About the lesson:
In this lesson the students used a variety of mediums to create villains and superheroes. The students came together at their table groups to create a villain on a big sheet of butcher paper. Folded into four sections, each student took turns creating a different section of the villain without seeing what the other students had added (the head, torso, legs, and feet). In addition to exploring a collaborative design process, the students simultaneously created a superhero of their own on a standard sized sheet of drawing paper while waiting for their turn to draw their portion of the villain. Students also decided what superpower their hero has and what its weakness is. Then as a group they decided what power and weakness the villain has. Ultimately this exercise was to give the students a “behind the scenes” look into the creative processes that go into creating the characters they see in movies, books, comics, and television series.
Essential Understandings
Outcomes
Students will be able to:
Skills
In the second lesson with Cooper Home and Fossil Ridge, the students explored the prompt of character design and collaborative art making techniques. Students went through the process of ideation by identifying characters they like and the traits that make them special. The lesson served as a window into the kind of processes professional studios use to come up with the characters we have come to know and love. Through the process students shared ideas and expanded upon their initial thoughts. This also served to establish a positive community setting in which everyone was committed to enjoy art together.
To start the creative process, the teachers re-introduced themselves and showed examples of their favorite television, movie and book characters to the class. Then as a class they discussed their favorite characters, and identified what they liked about these characters and why. From this discussion the teacher illustrated and listed these characteristics on the board as a starting point to aid in the expansion of similar concepts and the exploration of new ideas. Students began creating their individual superheros with whichever drawing medium they preferred the most from the previous lesson (markers, colored pencil, crayons, graphite) or a combination of mediums. Meanwhile, at each table group a large sheet of butcher paper, that was folded into four sections, was passed around the table as students worked in collaboration to create a large villain/monster for their heroes to fight.
- Artists use critical thinking and organizational techniques to follow lesson guidelines
- Artists learn to enjoy the intrinsic value of art making
- Artists are productive and on task
- Artists create and innovate using the ideation process
- Artists establish a sense of comfort with the studio, materials, staff, and working collaboratively with peers
Outcomes
Students will be able to:
- Students will be able to create their own rendition of a superhero/character, and work in a collaborative effort to create a villain/monster with their table groups. Students will leave with an insight into what goes into the creative processes of creating the characters they see in television shows, movies, books, and comics.
- Using their artwork, students will be able to enjoy making artwork that relays their personal style, developing a sense of intrinsic value, artistic identity, and community in the classroom.
- After a short Introduction, students will be excited to see the artwork of their peers and establish connections by discussing their creative process with the class.
Skills
- Critical thinking and organizational techniques
- Creative problem solving and exploration through ideation
- Establishing a sense of comfort with the studio, materials, staff, and peers
- Drawing Techniques
- Introduction to collaborative art making
- Critique Etiquette
In the second lesson with Cooper Home and Fossil Ridge, the students explored the prompt of character design and collaborative art making techniques. Students went through the process of ideation by identifying characters they like and the traits that make them special. The lesson served as a window into the kind of processes professional studios use to come up with the characters we have come to know and love. Through the process students shared ideas and expanded upon their initial thoughts. This also served to establish a positive community setting in which everyone was committed to enjoy art together.
To start the creative process, the teachers re-introduced themselves and showed examples of their favorite television, movie and book characters to the class. Then as a class they discussed their favorite characters, and identified what they liked about these characters and why. From this discussion the teacher illustrated and listed these characteristics on the board as a starting point to aid in the expansion of similar concepts and the exploration of new ideas. Students began creating their individual superheros with whichever drawing medium they preferred the most from the previous lesson (markers, colored pencil, crayons, graphite) or a combination of mediums. Meanwhile, at each table group a large sheet of butcher paper, that was folded into four sections, was passed around the table as students worked in collaboration to create a large villain/monster for their heroes to fight.
The collaboration between students on the monster/villains helped create a sense of community in the classroom. It also added some fun and humor to the experience. At the end, when students unfolded the paper, they got to see a monster or villain that was totally unique and a hodge podge of different ideas.
This student created two superheroes. He engaged with the materials by thoroughly coloring the heroes and explored the creative concepts behind creating a superhero, asking himself "what powers would I want my superhero to have?" He had a difficult time showing these powers with a drawing, so he problem solved and used writing to enhance his creative process. |
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Students were able to experiment with different styles while drawing their heroes. Some focused on creating clean lines and realistic figures, while others focused on the specific powers that the heroes would have and how to express that in a drawing. In both cases, the student engaged with their originator instinct to make these artistic decisions.
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Many students took the opportunity to create villains or monsters that opposed their heroes. They made connections between the villains and heroes, deciding what superpowers could defeat the villain based on his/her weaknesses.
While walking around and observing the students, it was entertaining and insightful listening their ideas. Some students wanted to draw traditional superheroes, while others wanted to make more non traditional characters. This student began drawing an Avatar such as the one from a show that she really liked. She explained how she wanted the hero to be in standing in front of a beautiful sunset with water droplets all around to show his water bending skills. This particular student combined her love of sunsets with her love of the show to make her artwork personal and full of passion. |
This student was very expressive and experimental. She experimented with color mixing and overlapping. This allowed her to see what colors popped and what colors were dulled when mixed with another color.
There was so much variety in the ideation behind the characters created in class. Each student took the time to think through problems, engage with their inner critic, and create artwork that was complete, personal, and engaging for them. The different outcomes show us just how differently each student thinks about the same open ended project: superheroes and villains. |
The lesson concluded with every student sharing their artwork. They shared their individual characters, as well as their collaborative efforts. They further discussed their interests, why they chose to create certain characteristics, powers, weaknesses and design features. Every student exhibited the ability to follow classroom etiquette through the critique, and contributed in a positive way to the discussion and the overall growth of each student as artists.