"Silhouettes" Mary Harrison; Classroom Teacher

Using A Student As A Model...

"Basically, you place a white art sheet about A3 size onto a wall, make sure it is placed at the exact height of your student's head. Next the student stands sideways in front of the sheet. The teacher now turns on the overhead projector, which is facing the student, about a meter or so away. As you will see, the shadow or portrait of the student now appears on the white art paper. Next a fellow student ,or in the case of younger children, the teacher, draws the outline of the students portrait on the art paper. The said student now paints his/her portrait in, in black. The result is very dramatic and we have had great fun with visitors to our classroom, guessing which child matches which portrait. The students loved it! I first learned of portraits in college."

Celebrating Your Cultural Heritage Frank, 5th Grade Teacher: Los Angeles, CA

"Introduce students to the theme of cultural heritage and to artists' selection of subject matter related to cultural heritage. Place students in small groups to collaborate to create a bulletin board that celebrates the class's cultural diversity and an assemblage that explores their own heritage through the arts, specifically visual arts. Have them research different artists that represent culture in their works. Once the bulletin board project is complete, have students follow-up with a story about what the collage tells about them as a class."

Art as Multicultural Michelle, Senior High School Teacher: Seattle, Washington

"Expose your students to a variety of art forms with a multicultural perspective. ArtsEdNet provides a series of art prints and curriculum materials that provide a powerful way to teach about diverse cultures and peoples through their art. This is an online version of works that represent a variety of cultural themes. Students will appreciate the discussion questions and teachers will appreciate the convenience of having such a collection of art form available at the click of a button."

The Difference Between Two Dimensional and Three Dimensional Marie, Primary Grade Teacher: Staten Island, NY

"Show a picture or a work of art with a hat. Explain that the picture is two dimensional. Show a real hat (any hat) to reinforce the understanding of three dimensional. Tell the students that they will be making a hat that they can use for a special event (like a celebration, i.e., birthday). Give students a paper plate (to be used as a base) and construction paper with crayons and/or markers or anything that can be used to decorate their hat. Once they create their hats, ask them to explain the difference between two and three dimensional form."

Sandpainting: Navajo Art Barbara, 4th Grade Teacher: Burlington, VT

"Show your students a series of Navajo sandpaintings and explain the traditions of history and healing. To learn to appreciate the Navajo sacred art of sandpainting, your students can make sandpaintings using the subject matter of their choice. They will need to practice drizzling the sand between their thumb and forefingers to make fine lines and to fill in designs. They can draw a simple image on sandpaper, cardboard, or Masonite squares of between six and twelve inches. They can outline one object at a time with white glue, then drizzle sand over the glue. Allow the outlines to dry, then fill in objects with glue and add sand."