Art

The goal of art education is for students to gain an appreciation of art, discover how art reflects past and present cultures, and learn art techniques and processes. The art curriculum is designed as a cumulative process and explores four areas in which students will create, respond, connect, and present art. Over the five-year learning period, concepts and skills are developed from identification and recognition to complex application.

All students participating in full-day kindergarten through fifth grade will participate in art education. Students in first through fifth grade will receive standards based grading on MasteryConnect over three trimesters.

The Illinois State Board of Education has adopted the Illinois Fine Arts Learning Standards based off of the National Fine Arts Standards. These standards are intended to reflect best practices and address the curricular areas of visual arts, music, theater, dance, and media arts.

For more information about the Illinois Fine Arts Learning Standards for Visual Arts, please visit the Illinois State Board of Education Standars and Courses site.

Art Curriculum

Kindergarten

Develop art production abilities
Develop the senses of touch and sight
Explore the concepts of line, shape, and color
Learn to use and care for art tools and materials
Begin to explore art in its historical and cultural context
Connect art to the school, community, and daily life
Develop creativity and become visually literate

First Grade

Art Elements

Line - Recognize a line; Discriminate between various types and sizes of lines; Recognize various line qualities (thick/thin); Recognize that connecting lines create shapes
Shape - Recognize shapes of different types and sizes; Observe various shapes in the environment; Name basic geometric shapes
Color- Name primary and secondary colors; Recognize black, white and gray
Texture - Discover that texture is a surface quality related to touch; Develop awareness of a variety of textures
Space - Observe two-dimensional space in the environment; Observe three-dimensional space in the environment
Balance - Observe symmetry
Pattern - Recognize that pattern is created by repetition
Contrast - Observe contrasting qualities (large/small, winter/summer)

Art Production

Students will explore production techniques using the following media: pencil, crayon, marker, watercolor, and tempera painting
Students will demonstrate ongoing care of tools and materials
Students will identify drawing and painting tools
Students will explore two-dimensional art in the media of paper and three-dimensional art in the medium of paper and/or clay

Art History, Criticism, and Aesthetics

Students will become acquainted with significant works by Georgia O'Keefe and Piet Mondrian
Students will look at two artworks of the same subject and discuss similarities and differences
Students will identify a portrait
Students will become aware of the similarities and differences between the visual arts, drama and dance

Second Grade

Art Elements

Line - Recognize that connecting lines create shapes; Understand that repeated lines form a pattern; Recognize a simple line pattern; Begin to recognize vertical, horizontal and diagonal lines.
Shape - Understand that repeated shapes form a pattern; Utilize shapes to form objects; Arrange shapes in order to express themselves objectively and/or non-objectively
Color - Identify the primary and secondary colors; Recognize warm and cool colors
Texture - Observe visual characteristics of texture; Describe the textural qualities of an object
Space - Recognize the overlapping shapes suggests depth; Recognize that distant objects appear smaller; Recognize a horizon line in the environment
Form - Identify a three-dimensional object
Balance - Create a symmetrically balanced artwork
Pattern - Identify a pattern in a work of art or in the environment; Create a pattern using two different shapes

Art Production

Students will explore production techniques using the following media: pencil, crayon, marker, oil pastels, chalk, watercolor and tempera
Students will demonstrate ongoing care of tools and materials
Students will create a drawing, a painting, a pattern, a two-dimensional paper project, and a three-dimensional artwork

Art History, Criticism, and Aesthetics

Students will become acquainted with significant works by Gustav Klimt and Henri Rousseau
Students will make informed responses to works of art and the environment and will justify opinions about the value of art
Students will identify a portrait and a still life
Students will begin to identify influences on daily life in selected artworks from various cultures
Students will explore the similarities and differences between the visual arts, drama, and dance

Third Grade

Art Elements

Line - Observe various qualities of line; Discriminate between various line types; Identify horizontal, vertical and diagonal lines in the environment and in artwork.
Shape - Discriminate between free-form and geometric shapes
Color - Become acquainted with the color wheel; Observe that the addition of white to a color creates a tint; Observe that the addition of black to a color creates a shade
Value - Discriminate between light and dark colors; Observe that value changes may occur by adding black or white to a color
Texture - Discriminate between varying textures
Space - Understand background as the part of a picture that appears farthest away; Recognize the horizon line in a work of art
Balance - Become aware of asymmetrical balance in the environment and in artwork

Art Production

Students will explore production techniques using the following media: pencil, crayon, marker, chalk, watercolor, and tempera
Students will demonstrate ongoing care of tools and materials
Students will create: a drawing, a painting, a pattern, a collage, two-dimensional paper project, and a three-dimensional artwork
Students will explore mixing secondary colors from two primary colors
Students will begin to know what is needed to produce quality artwork (good craftsmanship)
Students will continue to develop their art vocabulary

Art History, Criticism, and Aesthetics

Students will become acquainted with significant works by Vincent VanGogh and Faith Ringgold
Students will make informed responses to works of art and the environment, as well as justify opinions about the value of art
Students will identify a portrait, a landscape and a still life
Students will begin to discriminate between various media
Students will look at two artworks of the same subject and discuss similarities and differences
Students will continue to identify influences of daily life in selected artworks from various cultures
Students will explore the similarities and differences between the visual arts, drama and dance

Fourth Grade

Art Elements

Line - Observe that a line is a path of a moving point; Discover that line can create movement and direction in artworks
Shape - Identify geometric and free-form shapes; Recognize the difference between a two-dimensional shape and a three-dimensional shape
Color - Continue color-mixing techniques; Demonstrate how to create tint; Demonstrate how to create shade
Value - Recognize the concept of light and shadow in a work of art; Demonstrate a value change in a given medium
Texture - Define texture; Understand that texture may be actual or visual; Identify visual texture in a work of art
Space - Identify foreground and background in works of art; Become aware of the difference between positive and negative space in works of art
Balance - Identify a work of art that is asymmetrically balanced; Identify how the use of asymmetrical balance creates interest in artworks
Contrast - Observe that size differences in works of art can create contrast
Rhythm - Observe rhythm in artworks; Observe how rhythm in visual art is similar to music

Art Production

Students will explore production techniques using the following media: pencil, crayon, marker, oil pastels, chalk, watercolor, and tempera
Students will demonstrate ongoing care of tools and materials
Students will create: a drawing, a painting, a pattern, a collage, a two-dimensional paper project, and a three-dimensional artwork
Students will demonstrate color mixing as well as create tint and shade
Students will begin to know what is needed to produce quality artwork (good craftsmanship)
Students will explore and demonstrate paper manipulations
Students will create a print
Students will demonstrate how various tools and media are used together
Students will continue to develop their art vocabulary
Students will create simple weaving

Art History, Criticism, and Aesthetics

Students will become acquainted with significant works by Sonia Delauney and George Seurat
Students will make informed responses to works of art and the environment as well as justify opinions about the value of art
Students will identify a portrait, a landscape, and a still life
Students will begin to discriminate between various media
Students will begin to recognize universal themes in selected artwork
Students will begin to identify how art communicates similar ideas as other learning areas
Students will identify how a work of art tells a story about people and times
Students will begin to identify how visual art is created for a variety of purposes and reflects the time when it was created

Fifth Grade

Art Elements

Shape - Differentiate between geometric and free form shapes
Color - Continue color-mixing techniques; Identify a monochromatic color scheme; Recognize complementary colors
Value - Recognize that color values diminish with distance; Demonstrate shading of an object in a work of art
Texture - Define texture; Understand that texture may be actual or visual; Identify visual texture in a work of art
Form - Identify form as having three dimensions
Balance - Recognize and create an asymmetrical work of art; Observe and create radial balance in a visual image
Contrast - Create visual interest by using contrasting materials in an artwork
Rhythm - Recognize that rhythm can be created by repeating elements; Recognize that rhythm can communicate feeling; Continue observation of how rhythm in visual art is similar to rhythm in music

Art Production

Students will explore production techniques using the following media: pencil, crayon, marker, oil pastels, chalk, watercolor, and tempera
Students will demonstrate ongoing care of tools and materials
Students will create: a drawing, a painting, a pattern, a collage, a two-dimensional paper project and a three-dimensional artwork
Students will create tints and shades
Students will demonstrate the use of monochromatic color scheme
Students will begin to know what is needed to produce quality artwork (good craftsmanship)
Students will create a print
Students will demonstrate how various tools and media are used together
Students will demonstrate correct usage of basic art vocabulary

Art History, Criticism, and Aesthetics

Students will become acquainted with significant works by Pablo Picasso and Andy Warhol
Students will make informed responses to works of art and the environment as a result of their exposures to the art elements, art principles, and art history
Students will justify opinions about the value of art
Students will identify a portrait, a landscape and a still life
Students will explore the differences between a photograph and a painting
Students will begin to discriminate between various media, including photography, used to produce art
Students will continue to recognize universal themes in selected artwork
Students will continue to identify how art communicates similar ideas as other learning areas
Students will identify how a work of art tells a story about people and times
Students will begin to identify how visual art is created for a variety of purposes and reflects the time when it was created
Students will identify how works of art reflect the differences between past societies and present day life