Microteach Lesson
Detailed lesson plan title by: Kelly Fitzpatrick, Tahlia Abell and Tayla Tarca
Lesson title: Exploring Lines with Different Materials
Selected school context: Classroom Context
Arts Subject for this lesson: The Arts (Visual Arts)
Year level: Year 1 Lesson length: 45 minutes
CURRICULUM LINKS
Making Responding
• Use and experiment with Respond to visual artworks and consider
different materials, where and why people make visual
techniques, technologies and processes to artworks, starting with visual artworks
make artworks (ACAVAM107). from Australia, including visual artworks
of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
Peoples (ACAVAR109).
General Capabilities Cross-Curriculum Priorities
Literacy: Critical and Creative
Students develop their Thinking: Students are engaged
literacy through sharing through purposeful activities in
their artworks with peers which they are able to explore
and through being an their individual creativity. In
audience to respond to particular, the lesson plan gives
others’ art making. students the opportunity to
Students are also able to draw freely which can foster
develop their literacy each students critical and
through discussion in creative thinking.
which they can express
what they like and why
about other student’s
artworks.
The main concept of the lesson is that students will learn how simple lines can
be used to create effective art work. They will then be able to understand that
Context and these techniques can be built on to create more complex artworks. It is
Broad Goals assumed that students know how to draw different kinds of lines from
previous years so will then be able to use these techniques to create art using
different medias.
Students will be able to use line techniques such as straight, curved, spiralled
and zigzagged to create imaginative artworks.
Specific Learning
Outcomes Students will be able to understand that different medias such as pencil and
paint as well as other materials such as glue and saw dust can be used to create
artworks.
Each of the table groups will have on their tables: lead pencils, PVA glue, box
lids, a box of sawdust and A4 paper. Also placed on each table will be a
random object.
As the children file into the class they will be asked to take a seat at
5 mins
their table and draw the object in the centre of it. This will help the
class settle into the visual arts lesson.
15 mins
A discussion will then be had about line work: straight, curved,
spiralled and zigzagged. The students will then be asked to draw a
continuous line that crosses over making sure to cover the whole A4
page.
Using PVA glue on a paintbrush, the students will then follow the line
Description of the 10 mins they have created. Using the lid of a box they will then cover their page
Lesson sequence in sawdust, making sure to shake the excess off back into the lid of the
box.
5 mins They will then need to be placed in a designated drying space and left
to dry for about five minutes. While the glue is drying, the students will
then continue with drawing the object in the centre of their table. If
students complete this early, they will then be allowed to colour their
picture in.
Once the glue has dried the students will paint in the blank spaces that
10 mins
have been created. They will be encouraged to use a range of colours.
An extension activity for students who complete the whole task ahead of time
will be to count and write, in their work books, how many spaces they painted
in each colour.
For students who have sensory needs, the sawdust can be substituted for a
soft sand or cups can be used so that these students won’t have direct contact
with the material.
Working with year 1 students, it was decided that they should draw their
Differentiation desired pattern on the page before using the PVA glue. This will provide the
students with a guideline of where to pour their glue. This will also help if
students are unable to pour the PVA glue due to physical or cognitive needs,
they can draw their desired pattern and have the teacher or a more capable
peer pour the glue for them. The student may then be able to complete the
task with guidance.
Assessment will be done via observation throughout the lesson to assess how
creative students can be with their own artworks including originality, use of
Assessment lines and materials etc. Learning conversation will also take place in order to
gain an understanding of what lines students have used and why, as well as the
reasoning behind their choice of colours.
• Lead pencils
• PVA glue
Preparation /
• Box lids
Equipment
• A box of sawdust
• A4 paper
Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority 2016, ‘The Arts:
Key Ideas’ viewed 3rd August 2017
<https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-10-curriculum/the-arts/key-
Resources ideas/>.
Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority 2017, ‘Visual
Art’, viewed 1st August 2017, <https://www.australiancurriculum.edu.au/f-
10-curriculum/the-arts/visual-
arts/?&capability=ignore&priority=ignore&elaborations=true>.
Evaluation of the Microteach Lesson
For this assessment, Tayla, Tahlia and myself created a 45-minute lesson on the subject of visual
arts. We then modified it into a 20-minute lesson to present to our peers. As we would be using
glue and sawdust, we made sure to organise beforehand, how the classroom would be set up to
minimise mess and movement across the room. To manage this learning environment, we set up
stations, before the lesson began, where only a certain number of people could be at a time to
minimise the number of people walking around. We also allowed our peers to speak at a low
volume so they could interact with each other without creating a problem with a large noise
level. At the beginning of the lesson we discussed line work and worked with the class through
some examples which we left on the whiteboard during the lesson for them to refer to.
It was important for this to be an open-ended task to provide opportunities for the students to
be creative. This lesson focused on line work, teaching the students about the different styles and
thickness’ they can create with only a lead pencil. To settle the class at the beginning of the
lesson we set up a quick drawing activity at each of the tables which our peers did quietly.
During the lesson many of our peers finished their line work quickly and were ready to start
using the saw dust. As there was only room for three people at a time at the saw dust station, we
had our peers continue with the drawing activity that we began at the start of the lesson.
Throughout the lesson our peers seemed engaged and every person had completed the main
activity by the end of the lesson. Each of our peers showed an understanding and use of
different lines to a high extent and also discussed their artworks and what they could improve on
which worked well for observational assessment.
This lesson went smoothly however, there are still some aspects that could use improvement. If
this lesson were to be taught again I would discuss other learning outcomes such as body
awareness as the students use the glue and the saw dust as the station isn’t a large space. As a
group it was important for us to take into consideration the diversity of our classmates. If I were
to use this activity in a year 1 classroom I wouldn’t use pva glue as it is hard to control where the
glue goes, instead I would have the students use glue sticks. Students have a lot of practice using
glue sticks during other tasks and so this would also provide an easier and more familiar way for
students who have learning difficulties. With glue sticks it will also be important to use sand or a
finer material as saw dust is unlikely to stick.
