Professional Documents
Culture Documents
● Cr2.2.la - Students who meet this standard understand how artists and designers balance
experimentation and safety, freedom and responsibility while developing creating artworks.
○ Explain how traditional and non-traditional materiels may impact human health and the
environment and demonstrate safe handling of materials, tools, and equipment.
● Cn11.1.la - Students who meet this standard understand how people develop ideas and
understandings of society, culture, and history through their interactions with analysis of art.
○ Describe how knowledge of culture, traditions, and history may influence personal
responses to art.
Vocabulary Acquisition:
● Slab: A ball of clay flattened by first keeping your hand flat and placing one hand on top of another
if you need to press down on the clay ball using the palm of your hand-keep pressing until the final
slab looks like a thick pancake.
● Ball: A lump of clay formed into a ball by first squishing it between your hands to make it as round
as you can, then while keeping your hand as flat as you can, roll the clay in circles against the table
with the palm of your hand-keep rolling until you get a round ball.
High School Ceramics LP 1 | ArtEd 302
● Clay: A finely-grained natural rock or soil material that combines one or more clay minerals with
possible traces of quartz, metal oxides, and organic matter. They are plastic due to particle size and
geometry as well as water content, and become hard, brittle and non-plastic upon drying or firing.
● Wedge: process of working out the clay to remove air pockets. Performed by moving the clay,
forming a “ram” shape and moving it back and forth.
● Fettling knife: knife tool used in ceramics to cut, trim, and shape forms.
● Nature: - class definition
Contemporary/Historical/Multicultural exemplars
Procedures:
● DISCUSSION: (10-20 minutes) (Jade Leading) (This lesson follows along the premise that before
our first teaching day, we have already given them a handout of the assignment and relevant vocab)
○ Schedule: Today we will talk about ceramics and how it correlates with nature, look at
some art pieces, and roll out our slabs.
■ (5 minutes) First we will introduce ourselves again, have students go around and
introduce themselves, and introduce our assignment.
● As a reminder (or introduction if you were not here last Thursday) We will
be making cups made from slabs. Building from slabs is another hand
building technique to add onto what you’ve learned previously with coils,
and pinching. We are going to make cups inspired by a reflection and a
response to nature. We are going to ask that you consider the natural world
you encounter, the trees, the flowers, the plains, anything existing in the
natural world (the things that exist beyond mans control) and use this as
inspiration for the cup you will make.
■ (5-10 min) Next we will present the slides of examples from artists, forms in
nature, connection to nature (spiritual, physical, historical, etc). Making sure to
point out the ways they can add texture to their cups, juxtaposition, and consider
the elements of art both in nature, and on the cups their making.
● A slide will be dedicated to Historical/Multicultural exemplars
● During the slide presentation, we will ask them questions relating to
technique, elements of art, how they feel a connection to nature, where
they feel it and what that experience is like. Instead of pointing out just
how an artist was able to make a form, shape, or texture, we will first ask
them to consider how this must have been done.
● Before they sketch out their design we will mention when making your
piece, think about whether you want it to offer functionality or have it
communicate more of the aesthetics of nature.
○ Key Concepts
■ There exists in nature, all principles/elements of art.
■ Nature is all around us and deep within us. Therefore, nature can take many forms
and serve many purposes. By incorporating nature with ceramics we hope for
students to make a connection with it.
■ Clay comes from the earth!
● CLOSURE: (3 minutes)(Bailey)
High School Ceramics LP 1 | ArtEd 302
○ Finishing thoughts : Last Thursday we gave you a handout asking you some guiding
questions about our project. Could someone share any thoughts you have about those? To
remind you they asked about how art, people and yourself connect with nature.
○ What did you learn about ceramics today that you didn’t know before?
○ What might be some possible disadvantages while working on your slab/cup?
○ For next class we want you to bring in an object from nature to consider for adding texture
to your piece. You might consider texture in nature now as you are designing.