1st Grade Art Project Northwood Elementary PTA Art Enrichment Program Birch Trees Presentation modified and prepared by Marni Sheppard 2017-18 1st Grade Art Project Northwood Elementary PTA Art Enrichment Program

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Lesson Overview Lesson: Masking/Perspective/Color/Shadow Name: Birch Trees Time: 60 minutes Medium: Watercolor Volunteers: Recommend 5 to help Students will use masking tape and watercolors to create a beautiful picture of birch tree trunks. Using a small sea sponge, they can add bushes and/or use salt to create a lacy effect. Vocabulary: Masking, Perspective, Depth Additional Resource: Birches, by Robert Frost (great pictures, although poem too advanced for this age) book is stored with lessons

Materials Needed Watercolors Watercolor Paper (9x12) painting masking tape (1 ½ in. blue) Volunteers can rip in half during lesson prep Paintbrushes (large and small) Sea Sponges (damp but not soaking wet) Cups for water for rinsing brushes Table salt (not kosher), optional Post-Lesson Email the Parent Letter to your room parent (available on the PTA website under ”Art Docent Volunteer Resources”) and ask your room parent to forward it to the class. The letter gives the parents context for the lesson their student completed and this step helps ensure on-going support of the Northwood PTA Art Docent Lesson!

Forest by Gustav Klimt “When I see birches bend to left and right Across the lines of straighter darker trees, I like to think some boy’s been swinging them.” Birches Poem by Robert Frost What does the poet mean when? Darker straighter trees- white bark is in contrast with most other tree barks Boy has been swing them- bent and crooked

Watercolor background Salt texture Today’s Project Birch tree bark Masking Watercolor background Salt texture This project works best if you explain and do the steps in stages (don’t try to explain the entire project and then have them do it all at once).

Birch Tree Bark Begin by discussing birch trees and their appearance: show pictures (samples w/ lesson) and Klimt print. Also, if weather and teacher permit, take them for a walking tour outside: there is a stand of birch trees at Homestead Field (very close to the bathrooms, just south of the tennis courts). Note how the trees are bumpy, knobby, uneven, leaning (encourage them to help describe the trees). Can also contrast the shape with Douglas Fir, which are very different—they tend to be very straight and even. Three points: 1) white trunks; 2) brown bark showing through the white (where the white bark peels off); and 3) not perfectly straight (leaning, crooked, etc.).

Step 1- How to make a mask In art, masking protects an area from change. They will use the tape to create the tree trunks, and will paint over and around the tape. When the tape is peeled off, it will leave the white trunks where the paint couldn’t reach. Here we are using torn masking tape to replicate the rough bark of birch trees

Step 3- Painting the Land   When the students have applied the tape pieces correctly, it’s time to paint. First remind them not to use too much water or the tape will be hard to remove. Use the larger of the 2 paintbrushes for the land and sky Have the students think about a time of day for their picture: dawn, twilight, sunset, sunrise, daytime, night etc. Students should paint the bottom half of the picture first, making sure to cover all the bottoms of the trees so none of the tree trunks appears to be “floating.” Color choice is up to them: some might like greens (they can mix different greens, if desired); others might use yellows or browns.

Step 3- Painting the Sky After the bottom half is painted, students should move to the top half and paint colors depending upon the time of day they have selected (oranges and reds for sunset, for example). After the bottom half is painted, they should move to the top half and paint colors depending upon the time of day they have selected (oranges and reds for sunset, for example).

Step 4- Salt the sky At this point, some students may want to LIGHTLY sprinkle a small amount of salt on their paper (this creates a lacy, starry effect). It’s recommended that a few adults walk around with small cups of salt and allow the students to “pinch out” a small amount.

Step 5- Peeling up the mask Carefully peel away the tape to reveal the white trees.

Step 6- Painting the shadows & highlights   Use the smaller of the paintbrushes for this Have the students use light (thinned) black OR brown paint Repeat on all trees, making sure to keep the shadow on the SAME side of the tree. To complete the trees, the students should take the black (or brown /black watercolor) paint and make several horizontal dashes and dots on each tree. Each tree needs just a few.

Step 7- Sponge in shrubs When painting with a sponge, you need to dab, not smear use the sponges (slightly damp) dipped in the green or black paint to create bushes. This is a good time to revisit the idea of balance- if you put a bush on one side, consider one on the other to create a balance of color

Example