Courses: Interpersonal Communication, Relational Communication Objective: This article teaches students to explain and evaluate Knapp's Relational Staircase Model through the creation of personalized greeting cards for each relational stage. The in-class activity encourages students to be creative and succinct in capturing the essence of an…

Computational thinking--a set of mental and cognitive tools applied to problem solving--is a fundamental skill that all of us (and not just computer scientists) draw on. Educators have found that computational thinking enhances learning across a range of subjects and reinforces students' abilities in reading, writing, and arithmetic. This book…

In this article, the author shares how she changed the way she engaged with Alex, a student who was reluctant to do art projects. While reflecting on Alex's objections to doing art projects, she noticed one concern in particular that arose again and again: he wanted to play. Alex experienced the shift into art-making as a break from playing with…

The study of the human form is fundamental to both science and art curricula. For vertebrates, perhaps no feature is more important than the skeleton to determine observable form and function. As Leonard da Vinci's famous Proportions of the Human Figure (Virtruvian Man) illustrates, the size, shape, and proportions of the human body are defined by…

Suggests the use of Sumi-e painting with its emphasis upon simplicity as a means of motivating students to explore a new and interesting form of visual expression. Describes an activity which involves a demonstration of this art form. Includes a chart showing the seven basic Japanese Sumi-e strokes. (KO)

Maintains that one of the ongoing challenges of art education is to encourage the correct and effective use of terminology. Discusses expressionism, particularly in relation to landscape painting. Includes discussion of the background, techniques, and full-page color illustrations of four works by major expressionist painters. (CFR)

The paper, one in a series of instructional units for gifted students, concentrates on contempory art with an emphasis on developing abstract thinking and creative problem solving at a higher cognitive level. An introductory section reviews basic program concepts and briefly describes the use of such procedures as open-ended discussion, guest…

Describes activities to stimulate elementary school students' and kindergarten children's interest in mixing colors and selecting attribute cards. Suggests ways to encourage parents and other adults to participate in positive activities with children. (RH)

This paper provides 18 lesson plans that use educational technology for instruction in the visual and performing arts in secondary schools; these lesson plans were developed as part of a workshop held in the State of Washington in May 1988. The lesson plans were developed to follow the format of State of Washington Superintendent of Public…

A subject area with rich potential for integration with art is natural science. Assignments that enable elementary students to focus on a natural phenomenon, understand it in scientific terms, and develop a drawing or painting based upon it are suggested. (RM)

Four art activities are presented. Primary students study "The Family Concert," by Jan Steen (genre painting). Intermediate students analyze "Haymakers, Evening, Eragny," by Camille Pissarro (impressionism). Junior high students study "Girls on a Bridge," by Edvard Munch (expressionism). High school students examine…

Presents four classroom lessons designed for elementary and secondary students based on paintings in the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, Texas. Provides an overall goal, specific objectives, background of the painting, and suggestions for discussion and activities for each painting. Includes full-page color prints of each painting. (CFR)

This essay examines issues of giftedness and excellence, beginning with classical references to human striving toward the "good," the attraction of gifted children to quality, and the recent discovery of the oldest known cave art with its manifest excellence. Classroom activities related to cave art and language arts, social studies,…

Presents learning activities in which student designed and drew motifs related to naturalistic objects such as flowers, animals, or birds. Describes steps by which a flower can be turned into a motif and then into a repeat pattern or overall design. (DB)

Supplementary guidelines for elementary visual arts education in Arizona schools are presented in 13 sections. Section one provides an overview of Arizona educational requirements. Sections two and three contain a statement of purpose for elementary visual arts education and a definition of art learning. Section four provides the bulk of the…