Thoroughness in lesson planning is invaluable, while at the same time an educator must not dismiss the truth in the quote above. As a way to address both good and thorough planning as well as the issue of "flow" these lesson plans offer a list of questions to consider for a days activities and discussions rather than outlining minute by minute activities. The rigidity of minutes may throw this lesson off whereas the questions allow for the pace to be adjusted according to students needs.

Post Card Exchange - autobiography and cultural identity

This five day lesson plan is the first week of a longer term project that will give students a better understanding of how their particular cultural and personal experiences mold their perspectives, create their sense of identity and influence the way they make and interpret visual material. For grades 11 - 12, Art II.

*Although these lesson plans are integrated, lesson 1 and lesson 2 can be taught individually, separate from this unit.

objectives

• Students will research their background or every day experience as it relates to their sense of personal or group identity.

• Research and write about an artist's work that focuses on issue of identity.

• Translate meaningful personal experience into visual form on their own set of post cards.

• Students reflect on events in their pasts and connect their particular experience with the choices they make as creators and interpreters of visual material.

• Address the problematic issues in design today like stereotyping, appropriation and comodification of ethnic imagery

unit vocabulary

abstract, conceptual, eclips, formal elements, identity, polarities, relevance, strategy, stereo type

Day 1: student identity research

materials and resources

• Student journals

• list of identity research questions (listed below)

activities

Students will be asked to write the answers of the following questions in their journals (in a section dedicated to this project) in order to begin the process of researching their sense of personal or group identity:

• Where did you, your parents, grandparents or ancestors migrate from?

• Does your family or extended family practice customs that you value and/or identify with?

• What language do you speak at home? What language do your parents or guardian speak?• What activities, sports, hobbies do you engage in regularly?

• Does what your parents or guardian do during the day have an effect on how you identify yourself - as similar or in contrast to?

To further facilitate student identity research students will break into small groups of three or four and share what they wrote down for answers to above questions, discus their answers with others, and ask any questions of each other that they may be curious about. Allow at least 20 minutes for this. After group sharing, student will work independently in journals answering the following questions:

- Is there another within your group that you identify with?
- Did you learn about another student's personal or cultural identifiers that are new to you?
- Do you share any identifiers in the same way or in a different way with another in your group? In other words do two students share a similar identifier but identify themselves with it differently?

After journal entry, students select both a location and an event, activity or phenomenon that relates to their sense of personal or group identity. Students create a list of descriptive words as it relates to their identifiers. For example, the name of a place, the colors of a flag, the name of a language, the color of ones eyes, a habit, a preoccupation, a religion, etc.

homework explanation

For day 3: Drawing from their word lists created in class on day 1, students research their "personal identifiers." Students can research ethnic origins and racial identities, and explore the traditions and oral histories of their families and communities. OR students can focus on the minutiae of their daily lives as a way to investigate their sense of individual identity. Students will take photographs of, make sketches, or bring in objects that speak as personal or group identifiers.

(One 50 minute class period.)

Fulfills CA State Board of Education Standards for Advanced Visual Arts: 3.3.

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Day 2: identity and contemporary art

materials and resources

• computer lab with Internet access and projection capabilities and Quicktime to show video clips of following artists whose work addresses the issue of identity: Louise Bourgeois, Maya Lin, Bruce Nauman, Kerry James Marshall, (from the Art: 21- Identity and Contemporary Art Web site).

• Homework assignment printed for hand out with questions and guidelines for reviewing an artwork (below).

• student journals

activity

In the computer lab, students and teacher as a group will read about and watch the video clips of artists. Discus and take notes on the following questions that relate to each one:

1. Bruce Nauman: go to link, have a student read out loud about artist, then view Model for "Stairway" VIDEO clip. Teacher will read artist's quote: "I needed a different way to approach the idea of being an artist. I always thought that you can make something that appears to be functional, but when you try to and use it, you can't figure out what its function might be. And that's in the end what the function is, for you to figure out what to do with it."

Discussion questions:

• How does this statement relate to identity?

• What is the significance of the stairway as it relates to identity in toady's world?

2. Maya Lin: go to link, have another student read about Maya Lin, then view "Ecliptic" Ice Rink VIDEO clip and Making Atlas Sculptures VIDEO clip.

Discussion questions:

• Define the word "polarities" as it relates to Maya Lin's two works Making Atlas Sculptures and "Ecliptic" Ice Rink.

• How does her use of polarity speak to the issue of identity?

3. Kerry James Marshall: go to link, have a student read about Marshall. View "Many Mansions"  VIDEO clip, "RYTHM MASTR" comic  VIDEO clip,  Family Greeting Cards VIDEO clip, and  "Portrait of the Artist..." VIDEO clip

Discussion questions:

• what sort of conventions did Kerry Marshal have to adopt in order to reclaim the Black identity as one that is powerful?

• what technique has Marshall used to create a powerful representation of Blackness in his paintings?

• why was it important for Marshall to reclaim the Black identity in the world of art?

• what cultural identifiers, does Marshall use to portray powerful black supperheros?

4. Louise Bourgeois: go to link, have another student read about Louise Bourgeois. Then go to Women and Craft VIDEO clip and view.

Discussion questions:

• What era was Bourgeois getting her arts education and does that have an effect on the content of her work?

• What does she have to say about women's' roles in general?

further investigation

If time allows look at some student works that deal with identity and Native American stereo types at the Student Projects site of Art: 21.

homework explanation

Choose one of the art works that we looked at today, or an art work that we did not look at today that you think deals with the issue of "identity", and write a review the piece. If you choose another artwork that we did not discus today, you must attach an image of the artists work. One page minimum, typed, double spaced. The following questions should be addressed and used as a guideline for your review:

• Describe the piece: medium, formal elements of the work, size or scale, content.

• Based on what we discussed during presentation of the artists, how are they addressing the issue of identity?

• What formal, visual, and conceptual strategies does the artist use to do this?

• Three days to complete assignment

(One 50 minute class period.)

Fulfills CA State Board of Education Standards for Advanced Visual Arts: 1.2, 1.3, 1.5, 1.6, 1.8, 3.1, 3.2, 3.4, 4.1, 4.2, 4.3, 4.5, 5.2

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Day 3: design for identity

materials and resources

• List of things to consider for post card designs for identity, printed and enough copies to give one to each student.

• Students' word lists, items collected and/or images of identifiers students bring from homework

• card stock cut into 4" x 6" size. There should be enough to provide all students in class with 3 each.

• pen and ink, pastels, acrylics, water color, colored pencils, graphite pencils• Student journals

activity

With the same small groups they worked with on day 1, students will present their list of words, and the stories, images, sketches and/or objects that relate to meaningful personal experience as a pre-discussion to clarify "what's what" as it relates to how they identify themselves. Do two students share a similar identifiers but identify themselves with it differently?

3 sheets of 4" x 6" post card stock will be distributed to each student. Working individually students will draw from word list, stories, items and images they brought in to translate the meaningful personal experience into a visual form/design on their set of post cards. The design they come up with will encapsulate their personal identity research. Things to consider for designs:

• Will you use post cards all as one larger canvas that can be pieced together? If so, each must stand on is own as a design.

• Will you use the three post cards as a series?

• Will each one represent something different?

• Make sure that each post card speaks to the other two in some way, that the three are not in isolation of one another.

• The three post cards are to represent the one message of meaningful personal experience.

• Will you have literal representation or will you abstract an essential part of an issue to symbolize and speak to other images?

• Will you use both sides of the post card? if so what message are you conveying about yourself that using both sides addresses?

• Try to make each element in your design be relevant to the issue of identity.

Students will write their name and address down on a piece of paper to be exchanged with the name and addresses of one other student in a different period art class that is doing the same project. The three post cards will be sent to the person with whom students exchanged addresses with in another session of this art class. (Ideally students will exchange addresses with students in another school, and even ain another state.)

After design portion is introduced, students are to work in class on drafts for their designs. Students are to decide what medium will they will be using; i.e., pen and ink, pastels, acrylics, water color, colored pencils, graphite.

(One 50 minute class period.)

Fulfills CA State Board of Education Standards for Advanced Visual Arts: 2.1, 2.2, 2.4, 2.5,

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Day 4: design for identity - written form

materials and resources

• pen and ink, pastels, acrylics, water color, colored pencils, graphite pencils

• Student journals

• List of things to consider for post card designs for identity

activity

Present drafts of designs, or incomplete finals of three post cards for class critique. For the critique we will refer to the List of things to consider for post card designs for identity, (provided on day 3) to guide the critique.

From insights and constructive criticism gained from class critique of their designs as well as from their original research, students will write text relating to their topic. This text will be written on the back of the postcards describing their design. Students are to address why they chose the imagery they did, and how the imagery speaks to the student's personal identifiers. Students should work on written text or final post card design for the remainder of class time.

(One 50 minute class period.)

Fulfills CA State Board of Education Standards for Advanced Visual Arts: 4.4, 4.6,

Day 5: post card exchange

materials and resources

• postal post card rate stamps enough for each student in class• pen and ink, pastels, acrylics, water color, colored pencils, graphite pencils

• Student journals

activity

Turn in review of art work (homework from day 2).

Students are to complete their designs on all three post cards. Students are to complete text and exchange with another student to proofread. Write text onto backs of post cards.Post and send post cards at the nearest mail box. Getting students out of the classroom to send the postcards during school will emphasize the point that these designs will be seen outside of the context of school and this class room. Students will receive post cards of another student's design—who they may not even know—at their homes in the mail. It will be in the context of the student's own home that they will get the first impression of the other's design and will read about them.

(One 50 minute class period.)

Fulfills CA State Board of Education Standards for Advanced Visual Arts: 4.4, 4.6,

further reflection for critique of final postcards sent and received

• The following week each student will receive three post cards from a student in another section. Once all of the students have received the post cards, via USPS, both classes will merge for presentation, critique and discussion. Students will present the post cards they received, read text and describe their findings. Then the class as a group will critique each one after presented.

• Is imagery stable as they travel from maker to receiver across geographic, cultural, and individual boundaries?

• Did the receiver learn more about the visual expression of his own specific cultural group, that went beyond the intent of the designer

• Discuss inappropriate commercial uses of culturally charged or sacred images in the mainstream.