Portraits of Washington State Governor's Students Perspectives The concepts addressed in this project will better enable the students to understand Washington State History while at the same time integrating Reading, Writing, Social Studies and Art. The unit is intended for fourth and seventh grade students. The project will last three months.
Each student will select a state or territorial governor and create a portrait that includes artistic representations about their life and times. A biographical label about the political climate as well as the life of the Governor will accompany the portrait. The Washington State Historical Society will provide a source book with articles and information on each of Washington's governors for students to use.
This project addresses four of the Washington State Superintendent of Public Instruction's Essential Academic Learning Requirements. Writing, Art, Reading and Social Studies.
Objectives
This project will provide learning in Writing, Art, Reading and Social Studies.
Through the project students will:
- Demonstrate knowledge of several different aspects of the life and times of the governor they select.
- The image and biography of the governor they select will stay in the students memory.
- Describe the Governor's contributions.
- Identify and utilize research and writing techniques through writing of a short informational report that will be used as a label to accompany the portrait.
- Learn the fundamentals of portraiture and still life drawing.
- Be featured in an exhibition of their works in the Legislative building at the Washington State Capitol.
Essential Learning Skills to be Achieved
Writing
The student will practice writing clearly and effectively.
- They will interpret and organize written thoughts about the chosen Governor.
- The student will elaborate on details of the life and times of the chosen Governor to enhance or support the main point.
- They will organize text with a clear beginning , middle and end, using complete sentence structure, punctuation, and capitalization.
- The student will write a research report using the steps of the writing and research process.
- Generate ideas and gather information.
- Write a draft and elaborate on topic and supporting ideas.
- They will revise their draft.
- They will edit using resources to correct spelling, punctuation, grammar and usage.
- They will publish an informational label.
Reading
The student understands and uses different skills and strategies to read.
- The student will use word recognition and word meaning skills to read and comprehend text.
- The student will build vocabulary through reading.
- The student will practice locating and sorting information using non-fiction text.
- The student will understand the meaning of what is read.
- The student will demonstrate comprehension of the main ideas and supporting details and be able to summarize in their own words.
- The student will understand the relationships between multiple texts that are provided in the source book.
- The student will read to learn new information.
Social Studies
- The student examines and understands major ideas, eras, themes, developments, turning points, chronology and cause and effect relationships in U.S. , world, and Washington State history.
- The student will understand historical time chronology.
- The students will describe the specific time of the Governor chosen and analyze the historical events, people and patterns in U.S., world and Washington State history during that time.
- The student will describe the contributions of the chosen Governor to the state, world and U.S.
- The student will investigate the Governor's life and times using a variety of sources.
Arts
- The Student will practice the skills needed to create, to perform and to respond to the arts.
- The student will paint a portrait of the Governor's life and times.
- The student will practice concepts of visual art applying line, shape/form, texture, color and space.
- The student will understand how art can connect to other subject areas such as history.
- The student will recognize the influence of the arts in shaping and reflecting history.
- The student will recognize and consider how a work of art was shaped by its time and space, and how it may have had an effect on our culture.
- The student will develop a distinct memory from art they created associated with the life and times of the Governor selected.
ACTIVITIES SEQUENCE
The students, with help from teacher will:
- choose a governor.
- look in source book or other reference materials and locate chosen governor.
- research the governor.
- research the governor's era.
- draft a historical information label (biography) on the governor and his/her times.
- revise the information label.
- produce final copy of information label.
The students, with six one hour visits from the Artist-in-Residence, will:
- review information about classic portraiture history provided in the source book.
- develop portrait ideas that reflect the governor and his/her times.
- draft portrait concept.
- explore form lines and color concepts. produce final portrait for matting and framing.
MATERIALS LIST
- newsprint for draft
- oil pastels
- pencils #2B
- white erasers
- 8 ½ by 11 100% rag pastel paper
- Washington State Historical Society Source Book
- 8 X 10 color photographs of Governors