Digital Library

THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT IN VISUAL ARTS & THE VISUAL WORKSHOP IN THE CLASSROOM

The following suggested design responds to specific key words: collaboration among children, teacher-children collaboration, critical thinking, family & School (category I), creativity, inclusion-diversity (category II), artful-art based, expressiveness, assessment, events (category III Indicative aims: To observe their natural environment and derive information from it in relevance to the paintings they observed. To use in their oral speech some simple terms of art (i.e., landscapes, background, brushes, shade). To recognise that each artist expresses himself/herself through art in his/her own way, colours, shapes, forms, by making a comparison with themselves and what and how they like to paint. To examine what an art workshop consists of (space, materials) and to get familiar with the works of male and female painters. To formulate and justify their opinions. Demonstrate confidence when they engage with tasks that involve the expression through visual arts and being able to explain their creations. To experiment with different materials and colors when drawing or painting. To create visual representations with other materials, i.e., plasticine, collage. To associate their creations with the concepts of satisfaction and pleasure. To recognize art as a means of expression to which we all people have equal access. To respect the opinion of their classmates and to be equally involved in the process of dialogue with each other and with their kindergarten teacher. To participate within the group to carry out their action, leaving room for their classmates to express themselves and create. Observing and assessing paintings which have as a theme a season (i.e., autumn) The children observe 2 paintings and assess them by comparing a) the subject matter, b) the colours and c) the technique. They come to conclusions and give titles to the works. They search for relevant information and the title of the works online and compare their own study/conclusions with the information they have collected. They relate the representations in the paintings to their physical environment. They identify similarities and differences. They come to a conclusion about what the painters wanted to convey and how they conveyed it. Exploring the workshop of visual artists/painters We guide the discussion by questioning: "What materials do we draw with at school?" "What do painters need to create their paintings?" for children to make assumptions and look for information about the painters' workshop. We are conducting an online art workshop visit. The children discuss, compare their materials and practices with those of painters and conclude that they too have the ability to create paintings. They decide to rename the visual arts corner to art workshop and play the role of the painter. Visual art creations "How are we going to depict our natural environment in autumn?" We investigate children's opinions, record them and co-decide with them either through discussion or voting. The children are divided into groups, choose materials and undertake to visually render and in a different way per group the fall, i.e., painting realistically, painting abstractly, painting a landscape or a still life. They present their works in plenary. They explain and justify their choices. They compare their themes and style and decide to exhibit their works in the school. They also have to present their creations. Presentation of children's works of art for everyone For the exhibition of their works they need to make decisions. They discuss their relevant experiences and/or process relevant audio-visual material (physical/material and digital). They decide on the appropriate space in the kindergarten and expose their creations to their families. They also decide to collaborate and write (out loud as much as they can or with the contribution of the kindergarten teacher in the role of writer) their presentations. We guide the discussion with the question "what if someone doesn't know or can't read?", "what if someone can't see?". The children discuss, seek for solutions, identify the way museums address the visually impaired and decide to audio-record the description of their painting and the concept behind its creation. Assessment of the intervention The assessment of the intervention focuses both on the outcome and the process. It takes place in the form of a plenary debate where the kindergarten teacher and children participate equally. The discussion focuses on the 'what' and the 'how'. Emphasis is placed upon the way decisions are made, the type and content of the activities, the materials used and the concept of cooperation in groups. Materials/outcomes are selected to enrich children's portfolios. Children’s families who were the audience of the presentation can also be involved in the assessment (i.e., through an interview that the children will prepare with their kindergarten teacher).

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THE FOREST

The following suggested design responds to specific key words: collaboration among children, teacher-children collaboration, critical thinking, community (category I), creativity, inclusion-diversity (category II), craft ship, expressiveness, play, assessment, events (category III). Indicative aims: To identify the characteristics of the forest and recognise it as an ecosystem with a complex and interconnected web of relationships and balances. To recognise water as an essential element for life, flora, and fauna within the forest. To formulate and discuss their ideas for the construction of a 3D forest model. To propose materials and justify their suggestions regarding materials that serve their decisions (i.e., model construction) To collect information about forest animals, classify their information and construct a concept map. To choose specific forest animals and decide what they need to investigate to make a presentation to their class. To create interactive games based on the information they have collected about forest animals. To choose different ways of expression, recognising the different languages ​​available to them for expressing themselves. To relate the forest and human activities and to think about possible dangers that threaten the forest, but also ways in which the forest can be protected. To identify information from an audio-visual text and explain what evidence they relied upon to formulate their conclusions. To respect their classmates’ opinion and to be equally involved in the process of dialogue with each other and with their kindergarten teacher. Cooperate within a team to achieve a common goal. Reading a story that takes place in the forest Children read with their kindergarten teacher a story that takes place in the forest. They discuss a) the content, b) the plot, c) the scenes, d) the heroes of the story. They discuss the environment where the story takes place. They refer to their personal experiences, prior knowledge and relate their own experiences to the story they read. The kindergarten teacher guides the discussion with the question "How could we transfer the setting and the heroes of the story in our classroom?". The children discuss, propose ideas and after discussion or voting they end up creating a craft with a forest theme. The kindergarten teacher sets a condition to them. Their construction should be 3D. The children end up building a model. Construction of a 3D model Plenary discussion about the materials needed for the creation of the model, what it will include, as well as how the groups will work. Collaboration of children and groups for the construction of the model. Children assess their construction and ask themselves, guided by the kindergarten teacher, whether it includes all the necessary features that consist a forest. They decide to investigate and gather information in order to assess whether they need to add anything. I.e., water and its representation, animals. Forest animals (i.e., squirel and owl) Children’s investigation leads them to gather information about the animals of the forest. They choose to deal with specific animals that live in the forest located close to their area. They depict this information on cartons. They observe, describe the animals, compare them, find similarities-differences, classify them i.e., mammals, quadrupeds. They make their figures i.e., with plasticine and add them to the model. They make use of the information about the animals by inventing games i.e., pantomime or riddles. They vote for their favourite forest animal and decide to investigate it further. Viewing of audio-visual material Finding and watching audio-visual material (i.e., fiction or documentary film) about their favourite classroom animal. The film is the product of investigation. The children, with the help of the kindergarten teacher in the role of the researcher, have discussed and decided the questions that they will attempt to discuss while watching the film. They discuss the plot, the content and their findings. Information gathered is depicted through a concept map of their favourite forest animal. Forest and human activities The kindergarten teacher guides the children's inquiries by asking them to think about the relationship between people and the forest. They discuss their views and experiences and highlight aspects of people's interaction with the forest (i.e., recreation, work, oxygen), which are many, varied, sometimes with positive and sometimes with negative impact on the forest. They decide that they need to investigate the matter further and think about implementing a related project in collaboration with the other classroom. Assessment of the intervention The assessment of the intervention focuses both on the outcome and the process. It takes place in the form of a plenary debate where the kindergarten teacher and children participate equally. The discussion focuses on the 'what' and the 'how'. Emphasis is placed upon the way decisions are made, the type and content of the activities, the materials used, and cooperation in groups. Materials/outcomes are selected to enrich children's portfolios. To assess the specific intervention, a board game can be constructed by the children based on the model they have already created and forest animal pawns they have already crafted with plasticine. They can transfer the assessment game to a digital environment.

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