Brainstorming Worksheet
Formative Assessment A Research Template
Formative Assessment B Group Presentations
Summative Assessment Photo Montage

Unit of Study:            Beyond European Artistic Traditions (Non-Western Art)

Lesson Title:               Native Arts of the Americas

Subject Area:             Advanced Placement Art History

Grade Level:              11-12

Author:                      Kim Venensky

County:                      Montgomery County Public Schools

Length of Time:        Six 47-minute class periods

___________________________________________________________________________

Abstract:  

The AP Art History curriculum encompasses the Prehistoric era through the twentieth century including both western and nonwestern art.  In this course students develop an understanding of diverse historical and cultural contexts of architecture, sculpture, painting and other media. Students will look at the art of various cultures from the past and present.  They will learn how and why art was created and for what function.  Emphasis is placed upon understanding works in context such as patronage, gender, ethnicity, religion, social norms and the functions and effects of works of art in societies.  Through studying and observing the art work of Native American and Latin American cultures, students will understand the significance of these groups in the establishment of their modern societies.  They will observe the connections and contributions between the cultural standards of European and indigenous peoples, artistic traditions and influences.  Through studying the art work of these indigenous groups of North, Central and South America and the influence of Spain on these cultures, students will gain valuable insight into the affect of the colonization of the new world.  They will also be able to compare and contrast this regions art, politics and religion with that of other non-western cultures such as Mesopotamia, India, China and Japan.  This unit will establish a timeline of significant contributions of various cultural groups from 1 AD – 1550 CE. 
 

Background:

Students will have knowledge of Art History from the Prehistoric period through the Renaissance including Mesopotamia, India, China and Japan prior to 1500 CE.  They will understand basic art vocabulary and have the ability to observe and analyze works of art by style, iconography and historical context.
 

Materials:

index cards
pencils and pens
3 x 5 foot rolled paper
Charcoal
Black
Red
Blue and ochre tempera paint
Brushes
Tape image bank
Primary source analysis worksheets

Resources:

Texts

Helen Gardner’s Art Through the Ages. Delacroix and Tansey, 12th ed.

Marilyn Stokstad, Art History: Revised Edition: Volume One/Two, Prentice Hall, Inc., and Harry N. Abrams, Publishers, (1995)

Bernal Diaz del Castillo, Historia verdadera de la Conquista de las Nueva Espana. 

Image banks

http://myloc.gov/Exhibitions/EarlyAmericas/Pages/default.aspx
http://www.art-design.umich.edu/mother/
http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hm/08/hm08.htm
http://www.nmai.si.edu/searchcollections/home.aspx
http://museum.doaks.org/IT_909
http://witcombe.sbc.edu/ARTHamericas.html#mesoamerica
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/award98/ienhtml/curthome.html
http://www.edwardscurtis.com/

 
Standards/Learner Outcomes:

National Standards / Fine Arts

• Standard 1: Understanding and applying media, techniques and processes
• Standard 2: Using knowledge of structures and functions
• Standard 3: Choosing and evaluating a range of subject matter, symbols and video
• Standard 4: Understanding the visual arts in relation to history and cultures
• Standard 5: Reflecting upon and assessing the characteristics and merits of their work and the work of others
• Standard 6: Making connections between the visual arts and other disciplines

MSDE Essential Learner Outcomes / Fine Arts

Outcome I: Perceiving and Responding- Aesthetic Education
The student will demonstrate the ability to perceive, interpret and respond to ideas, experiences and the environment through the visual arts.
            l.1HS1.b - student will use appropriate art vocabulary to describe, analyze and interpret qualities of visual form perceived and recorded in works of art.
Outcome II: Historical, Cultural and Social Contexts
The student will demonstrate an understanding of the visual arts as a basic aspect of history and human experience.
            ll.1.HS1.b – Determine how works of art provide social commentary, document historical events, and reflect the values and beliefs of the society in which they are created.
            ll.2.HS1.a – Create an artwork that connects art history with personal values or contemporary issues.
            *Not sure on this one.   ll.4.HS1.b – Use a study of historical periods to identify shared underlying philosophical values and cultural ideals that influenced the artists, authors, poets, and musicians who contributed to a specific stylistic movement.
Outcome III: Creative Expression and Production
The student will demonstrate the ability to organize knowledge and ideas for expression in the production of art.
            lll.1.HS1.b – In reflecting on the completed work, describe, analyze, and interpret the meaning created and evaluated the choice and use of media, skills, and knowledge I solving the art problem.
            lll.2.HS1.a – Draw upon individual experiences as the basis for personally meaningful images developed through a process that includes: 1) using 2 or more strategies to generate ideas for personal work, 2) solving intermediate representational problems by doing research, using references, models, or by practicing different strategies, 3) crafting a quality product demonstrating care, thought, and skill making.
            lll.2.HS1.b – Describe source(s) of ideas for personal work and discuss how ideas were generated, how representational problems were solved, what visual references or information was used and how the work changed from beginning to completion and what was thought about in the process of making the work.
Outcome IV: Aesthetic Criticism
The student will demonstrate the ability to identify, analyze and apply criteria for making visual aesthetic judgments.
            lV.1.L1.B - Critique art works and apply different theories of art to judge personal art work and that of others.
           
Objectives/Skills:

Students will be able to:
Identify the specific indigenous groups of the Americas and their artistic contributions
Understand the cultures of the indigenous groups as a means to understanding the art work they produced
Know specific architectural structures, sculptures and painting and their significance
Indentify the context in which Europeans colonized and changed the history of the area 
Utilize primary sources of information to analyze and draw upon for making interpretations about unknown works of art  
Create personally meaningful and representational images to express ones own culture and cultural understanding
Critique works of art and make judgments based upon observation and facts

Keywords/Vocabulary:

Aztec, Moche, Inca, Mexica, Maya, Ferdinand, Isabella, Charles V, Habsburg Empire, Phillip II, Protestant Reformation, Alhambra, Escorial, El Greco, Ignatius Loyola, Council of Trent, Colombus, Cortes, Pizarro, de Castillo, Quipu, stele, Teotihuacan, Tikal, citadel, Quetzalcoatl, epigrapher, ethnographer, cosmology, pictograph, glyph, St. Augustine, Jaina, Bonampak, Chichen Itza, atlantid, repousse, lost-wax casting, Chavin de Huantar, Andes, Sipan, Cahokia, effigy mound, gorget, pueblo, Borgia Codex, Tenochtitlan, Coyolxauhqui, Temple of Huitzilopochtli, Coatlicue, Moctezuma, codex, Machu Picchu, Cuzco, kiva, Hopi, Zuni, Navajo

Motivation:

Activator

1. Students will be asked what identity means by defining themselves through a series of questions.   How can one identify oneself?  Are you male or female, tall or short, black or white, Asian or Hispanic?  Are you active or passive?  Where were you born? What is your ancestry?  Begin to make a list of these questions on the board as an example with class participation.
2. Define culture.  What then does this mean?  Everyone identifies or associates him or herself with something or as something. 
3. Give each student and index card and ask them to describing themselves; who they are, where they come from.
4. Give students a few minutes to share their identity with another student.  Collect these cards for follow up later in this lesson.  ( See Formative Assessment A)
5. Explain that this concept of identity and culture is the basis for this unit of study as we discuss the cultural identities of various indigenous groups of the Americas, their art work, and the effects of Spanish colonization.

Scope and Sequence:  

Each day the objectives will be reviewed and viewable in the classroom, and the teacher will preface the activator with the daily agenda.

Day 1

1. Activator (see above)
2. Teacher will provide visual samples of noted art work (sculpture, architecture and painting: see PowerPoint) combined with lecture on the historical context of the time periods being discussed.  Through the observation and analysis of each art piece, students will be able to gain insight into its purpose or function as well as understand the context in which it was created.  A timeline will be used to show the vast range of dates being covered as well as maps of the areas as each indigenous group is being presented.   The focus on this lecture series will cover the art and culture of the following groups over a 3 day period in chronological order beginning with Mesoamerica by period of preclassic through post classic and North America to 1300 CE, then again Mesoamerica and North America after 1300 CE including the arrival of the Spanish conquistadors.   The indigenous groups of focus are the Anasazi, Aztec, Hopi, Inka, Maya, Mimbres, Mississippian, Mixtec, Moche, Nasca, Navajo, Olmec, Paracas, Pueblo, Tairona, Teotihuacan, Tiwanaku, Toltec, Wari, Zapotec

Day 2

1. Activator (5 minutes): As students enter the room, 2 unknown but related works of art will be shown on the board.  Students will select one of the images and on an index card will use the format of observation by style, iconography and historical context to make judgments about the work.  Discussion will follow to include rationale for judgment as to which indigenous group the work relates.  This can be done in a think/pair/share format.
2. Continue Lecture as described above.

Day 3

1. Activator (5 minutes): Teacher will have an art work on the board that is unknown but related to the previous day lecture.  On an index card, students will use the format of observation by style, iconography and historical context to make judgments about the work.  Whole class discussion will follow to include rationale for judgment as to which indigenous group the work relates. 
2. Continue lecture as described above with focus on the cultures after 1300 CE ending with the North American Navajo, Hopi, and Pueblo.

Day 4

1. Activator (3 minutes): Students use a value line activity to divide into groups of 4.
2. Each group receives and index card with the name and description of a particular indigenous group (Moche, Mimbres, Aztec, etc.) The card describes who they were, contributions, an event that is or has taken place, etc.  They must visually illustrate what is represented on the card by creating a piece of art work using only pictographs and glyphs.  Art materials of large paper to represent a mural and drawing materials related to the historical palette will be provided for this exercise.  No text can be used. 

Day 5

1. Activator (3 minutes): Teacher will pair 2 groups together to switch art work and hang around the classroom walls.
2. Each group will analyze their assigned group’s art work using a primary source analysis worksheet indicating their observations, reflections and questions (10 minutes) based upon what they have learned about particular indigenous groups over the past 2 days.  They may use their notes if needed.  It is not necessary that they identify correctly as much as be able to make judgments about the art they see based upon the facts they have learned. 
3. Groups will report their findings / analysis to the entire class to include their rationale for their judgments.
4. Each student will write a reflection statement on the activity as a formative assessment.  (See Formative Assessment B)   This may be assigned as homework if time does not permit to complete in the classroom.

Day 6 

1. Activator (5 minutes): Give students their original index cards with their personal identities.  Give students time to revise or add on if they choose based upon their new understanding of culture and how individuals fit into a group.  Have students sketch a draft (thumbnail) of their visual ideas for their pictograph.  (See Formative Assessment A)
2. Each student will be given the same supplies to create their own pictograph based on their personal identity.  They must visually illustrate their own story without the use of text.  (See Summative Assessment A)
3. When completed, share with the class by posting around the room. 

Activity Extension: Using the primary source analysis worksheet, each student can individually or in groups repeat the activity above of figuring out what the pictographs represents.  This could also be a graded activity or have a reflection component.   

Assessment:

Formative assessment

Personal narrative on an index card reflecting questions about one’s personal background and story and a thumbnail of their personal story pictograph

Reflection statement on the group activity indicating what student learned from the activity about the cultures discussed? What they may have been thinking when creating the art?  Other’s point of view?  Why it is important to communicate or tell a story? 

Summative Assessment

Rubric with indicators  (sample indicators below)
size of work on type of paper
only pictures and symbols used (no text)
at least ____ # of images used
organization of visual images either chronological, hierarchal, etc.
cohesive appearance (through color, style, scale, etc.) no random stuff all over the page
work is purposeful (neat, complete)
Imagery relates to the story (see accompanying narrative)
Summary statement

Lesson Extension: 

The Teacher may reference the content of this unit with other units of study such as art of India, Asia and Africa.   Content such as temple structures, ritual and religious objects will be referenced and connected to these other cultures for comparison.

Closure/Reflection:
Through this process of studying the art of the Americas, students will gain knowledge of indigenous groups and the significance of the exchange between Europe and the Americas at this time.  They will also be able to describe their personal cultural representations in the forms of narrative visual art as a framework to understanding the importance of cultural symbolism in all art forms and time periods we study.  

Although this lesson was designed for AP Art History, the class was not offered during the current school year.  I currently am teaching photography so I was able to modify the lesson to a degree to fit it into the course.  I presented this as a unit on Photomontage in the digital component of the course.  Students did not have the background knowledge as I anticipated, so I presented the lecture on the Aztec, Inca, and Maya civilizations.  Prior to presenting them with the index card for the Formative Assessment B activity, the students randomly selected the name of an indigenous culture from a set of 8 cultures I created for the class.  They completed internet research on the culture using the research template with questions I created.  Then students were grouped together so that there were 8 groups of 4 students in the class representing each culture.  At this time students were given the prompt on an index card and asked to create art objects reflecting the identity of the culture.  They used construction and tissue paper, markers, crayons, glue and other art supplies to create the objects.  Each group presented their work and research to the class.  With this jigsaw modification, all students learned about each culture to replace the fact that they did not have the thorough background knowledge as an art history class would.  Although they did not create a pictograph as indicated in the lesson plan and would have more closely linked to the topic of photomontage, all students were able to see the type of art each culture produced from ceramics to weaving or masks. 

To connect the unit to photography, I presented the work of photographer Edward S. Curtis who photographed Native North American Indians.  I also referenced artists George Catlin, Albert Bierstadt, and Frederic Remington for their images of Native American Indians.  Included in the discussion to connect to photography, we looked at several photographs of people from various cultures and tribes and further discussed cultural identity and how photographic images can tell stories.

The summative assessment for this unit in Photography was a personal identity photomontage.  Students brainstormed a list of twenty items that personally reflect their culture and influences which was graded as homework.  From the list they developed a sketch outlining the composition they wanted to create.  This was a formative grade.  They then began to compose the image using Adobe Photoshop, software previously used as it is a component of the photography curriculum.  Currently students are completing the images.  Some have already submitted them for a grade.

Overall, the final products are very successful.  Students are able to incorporate aspects of their culture into a meaningful image.  They have a better understanding of the scope of cultural identity as indicated in the type of images used in their montage.  They also learned the technique of montage and applied known and new skills using Adobe Photoshop.  The lesson took longer as emphasis was placed on production of a product for a summative grade as this would not be the case in an AP Art History class.  Although the connection to montage would have been made stronger had I followed through with having students create a pictograph instead of art objects relating to the culture they researched, the concept still transferred and they have demonstrated personal commitment in their work.