7E Lesson Plan

Grade level: Upper elementary

Big Idea: Surrealism as a Dream World
Lesson Objectives:
Students will be able to think creatively and open their imagination.
Art TEKS:
Interdisciplinary Connections:
Art history references
Teacher Materials: Paper, hat, pen, power point projection of a surrealist artwork: Joan Miro,
Harlequin's Carnival
Student Material: Paper, pencil
Elicit:
Teacher will uncover prior understanding about the topic by asking students if they know what
surrealism is.
Engage:
The teacher will capture the students interest by doing Questions from a hat game. This activity will
give students to think creatively through their answers.
This activity will include some questions like
If you were to be animal, what would you be?
If you had super power, what would it be?
If you could be one color, what would you be?
If you could have anything in this world, what would it be?
Explore:
The hands-on/minds-on activities that students will be doing include discussing the surrealist artwork.
The essential questions related to the big idea that the teacher will use

What is surrealism?
Explain:
Student explanations of the art work, Joan Miro, Harlequin's Carnival, should precede introduction of
the term surrealism or explanations by the teacher. The teacher will ask certain questions for depth
description of the artwork.
Reaction:
Whats your first response to this work?
How does this make you feel?
What does it make you think of?
What does it remind you of?
Description:
What images do you see?
Are there any outstanding or unusual features you notice?
What colors/shapes/textures/lines dominate the image? Why?
What movement do you see?
How do you think the main subject feels?
Does it look real? Or abstract? Why?
Also, students will make a collaborative drawing by playing a game called exquisite corpse.
Each table will get one sheet of paper.
http://www.laits.utexas.edu/hebrew/personal/toolbox/acm/corpse/corpse.html
Elaborate:
Students will develop a more sophisticated understanding of the concept through a more thorough
criticism of the artwork.
Interpretation:
If you were inside the work, as a particular character, who would you be and what would you be
thinking/ feeling?

What does it make you think of or remind you of?

Evaluation:
What is the artists intention behind creating such an artwork?
This knowledge can help students to learn creative thinking.
Evaluate:
Students will demonstrate that they have achieved the lesson objective:
-by creating a surrealistic artwork
Extend:
They can create a unique artworks using their own creative thoughts rather than using
templates or examples of other artworks.