Understanding the Complexities of Setting
In order to address a variety of learning styles with emphasis upon the tactile learner, students will participate in a class project to construct a wall-sized, three dimensional mural of the setting of the novel, Where the Lilies Bloom. This project cannot be too large. (An outside corridor wall is suggested.) The massive size of the mural makes the project distinctly different from similar art projects attempted in the past; it and also allows students enough space for all of the details desired in the end result of the mural; and affords enough space for all students in the class to display their work.
A lesson plan for grade 8 Visual Arts Education and English Language Arts
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Related topics
- Learn more about English language arts.
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Learning outcomes
Students will:
- become aware of the complexities of a moving setting in a novel.
- increase comprehension by developing an awareness of detail presented in novels.
- be encouraged to work as a team and build a cooperative learning spirit.
Teacher planning
Time required for lesson
6 hours
Materials/resources
- green, blue, white, brown, black bulletin board paper for background
- multi-colored tissue paper for constructing wild flowers
- wooden coffee stirrers for construction of buildings
- used file folders to construct characters, cars, trucks, etc.
- green bulletin board paper sent through the paper shredder for leaves on trees and shrubs
- banner made on computer, colored, and decorated with wildflowers
- cotton to make the clouds
- books to research wild flowers and mountains buildings of the era
Technology resources
Computerized banner: Where the Lilies Bloom
Research using library equipment to find pictures and information on wild flowers and herbs mentioned in the novel.
Pre-activities
Read the novel, Where the Lilies Bloom. Read aloud a particularly descriptive passage from the book (1-2 paragraphs). Note the descriptive words used to make a word picture of the setting. Compare that to a passage with the descriptive language stripped away. Which passage is easier to visualize?
Read aloud a descriptive passsage from an informational book on wildflowers. How does this informational description compare to the novelist’s description?
Students compile list of wildflowers and herbs from novel. Collect descriptions of wildflowers and herbs from the novel. Use sticky notes to identify pages with descriptions.
Students identify descriptions of mountain gristmill, schoolhouse, country store, tobacco barn, houses in the novel. Mark with sticky notes. Locate pictures and photos of each from that era
etc.
Students make list of art supplies they will need and the teacher attempts to find them within the school.
Activities
- Divide classes into assignment groups: background, trees and shrubs, wild flowers, buildings, cars and trucks, Kiser’s house, Roy Luther’s house, schoolhouse, characters, hospital and mountain town, banner, etc. The project grows as the students buy into it and the ideas flow.
- Research details of wildflowers and buildings.
- Construct buildings and begin to place on the background.
- Watch the mural develop.
- Make a lot of pictures. This is a tremendous team building activity.
Assessment
- How well does the students’ work fit the author’s description of the setting?
- How imaginative and excited were the students?
- Were students able to relate the complexities of setting found in the novel to their visual representation?
Supplemental information
Related websites
Lily of the Valley description
http://www.theplantexpert.com/springbulbs/LilyoftheValley.html
Comments
This activity allowed all students on our team to work together on a wonderful project. The response of administration and teachers was very affirming to the students. They amazed themselves at what they could accomplish when they all worked together. For most students the setting of the novel came alive. Many students said they felt as if they had been on a field trip to the mountains.
North Carolina Curriculum Alignment
Visual Arts Education (2001)
Grade 8
- Goal 7: The learner will perceive connections between visual arts and other disciplines.
- Objective 7.01: Interpret and analyze connections, similarities and differences between the visual arts and other disciplines.
- Objective 7.02: Demonstrate various ways the art elements and design principles interrelate within all arts disciplines.
English Language Arts (2004)
Grade 8
- Goal 2: The learner will use and evaluate information from a variety of sources.
- Objective 2.01: Analyze and evaluate informational materials that are read, heard, and/or viewed by:
- monitoring comprehension for understanding of what is read, heard and/or viewed.
- recognizing the characteristics of informational materials.
- summarizing information.
- determining the importance of information.
- making connections to related topics/information.
- drawing inferences.
- generating questions.
- extending ideas.
- Objective 2.02: Use multiple sources of print and non-print information to explore and create research products in both written and presentational forms by:
- determining purpose, audience, and context.
- understnaing the focus.
- recognizing and/or choosing a relevant topic.
- recognizing and/or selecting presentational format (e.g., video, essay, interactive technology) appropriate to audience.
- evaluating information for extraneous detail, inconsistencies, relevant facts, and organization.
- researching and organizing information to achieve purpose.
- using notes and/or memory aids to structure information.
- supporting ideas with examples, definitions, analogies, and direct references to primary and secondary sources.
- noting and/or citing sources used.
- recognizing the use of and/or employing graphics such as charts, diagrams,and graphs to enhance the communication of information.
- Objective 2.01: Analyze and evaluate informational materials that are read, heard, and/or viewed by:
- Goal 5: The learner will respond to various literary genres using interpretive and evaluative processes.
- Objective 5.01: Increase fluency, comprehension, and insight through a meaningful and comprehensive literacy program by:
- using effective reading strategies to match type of text.
- reading self-selected literature and other materials of interest to the individual.
- reading literature and other materials selected by the teacher.
- assuming a leadership role in student-teacher reading conferences.
- leading small group discussions.
- taking an active role in whole class seminars.
- analyzing the effects of elements such as plot, theme, charaterization, style, mood, and tone.
- discussing the effects of such literary devices as figurative language, dialogue, flashback, allusion, irony, and symbolism.
- analyzing and evaluating themes and central ideas in literature and other texts in relation to personal and societal issues.
- extending understanding by creating products for different purposes, different audiences, and within various contexts.
- analyzing and evaluating the relationships between and among characters, ideas, concepts, and/or experiences.
- Objective 5.02: Study the characteristics of literary genres (fiction, nonfiction, drama, and poetry) through:
- reading a variety of literature and other text (e.g., young adult novels, short stories, biographies, plays, free verse, narrative poems).
- evaluating what impact genre-specific characteristics have on the meaning of the text.
- evaluating how the author's choice and use of a genre shapes the meaning of the literary work.
- evaluating what impact literary elements have on the meaning of the text.
- Objective 5.01: Increase fluency, comprehension, and insight through a meaningful and comprehensive literacy program by:
- Goal 6: The learner will apply conventions of grammar and language usage.
- Objective 6.01: Model an understanding of conventional written and spoken expression by:
- using a variety of sentence types, punctuating properly, and avoiding fragments and run-ons.
- using subject-verb agreement and verb tense that are appropriate for the meaning of the sentence.
- applying the parts of speech to clarify language usage.
- using pronouns correctly, including clear antecedents and case.
- using phrases and clauses correctly, including proper punctuation (e.g. prepositional phrases, appositives, dependent and independent clauses.)
- determining the meaning of unfamiliar vocabulary words using context clues, a dictionary, a glossary, a thesaurus, and/or structural analysis (roots, prefixes, suffixes) of words.
- extending vocabulary knowledge by learning and using new words.
- evaluating the use and power of dialects in standard/nonstandard English usage.
- applying correct language conventions and usage during formal oral presentations.
- Objective 6.01: Model an understanding of conventional written and spoken expression by:
