Unit Plans

A few weeks later in the semester we talked about the idea of unit plans - several lessons that connect to each other because of a broader idea or concept. Although we had previously talked about implementing unit plans in past semesters (with both Beth and Jessica), we as art ed students had never really had to consider them up (until this point) when writing our lesson plans. Thinking back to my own middle and high school art experience (even though middle school was about a decade ago - scary!) I don't really remember doing lessons that related to one another in a coherent "unit plan" way. Maybe once I got to AP art things flowed better and seeemed more concise, but for the most part, I remember doing projects that taught us specifically about the principles and elements.

I'm not really sure why my teachers wouldn't connect their lessons under a central theme or unit. It totally makes sense to do so - students can connect what they learn in one lesson and broaden that knowledge to new topics under a related lesson. It helps solidify things you've taught in the past while giving students information they can remember in the long term. I also like that having a unit plan gives teachers a place to start when trying to write a lesson. It makes it easier to conceptualize where you want to bring your students and how you want to help them get there; rather than writing a lesson that is totally out of left field and doesn't relate to anything you've talked about in the past. I would much rather learn a lot about one topic than do lessons that only revolve around the principles and elements because it provides for more interesting conceptual exploration while the lessons can also include important info on the principles and elements snuck in.

Another awesome thing about unit plans is the fact that there are so many possibilities in choosing one! Even just in our class alone, I have seen some really awesome unit ideas that can lead to a huge variety of interesting lessons for students of all ages. Some unit plans - like Identity or Fear - lead to a lot of student exploration of the self, and others - like Transformation - lead to really great material exploration through different media and artist studies. There are so many topics that students can use to really explore on a deeper level that will teach them to look at the world a little differently than before, by using their art to do so.