Innovative Illustrators
Collaged Illustrations in the Style of Eric Carle
2nd Grade
UNIT: INNOVATIVE ILLUSTRATORS
Collaged Illustrations in the Style of Eric Carle
2nd Grade, 5-6 Weeks
INTRODUCTION TO UNIT:
In this unit, second grade students become authors and illustrators like the first and second grade students who created the published book “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl.” Students learn the painted paper collage technique of the familiar author and illustrator, Eric Carle, while expanding their knowledge of settings, character, and plot development. Students have the opportunity to illustrate a page of a book from a collaborative class story, an individual story, or a short one page narrative.
PROBLEM/ACTIVITY STATEMENT:
Illustrate one page of a story using the paper painting collage technique of Eric Carle. Plan, design, and complete a collage that describes the setting, characters, and plot of a story, matching the text with the illustration.
RELATIONSHIP TO LIFE:
Students learn about the elements of stories and literature in their academic class, specifically settings, character development, and plots. Second graders are at a point where they are beginning to read and comprehend more complex stores, but it was not too long ago that they were first learning to read from picture books. Picture books are the starting point for students in learning building blocks of a story. Illustrations that are rich and detailed provide information and context to the reader or viewer. Many students are familiar with the stories and illustrations of Eric Carle. Carle’s illustrations are simple, yet descriptive. The bold and bright colors, along with the simplicity of his collage techniques, make his illustrations both attractive and relatable to students. Many children feel as though his technique is something that they too can be successful at. Introducing the students to the book “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl,” by first and second grade students from Virginia, makes the idea of writing and illustrating a book like Eric Carle, a more reachable goal. It is important for students to feel as though they can be successful at a technique in order for them to take risks and become fully involved in the process. This unit builds on student’s knowledge of setting, character development, and plot as it relates to illustration. These elements are just as important to the written text as they are to the illustrations. Students learn how detailed and descriptive illustrations are crucial to the success of a picture book.
GOALS: Students should...
Understand: For space and composition, explore composition by creating artwork with a center of interest, repetition, and/or balance (MACF Standard 2.6).
Know: For color, explore and experiment with the use of color in dry and wet media (MACF Standard 2.1).
Be able to: Create 2D and 3D artwork from memory or imagination to tell a story or embody an idea or fantasy (MACF Standard 3.3).
Be able to: Use a variety of materials and media, various kinds of papers, textiles, and yarns, and understand how to use them to produce different visual effects (MACF Standard 1.1).
OBJECTIVES:
COMMON CORE CONNECTION:
Second graders supplement their study of literature by describing their setting, characters, and plot in a written and visual format. Students illustrate words that they have written, in the style of Eric Carle. The following 2nd grade English Language Arts Standards are integrated into this unit:
QUOTES:
“The childlike simplicity of Carle’s illustrations is a deftly managed fiction aimed, as is every element of his meticulously crafted work, toward the goal of making books that young children feel to be entirely their own.” -Leonard S. Marcus, “Show Me a Story: Why Picture Books Matter”
Collage as a free form medium - “It’s [collage] very free in that you can shift the papers around. But the shapes are very defined, and once glued down, their relationship to each other is also defined.” -Eric Carle, “Show Me a Story: Why Picture Books Matter”
“In my studio I have files full of my papers, hundreds and hundreds of tissue papers, all filed by color.” -Eric Carle, “Show Me a Story: Why Picture Books Matter”
FORMAL CONCEPTS:
ARTISTIC BEHAVIORS:
•Narrative drawing encourages the natural propensity to tell stories of one's life events, giving a voice and identity to students' artwork.
•Introducing children to art develops their visual awareness and provides a springboard for personal image-making.
•Working from art allows students to see ways in which artists have graphically solved problems symbolically or compositionally.
•Narrative strategies help student artists develop ideas related to duration and changes in time.
RESOURCES AND MATERIALS:
“Illustrator’s Planning Page” worksheet
Pencils
Colored Paper
Tempera Paint
Texture Brayers
Sponges
Paint Brushes
Palettes
Scissors
Glue
EXEMPLARS:
“The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” Eric Carle
“The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl”
MOTIVATION:
The teacher reads the story “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl,” that was illustrated in a similar paper painting collage technique as the familiar author and illustrator, Eric Carle. Students learn that the book was written and illustrated by first and second grade students, and they gain confidence in their ability to illustrate pages in the paper painting collage technique.
QUESTIONS:
Topic Questions:
PROCEDURES/ DEMONSTRATION:
VOCABULARY:
LESSONS/ WORK PERIOD:
Lesson 1 - Paper Painting like Eric Carle: In the introductory lesson, students learn about the important job of an illustrator. Students work together to define the role of an illustrator and make a list of all the important jobs that an illustrator has. An illustrator chooses the medium or materials to use for the illustrations and is responsible for making sure that the pictures match the text on every page of the book. Students are reintroduced to Eric Carle as both an illustrator and author, and are read his picture book, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar.” Many children are familiar with the book already. Students are asked to think about how Eric Carle makes his illustrations while the teacher is reading the story. It is revealed that Eric Carle works with collage techniques, made from painted paper and tissue paper. In this lesson, students examine the different types of brush strokes and marks that Eric Carle puts on his painted papers. Students are shown an image of how Eric Carle paints his papers in bulk before he begins his illustrations, establishing a large palette of different colors. In this lesson, students prepare for their own illustrations by making painted paper. Students use a variety of different colored paints and papers, using texture brayers, paint brushes, sponges, and other tools to add different textures and visual effects. Students are to choose at least one warm colored paper, one cool colored paper, and one white colored paper to start their palette.
Lesson 2 - Illustration: This lesson begins by reading a book to the second graders, titled “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl.” This book is unique because it was written and illustrated by first and second graders in Virginia, and published by Scholastic. Students are asked to consider how the illustrations in this book compare to Eric Carle’s illustrations. Students notice that both illustrations are made in a painted paper collage technique. Students are also asked to guess how old the illustrators of this book are. It is revealed that the illustrators are the same age as them, and students gain confidence that they can illustrate stories too. In this lesson, students prepare for their one page illustration by sketching in pencil before beginning to collage. Students each have an individual text to illustrate, based on a story that was developed by the class, a page from a narrative that they have written, or a short story that can be illustrated in one picture. Students fill out a worksheet that helps them organize their ideas and plan their illustrations.
Lesson 3 - Settings: In this lesson, students begin their collaged illustrations by establishing a background with the painted paper. The worksheet from the previous class helps students to focus on a specific background. Students are introduced to the basics of collage techniques and learn that every detail of a collage needs to be cut out with paper (similar to Matisse’s “drawing with scissors” technique from an earlier unit). Students examine the settings or backgrounds that are established in Eric Carle’s illustrations as well as in the illustrations of “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl.” Students choose simple, yet descriptive backgrounds using their painted paper palettes.
Lesson 4 - Plots: In the final lesson, students add characters and details to their illustrations in order to describe the plot. Students examine the illustrations of Eric Carle and “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl,” pointing out what crucial details exist that give information about the story. Students include characters, animals, buildings, and other environmental details that give clues about the text.
CLOSURE:
Completed illustrations are paired with written text, to be displayed for viewers to read. If part of collaborative book, pages are put together and displayed in a book format.
ASSESSMENT, EVALUATION, AND GRADING:
Restatement of objectives: Did the student...
Collaged Illustrations in the Style of Eric Carle
2nd Grade, 5-6 Weeks
INTRODUCTION TO UNIT:
In this unit, second grade students become authors and illustrators like the first and second grade students who created the published book “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl.” Students learn the painted paper collage technique of the familiar author and illustrator, Eric Carle, while expanding their knowledge of settings, character, and plot development. Students have the opportunity to illustrate a page of a book from a collaborative class story, an individual story, or a short one page narrative.
PROBLEM/ACTIVITY STATEMENT:
Illustrate one page of a story using the paper painting collage technique of Eric Carle. Plan, design, and complete a collage that describes the setting, characters, and plot of a story, matching the text with the illustration.
RELATIONSHIP TO LIFE:
Students learn about the elements of stories and literature in their academic class, specifically settings, character development, and plots. Second graders are at a point where they are beginning to read and comprehend more complex stores, but it was not too long ago that they were first learning to read from picture books. Picture books are the starting point for students in learning building blocks of a story. Illustrations that are rich and detailed provide information and context to the reader or viewer. Many students are familiar with the stories and illustrations of Eric Carle. Carle’s illustrations are simple, yet descriptive. The bold and bright colors, along with the simplicity of his collage techniques, make his illustrations both attractive and relatable to students. Many children feel as though his technique is something that they too can be successful at. Introducing the students to the book “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl,” by first and second grade students from Virginia, makes the idea of writing and illustrating a book like Eric Carle, a more reachable goal. It is important for students to feel as though they can be successful at a technique in order for them to take risks and become fully involved in the process. This unit builds on student’s knowledge of setting, character development, and plot as it relates to illustration. These elements are just as important to the written text as they are to the illustrations. Students learn how detailed and descriptive illustrations are crucial to the success of a picture book.
GOALS: Students should...
Understand: For space and composition, explore composition by creating artwork with a center of interest, repetition, and/or balance (MACF Standard 2.6).
Know: For color, explore and experiment with the use of color in dry and wet media (MACF Standard 2.1).
Be able to: Create 2D and 3D artwork from memory or imagination to tell a story or embody an idea or fantasy (MACF Standard 3.3).
Be able to: Use a variety of materials and media, various kinds of papers, textiles, and yarns, and understand how to use them to produce different visual effects (MACF Standard 1.1).
OBJECTIVES:
- Demonstrate an understanding of the importance setting, character development, and plot in literature and in illustrations.
- Analyze the illustrations of Eric Carle and “The Seeds of the Milkweed,” for style, technique, and color.
- Prepare a palette of painted paper, including at least one warm color and at least one cool color, while experimenting with different textures and marks produced by brayers, paint brushes, sponges, and other textured tools.
- Plan and design an illustration by completing an “Illustrator’s Planning Page” worksheet.
- Complete a painted paper collage in the style of Eric Carle that describes a setting, characters, and plot that relates to the text.
COMMON CORE CONNECTION:
Second graders supplement their study of literature by describing their setting, characters, and plot in a written and visual format. Students illustrate words that they have written, in the style of Eric Carle. The following 2nd grade English Language Arts Standards are integrated into this unit:
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.1 Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RL.2.7 Use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters, setting, or plot.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.2.3 Write narratives in which they recount a well-elaborated event or short sequence of events, include details to describe actions, thoughts, and feelings, use temporal words to signal event order, and provide a sense of closure.
- CCSS.ELA-Literacy.L.2.1 Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
QUOTES:
“The childlike simplicity of Carle’s illustrations is a deftly managed fiction aimed, as is every element of his meticulously crafted work, toward the goal of making books that young children feel to be entirely their own.” -Leonard S. Marcus, “Show Me a Story: Why Picture Books Matter”
Collage as a free form medium - “It’s [collage] very free in that you can shift the papers around. But the shapes are very defined, and once glued down, their relationship to each other is also defined.” -Eric Carle, “Show Me a Story: Why Picture Books Matter”
“In my studio I have files full of my papers, hundreds and hundreds of tissue papers, all filed by color.” -Eric Carle, “Show Me a Story: Why Picture Books Matter”
FORMAL CONCEPTS:
- Texture can add detail to an object
- Balance can be achieved through the arrangement of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form within a composition
- Unity can be achieved through the repetition of line, shape, color, texture, space, or form in a composition
- Rhythm can be achieved by varying the size of line, color, texture, shape, and form
ARTISTIC BEHAVIORS:
•Narrative drawing encourages the natural propensity to tell stories of one's life events, giving a voice and identity to students' artwork.
•Introducing children to art develops their visual awareness and provides a springboard for personal image-making.
•Working from art allows students to see ways in which artists have graphically solved problems symbolically or compositionally.
•Narrative strategies help student artists develop ideas related to duration and changes in time.
RESOURCES AND MATERIALS:
“Illustrator’s Planning Page” worksheet
Pencils
Colored Paper
Tempera Paint
Texture Brayers
Sponges
Paint Brushes
Palettes
Scissors
Glue
EXEMPLARS:
“The Very Hungry Caterpillar,” Eric Carle
“The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl”
MOTIVATION:
The teacher reads the story “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl,” that was illustrated in a similar paper painting collage technique as the familiar author and illustrator, Eric Carle. Students learn that the book was written and illustrated by first and second grade students, and they gain confidence in their ability to illustrate pages in the paper painting collage technique.
QUESTIONS:
Topic Questions:
- What is the role of an author? What is the role of an illustrator?
- What is a setting? How can you show a setting using pictures?
- What is a plot? How can you describe the plot using pictures?
- What is a warm color? What is a cool color?
- How important are details in illustrations? What is the purpose of illustrations?
- How do you think that Eric Carle produces his illustrations? What materials do you think he uses?
- Where does Eric Carle get all of his collage papers from?
- What kinds of colors does Eric Carle use? Are they bright or dull?
- What kinds of textures does Eric Carle create on his painted papers? How do you think he made his textures?
- How do the illustrations in “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl” compare to Eric Carle’s illustrations? Do you think they were done in similar technique?
- How do the illustrators depict a setting or environment in their illustrations?
- How can you show repetition and rhythm in your painted papers?
- What kind of color palette will you create with your painted papers?
- What is the setting of your illustration? What characters are involved? How can you depict the plot?
PROCEDURES/ DEMONSTRATION:
- The teacher demonstrates paper painting by showing students how to use the variety of different materials that are available to them to produce different textures and visual effects.
VOCABULARY:
- Setting- the time, place, and conditions in which the action of a book, movie, etc., takes place (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)
- Plot- a series of events that form the story in a novel, movie, etc. (Merriam-Webster Dictionary)
LESSONS/ WORK PERIOD:
Lesson 1 - Paper Painting like Eric Carle: In the introductory lesson, students learn about the important job of an illustrator. Students work together to define the role of an illustrator and make a list of all the important jobs that an illustrator has. An illustrator chooses the medium or materials to use for the illustrations and is responsible for making sure that the pictures match the text on every page of the book. Students are reintroduced to Eric Carle as both an illustrator and author, and are read his picture book, “The Very Hungry Caterpillar.” Many children are familiar with the book already. Students are asked to think about how Eric Carle makes his illustrations while the teacher is reading the story. It is revealed that Eric Carle works with collage techniques, made from painted paper and tissue paper. In this lesson, students examine the different types of brush strokes and marks that Eric Carle puts on his painted papers. Students are shown an image of how Eric Carle paints his papers in bulk before he begins his illustrations, establishing a large palette of different colors. In this lesson, students prepare for their own illustrations by making painted paper. Students use a variety of different colored paints and papers, using texture brayers, paint brushes, sponges, and other tools to add different textures and visual effects. Students are to choose at least one warm colored paper, one cool colored paper, and one white colored paper to start their palette.
Lesson 2 - Illustration: This lesson begins by reading a book to the second graders, titled “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl.” This book is unique because it was written and illustrated by first and second graders in Virginia, and published by Scholastic. Students are asked to consider how the illustrations in this book compare to Eric Carle’s illustrations. Students notice that both illustrations are made in a painted paper collage technique. Students are also asked to guess how old the illustrators of this book are. It is revealed that the illustrators are the same age as them, and students gain confidence that they can illustrate stories too. In this lesson, students prepare for their one page illustration by sketching in pencil before beginning to collage. Students each have an individual text to illustrate, based on a story that was developed by the class, a page from a narrative that they have written, or a short story that can be illustrated in one picture. Students fill out a worksheet that helps them organize their ideas and plan their illustrations.
Lesson 3 - Settings: In this lesson, students begin their collaged illustrations by establishing a background with the painted paper. The worksheet from the previous class helps students to focus on a specific background. Students are introduced to the basics of collage techniques and learn that every detail of a collage needs to be cut out with paper (similar to Matisse’s “drawing with scissors” technique from an earlier unit). Students examine the settings or backgrounds that are established in Eric Carle’s illustrations as well as in the illustrations of “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl.” Students choose simple, yet descriptive backgrounds using their painted paper palettes.
Lesson 4 - Plots: In the final lesson, students add characters and details to their illustrations in order to describe the plot. Students examine the illustrations of Eric Carle and “The Perfect Place for an Elf Owl,” pointing out what crucial details exist that give information about the story. Students include characters, animals, buildings, and other environmental details that give clues about the text.
CLOSURE:
Completed illustrations are paired with written text, to be displayed for viewers to read. If part of collaborative book, pages are put together and displayed in a book format.
ASSESSMENT, EVALUATION, AND GRADING:
Restatement of objectives: Did the student...
- Demonstrate an understanding of the importance setting, character development, and plot in literature and in illustrations?
- Analyze the illustrations of Eric Carle and “The Seeds of the Milkweed,” for style, technique, and color?
- Prepare a palette of painted paper, including at least one warm color and at least one cool color, while experimenting with different textures and marks produced by brayers, paint brushes, sponges, and other textured tools?
- Plan and design an illustration by completing an “Illustrator’s Planning Page” worksheet?
- Complete a painted paper collage in the style of Eric Carle that describes a setting, characters, and plot that relates to the text?