ALEX Learning Activity

  

Creating a House: Integrating Language Arts With Visual Arts

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  This learning activity provided by:  
Author: Hannah Bradley
System:Dothan City
School:Carver Magnet School
  General Activity Information  
Activity ID: 1745
Title:
Creating a House: Integrating Language Arts With Visual Arts
Digital Tool/Resource:
A House for Hermit Crab Read Aloud
Web Address – URL:
Overview:

The teacher will begin the activity with a read-aloud of A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle. Next, the teacher will allow students to use the text features, specifically illustrations, in the picture book to describe the plot of the story. Then, the teacher will lead students on a "nature walk" around the school to collect items to create an imaginary house. Lastly, the students will design an imaginary home using the natural objects found on their walk while individually following sequential steps.

This activity was created as a result of the Arts COS Resource Development Summit.
  Associated Standards and Objectives  
Content Standard(s):
Arts Education
ARTS (2017)
Grade: 2
Visual Arts
3) Extend skills by individually following sequential steps to create works of art on subjects that are real or imaginary.

Example: Use the book A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle.
Create a real or imagined home.

Unpacked Content
Artistic Process: Creating
Anchor Standards:
Anchor Standard 2: Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.
Process Components: Investigate, Plan, Make
Essential Questions:
EU: Artists and designers experiment with forms, structures, materials, concepts, media, and artmaking approaches.
EQ: How do artists work? How do artists and designers determine whether a particular direction in their work is effective? How do artists and designers learn from trial and error?
Concepts & Vocabulary:
  • Principles of design
    • Balance
  • Brainstorming
  • Composition
  • Concepts
  • Characteristic
  • Elements of art
    • Space
    • Value
  • Expressive properties
  • Foreground
  • Middle ground
  • Neutral colors
  • Resist
Skill Examples:
  • Create two-dimensional artworks such as drawing or painting by using a variety of media.
  • Use the book, The Goat in the Rug by Charles L.
    • Blood & Martin Link to learn about weaving.
  • Use clay or pipe cleaners to create small animal sculptures.
  • Work in groups to brainstorm ideas for a collaborative art project.
  • Use a book about clay, When Clay Sings by Byrd Baylor to study Native Americans and their traditions.
  • Use the book A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle to explore collage techniques.
  • Create a real or imagined home using two-and-three-dimensional media.
  • Learn how to properly use and store brushes, close glue bottles and marker tops.
  • Use found objects such as leaves, rocks, paper tubes, egg cartons, etc.
    • to create artworks.
  • Use the book A Day with No Crayons by Elizabeth Rusch to explore different colors and values.
  • Create a landscape showing depth by placing the foreground, middle ground and background in their correct positions.
Arts Education
ARTS (2017)
Grade: 2
Visual Arts
5) Create an artwork using found and/or recycled objects.

Examples: Use objects such as leaves, rocks, paper tubes, egg cartons, etc.
Use book A Day with No Crayons by Elizabeth Rusch.

Unpacked Content
Artistic Process: Creating
Anchor Standards:
Anchor Standard 2: Organize and develop artistic ideas and work.
Process Components: Reflect, Refine, Continue
Essential Questions:
EU: People create and interact with objects, places, and design that define, shape, enhance, and empower their lives.
EQ: How do objects, places, and design shape lives and communities? How do artists and designers determine goals for designing or redesigning objects, places, or systems? How do artists and designers create works of art or design that effectively communicate?
Concepts & Vocabulary:
  • Principles of design
    • Balance
  • Brainstorming
  • Composition
  • Concepts
  • Characteristic
  • Elements of art
    • Space
    • Value
  • Expressive properties
  • Foreground
  • Middle ground
  • Neutral colors
  • Resist
Skill Examples:
  • Create two-dimensional artworks such as drawing or painting by using a variety of media.
  • Use the book, The Goat in the Rug by Charles L.
    • Blood & Martin Link to learn about weaving.
  • Use clay or pipe cleaners to create small animal sculptures.
  • Work in groups to brainstorm ideas for a collaborative art project.
  • Use a book about clay, When Clay Sings by Byrd Baylor to study Native Americans and their traditions.
  • Use the book A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle to explore collage techniques.
  • Create a real or imagined home using two-and-three-dimensional media.
  • Learn how to properly use and store brushes, close glue bottles and marker tops.
  • Use found objects such as leaves, rocks, paper tubes, egg cartons, etc.
    • to create artworks.
  • Use the book A Day with No Crayons by Elizabeth Rusch to explore different colors and values.
  • Create a landscape showing depth by placing the foreground, middle ground and background in their correct positions.
English Language Arts
ELA2021 (2021)
Grade: 2
23. Identify the main story elements in a literary text.

a. Explain the plot of a narrative, using textual evidence to list the major events in sequence.

b. Describe the characters' traits, feelings, and behaviors in a story.

c. Describe the setting of a narrative, using textual evidence.

d. Identify the central message or moral of a story.

e. Identify the theme in myths, fables, and folktales.
Unpacked Content
Teacher Vocabulary:
23.
  • Story elements
  • Literary text
23a.
  • Plot
  • Narrative
  • Textual evidence
  • Major events
  • Sequence
23b.
  • Describe
  • Character
  • Traits
  • Feelings
  • Behaviors
23c.
  • Setting
  • Narrative
  • Textual evidence
23d.
  • Central message
  • Moral
23e.
  • Theme
  • Myths
  • Fables
  • Folktales
Knowledge:
23. Students know:
  • Literary text is a story that contains story elements, like a plot and characters.
23a.
  • Plot is the main events of a story (often referred to as the beginning, middle, and end of a story).
  • The sequence of events is the order in which the story takes place.
23b.
  • A story author provides descriptions of the characters' traits, feelings, and behaviors.
23c.
  • Setting is when and where a story takes place.
23d.
  • A central message or moral is the lesson that is learned through the story or the one big idea of the story.
23e.
  • Theme is the main, recurring idea in a text.
  • Myths, fables, and folktales are fictional pieces of text.
Skills:
23. Students are able to:
  • Identify the main story elements in a literary text, such as characters, settings, and plot.
23a.
  • Explain the major events of a story in order by using text evidence.
23b.
  • Describe characters' traits, feelings, and behaviors by using information from the text.
23c.
  • Describe the setting of a story by using evidence from the text.
23d.
  • Identify the central message or moral of a story using information from the text.
23e.
  • Identify the theme of a myth, fable, or folktale.
Understanding:
23. Students understand that:
  • Literary texts include story elements, and they can identify the various elements to better understand the text.
23a.
  • The plot is the main events of the story that happen in a particular sequence.
  • The plot can be explained by using words or phrases from the text.
23b.
  • Understanding each character's traits, feelings, and behaviors will help them better understand a story's plot.
  • They can learn about characters by carefully reading the story and describing the characters' traits, feelings, and behaviors.
23c.
  • They can use information from the text to learn when and where the story takes place.
  • They can use the text to describe attributes of the setting.
23d.
  • Stories will often have a central message or moral that the author intended to share with readers.
23e.
  • Myths, fables, and folktales are often written to convey a particular theme or main message.
English Language Arts
ELA2021 (2021)
Grade: 2
25. Identify and use various text features to locate ideas, facts, or supporting details in both written and digital formats.

a. Identify and locate captions, bold print, subheadings, indexes, graphs, maps, glossaries, and illustrations.

b. Explain how specific features can clarify a text or enhance comprehension.
Unpacked Content
Teacher Vocabulary:
25.
  • Identify
  • Text features
  • Ideas
  • Facts
  • Supporting details
  • Written formats
  • Digital formats
25a.
  • Captions
  • Bold print
  • Subheadings
  • Indexes
  • Graphs
  • Maps
  • Glossaries
  • Illustrations
25b.
  • Features
  • Clarify
  • Enhance
  • Comprehension
Knowledge:
25. Students know:
  • Text features can be used to locate information in printed and digital text.
25a.
  • Captions, bold print, subheadings, indexes, graphs, maps, glossaries, and illustrations are important text features that can help provide or locate information.
25b.
  • Text features can clarify or enhance the meaning of text.
Skills:
25. Students are able to:
  • Identify text features in printed and digital text.
  • Use text features to locate ideas, facts, and supporting details.
25a.
  • Locate captions, bold print, subheads, indexes, graphs, maps, glossaries, and illustrations within a text.
  • Identify captions, bold print, subheads, indexes, graphs, maps, glossaries, and illustrations by naming them within a text.
25b.
  • Explain how text features can clarify the meaning of text.
  • Explain how text features can improve comprehension of text.
Understanding:
25. Students understand that:
  • Printed and digital text has predictable features that can be used to locate important ideas, facts, and supporting details.
  • Using text features helps support their overall comprehension.
25a.
  • Locating and identifying text features can aid in comprehension.
  • Viewing these text features prior to reading, can provide a preview of the material and give them a purpose for reading.
25b.
  • They can use text features to better understand, or comprehend, the meaning of a text.
Learning Objectives:

The students will identify text features (illustrations) in a picture book.

Students will use text features (illustrations) to locate details about the plot of the story.

The students will follow sequential steps to create works of art to create an imaginary home. 

The students will create artwork using found objects. 
  Strategies, Preparations and Variations  
Phase:
During/Explore/Explain
Activity:

1. The teacher should perform a read-aloud of A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle. The teacher can also use an online read-aloud, such as the digital tool provided. 

2. After reading the story one time, the teacher should read the story again, stopping after each page to create a sequential list of objects Hermit Crab added to his home. The teacher should ask for student volunteers to help create the list. For example: First, Hermit Crab added a sea anemone to his house. Second, Hermit Crab added a sea star to his house. 

3. After creating the list, the teacher should group students into pairs. The partners should take turns retelling the plot of the story to their partner using the teacher's chart to help guide their retelling. 

4. The teacher should explain to students that they will be creating an imaginary home using objects they find around their school. The teacher should take the students on a "nature walk" around the school grounds to collect objects. Note: The teacher should set behavior expectations for the nature walk prior to beginning the activity. The teacher may wish to arrange for additional adults to supervise during the nature walk. The teacher could set parameters for the objects students are allowed to collect, such as "You may only collect objects that are smaller than your hand" and "You may only collect five items".  

5. After returning from the nature walk, the students should create a sequential list of the items they will add to their imaginary home artwork using the Creating a House Guide Sheet. This sheet will require students to make a list of the items they will use to create their imaginary home.

6. The students should then create their imaginary home using the objects found on the nature walk. 
Assessment Strategies:

To ensure students have met the stated learning objectives the teacher should:

  • listen to student conversations while retelling the story to ensure students comprehended the details of the plot of A House for Hermit Crab and referred to illustrations in the text to support their explanations.

  • review each student's Creating a House Guide Sheet to check for student understanding of sequential steps. 

  • examine each student's imaginary house created from the materials found on the nature walk. 
Advanced Preparation:

The teacher will need access to the picture book A House for Hermit Crab by Eric Carle (available on Amazon or at other retailers). Alternatively, the teacher can use an online read-aloud, like the digital tool provided.

The teacher will need access to an interactive whiteboard, a traditional whiteboard, or chart paper. The teacher should make a copy of the Creating a House Guide Sheet for each student.

The teacher should ensure there is an area close to the school grounds for a nature walk. 
Variation Tips (optional):
 
Notes or Recommendations (optional):
 
  Keywords and Search Tags  
Keywords and Search Tags: A House for Hermit Crab, Arts Education, ELA, Eric Carle, illustrations, plot, recycled art, text features