Little Bianca—Art Focused Lesson Plan
Program/Lesson 1 for “Little Bianca”
Art Focus
Ages: 3-6
Materials Required:
Book – “Little Bianca” by Mack H. Webb, Jr.
Paint in a variety of colors
Art paint brushes in various sizes
Paper plate to serve as palettes
Smocks for each child (have them bring them in)
White cardstock /newsprint/construction paper (each child will produce 3 paintings)
Paper towels for clean up
Overview: This lesson focuses on the use of color to express emotion. Artists use color to convey the “feeling” of the picture. In this exercise, children are inspired by “Little Bianca” to stretch their own creative wings by using paint to show different feelings.
Objectives: (Language Arts, Art)
Students will:
1. Listen to a story.
2. Recognize the use of color to express emotion.
3. Use color to express different emotions felt by characters in the story.
Set Up: Arrange a chair for the reader and clear floor space in front of the reader for the children to sit. Stock tables/desks with paper, paint and paintbrushes.
Methodology:
1. Have the children put on their smocks and sit down to listen to a story about a “little artist”.
2. Read the story “Little Bianca” by Mack H. Webb, Jr.
3. After the story is over, have the children go to their tables/desks.
4. Explain that now they are going to be “little artists” like “Little Bianca”. Explain that artists use paint to tell stories through pictures. An important part of any story is the feelings of the people in the story. One of the ways artists let us know how the people are feeling is to use color. What the children will be doing next is painting colors that express the feelings in different parts of the “Little Bianca” story.
5. For the first painting*, have the children use whatever colors they feel express the feelings of Little Bianca and her poppa on page 5. Show the children page 5 and re-read the words. Ask “What are Little Bianca and her poppa feeling? What colors would you use to show that feeling?” Have the children use as many or as few colors as they like. Give them 2 to 3 minutes. The colors should be put on the page like Little Bianca’s painting – random with differing amounts of each. Then pick out a couple and ask the child why they picked their particular set of colors.
6. For the second painting, have the children use whatever colors they feel express the feelings of Little Bianca and her poppa on page 6. Show the children pages 6 and 7 and re-read the words on page 7. Ask “What are Little Bianca and her poppa feeling? What colors would you use to show that feeling?” Have the children use as many or as few colors as they like. Give them 2 to 3 minutes. The colors should be put on the page like Little Bianca’s painting – random with differing amounts of each. Then pick out a couple and ask the child why they picked their particular set of colors.
7. For the third painting, have the children use whatever colors they feel express the feelings of Little Bianca and her poppa on page 12. Show the children pages 12 and 13 and re-read the words on page 13. Ask “What is Little Bianca feeling? What colors would you use to show that feeling?” Have the children use as many or as few colors as they like. Give them 2 to 3 minutes. The colors should be put on the page like Little Bianca’s painting – random with differing amounts of each. Then pick out a couple and ask the child why they picked their particular set of colors.
8. Have the children sign their work like “Little Bianca” did – by dipping their thumb in paint and pressing it against the paper.
9. Conclusion: What is one way artists can tell how people are feeling in their painting? By using color! Today you did just that.
10. Clean up time. Have the children help put away the art supplies.
*Note: Have children do as many paintings as attention levels will permit.
Background Information for the Teacher:
Artists use color to help convey the meaning of their work. Happy emotions are usually depicted with light, bright colors on the “warm” side of the color wheel (red, orange, yellow, white). Unhappy (darker) emotions are usually depicted with darker colors on the “cool” side of the color wheel (blue, sometimes purple) with the addition of black and gray. We even use the colors to describe the feeling of a particular note or key in music (a blue note or chord meaning it has a sad sound) or to invoke a particular feeling (“It was a gray day.” not only describes the physical attribute of an overcast day but also the mood people feel on such a day.)
Muted colors (where the primary color has been mixed with either white or gray) are used to show a softness of mood in a painting as opposed to using clear pigment which appears vibrant and strong and shows an intensity of feeling.
