Lesson Plan Title : Scratchboard Pictures

Age Range: Grade 9 through grade 12 (High School)

Overview and Purpose: Students create pictures out of scratchboard in this lesson. The animals or objects they can choose are limitless, but the greater the detail, the more the picture will stand out. It can be a very time consuming process, but as the students see the picture emerge, they will become excited.

Objective: The student will be able to use a scratchboard and a sharp tool to create a picture of a bird.

Resources:

Several pictures of different birds

Tracing paper

Scratchboards

Scratching tools

Stylus or other dull tool

Activities:

Students can either choose a picture of a bird and trace it or draw one freehand. They should include as many of the details as possible. When they are finished they should put the tracing sheet over the scratchboard and go over each of the lines with a stylus. This will create a faint indention in the scratchboard that they can use as a guide. When they are done, they can start scratching out their picture. The details are really what will make the picture pop so attention to the feathers will be important.

Wrap Up:

Students could do other animals also, maybe a favorite pet. An extension of this lesson would be to do a study on birds and conclude with each student giving a report on the type of bird he chose. The students can also experiment with applying different degrees of pressure to the stylus when they are scratching or making some lines bolder, while others are softer.