Social Studies and Visual Art Integration I struggled for a good while trying to come up with a social studies and art integration lesson. I researched and asked and racked my brain for ideas for a solid two weeks. Nothing. Finally, a few days before I was supposed to go in, my creative juices started to flow. I thought back to elementary school when I was learning about the Native American tribes in Utah. Then, I decided to look up unique art from these tribes. Here's what I found: The Navajo Tribe - SAND PAINTINGS I found a common work of art that the Navajo people created were sand paintings. They literally mean, “Places where the gods come and go," and are often used in ceremonies to tell stories of Navajo legends. The Anasazi Tribe - PETROGLYPHS Made over 8,000 years ago, the Anasazi people carved or painted on stone surfaces stories of legends or hunting scenes. The Ute Tribe - BASKET ART The Utes are known for their basket making for the past 10,000 years. They would weave designs into their baskets. The baskets were often woven so tightly, they could be used to hold water; they were most often used for food sorting and prep. After doing this research, my wheels began to turn. How could I recreate this in a 2nd grade classroom? Then I thought, well, the sand paintings could easily be recreated on brown butcher paper or poster boards; I have a random 2x2' concrete slab at home that I could bring for the rock art / petroglyphs, and if I didn't have that, could use cardboard; if I could find some kind of flat-ish baskets, we could use that for the basket art. I wound up finding some tan, woven place mats from Kohl's that worked! I finally had my plan! I got some acrylic paints and brushes and packed my things for class. To begin class, we read from The Legend of the Indian Paintbrush by Tomie dePaola - the perfect introductory book for this lesson. Then, with some simple posters I created, I explained the various Native American tribes of Utah and their respective art. I sent the students back to their desks (which are set up in three groups of 4-8 students). Each group was assigned to a tribe and would recreate the type of art their tribe made. Group one - sand paintings. Group two - petroglyphs. Group three - basket art. The students loved it! I honestly don't think the lesson could have gone any better. I was very impressed with the designs they came up with!
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AuthorBYU Early Childhood Education Major. Archives |