd. They Put on Masks. New York: Charles Scribner's
Sons, 1974.
Baylor's words are lyrical like the songs and dances she tells about;
with illustrations by Jerry Ingram, this book shows masks from many tribes.
Cohlene, Terri, written and adapted by. Turquoise Boy: A Navajo
Legend. Mahwah, NJ: Watermill Press, 1990. Section at the end of book
shows photographs of various masks.
________. Dancing Drum: A Cherokee Legend. Mahwah, NJ: Watermill
Press, 1990.
Section at end of book contains a photograph of a woodchuck fur mask.
Haslam, Andrew and Alexandra Parsons. Make it Work! North American
Indians. New York: Thomson Learning, 1995.
Craft book written for student use. Photographs of people and artifacts
are interspersed with how-to crafts.
Murdoch, David. North American Indian. New York: Alfred A. Knopf,
1995.
This Eyewitness Book contains wonderful full-color photographs of masks
used throughout North America.
Yenne, Bill. The Encyclopedia of North American Indian Tribes: A
Comprehensive Study of Tribes from the Abitibi to the Zuni. London:
Bison Books, 1986. (0-86124-271-8) Oversize book that contains wonderful
photographs of Navajo looms and rugs, kachina dolls and masks from many
different tribes.
Teacher Resource
Strohl, Mary and Susan Scheck. Native Americans: Cooperative Learning
Activities. New York: Scholastic, 1991. Art activities with reproducible
pages for students.
Terzan, Alexandra. The Kid's Multicultural Art Book: Art and Craft
Experiences from Around the World. Charlotte, VT: Williamson, 1993.
Step-by-step directions for making several different Native American masks.
Teacher Background
Native American masks (a Seneca cornhusk mask and an Inuit mask) were
viewed in Kindergarten and students may also be familiar with them from
illustrations in books read as part of literature.
Third Grade - Visual Arts - Lesson 4 - Masks
The Plains Indians were studied briefly in Second Grade and students may recall seeing masks in some of the books used during the study.
Procedure
Remind the students of the kachina dancers presented in lesson 3. Each
of the dancers wore a mask to represent a particular kachina. When a dancer
wore the mask and the rest of the costume, the people of that tribe believed
that the kachina was really there. The masks held great religious importance.
Other groups of Native Americans use masks as part of their ceremonies
as well. Students may recall the cornhusk mask and the fur masks they saw
in kindergarten. If possible, read Byrd Baylor's They Put on Masks
to see a variety of masks and their uses.
Students may recall seeing Native American masks in books used for
history this month or when they studied the Plains Indians in Second Grade.
They should recognize that masks are used as part of many religious ceremonies
as well as dances. Dancers may wear masks to represent animals or they
may represent spirits. In some tribes not everyone is permitted to wear
a mask. It is considered an honor and one that the dancer studies and prepares
for.
Have the students recall some of the reasons the kachinas danced (to
pray for success in planting, for rain, to end a drought, for wisdom).
Tell the students that there are similar dances in other Native American
tribes. Dancers in mask and costume may dance for success in an animal
hunt or in fishing, as part of a healing ceremony, and as part of a ceremony
for giving thanks. The medicine man or woman may wear a mask each time
a healing is done and masks may be worn in celebration for the birth of
a child or to send off the spirit of someone who has died.
Sometimes a mask is made according to a design that has been repeated
over the centuries and sometimes it is as individual as the artist who
created it. In fact some masks are kept hidden while they are being made
and are only revealed during the ceremony for which they were created.
Those artists have had the designs revealed to them in dreams.
Tell students that masks are made from a variety of materials and ask
them to recall any that they may have seen. Usually the materials are those
found in nature and include plant parts and animal parts. The colors are
created from natural dyes. Feathers are often an integral part of a mask
and students may be interested to know that Native Americans are the only
people in the United States who are permitted to gather and use Bald Eagle
feathers. It is against federal law to possess them otherwise. Show photographs
of a variety of masks, and if possible show them as they are being worn
during ceremonies.
Tell the students that when they looked at the kachina dolls they noticed
that color and symmetry were very important elements. Do they see those
elements in the masks they have seen? (sometimes) What other element of
art should be considered when looking at masks? (texture) What does adding
texture to the mask often do? (makes the mask more realistic) Does the
mask seem more powerful with the skin or horns of an animal included? (usually)
Do the actual items seem more impressive than just a drawing of them? (yes,
they can be touched) In what other form(s) of Native American art was texture
important? (rugs, sand painting)
If you wish to have students make a mask there are directions and suggestions
in some of the Suggested Books. A mask that would tie-in nicely with the
kachina doll study of Lesson 3 is the Sun Kachina mask. Directions are
provided below.
Sun Kachina Mask
Each student should have a paper plate, markers or crayons, a ruler,
scissors, construction
paper in various colors and patterns for the face and feathers (these
may be shared).
Have the students recall the symbol for sun from the last lesson. This
will form the face of the mask and from it the feathers will radiate. The
face should be a circle that fits in the center of the plate. Add to or
trim the pattern provided according to the size plate you use. 1. Students
should use this pattern to trace a face from construction paper. Ideally,
the sun kachina face has a red and yellow forehead while the lower half
is blue. If it is possible to follow this guide the mask will look more
realistic.
2. Students will then need to cut rectangles for eyes and a triangle
for the mouth. These will be placed in the lower half of the circle below
the horizontal line. Students may attach the features and draw the lines
on the face but should not attach the face to the plate at this point in
the process.
3. Some students may be tracing the feathers while others are completing
the face. The feathers should be traced on white construction paper. It
is possible to fold a sheet of 9x12" paper lengthwise and trace the feathers
so that cutting the paper produces two at a time. The white "feathers"
should be given a light center vein and black tips.
4. The completed feathers should be arranged around the plate so that
they are radiating out. Approximately fourteen feathers are needed around
a nine-inch plate. They should be glued down to the plate and then place
and glue the face on top.
Tell the students that the mask is not dimensionally proportionate
with an actual sun kachina mask. A genuine mask would be much larger and
would cover the head of the person wearing the mask. You may wish to display
the masks or allow students to take their masks and visit other classes,
telling what they have learned about kachinas and kachina masks.
Bibliography
Read Alouds
*Collins, Pat Lowery. I am an Artist. Brookfield, CT: Millbrook
Press, 1992. (1-56294-082-1)
*Duncan, Lois, retold by. The Magic of Spider Woman. New York:
Scholastic, 1996. (0-590-46155-9)
Student Reference
Ancoma, George. Earth Daughter: Alicia of Ácoma Pueblo.
New York: Simon & Schuster, 1995. (0-689-80322-2)
Bancroft-Hunt, Norman. North American Indians. Philadelphia:
Courage, 1992. (1-56138-123-3)
*Baylor, Byrd. They Put on Masks. New York: Charles Scribner's
Sons, 1974. (684-13767-4)
Behrens, June. Powwow. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1983. (0-516-02387-X)
Bunting, Eve. Smoky Night. New York: Harcourt Brace & Co.,
1994. (0-15-269954-6)
Ciment, James and Ronald LaFrance. Scholastic Encyclopedia of the
North American Indian. New York: Scholastic, 1996. (0-590-22790-4)
Cohlene, Terri, written and adapted by. Turquoise Boy: A Navajo
Legend. Mahwah, NJ: Watermill Press, 1990. (0-8167-2360-5)
________. Dancing Drum: A Cherokee Legend. Mahwah, NJ: Watermill
Press, 1990. (0-86593-007-4)
Cohn, Amy L., compiled by. From Sea to Shining Sea: A Treasury of
American Folklore and Folk Songs. New York: Scholastic, 1993. (0-590-42868-3)
Doherty, Craig A. and Katherine. The Apaches and the Navajos.
New York: Franklin Watts, 1989. (0-531-10743-4)
Ehlert, Lois. Color Zoo. New York: Lippincott, 1989. (0-39732260-7)
*Glubok, Shirley. The Art of the Southwest Indians. New York:
Macmillan, 1971.
Grossman, Virginia and Sylvia Long. Ten Little Rabbits. San
Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1991.
(0-87701-552-X)
Hanauer, Elsie V. Dolls of the Indians: A Book of Kachina Effigies.
New York: A. S. Barnes and Co., 1970. (498-07536-2)
Haslam, Andrew and Alexandra Parsons. Make it Work! North American
Indians. New York: Thomson Learning, 1995. (1-56847-137-8)
Heller, Ruth. A Cache of Jewels and other collective nouns.
New York: Grosset and Dunlap, 1987. (0-44819211-X)
Hoban, Tana. Spirals, Curves, Fanshapes & Lines. New York:
Greenwillow Books, 1992. (0-688-11228-5)
________. Of Colors and Things. New York: Greenwillow, 1989.
(0-688-07535-5)
Jonas, Ann. Color Dance. New York: Greenwillow Books, 1989.
(0-688-05991-0)
Kennedy, Paul E. North American Indian Design Coloring Book.
New York: Dover, 1971.(0-486-21125-8)
MacAgy, Douglas and Elizabeth. Going for a Walk with a Line...a
Step into the World of Modern Art. New York: Doubleday & Co., 1959.
Murdoch, David. North American Indian. New York: Alfred A. Knopf,
1995. (0-679-96169-0)
Seidelman, James E. The Rub Book. New York: Macmillan, 1968.
Third Grade - Visual Arts - September
Spinelli, Eileen. If You Want to Find Golden. Morton Grove: Albert
Whitman & Co., 1993. (080753850)
*Thomson, Peggy. Katie Henio: Navajo Sheepherder. New York:
Cobblehill Books, 1995.(0-525-65160-8)
Westray, Kathleen. A Color Sampler. New York, Ticknor &
Fields, 1993. (0-39565940-X)
Yenawine, Philip. Colors. The Museum of Modern Art, New York:
Delacorte Press, 1991.(0-385-30314-9)
________. Shapes. The Museum of Modern Art, New York: Delacorte
Press, 1991.(0-385-30315-7)
Yenne, Bill. The Encyclopedia of North American Indian Tribes: A
Comprehensive Study of Tribes from the Abitibi to the Zuni. London:
Bison Books, 1986. (0-86124-271-8)
Teacher Resources
Baer, Gene. Paste, Pencils, Scissors and Crayons. West Nyack,
NY: Parker, 1977. (0-13-335571-3)
Hoven, Leigh. Native Americans Thematic Unit. Huntington Beach,
CA: Teacher Created Materials, 1990. (1-55734-285-7)
Strohl, Mary and Susan Scheck. Native Americans: Cooperative Learning
Activities. New York: Scholastic, 1991. (0-590-49151-2)
Terzan, Alexandra. The Kid's Multicultural Art Book: Art and Craft
Experiences from Around the World. Charlotte, VT: Williamson, 1993.
(0-913589-72-1)
*Required or strongly recommended in lessons