Kindergarten: Elements of Art: Line/Lesson Organizer

Lessons taken from What Your Kindergartner Needs to Know and the Kindergarten Core Knowledge Teacher Handbook
The Big Idea: Works of art are composed of several elements. The key elements for Kinders are color and line.

ELEMENTS OF ART – Line Vocabulary

Anemones: flowers that are like buttercups
Line: a continuous mark with length and direction. Lines can be two dimensional, such as a line on a paper, or three dimensional, such as a
wire or rope.
Samisen: a three stringed Japanese instrument, similar to a banjo

Domain Vocabulary: line, samisen, element, outline, direction, zigzag, vertical, horizontal, diagonal, curvy, pattern

What Students Need to Learn:

1. Identify and use different lines, straight, zigzag, curved, wavy, thick, thin.
2. Observe different kinds of lines in Tuning the Samisen, Purple Robe, People and Dog in the Sun.

At a Glance: The most important ideas for students are: (From CK Teacher Handbook pg 167)
1. All art consists of color, line, shape, form, light, space, and texture
2. These “elements of art” are the basic vocabulary of the visual arts.
3. Artists use the elements to organize a composition, develop a feeling, or communicate an idea.
4. Color and Line are two foundational elements of art
5. Artists use the elements in 2-D and 3-D works of art.
6. Children should learn to make elem. observations about colors and lines in the CK Kinder paintings

Thinking
# Method Objectives Higher Order Questioning Materials
Framework
Demonstration Students will be introduced to the Element of Art - Q. What are some of the first Paper for a Knowledge,
Class Line and make a ‘Line Book’. ways you’ve ever made a ‘Line Patterns
Discussion, picture? Booklet’
Activity Place your pencil on the paper and move it in any A. Using lines is one of the
direction to make a line. first ways to make a picture. Markers,,
pencils and
We are surrounded by lines; they are all around us in Q. How would you describe colors
nature and art. You use line when you write words and the lines you see around the
draw a picture. Lines on streets tell cars where to room?
drive. Zebras are striped with lines. Look at your
hands, they are covered with lines.

Lesson Ideas:
1. Look at different kinds of lines; straight,
curved, zigzag, and wavy.
Each line has its own personality. Curved has motion,
wavy feels calm.
2. Look for lines around the room – on
themselves, in the room, outside the window.
3. Describe what type of line (short, fat, straight,
loopy, curved) that have identified. (Window
frame has straight lines, tree branches have
curved lines.)
4. Hunt for lines in the room and make a “Line
Book”
1. Page 1 draw a straight vertical line,
2. Page 2 draw straight horizontal line.
3. Make more pages with zig zag, wavy, and
curved lines.
4. Final page draw each kind of line once or as
many times as they want with as many
different colors as they like.
Demonstration Students will be introduced to Hokusai’s Tuning the Q. What might be happening Print of The Knowledge
Class Samisen and Q’s and make line cards. the in the scene of Hokusai’s Samisen Modeling
Discussion, The Samisen? Patterns
Activity This picture is made up completely of lines. Cards with Creativity
Q. Can you find some thin different
Lesson Ideas: lines in this picture? kinds of line
1. Locate Japan on the map.
2. Let’s think of a story about what might be Q. Can you find some thick Poster with
happening in the scene. lines in this picture? different
Teaching ideas from CH Teacher Handbook pg 172 kinds of line
1. Select a card with a different kind of line and Q. Can someone identify the examples
make that line with their body. Volunteers kind of line the classmate is
identify each line and discuss how they making? Index cards
portrayed it.
2. Have a bag or envelope with an example of
different kinds of lines each on a card.
3. Look at one of the cards and create a drawing
and incorporate the line into their own picture, a
drawing for each, zigzag, curvy, spiral, wavy,
straight line.
4. Given instruction to draw, for example; “draw a
long straight line”, “Draw a short zig zag line”.
“Make a skinny wavy line”, etc.
Demonstration Students will make a pipe cleaner line sculpture. Q. How can we show Line cards Knowledge
Class different kinds of lines with Modeling
Discussion, Lesson Ideas: these pipe cleaners? Pipe Patterns
Activity 1. Have 5 or 6 pipe cleaners to make different cleaners Creativity
kinds of lines; one of each from the line cards
used the class before (zigzag, curvy, spiral, Clay or
wavy, straight, etc. (Not scribbly) foam base
2. Stick the pipe cleaner s in a Styrofoam or clump
of clay base to make a 3-D ‘Different kinds of
line’ sculpture.

Lines and drawings on the paper is called 2-D, making

the line with pipe cleaner is called 3-dimensional.
Demonstration Students will be introduced to Miro’s People and Q. This picture is called Miro’s Knowledge
Class Dog in the Sun and make their own People and Dog People and Dog in the Sun. People and Modeling
Discussion, in the Sun picture. (2 days?) Can you find the sun? Can Dog in the Patterns
Activity you find people? Can you Sun picture Creativity
Lesson Ideas: find the dog?
1. Go over the Q’s for Miro’s People and Dog in Dice game
the Sun. Q. Is this painting something page of
2. Use a dice game page with different kinds of you’d see in real life? Miro’s lines
lines and shapes similar to Miro’s to make their A. It’s called abstract – and shapes
own People and Dog in the Sun picture. meaning it comes from the
3. Have a toy, doll, truck, boat, etc. set up in front artist imagination. Paper and
of them. Student will look for straight, curved, pencils
zig zag lines.
4. Keep making lines that show what the toy looks
like to add to their People and Dog picture.

Demonstration Students will be introduced to Henri Matisse’s The Q. Can you locate every Henri Knowledge
Class Purple Robe and use lines to make PATTERNS. place Matisse used lines? Matisse’s Modeling
Discussion, The Purple Patterns
Activity Lesson Ideas: Q. Can you describe each Robe Creativity
1. Go over Henri Matisse’s The Purple Robe Q.’s type of line Matisse used?
with a focus on line patterns.
2. A pattern is something you repeat over and over Q. What is a pattern? Paper and
 again. Relate to math patterns. A. A pattern is something markers or
3. Use their own People and Dog in the Sun you repeat over and over. other colors
picture from last class period, pull out a line
card and repeat that line over and over in an
area of their picture to create line and color
patterns (for example in the body shape or
background, etc. )

Demonstration Students will develop Art Appreciation Q. Which picture do you like Reproductio
Class the best and why? ns of Henri
Discussion, Lesson Ideas: Matisse’s
Activity 1. Choose the pieces of artwork from the section Q. Name all of the different The Purple
that they like and explain why. kinds of lines you can find in Robe,
2. Be checked for understanding of line, color, and the picture. Miro’s
other aspects of the picture. People and
Dog in the
Sun,
Hokusai’s
Tuning the
Samisen
Class Question each child should be able to answer at the
Discussion, end of this unit.

1. What are some different kinds of lines?

A. Lines can be straight, curved, wavy,
diagonal, zig zag, etc.
More Kinder Art Lessons:

Students will be instructed how to cut, paste, and fold neatly.

Students will:
1. Be shown how to use scissors and cut paper neatly.
2. Be shown a demo of a messy way to cut out and a neat way to cut out - right through the middle of the solid line.
3. Practice using scissors to neatly and carefully to cut out different kinds of lines: straight, curvy, wavy, zig zag, spiral, etc.
4. (For example see Kumon’s My First Work Book of Cutting for fun ideas.)

Students will:
1. Be shown how to use glue sticks and glue things together neatly.
2. Be shown a demo of a messy and ineffective way to use the glue stick and a then neat way to glue – along the edges and an ‘X’
through the middle.
3. Practice using glue to neatly and carefully attach things together after cutting them out.
4. (For example see Kumon’s My First Work Book of Pasting for fun ideas.)

Cross curriculum Connection: African Animals

Students will:
1. Be shown how to fold paper neatly.
2. For example: Practice folding by putting paper corners together and holding it there with one hand, then sliding finger of other hand
to make crease. Practice folding paper in half to make a rectangle and to make a triangle.
3. (See downloads for African animal templates.) https://www.firstpalette.com/tool_box/printables/Paperzooanimals.html)
4. Make paper toys that need cutting and folding.
5. “Cut on the solid line, fold on the dotted line.”