Talking Points: Wassily Kandinsky

A collection of imagery and sources designed to introduce children to the work of Russian artist Wassily Kandinsky.

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This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

ages 5-8
ages 9-11
ages 11-14
free to access

Kandinsky and Responding to Music

Teacher’s Notes

“Colour is the keyboard, the eyes are the harmonies, the soul is the piano with many strings. The artist is the hand that plays, touching one key or another, to cause vibrations in the soul.” – Vassily Kandinsky

Wassily Kandinsky was a Russian painter born in 1866. Kandinsky was gifted with the neurological phenomenon ‘synesthesia’ which allowed him to associate music with colours. Kandinsky is considered a pioneer of abstraction in western art.

Take a close look at these paintings, talking about them as a class, and using the questions to help deepen looking. 

"File:Vasily Kandinsky, Improvisation No. 30 (Cannons), 1913, 1931.511, Art Institute of Chicago.jpg" by Wassily Kandinsky is marked with CC0 1.0.

Wassily Kandinsky, Improvisation No. 30 (Cannons), 1913

Questions to Ask Children

Describe what you see.

What do you think could be happening in this abstract painting?

What kind of music do you think that Kandinsky was listening to when he painted this?

What do you think the blue dashes represent?

How does the painting make you feel?

Watch this animation that brings elements of Kandinsky’s paintings to life.

Questions to Ask Children

How do you feel watching the animation?

What colour would you associate with the music played by a saxophone? A drum?

If you could animate one of the paintings above or below, how would you bring it to life? What would you make it do? 

Untitled (1916) by Wassily Kandinsky. Original from The Art Institute of Chicago. Digitally enhanced by rawpixel. CC0

Untitled (1916) by Wassily Kandinsky. Original from The Art Institute of Chicago.

Questions to Ask Children

How do you think Kandinsky was feeling when he painted this painting?

What genre of music do you think that Kandinsky might have been listening to while he was painting this?

Play a Kandinsky Painting in class with this interactive Google Arts and Culture Activity.

Watch this video on how to paint like Kandinsky whilst putting your own experience at the centre of the painting. 

Questions to Ask Children

Choose a colour and a shape to describe how you’re feeling right now.

 

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Music and art

This is featured in the 'Music and Art' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Music and Art’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen


Pathway: Simple Printmaking

Pathway for Years 1 & 2

Discipline:
Printmaking, Collage, Drawing

Key Concepts:

  • That we can make a “plate” from which to “print”

  • That there is a relationship between plate and print: e.g. negative / positive.

  • That we can use print to create “multiples”

  • That we can explore line, shape, colour and texture to explore pattern, sequence, symmetry and intention.

This pathway invites children to explore the world about them as a way to begin to understand the concept of “print”. 

Children use their own bodies, then things they collect around them, to create a variety of prints. They use their hands and feet to make prints, and they take rubbings of textures from the environment around them.  They make “plates” by making impressions in plasticine, and then by using printing foam. 

They explore how they can build up images by creating multiples, and use line, shape, colour and texture to explore pattern, sequencing and symmetry. 

Medium:
Paper, Printing Ink, Plasticine, Printing Foam

If you use this resource in your setting, please tag us on social media: #InspiredBy @accessart (facebook, twitter) @accessart.org.uk (instagram) and share the url. Thank you!


Plastacine Prints
foam plate and print
ages 5-8

Teaching Notes

Find the MTP for this pathway here.


Curriculum Links

Geography: Adapt to create imagery which explores symbols on maps.

History: Adapt to create portraits of significant individuals from history.

Maths: Pattern, repetition, pictorial representation, 2D/3D shapes.

Science: Adapt and use plants, trees, leaves, food chains, animals as inspiration to draw and make printed patterns.

PSHE: Peer discussion.


I Can…

  • I can make simple prints using my hands and feet. 

  • I can explore my environment and take rubbings of textures I find. 

  • I can use my rubbings to make an image.

  • I can push objects I find into plasticine and make prints.

  • I can cut shapes out of foam board and stick them on a block to make a plate. I can print from the plate.

  • I can draw into the surface of the foam board and print from the plate.

  • I can use colour, shape, and line to make my prints interesting.

  • I can create a repeat print.

  • I can create a symmetrical or sequenced print. 

  • I can use my sketchbook to collect my prints and test ideas.


Time

This pathway takes 6 weeks, with an hour per week. Shorten or lengthen the suggested pathway according to time and experience. Follow the stages in green for a shorter pathway or less complex journey.


Materials

Ready mixed paints, large sheets of cardboard (maybe primed with white paint), brushes, trays, soft pencils, handwriting pens, chalk, flowers for observation, collected objects (shells, leaves, twigs etc), wax crayons, plasticine, ink pads, printing foam, water soluble printing ink, small pieces of thick card, scrap sugar paper, glue, rollers.


 

Pathway: Simple Printmaking

A PDF of this pathway can be found here.

  • Aims of the Pathway

    This pathway aims to introduce children to the idea that we can make single or multiple copies of an image through print. 

    Using simple methods to obtain relief prints, pupils explore the materials around them to understand how we can use repetition, pattern, colour, line, shape, and texture to make images. 

  • Week 1: Printing with your Body

    Hands, Feet and Flowers

    Begin an exploration of printmaking using the “Hand, Feet and Flowers” resource to explore other ways of printing patterns using our bodies. This activity can work outdoors on a large scale but can also work well on tables in small groups. 

    Through this activity pupils directly experience what it means to make a “print”, discover how much paint they need and how much pressure they might apply. Children can use primary paint colours, start using the names of the colours, and they can also use ready mixed paint in other colours. 

    In this resource, pupils overlay their printed imagery with drawn imagery based upon flowers. You can choose if you proceed to this second activity, or if you prefer to leave the work as prints only, or if you wish to apply another theme or focus, i.e. draw hands, insects, etc. 

  • Week 2: Making Rubbings

    Taking Rubbings & Making Compositions

    Taking Rubbings

    This week focus upon how you can make prints by rubbing dry materials such as wax crayon or pencil crayon, over textured objects.

    Encourage children to “think like an explorer” and venture into the classroom and playground to collect textures and objects which they can take rubbings from. Make sure children take rubbings from things around them like the ground, as well as from things which you can lift up and bring back to the classroom, like leaves.

    Invite children to use the rubbings to make a composition, working in a sketchbook or on large sheets. Adapt the “Taking Rubbings & Making Compositions” Resource.

  • Week 3, 4 & 5: Explore & Develop

    Exploring Relief Printing

    Over the next few weeks, explore the following printing methods, continuing as far into the exploration as pupils are able.

    Give pupils plenty of time for discovery, experimentation and practice.

    As pupils travel further along the journey they will learn new skills and discover more about how to use their prints to explore pattern and intention. 

  • Method 1: Plasticine Print

    Explore How Plasticine Can Be Used to Print

    Use the “Printing with Plasticine” resource to further explore how we can use the things we find around us to create impressions in plasticine which we can then print from.

    Collect shells, feathers, leaves, twigs, string, coins, lego etc, and invite the children to explore what happens when we push them into plasticine. What kinds of marks does each object leave in the plasticine? 

    Using ink pads with which to print means the plasticine will pick up even fine detail. 

    Once children have created a number of “prints” they can cut them out and stick them in their sketchbooks. 


  • Or…

  • Method 2: Foam Print

    Additive & Incised Printing

    foam plate and print

    Use foam board and explore how you can make prints in two ways using the “Print Foam – Making Relief Prints” 

    Making a repeat pattern - foam plate and print

    Once pupils have created a number of prints, they can then cut into their prints and collage with them on a larger sheet of paper, thinking about more abstract concepts like pattern and repetition, or using the printed elements to build an image related to a theme, such as architecture or insects or plants. 

  • Support with Drawing

    Observational Drawing

    Continuous line drawing

    Support the creation of prints with close observation and careful drawing using the “Continuous Line Drawing Exercise“.  Invite pupils to use a subject matter which informs the creation of prints, and work in sketchbooks. 

  • Week 6: Reflect & Discuss

    Share and Celebrate the Outcomes

    foam plate and print

    Use the resource here to help you run a class “crit” to finish the project. 

    Invite children to display the work in a clear space on tables or on the wall. Encourage positive language and a celebration of all their hard work! Recap with children about the exploration – where they started, what they discovered and what they enjoyed. 

    If you have class cameras or tablets, invite the children to document their work, working in pairs or teams.

See the Pathway Used in Schools…

Hands and Feet Year 1 @Whitchurch1
Hands and Feet Year 1 @Whitchurch1
Year 1, Combs Ford Primary School
Year 1, Combs Ford Primary School
Year 1/2, St Michaels Community Academy
Year 1/2, St Michaels Community Academy
Year 1/2, St Michaels Community Academy
Year 1, Sydenham High School Prep Art Studio
Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton
Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton
Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton
Year 1, Abbey School, Torquay
Year 1, Abbey School, Torquay
Laura Gilling, Davenham CofE Primary School
Laura Gilling, Davenham CofE Primary School
Laura Gilling, Davenham CofE Primary School
Laura Gilling, Davenham CofE Primary School
Laura Gilling, Davenham CofE Primary School
Laura Gilling, Davenham CofE Primary School
Laura Gilling, Davenham CofE Primary School

If You Use AccessArt Resources…
You might like to…

Join our Facebook Group

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Share and Tag

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

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Make a Monogram

Create stamps using childrens initials

Create stamps using childrens initials


Pathway: Mixed Media Land And City Scapes

Pathway for Years 5 & 6

Disciplines:
Painting, Drawing, Sketchbooks

Key Concepts:

  • That artists use a variety of media often combining it in inventive ways, to capture the energy and spirit of land or city scapes.

  • That artists often work outside (plein air) so that all their senses can be used to inform the work.

  • That as artists we are able to experiment with materials, combining them to see what happens. We can feel free and safe to take creative risks, without fear of getting things “wrong”.

  • We can share our artistic discoveries with, and be inspired by each other.

  • We can use sketchbooks to focus this exploration and we do not always need to create an “end result” – sometimes the exploratory journey is more than enough. 

In this pathway children are introduced to the idea that artists don’t just work in studios – instead they get out into the world and draw and paint from life, inspired by the land and city scapes where they live. Pupils also see how artists use their creative freedom to explore ways of working which involve different materials and media. 

Pupils extend and adapt existing sketchbooks so that they can make drawings/paintings at different scales and ratios. They are enabled to take creative risks, explore and experiment, without the pressure of having to “produce” an end result. 

Pupils are given the freedom to use mixed medium in ways which suit them and their subject matter.

Medium:
Graphite stick or soft B pencil, Handwriting Pen, Pastels & Chalk, Paper, (Sketchbook Making Task: Paper, string, elastic bands, glue)

Artists: Vanessa Gardiner, Shoreditch Sketcher, Kittie Jones, Saoirse Morgan

If you use this resource in your setting, please tag us on social media: #InspiredBy @accessart (facebook, twitter) @accessart.org.uk (instagram) and share the url. Thank you!

detail
Blending pastel colours
resist
ages 9-11

Teaching Notes

Find the MTP for this pathway here.


Curriculum Links

Geography: Link your landscapes to your chosen topic e.g. cities in the Northern hemisphere, settlements and land use, digital mapping.

Science: Local habitat, Environmental changes.

PSHE: Responsibility to the planet, Collaboration, Peer Discussion.


I Can…

  • I have seen how artists respond to land and city scapes in various ways by using inventive mixed media combinations.

  • I have seen how artists work outside amongst the land and city scapes which inspire them, and how they use all their senses to capture the spirit of the place. I have been able to share my response to their work.

  • I can extend my sketchbook thinking creatively about how I can change the pages giving myself different sizes and shapes of paper to work on.

  • I can use my sketchbook to explore and experiment. I have taken creative risks and been able to reflect upon what worked and what didn’t work. 

  • I have continued my exploratory work outside the sketchbooks, bringing my “sketchbook way of thinking” to larger sheets of paper. 

  • I can share my journey and discoveries with others and am able to reflect upon what I have learnt.

  • I can appreciate and be inspired by the work of my classmates, and I can share my response to their work.


Time

This pathway takes 6 weeks, with an hour per week. Shorten or lengthen the suggested pathway according to time and experience. Follow the stages in green for a shorter pathway or less complex journey.


Materials

Soft B pencils, handwriting pens, sharpies, coloured pencils, oil/chalk pastels, charcoal, water colour, acrylic paint, ink, assorted papers and envelopes, glue.


 

Pathway: Mixed Media Land & City Scapes

A PDF of this pathway can be found here.

  • Aims of the Pathway

    This pathway aims to introduce pupils to working in mixed media to create land or city scapes with energy and a sense of place.

    This pathway is about experimenting and exploring. The emphasis is on creative risk taking and discovery. 

    Children are encouraged to explore the format and composition of their work, and explore lots of media combinations through exploratory work.

  • Week 1: Introduce

    Vanessa Gardiner & The Shoreditch Sketcher

    Vanessa Gardiner- Landscape Painter https://vimeo.com/211454959

    Use the free to access “Talking Points: Vanessa Gardiner” resource to introduce pupils to an artist that takes her inspiration from the landscape. 

    Compare and contrast Vanessa with the Shoreditch Sketcher via “Talking Points: The Shoreditch Sketcher” resource. 

    Piccadilly by The Shoreditch Sketcher
    Piccadilly by The Shoreditch Sketcher

    Use “Making Visual Notes” to help pupils record and reflect on the artists’ work, and identify the things which might be of interest in their own work. 

  • Week 2: Extend a Sketchbook

    Sketchbook Places & Spaces

    Making a simple folded sketchbook

    Use the “Sketchbooks Places & Spaces” resource to extend bought or made sketchbooks. 

    The idea here is to add pages of different sizes and ratios. Use cartridge paper or neutral sugar paper so that it can take a variety of media next week. 

    Make some pages which are long and thin and can fold back into the book accordian style. Make other pages fat and wide. Encourage pupils to think creatively about how they can extend their sketchbook ready for the next few weeks. 

  • Week 3 & 4 & 5: Introduce & Explore

    Be Inspired by Kittie Jones or Saoirse Morgan

    Kittie Jones

    Use the free to access “Talking Points: Kittie Jones” or the “Talking Points: Saoirse Morgan” resource to be inspired by how the artist combines different media in their work to capture the energy and spirit of place. 

    Again use the “Making Visual Notes” resource to get pupils to think about the chosen artists approach approach in sketchbooks.

  • Time to Experiment & Create

    Exploring Mixed Media

    In the Oise Valley (ca. 1878–1880) by Paul Cézanne. Original from The MET Museum.

    With the emphasis on exploration and experimentation, ensure pupils work in sketchbooks, or if it feels right towards the end of the project on larger sheets of paper, to discover how they can use different combinations of media to capture the energy and spirit of place. 

    Use the “Mixed Media Landscape Challenges” resource to inspire and enable their exploration. Allow children to take their time and give them the space to explore as many of the challenges as feels right. We recommend structuring the challenges so all pupils do the same challenge at the same time.

    Ideally pupils will be able to draw outside, in whatever your local habitat is – the school grounds, or a local park. Try to work outside for at least one session, but if this is not possible or you wish to draw from a different kind of land or city scape (for example to link in with a curriculum theme) then pupils can draw from image or film. 

    You may like to use the free to access resources below as source imagery – or find your own.  

    Drawing Source Material: Drone Footage over Urban Landscapes

    Drawing Source Material: Drone Footage over Rural Landscapes

  • Additional Inspiration

    Graphite Sketches

    drawing shedTake inspiration from the ‘Graphite Sketches‘ resource and encourage pupils to explore perspective, tone and mark-making using water-soluble graphite and brushes.

  • If you wish to extend or challenge:

    Introduction to Watercolour

    Working wet on wet

    You may wish to use the “Introduction to Watercolour” resource if you wish to steer pupils towards a final outcome using watercolour. However, we’d emphasis that this isn’t necessary and a great deal of skills will have been learnt through the above exploration. 

  • Week 6: Present & Share

    Share, Reflect, Discuss

    graphite sketch of shed

    Time to see the work which has been made, talk about intention and outcome.

    Display the work in a clear space, with sketchbooks open on desks – encouraging pupils to carefully and respectfully look in each others books. Walk around the work as if you were in a gallery. Give the work the respect it deserves. Remind the children of their hard work.

    If you have class cameras or tablets, invite the children to document their work.

    You might like to assemble any loose drawings made on sheets into a Backwards Sketchbook

    Use the resource here to help you run a class “crit”.

See How This Resource Is Used in Schools…

Year 5, Whitchurch Primary
Year 5, Whitchurch Primary
Year 5, Whitchurch Primary
Year 5, Whitchurch Primary
Year 5, Whitchurch Primary
Year 5, Whitchurch Primary
Year 5, Winslow CE School
Year 5, Winslow CE School
Year 5, Winslow CE School
Year 5, Winslow CE School
Year 5, Winslow CE School
Year 5, St Teresa’s Roman Catholic Primary School
Year 5, St Teresa’s Roman Catholic Primary School
Year 5, St Teresa’s Roman Catholic Primary School
Year 5, St Teresa’s Roman Catholic Primary School
Year 5, St Teresa’s Roman Catholic Primary School
Year 5, St Teresa’s Roman Catholic Primary School
Year 5, St Teresa’s Roman Catholic Primary School
Emma Matthews, Year 5, St Hilary's School
Emma Matthews, Year 5, St Hilary's School
Emma Matthews, Year 5, St Hilary's School
Emma Matthews, Year 5, St Hilary's School
Emma Matthews, Year 5, St Hilary's School

If You Use AccessArt Resources…
You might like to…

Join our Facebook Group

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Share and Tag

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

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Explore the work of printmaker, collager and ceramicist

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Never-Ending Landscapes

Take inspiration from observational drawings to create fictional landscapes

Take inspiration from observational drawings to create fictional landscapes

Sculptural Environments inspired by Hockney

Create a class installation inspired by artist David Hockney

Create a class installation inspired by artist David Hockney

Talking Points: Saoirse Morgan

Explore the work of seascape painter Saoirse Morgan

Explore the work of seascape painter Saoirse Morgan

Layers in the landscape

Create relief sculptures of the landscape

Create relief sculptures of the landscape

diary of a sculptural sketchbook

Sculpt the landscape out of the paper

Sculpt the landscape out of the paper

Painting the storm

A weather-inspired exploration of watercolour and graphite

A weather-inspired exploration of watercolour and graphite


Pathway: Music And Art

Pathway for Years 1 & 2

Disciplines:
Drawing, Making, Sketchbooks

Key Concepts:

  • That artists sometimes use sound to inspire their work. 

  • That artists sometimes work in partnership with musicians. 

  • That we can use both aural and visual senses to make art.

  • That we can draw from our imagination, using lots of different kinds of abstract marks to express our feelings, whether they are quiet and focussed, or loud and expressive.

  • That we can be inventive and make objects in 3 dimensions which make sounds, and which we want to interact with as humans. 

In this pathway children are introduced to the idea that artists often work in partnership and are often inspired by other art forms – in this case music and the visual arts. 

Children explore how other artists have used sound to inspire their artwork, and then go on to experiment with how they can use their mark making skills to both be influenced by, and to capture, the expression in music. 

Children then explore making skills to collage or make inventive instruments, creating a class “orchestra”.

Medium:
Paper, Drawing Materials, Paint, Construction Materials

Artists: Kandinsky, Various “Projection Mapping” artists

If you use this resource in your setting, please tag us on social media: #InspiredBy @accessart (facebook, twitter) @accessart.org.uk (instagram) and share the url. Thank you!

Adding some colour to a mythical instrument
Some people invented a new instrument by joining lots of things together
Using scrap card and a jam jar lid to create castanets
ages 5-8

Teaching Notes

Find the MTP for this pathway here.


Curriculum Links

Geography: Adapt the music you listen and draw to, according to geographical region or continent to help develop sense of place.

Science: The 5 senses, the human body, materials.

Music: Rhymes and chants, musical instruments, combining sounds.

PSHE: Explore the music made from instruments from other countries, Collaboration, Peer Discussion.


I Can…

  • I have seen how some artists are inspired by other artforms such as music. I can share my response to their work, and listen to others.

  • I can listen to sounds, and use my mark making skills to make marks in response.

  • I can draw from observation whilst listening to a piece of music, and let the music inspire my drawing.

  • I can use my imagination and work on a larger scale to make drawings of imaginative instruments, or I can use my hands to invent musical instruments made from construction materials.

  • I can share my work with the class.

  • I can reflect upon what I have made and share my work with the class. I can listen to their responses to my work, and talk about my response to their work. 

  • I can take photos of my artwork.


Time

This pathway takes 6 weeks, with an hour per week. Shorten or lengthen the suggested pathway according to time and experience. Follow the stages in green for a shorter pathway or less complex journey.


Materials

Soft B pencils, coloured pencils or pastels, handwriting pens.

Project 1: Paint an Imaginary Orchestra – Large (A1 or A2) cartridge paper or thin card, coloured paper, foil or metallic paper, marker pens, scissors, tape, paint, brushes.

Project 2: Making Musical Instruments – cardboard, wood, buttons, lids, shells, string, ribbons and other construction materials.


 

Pathway: Music and Art

A PDF of this pathway can be found here.

  • Aim of Pathway

    The aim of this pathway is to introduce pupils to some of the links between art and music. Pupils use rhythm and sound to inspire artwork. 

  • Week 1: Slow Drawing

    Drawing to a Metronome

    Crinkled paper

    Settle students with some “Drawing to the Slow Rhythm of a Metronome“. Invite children to make careful, slow drawings with a sharp graphite pencil. Work in sketchbooks and introduce to children the idea that making drawings can be a quiet, slow, thoughtful activity. 

  • Introduce an Artist

    Wassily Kandinsky

    "File:Vasily Kandinsky, Improvisation No. 30 (Cannons), 1913, 1931.511, Art Institute of Chicago.jpg" by Wassily Kandinsky is marked with CC0 1.0.

    Explore the work of Kandinsky who was a pioneer in abstraction. Use the free to access “Talking Points: Wassily Kandinsky” resource to find out what synaesthesia is, and how it helped him to paint music. Encourage children to have their sketchbooks open to make some “Making Visual Notes“.

  • Week 2: Work in Sketchbooks

    Mark Making and Sound

    Mark Making & Sound

    Enable learners to develop their mark-making skills with these 3 “Mark Making and Sound” exercises.

    This activity explores how we can use sound as a stimulus to develop the kinds of marks we can make.

    Children will find out how abstract mark making can capture the spirit of a piece of music.

    Children will then take what they have learnt about rhythm and mark making into observational drawing.

  • Introduce an Artist

    Tomoko Kawao

    Tomoko Kawao https://vimeo.com/226541019Explore the free to access “Talking Points: Tomoko Kawao” resource to discover an artist who makes large scale work using one unbroken movement of a brush.

    Use the questions at the bottom of the resource to help guide your class conversation. 

  • Week 3: Sketchbooks

    Show Me What You See

    OrchestraWorking in sketchbooks, use the “Show Me What You See” technique to help pupils visually explore orchestras and musical instruments. Take inspiration from the free to access “Drawing Source Material: Orchestras and Instruments“.

    During the exercise, draw the children’s attention to the visual elements of the artwork, including talking about shape, colour and composition. As well as using line in sketchbooks to describe shapes, also use colour (pastel, crayon, pens etc).

    By the end of the session sketchbooks should be full of pupil’s interpretations of different elements (shapes, lines etc) from the video.

  • Take a Break & Inspire

    Exploring Projection Mapping

    2018 Light Odyseey Vimeo ScreenshotIf you feel your pupils would benefit from being inspired by more art made by artists, introduce them to Projection Mapping and music with this video by Light Odyssey in our free to access “Talking Points: What is Projection Mapping“. 

    Use the questions at the bottom of the resource to help guide your class conversation.

  • Play

    Paint Music with Google Arts & Culture

    Finish the session with this fun interactive activity

  • Week 4 & 5: Find your Focus

    Explore Making or Drawing Instruments

    For the next two weeks work on one of the projects below. 

  • Option 1

    Paint an Imaginary Orchestra

    Some people collaborated to make their instrument

    Start the session with “Backwards Forwards” drawings before moving on to creating a “Cheerful Orchestra“.

    This workshop brings together mythical beasts and musical notes, however it can be adapted to link with curriculum topics such as animals or food.

    Encourage children to draw large and fast so that they can explore a range of materials to create the details. 

    This resource is split into 3 different parts. Depending on time you can pick and choose which activities you’d like your class to do.

    The first part of this resource explores inventing instruments. This is followed by responding to music with narrative. The final part of the activity entails children creating a self portrait of themselves playing an instrument.

    By the end of the session children will have formed an extraordinary noisy orchestra.


  • Or…

  • Option 2

    Making Musical Instruments

    A ribbed percussion instrument with beater made from card

    If you think your children would benefit, warm up using the “Making Prompt Cards” and follow on by creating music instruments below.

    Explore recycled materials to “Make Musical Instruments” and explore sound making. 

    This activity not only explores the process of making but also how to produce different sounds and rhythms with the invented musical instruments.

    Encourage children to make decisions about  material, form, design and colour, experimenting using simple tools to create unusual, surprising sounds.

  • Week 6: Reflect and Discuss

    Present, Talk, Share and Celebrate

    Some people invented a new instrument by joining lots of things together

    End the pathway by taking time to appreciate the developmental stages and the final outcomes in a clear space.

    Depending upon the project option chosen, display the work appropriately including having open sketchbooks. Use the “Crit in the Classroom” resource to help you. 

    Encourage children to reflect upon all stages of the journey, and reference the artists studied. 

    If available, children can use tablets or cameras to take photographs of the work. 

If You Use AccessArt Resources…
You might like to…

Join our Facebook Group

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Share and Tag

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

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Translate lines, marks and pattern into movement and memories

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Painting the storm

Create a stormy painting to the sound of rainy weather

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Sketchbooks & Performance

Create expressive drawings in response to performers and audiences

Create expressive drawings in response to performers and audiences


Pathway: Making Animated Drawings

Pathway for Years 3 & 4

Disciplines:
Drawing, Animation, Sketchbooks

Key Concepts:

  • That artists can make animations by creating drawings which move in a sequence.

  • That we can use all our mark making skills and imagination to make our drawings visually engaging.

  • That we can use our moving drawings to share narratives. 

In this pathway children are introduced to the idea that animations can be made by sequencing drawings. 

After exploring the work of other artists making drawn animations, children make simple “paper puppets” with moving parts. Pupils also make a “background” for their puppets, and if you wish, then go on to make very simple animations using tablets. 

Medium:
Paper, (Digital media)

Artists: Lauren Child, Steve Kirby, Andrew Fox, Lucinda Schreiber

If you use this resource in your setting, please tag us on social media: #InspiredBy @accessart (facebook, twitter) @accessart.org.uk (instagram) and share the url. Thank you!

animation2
animation5
Year 3 pupils at milton Road Primary School and their Articulated Beasts
ages 5-8
ages 9-11

Teaching Notes

Find the MTP for this pathway here.


Curriculum Links

English: Bring characters from literature to life.

History: Make an animated drawing / portrait of a well know historical figure.

Maths: Measuring, weight, position, direction, movement.

Science: Animals, the human body, habitats, materials.

Music & Drama: Link to drama to collaborate and act out short narratives.


I Can…

  • I can talk about the work of other animators who make animations from their drawings. I can share what I like, and how it makes me feel.

  • I can use my sketchbook to gather ideas from other artists, and start to think about a simple moving drawing I might make.

  • I can use observational skills to look at source material to inspire my character and make drawings. 

  • I can use my imagination to think about how my character might move.

  • I can create a background for my character.

  • I can use digital media to film my animation.

  • I can share my moving drawing, either through an animation or by showing classmates how it would move. 

  • I can reflect and articulate my thoughts about my own artwork and that of my peers. 


Time

This pathway takes 6 weeks, with an hour per week. Shorten or lengthen the suggested pathway according to time and experience. Follow the stages in green for a shorter pathway or less complex journey.


Materials

Soft B pencils, coloured pencils, handwriting pens, white and/or corrugated card, paper fasteners for moving joints, kebab sticks, masking tape, ready mixed paints, scissors.

(For shared background drawing) Black ink in pots, feathers cut as quills, black handwriting pens, Sharpies, pencils, roll of paper.


 

Pathway: Making Animated Drawings

A PDF of this pathway can be found here.

  • The Aims of the Pathway

    The aim of this pathway is to introduce children to the idea that we can create moving imagery through sequenced drawings. 

  • Week 1: Introduce

    What is Animation?

    Introduce children to the idea that we can make single drawings and then string them together to make the drawings move. Use the free to access “Talking Points: Making Drawings Move” resource to explore this idea.

  • Explore

    Show Me What You See

    Painting onto a Monotype Plate With Acrylic By Tobi Meuwissen

    Working in a sketchbook, use the free to access “Drawing Source Material: The Natural World” resource to practice drawing skills.

    Think about how you can challenge pupils to make line drawings of animals using a handwriting pen (so they don’t worry about mistakes). Pause a moment on the video, give them a time limit of say 1 minute, and invite them to make a line drawing in one continuous line. Then move the film on, pause again and repeat. The drawings can be on the same page – like flickers or memories. The aim is just to warm up and to begin to tune into lines and shapes of animals and how they move. Use the “Show Me What You See” resource to support your facilitation.

  • Week 2: Explore

    Paper Cut Puppets

    paper cut puppets showreel

    Watch the free to access “Talking Points: Paper Cut Puppets Showreel” to explore what might be possible when you make paper “puppets” which you can then animate. 

    With sketchbooks open as you watch the showreel above, invite the children to begin “Making Visual Notes” in their sketchbooks.  Ask them to pretend to be “magpies” and to jot down anything that they see which they would like to try. What catches their eye? Perhaps challenge them to keep their notes on one page so that the page is full of ideas and words. It doesn’t have to be in order, and colour could be used too. 

    Play the showreel more than once, pause it regularly and invite children to talk about what they see and what they like. 

    This kind of learning (gathering information) is a skill, so take it slowly and give them time to practice. Purposely stop the film in the resource and ask them to turn to their sketchbook to add notes. 

    Let children know that they will be creating their own paper “puppet” and describe their theme or area of focus might be (ie animals which live in the jungle, Ancient Egyptians etc). Then continuing in sketchbooks, and using source material which is appropriate to your theme, ask them to start planning what their puppet might be, and what action they would like it to perform.

    N.B Key here is that the action should be simple. For example, rolling eyes or moving an arm might be enough. Picking up a ball and throwing it will be too much for most children in the time given. 

  • Week 3,4 and 5

    Make Your Moveable Drawings

    Animating Dog

    Use the following resources to enable children to make their moveable drawings.

    Please note all these resources follow a similar plan so visit them all and combine to suit.

    Cardboard Robots with Moveable Joints

    Making Drawings that Move

    Making Articulated Beasts Part 1

    Articulated Animals

  • Invigorate!

    Explore the Work of Lauren Child

    Lauren Child video

    At a point when children need an injection of energy, introduce them to the work of Lauren Child through the free to access “Talking Points: Lauren Child” resource. Explore how Lauren works as an artist and look for clues and tips in her working process. Use sketchbooks for “Making Visual Notes“. 

  • Additional Activity

    Creating a Background

    Adobe- Art As Activism Vimeo Screenshot

    You may like to invite the pupils to create a background for their moveable drawings, appropriate to the theme.

    This could be a shared drawing, as shown in the “Shared Ink Drawing” resource, or it could be a drawn background for each child.

  • Additional Activity

    Animating the Drawings

    If you have access to tablets, you may like to animate some of the drawings, you could also spend less time making the moveable drawings and more time animating them if that is of interest to you.

    Frame 1 drawn on the flipaclip app.

    Find out how to make digital animations using the “Exploring Digital Animation” resource.

  • Week 6: Present Work

    Share, Reflect, Celebrate

    Year 3 pupils at milton Road Primary School and their Articulated Beasts

    If children have animated their articulated beasts, pull down the blinds and watch all of the animations together. 

    Present all work in a clear space and take the opportunity to visit all work made like a mini gallery. Use the “Crits in the Classroom” resource.

See This Pathway Used In Schools

Kate Anderson, Year 3 Redesdale Primary School.
Kate Anderson, Year 3 Redesdale Primary School.
Kate Anderson, Year 3 Redesdale Primary School.
Kate Anderson, Year 3 Redesdale Primary School.
Kate Anderson, Year 3 Redesdale Primary School.
Kate Anderson, Year 3 Redesdale Primary School.
Kate Anderson, Year 3 Redesdale Primary School.
Year 3, Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton
Year 3, Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton
Year 3, Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton

If You Use AccessArt Resources…
You might like to…

Join our Facebook Group

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Share and Tag

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

You May Also Like…

A School full of characters

Explore capturing facial expressions through cartoon sketches

Explore capturing facial expressions through cartoon sketches

Chimera Drawings

Create chimera drawings and use the 'articulated beasts' resource to make them move

Create chimera drawings and use the ‘articulated beasts’ resource to make them move


Pathway: Flora And Fauna

Pathway for Years 1 & 2

Disciplines:
Drawing, Collage, Sketchbooks

Key Concepts:

  • That artists can be inspired by the flora and fauna around them.

  • That we can use careful looking to help our drawing, and use drawing to help looking.

  • That we can use a variety of materials to make images, and that the images we make can become imaginative.

  • That we can create individual artwork, and that we can bring that artwork together to make a shared artwork.

In this pathway children are introduced to the idea that many artists use flora and fauna to inspire their work. We look at artists who used drawing as a way to accurately capture the way plants and insects look, and artists who use their imagination to create their own versions of flora and fauna.

Children spend time engaged in close looking as a way to build drawing skills. They also experiment with new materials. 

They practice cutting and collage skills and explore shape and colour to build images.

Finally there is the opportunity for children to work collaboratively on a shared background for the artwork, and pupils can see how their individual efforts are valued as part of a larger class artwork. 

Medium:
Handwriting pen, Graphite, Oil pastel, Paper & Collage

Artists: Eric Carle, Joseph Redoute, Jan Van Kessel

If you use this resource in your setting, please tag us on social media: #InspiredBy @accessart (facebook, twitter) @accessart.org.uk (instagram) and share the url. Thank you!

k4
Oil pastel and graphite fly
The Wildflower Meadow by Rachel Burch
ages 5-8

Teaching Notes

Find the MTP for this pathway here.


Curriculum Links

English: Explore The Very Hungry Caterpillar, or books illustrated in similar style.  

Geography: Explore habitats, soil, vegetation, cities/towns/villages, seasonal weathers. Use language which supports these ideas.  

Science: Identify common and wild plants, insects, food chains, life cycle, living and decay. 

PSHE: Responsibility to the planet, Collaboration, Peer Discussion. 


I Can…

  • I have enjoyed looking at art made by other artists inspired by flora and fauna. 

  • I can look closely at insects and plants and make drawings using pen to describe what I see.

  • I can experiment using graphite and oil pastel and make my own insects.

  • I can cut out shapes in different colours, and use these shapes to make an insect or bug. I can think about its body parts and what I would like them to look like.

  • I can work with my classmates to make a shared drawing.

  • I can share my artwork with the class. I can listen to what my classmates like about it and I can share what I like about their work. 


Time

This pathway takes 6 weeks, with an hour per week. Shorten or lengthen the suggested pathway according to time and experience. Follow the stages in green for a shorter pathway or less complex journey.


Materials

Sketchbooks, soft pencils, coloured pencils, oil/chalk pastels, handwriting pens, graphite, collage papers, A1 paper, water colour and/or ready mixed paint over sugar paper, brushes, scrap papers.


Pathway: Inspired by Flora & Fauna

A PDF of this pathway can be found here.

  • Aims of Pathway

    The aim of this pathway is to introduce children to the idea that artists can be inspired by the flora and fauna around them. 

  • Week 1: Introduce

    Explore the Work of Artists Who Are Inspired by Flora & Fauna

    Introduce children to the work of one or more artists on the free to access “Talking Points: Artists Inspired by Flora & Fauna” resource. Use the resource as a starting point to encourage an exploration. You may also have artists local to you who are inspired by your local flora and fauna. 

    Invite pupils to make drawings in their sketchbooks of their favourite artworks as a way of enabling them to start to build a collection of “experiences” in their sketchbook. Make time as you look at the resource above for this activity. 

  • Week 2: Show Me What You See

    Drawing from Film

    Drawing Insects

    Working from the free to access “Drawing Source Material: Insects” resource, invite children to make drawings of the insects, working in their sketchbooks.

    Pause the films at various points, and invite the children to verbally describe what they see, what they notice, before inviting them to make sketches in their books. As they sketch, give them a time limit (like 5 or 10 minutes) and talk to them about the things they just noticed, so that they think of these things as they draw.

    Use a handwriting pen and encourage them to make their drawings fill the page. 

    Use the “Show Me What You See” to support your facilitation.

  • Week 3: Deepen the Exploration

    Using Graphite and Oil Pastel

    Oil pastel and graphite fly

    Use the “Graphite and Oil Pastel” resource to encourage children to expand their mark making.

    Pupils can draw again from the films above, or from colour photocopies, or if you can get them, buy (or loan) insect samples. Encourage children to continue close and careful looking. 

    Remember this is also about learning how a new material works (oil pastel and chunky graphite). Pupils will need to work on a slightly larger scale to accommodate the medium.

  • Week 4 & 5

    Make Your Minibeast Collage

    Invite the children to make individual mini beast collages which you can display as one. Use the “Mini Beast Artwork” resource. 

  • Inspire

    Introduce Eric Carle

    Eric Carles Very Hungry Caterpillar https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0INNN6jh74&t=395s

    When you feel children need a break or need inspiring, use the free to access “Talking Points: Eric Carle” resource to invigorate them. 

  • Extension

    Collaborate

    The Wildflower Meadow by Rachel Burch

    If you have time, or if you have a group of pupils who need a challenge, invite them to work together to make a painting of a flower meadow. This could exist as an artwork in itself, or as a background to your collaged minibeasts.

    Use the “Drawing Source Material: Wild Flower Meadow” resource if they need to work from imagery. 

    Use the “Wild Flower” resource to see a painting activity which you can use. 

  • Week 6: Share & Celebrate

    Display, Reflect & Talk

    Lucia Hierro Youtube Screenshot https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHD8tPUyaVQ

    Tidy the room and make space to see the sketchbook work as well as the final outcomes. 

    Remind the pupils of the progress they made, and the artists they saw along the way. Invite them to make links between the work they made in sketchbooks, on drawing sheets and final pieces, and the work by artists. 

    Encourage them to feel safe to share how they feel about their own work, and nurture an environment where pupils feel able to comment on their classmates work, treating everyones work with respect.

    Use the resource here to help you run a class “crit”.

See This Pathway Used In Schools

Penny Kemp, @mrskempcreativeteaching
Penny Kemp, @mrskempcreativeteaching
Penny Kemp, @mrskempcreativeteaching

If You Use AccessArt Resources…
You might like to…

Join our Facebook Group

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Share and Tag

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

You May Also Like…

Make insect sculptures

Create shiny insect sculptures

Create shiny insect sculptures

Drawing with tape

Create a forest on a classroom wall

Create a forest on a classroom wall


Pathway: Be An Architect

Pathway for Years 1 & 2

Disciplines:
Architecture, Drawing, Sketchbooks, Collage, Making

Key Concepts:

  • That architects design buildings and other structures which relate to our bodies and which enhance our environment. 

  • That architects take inspiration from the environment their building will exist in, and from the people they will serve, to design exciting structures. 

  • That we can use drawing as a way to help us process and understand other people’s work. 

  • That we can use digital tools such as drones and film to inspire us.

  • That we can use our imaginations to make architectural models to explore how we might design buildings relating to a particular need or stimulus.

  • That we can use “Design Through Making” (some call it Make First) as a way to connect our imagination, hands and materials. 

This pathway gives pupils the opportunity to explore architecture. We start with an exploration of architects and some of the ways they work, and pupils then go on to create their own architectural model. 

The pathway can be adapted so that the pupils make architecture which relates to their own environment, a chosen brief, or in response to another culture, country or era. 

Themes:
Habitat, Community, Culture, Purpose

Medium:
Construction Materials

Artists: 
Hundertwasser, Zaha Hadid, Heatherwick Studios

This pathway will take approximately half a term, based upon a weekly art lesson. 

If you use this resource in your setting, please tag us on social media: #InspiredBy @accessart (facebook, twitter) @accessart.org.uk (instagram) and share the url. Thank you!

Be an Architect!
My front porch - building with strips of corrugated cardboard
Anglo Saxon Building
ages 5-8

Teaching Notes

Find the MTP for this pathway here.

Please find the CPD session recording of the Be An Architect pathway here.


Curriculum Links

Geography: Adapt to explore habitats, cities, towns and villages, ports & harbours.

History: Make houses inspired by the architecture of different ages or cultures, for example buildings damaged during the Great Fire of London.

Maths: Use language which supports understanding of Measuring, 2D/3D shapes.

Science: Explore properties of materials e.g. make your architecture waterproof, rough, smooth?

PSHE: Collaboration, Peer Discussion, Ethnic Identity, Different Religions (architecture representative of).


I Can:

  • I have explored the work of some architects. I have seen that they design buildings, and that “architecture” can be large, incredible buildings, or smaller places near where I live.

  • I can share how architecture makes me feel, what I like and what I think is interesting.

  • I can use my sketchbook to help me look at architecture really carefully. I have used drawings and notes. I have explored line and shape. 

  • I have seen how architects use their imaginations to try to design buildings which make people’s lives better and I can use my own imagination when thinking about architecture I might design.

  • I can make an architectural model of a building around a theme thinking about form, structure and balance, and the way the model looks.

  • I can explore a variety of materials and explore how I can reshape the materials and fasten them together to make my model. 

  • I have seen that I don’t need to design on paper first; that I can design as I make. 

  • I have reflected upon what I have made, shared it with others, and been able to share my thoughts about my own piece and the models of my classmates. 

  • I can used digital media to document my work, including taking photographs and short videos.


Time

This pathway takes 6 weeks, with an hour per week. Shorten or lengthen the suggested pathway according to time and experience. Follow the stages in green for a shorter pathway or less complex journey.


Materials

Soft B pencils, coloured pencils, felt tip pens, handwriting pens,

Construction Materials (see list here )


 

Pathway: Be An Architect

A PDF of this pathway can be found here.

  • Aims of the Pathway

    This pathway aims to introduce children to the idea that architects design and make buildings, and to give pupils the opportunity to explore architecture around them, and to create their own architectural models. 

  • Week 1: Introduce

    What Is Architecture?

    Architecture

    Use the free to access “Talking Points: Thinking about Architecture” resource to begin an exploration of architecture. 

    Create a conversation around more well known architecture and architecture in your local environment. What are the landmarks in your area – old or new?

  • Drawing to Aid Looking

    Explore & Draw

    Invite children to work in sketchbooks. Use the free to access “Drawing Source Material: Exploring Architecture” resource to inspire drawings using the pupil’s chosen drawing medium. We suggest using a handwriting pen, and challenging the pupils to make several drawings – perhaps taking no longer than 5 or 10 minutes each. Guide the children with your voice during the drawing session to the things you would like them to notice.

  • Week 2: Introducing an Artist

    Exploring the Work of Hundertwasser

    hundertwasser by twicepix

    Use the free to access “Talking Points: Hundertwasser the Architect” resource to introduce pupils to the work of an architect.

    Use the images and videos to frame a discussion around his work and enable the pupils to articulate their response.

  • Drawing to Aid Thinking

    Show Me What You See

    Use sketchbooks and the “Show Me What You See” method to help pupils with “Making Visual Notes” about what they see and think. They might use pen, pencil, coloured crayons, felt tips, to gather information and collect ideas as they see the images on the whiteboard. Make sure any notes they write can be single words (i.e. they don’t have to write full sentences). 

  • Weeks 3,4 & 5

    Making Architecture

    Street view!

    Use the “Be An Architect” resource to enable pupils to create their own architectural inventions. 

    Provide plenty of materials and try to use the “Design Through Making” approach. 

    Take your time with the making and give children time to start to understand what different materials can do for them, and how they can manipulate materials and fasten them together. 

    Remember children are not making pieces of architecture “in the style of” an artist or architect. Instead, they are making their own work, though they will have their minds opened by looking at the work of other creative practitioners.

    Encourage children to be inventive about what kinds of shapes and structure they use and which three dimensional forms they want to create. How will their pieces of architect stand? What is their purpose? Who are they for?

    Be an Architect!

    Encourage the use of colour/coloured materials to further develop the pieces, and have sketchbooks open on desks and encourage children to reference them and add to them. 

    Inspired by Anglo Saxon architecture

    Link the project to architecture from other cultures, countries and eras if you would like to link it to other curriculum areas.

    Or, if you would like children to make pieces of architecture more relevant to their local community, think about how you can bring in images or visits of local areas as a backdrop to their work. (see “You May Also Like” below for more resources to help this).


  • Interventions

    Use one or more of the following “interventions” if you feel children need more stimulation. 

  • Intervention 1

    Being Imaginative

    Bridge Design

    Use the free to access “Talking Points: Bridge Design” resource to help children see how architecture can be almost anything. You may not want them to design bridges (though you may!) but talk about these bridge designs as a way to open their minds to be brave and use their imagination. 

  • Intervention 2

    Inspired by Drones

    Drone footage

    Use the free to access “Drawing Source Material: Drone Footage” resource to give children a fresh perspective on the world. Does it change how they think about their own designs? 

  • Week 6: Share & Celebrate

    Present, Reflect, Review

    My front porch - building with strips of corrugated cardboard

    Clean a space and present the finished architectural models next to the sketchbooks. Give all work the space it deserves and encourage children to walk around as if they were in a gallery – discussing the work with their partners before coming together as a class. Use the “Class Crit” resource to help. 

    Invite children to take photographs or films of their architectural models. Encourage them to really get down on eye level with their models to create interesting images, and use windows and doors as viewpoints. You might also like them to use lighting (torches) to create shadows. 

    Explore how children can take high quality photographs of 3d artwork with this resource.

See This Pathway Used In Schools

Year 2, Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton
Year 2, Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton
Year 2, Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton
Year 2, Ruth at Carden Primary School, Brighton

If You Use AccessArt Resources…
You might like to…

Join our Facebook Group

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Join the AccessArt Network group on Facebook and ask questions of others using our resources

Share and Tag

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

Share photos of work made by tagging us on social media

You May Also Like…

Anglo Saxon Architecture

Making Architecture Inspired by Anglo Saxon Architecture

Making Architecture Inspired by Anglo Saxon Architecture

Houses from Around the World

Drawing and Collaging

Drawing and Collaging

My House

A Cardboard Construction Project

A Cardboard Construction Project

Ink & Foamboard Architecture

Exploring Colour and Form

Exploring Colour and Form


Talking Points: Cave Art

A collection of imagery and sources designed to explore cave art.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

ages 5-8
ages 9-11
free to access

Chauvet Cave

Explore into the depths of Chauvet cave with Google Arts and Culture

Discovered on December 18, 1994 in south east France, it is considered one of the most significant prehistoric art sites and contains some of the best preserved figurative cave paintings in the world.

Questions to Ask Children

Describe what you can see in the cave paintings?

Which drawings are your favourites?

What material do you think they might have used to create these paintings?

Lascaux Cave

On 12 September 1940, the entrance to the Lascaux Cave was discovered by 18-year-old Marcel Ravidat when his dog, Robot, fell in a hole.

The deteriorating condition of the cave caused by an introduction to bacteria and changes in humidity the caves led to its closure.

You may also find this video useful.

Questions to Ask Children

How do you think it would feel to discover prehistoric cave paintings?

Why is it important that these paintings are preserved?

How do these paintings differ from those in the Chauvet Cave?

The White Lady

The white lady cave painting is located in The Brandberg mountains in Namibia dating back to at least 2000 years ago.

It is usually assumed that the painting shows some sort of ritual dance.

It’s thought that the painting was probably made of ochre, charcoal, manganese, hematite, with blood serum, egg white, and casein used as binding agents. 

Questions to Ask Children

Describe what you can see.

What animals do you think are depicted?

What do you like about this cave art?

What materials might you use to recreate the colours and textures of this painting?

How do these paintings differ from those in the Chauvet Cave?

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Gestural Drawing with charcoal

This is featured in the 'Gestural Drawing with Charcoal' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Gestural Drawing with Charcoal’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen


Drawing Source Material: Egyptian Artefacts

A collection of imagery and sources which you can use to prompt drawing in schools and community groups. 

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

Egyptian Artefacts 

Use the film and imagery below to enable children to explore Egyptian artefacts. Try to create a sense of momentum – for example you might pause on an image or the video 4 times and ask the pupils to make a 1 minute, 2 minute, 3 minute and 4 minute drawing at each pause. 

Encourage close and slow looking by talking as they draw – use your voice to attract their attention to qualities of the artefacts.

Try the same exercise using different materials, ie handwriting pen, ink and nib, pastel, watercolour…

Explore the collections of Rijksmuseum van Oudheden here.

You can find lots of visual resources on Google Arts and Culture about preserving Egypt’s history.

Military Musicians Showing Nubian and Egyptian Styles Artist: Nina de Garis Davies (1881–1965) Dynasty 18 Reign: reign of Thutmose IV Date: ca. 1400–1390 B.C.

Military Musicians Showing Nubian and Egyptian Styles, Nina de Garis Davies (1881–1965), New Kingdom, Dynasty 18, reign of Thutmose IV, ca. 1400–1390 B.C. From Egypt, Upper Egypt, Thebes, Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, Tomb of Tjeneny (TT 74) Tempera on paper, H. 44.5 × W. 93 cm (17 1/2 × 36 5/8 in.)  Rogers Fund, 1931

Watch the clip with the volume off as you guide children’s attention to parts of the paintings

Bronze statuette of Osiris Period: Late Dynastic-Hellenistic Date: 664–31 B.C. Culture: Egyptian Medium: Bronze Dimensions: H. 4 1/2 in. (11.4 cm) Classification: Bronzes Credit Line: The Cesnola Collection, Purchased by subscription, 1874–76

Bronze statuette of Osiris, Late Dynastic-Hellenistic 664–31 B.C.  Egyptian Medium: Bronze Dimensions: H. 4 1/2 in. (11.4 cm) The Cesnola Collection, 1874–76

Tomb Chapel of Raemkai: South Wall

Tomb Chapel of Raemkai: South Wall, Old Kingdom, Dynasty 5, ca. 2446–2389 B.C., From Egypt, Memphite Region, Saqqara, North of the Djoser pyramid complex, Mariette D3, Egyptian Antiquities Service/Quibell excavations, 1907–08, Limestone, paint, Rogers Fund, 1908

https://artsandculture.google.com/story/igWhAx2ruiw9lg

Take a virtual tour of the Tomb of Menna on Google Arts and Culture

https://artsandculture.google.com/story/BgVhbpZrGdGqxA

Deconstructing Ancient Egyptian Stelae on Google Arts and Culture

You May Also Like…

Pathway: working with shape and colour

This is featured in the 'Working with Shape and Colour' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Working with Shape and Colour’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen


Talking Points: Kevork Mourad

A collection of imagery and sources designed to explore the work of Kevork Mourad.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

 

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

 

ages 9-11
ages 11-14
ages 14-16
free to access

Kevork Mourad

Born in Qamishli, Syria, Mourad now lives and works in New York City. 

Mourad employs his technique of live drawing and animation in concert with musicians – developing a collaboration in which art and music harmonize with one another.

A painter, printmaker and video artist, Mourad has performed his animated and live visuals internationally.

Mourad also uses monotype as a medium to explore middle eastern politics and history.

See more of his work here.

The making of Seeing Through Babel

Questions To Ask Children

Describe what you can see.

Can you describe the process that Mourad uses?

How do you think it would feel to be interacting with the installation?

How does it make you feel?

From the Sun to the Moon 2020 by Kevork Mourad.

Questions To Ask Children

Describe what you can see.

What do you think the artist is trying to say in this animation?

How does it make you feel?

Groong 2020 by Kevork Mourad.

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Making Monotypes

This is featured in the 'Making Monotypes' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Making Monotypes’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen


Talking Points: Malaysian Shadow Puppets

A collection of imagery and sources designed to explore the tradition of Wayang Kulit.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

ages 5-8
ages 9-11
ages 11-14
free to access

Malaysian Shadow Puppets

Explore images of Wayang shadow puppets here.

Explore Wayang Shadow Puppetry on Google Arts and Culture.

Find out how puppet masters in Malaysia are modernising the tradition of Wayang Kulit. 

Questions to Ask Children

How do you think it would feel to watch one of these traditional puppet shows?

Describe the atmosphere? 

Can you think of other popular stories you’d like to be made into a puppet show?

What do you like about these puppet shows?

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Shadow Puppets

This is featured in the 'Shadow Puppets' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Shadow Puppets’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen


Talking Points: Packaging Design

A collection of sources and imagery to explore exciting packaging design.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

 

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

 

ages 9-11
ages 11-14
ages 14-16
free to access

Packaging design is really important for a products success. The packaging has to echo the values of a company through design.

Read this Waitrose case study to find out how they redesigned the ‘free from’ range to fit with the values of the company and customers.

See how packaging is used to unify the brand feel here.

Watch the videos below to find out what designers might consider when designing packaging.

Questions to Ask Children

Do you prefer the old design or the new design? Why?

Can you list the different things that designers factor in when they’re thinking about a redesign?

See how designers might create a mock up of their design to show the client how the packaging will look.

Watch a designer improve upon a packaging design. 

Questions to Ask Children

Do you prefer the first design or the design that this designer created? Why?

Would you be more likely to pick up packaging with photos or with drawings on it? Why?

As a class, discuss how you might create packaging for pineapple juice. Think about the shape of the juice carton, colours and text.

Once a company has created packaging they need to think about advertising. 

Questions to Ask Children

As a class discuss how you might advertise your pineapple juice. 

Watch this video to find out how you can make a net for a packaging box.

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: 2D Drawing to 3D Making

This is featured in the '2D Drawing to 3D Making' pathway

This is featured in the ‘2D Drawing to 3D Making’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen


Talking Points: Yinka Iloria and Colourful Spaces

A collection of sources and imagery to explore the colourful  spaces created by Yinka Ilori.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

ages 9-11
ages 11-14
ages 14-16
free to access

Yinka Ilori

Yinka Ilori is a multidisciplinary artist and designer with a bold bright visual language influenced by his British-Nigerian heritage. Three components that feature heavily in Yinka’s work are pattern, colour and storytelling.

Yinka uses his crafts as a way to communicate Nigerian parables and verbal traditions.

His work is described as a fusion between contemporary design and Nigerian tradition.

Explore some more colour spaces here.

Watch the videos below to find out about Yinka’s designs for a basketball court in Canary Warf.

Questions to Ask Children

How does the basketball court look in its surroundings?

How does this basketball court vary from a normal basketball court?

Can you think of any other sports courts that could be made more exciting? How might you do this?

Watch the video below to find out about the Laundrette project.

Questions to Ask Children

How did Yinka and the children improve upon the original Laundrette?

How do you think it would feel to play in that space?

Can you think of other boring spaces that you would like to redesign and make more fun and colourful? 

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Brave Colour

This is featured in the 'Brave colour' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Brave colour’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Show me what you see

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise


Talking Points: Morag Myerscough

A collection of sources and imagery to explore the work of Morag Myerscough.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

ages 9-11
ages 11-14
ages 14-16
free to access

Morag Myerscough

Artist & Designer Morag Myerscough creates installations and immersive spatial artworks that transform places and champion community and public interaction.

From schools and hospitals to cultural hubs and town centres Morag transforms public spaces by creating engaging experiences for everyone.

Explore more of Morag’s work here.

Questions to Ask Children

What do you like about Morag’s work?

How does her work make you feel?

How would it feel to be in that space, interacting with the sculpture?

How many people do you think were involved in making/installing Morag’s installations? What jobs did they have to do

Do you think the artists minds making an artwork which won’t last forever?

How do you think the people felt when they returned to the “normal” landscape around them? Would they have been changed by the artwork?

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Brave Colour

This is featured in the 'Brave colour' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Brave colour’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Show me what you see

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise


Talking Points: Fausto Melotti

A collection of sources and imagery to explore the work of Fausto Melotti.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

 

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

 

ages 9-11
ages 11-14
ages 14-16
free to access

Fausto Melotti

‘It wasn’t until the early 1980s that he designed set pieces for the actual stage. This exhibition looks back throughout Melotti’s lifetime to consider how theatre – conceptually as much as a dramatic art – informed the artist’s own creativity. –Galleries Now

Watch the videos below to find out more about the exhibition. 

Apologies if you cannot watch one of the videos because your school has blocked YouTube. 

Pause the video on stills of Melotti’s work and ask children the following questions…

Questions to Ask Children

Describe what you can see.

How does the set make you feel?

What do you like/dislike about the set?

Describe the atmosphere of the set. How do you think this has been achieved?

What materials do you think the artist has used?

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Set Design

This is featured in the 'Set Design' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Set Design’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen


Talking Points: Chris Kenny

A collection of sources and imagery to explore the work of Chris Kenny.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

ages 5-8
ages 9-11
free to access

Twigs

Chris Kenny works with humble, found materials: fragments excised from books or maps, discarded photographs or books, and fine twigs. He transforms these constructing fragile pertinent worlds that provoke wonder, humour or pathos.

Please note that that there are swear words on the artists website so you may not want to ask pupils to research by their own accord.

Twenty Twigs 2021 36 x 36 x 5inches Construction with cut twigs By Chris Kenny

Twenty Twigs 2021 36 x 36 x 5inches Construction with cut twigs By Chris Kenny

Twelve Twigs 2012 construction with twigs 22 x 22 x 3” by Chris Kenny

Twelve Twigs 2012 construction with twigs 22 x 22 x 3” by Chris Kenny

Questions to Ask Children

Describe what you see.

What could the stick people be doing?

Which is your favourite stick man? Why?

Noli Me Tangere (After Veronese) 2016 construction with found twigs 27 x 27 x 3" by Chris Kenny

Noli Me Tangere (After Veronese) 2016 construction with found twigs 27 x 27 x 3″ by Chris Kenny

Questions to Ask Children

What do you think is happening in this image?

How does this image make you feel?

How do you think the artist created this stick image? Do you think he planned the image with a pencil or just start making?

 

Maps

Mexico Triptych, Second Panel 2018 Construction With Map Fragments 36 x 36 x 3 by Chris Kenny

Mexico Triptych, Second Panel 2018 Construction With Map Fragments 36 x 36 x 3 by Chris Kenny

Maidenhead Thicket 2011 construction with map fragments by Chris Kenny

Maidenhead Thicket 2011 construction with map fragments by Chris Kenny

Elsewhere 2014 18 x 18 x 3 construction with map fragments by Chris Kenny

Elsewhere 2014 18 x 18 x 3 construction with map fragments by Chris Kenny

Questions for Children…

Describe what you can see.

Do you like this work? Why?

How does it make you feel?

Which map is your favourite and why?

How much does Chris Kenny reveal about himself through the map?

Can you spot any symbols or visual metaphors? 

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Typography and Maps

This is featured in the 'Typography and Maps' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Typography and Maps’ pathway

Pathway: Stick Transformation project

This is featured in the 'Stick Transformation Project' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Stick Transformation Project’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen


Talking Points: The Shoreditch Sketcher

A collection of sources and imagery to explore the work of The Shoreditch Sketcher.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

 

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

 

ages 5-8
ages 9-11
ages 11-14
ages 14-16
free to access

Tips from The Shoreditch Sketcher

The Shoreditch Sketcher has kindly provided the following tips for your own drawing. Read the tips and then explore his drawings below. Can you see his tips some to life in the drawings he makes? 

Travel light
You don’t need to have lots of expensive equipment for urban sketching. I find the less kit I have, the easier it is to focus on the drawing. If you always travel with a small selection of pens and an A5 sketchbook, you will be able to set up camp anywhere and get drawing quickly wherever you are.

Pick a subject that interests you
There is absolutely no point in sketching something that doesn’t excite you. The fact is, you’re more likely to get a great result with something that interests you. Start with whatever catches your eye!

Get comfortable
For beginners and people who work at a slower pace, a seated position may be more comfortable and allow for more accuracy. Find a location where you can easily sit on a wall or chair to give yourself more time to capture the scene.

Remember that a drawing is not a photograph
Don’t fall into the trap of trying to faithfully capture the scene you are drawing as if it were a photograph. A sketch is an expression of what you’re looking at, not an exact reproduction. Celebrate the mistakes!

Set yourself a time limit
It can be useful to give yourself a time limit on your live drawings. This helps to focus your mind and instil your drawings with energy, and it forces you to move on to another view. Quick sketches often capture much more than an overworked piece!

Work in a medium that you feel comfortable with
I love drawing with pen – straight in, with no pencil. But I’m very aware this requires a lot of confidence and my advice to beginners is always to start with a medium you feel comfortable with. This might well be pencil or charcoal, both of which are quite forgiving.

Stop and come back to it later
Don’t be afraid to call time on a sketch even though it’s not ‘finished’. Remember, you are the one to decide what’s finished and what’s not. A great tip is to take a quick photo of the view you’re sketching on your phone and then use the image as a reference for adding more detail, tone or colour later on!

Keep at it
Practise makes perfect, and a sketch a day is a great way to train your eye. Draw everyday things such as bus journeys, sandwich shops, mugs on desks and drab buildings. You’ll quickly become adept at looking for interesting views, and soon your sketchbook will become a record of your travels!

Piccadilly by The Shoreditch Sketcher

Piccadilly London by the Shoreditch Sketcher

Questions to Ask Children

Describe what you see.

Look at the artwork as a whole – which words would you use to describe the whole piece?

Tell me about the details you like.

How does it make you feel?

Chinatown by The Shoreditch Sketcher

Chinatown London by the Shoredtich Sketcher

Questions to Ask Children

Describe what you see.

Which details are missing?

How do you think he decided how much detail to include or leave out?

Tell me about the details you like.

Westminster by The Shoreditch Sketcher

Westminster by the Shoreditch Sketcher

Questions to Ask Children

What can you see?

Do you recognise any of these buildings?

Why do you you think he chose to include details of those specific buildings and leave others out?

Tell me about the details you like.

Royal Academy by The Shoreditch Sketcher

Royal Academy London by the Shoreditch sketcher

Questions to Ask Children

What can you see?

Which details do you like?

Leicester Square by The Shoreditch Sketcher

Leicester Square London by the Shoreditch Sketcher

Questions to Ask Children

What do you see?

How has the artist given the image perspective?

How would you describe the atmosphere?

Do you think that the blank space adds anything to the overall composition?

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Mixed Media Land and city scapes

This is featured in the 'Mixed Media Land and City Scapes' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Mixed Media Land and City Scapes’ pathway

Pathway: Architecture- Dream big or small?

This is featured in the 'Architecture: Dream Big or Small?' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Architecture: Dream Big or Small?’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen


Talking Points: Tiny Houses

A collection of sources and imagery to explore tiny houses.

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

*If you are having issues viewing videos it may be due to your schools firewall or your cookie selection. Please check with your IT department.*

 

This resource is free to access and is not a part of AccessArt membership.

 

ages 9-11
ages 11-14
ages 14-16
free to access

Apologies if you cannot watch some of the videos because your school has blocked YouTube. 

Questions to Ask Children

What do you think of the materials used to build this home? Name some of the materials you can see.

Would you live in this microhome?

What are the pros and cons to living in a tiny home?

Questions to Ask Children

Could you live in this space?

Do you like the interior space? Why?

Would you prefer to have a tiny house in the countryside or in a city?

Can you think of a clever way to design a chair so that it can be stored away easily.

Questions to Ask Children

What do you think of this home?

Would you live in this microhome?

What premade structure could you make a tiny home out of?

AKT II and OFIS Arhitekti

Questions to Ask Children

Does this microtome have enough space?

Would you like to live in a microtome that could be moved around?

Do you like the design of the home? Why?

Could you fit all of your belongings in this home?

Questions to Ask Children

Could you live in this space?

Do you think that all homes should be made like this in the future? Why?

Do you like the interior space? Why?

What would you miss if you had to live in this space?

This Talking Points Is Used In…

Pathway: Architecture- Dream big or small?

This is featured in the 'Architecture: Dream Big or Small?' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Architecture: Dream Big or Small?’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Show me what you see

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise


Drawing Source Material: Amazing Architectural Homes

A collection of imagery and sources which you can use to prompt drawing in schools and community groups. 

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

This resource is free to access and is not part of AccessArt membership.

free to access

Amazing Architectural Homes

Use this collection of films as source material for pupils exploring amazing architectural homes. In the first instance you might want to pause the videos as suitable points to enable the children to carefully look at the main forms and details. Try to create a sense of momentum – for example you might pause the video 4 times and ask the pupils to make a 1 minute, 2 minute, 3 minute and 4 minute drawing at each pause. 

Encourage close and slow looking by talking as they draw – use your voice to attract their attention to features of the building. 

When pupils are more experienced, you can also try getting them to make their drawings as the videos play – making quick gestural sketches. 

You May Also Like…

Pathway: Architecture- Dream big or small?

This is featured in the 'Architecture: Dream Big or Small?' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Architecture: Dream Big or Small?’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Find out how pupils can respond to artists work in sketchbooks

Show me what you see

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise

Enable close looking and drawing with this exercise


Drawing Source Material: Oceans

A collection of imagery and sources which you can use to prompt drawing in schools and community groups. 

Please note that this page contains links to external websites and has videos from external websites embedded. At the time of creating, AccessArt checked all links to ensure content is appropriate for teachers to access. However external websites and videos are updated and that is beyond our control. 

Please let us know if you find a 404 link, or if you feel content is no longer appropriate. 

We strongly recommend as part of good teaching practice that teachers watch all videos and visit all websites before sharing with a class. On occasion there may be elements of a video you would prefer not to show to your class and it is the teacher’s responsibility to ensure content is appropriate. Many thanks. 

This resource is free to access and is not part of AccessArt membership.

free to access

Oceans and Seas

Use the film below as source material to enable the children to draw things living in the ocean.

You can either choose to stop the video, and draw from a collection of paused images, or you can also choose to ask the children to work from the moving image. 

Find drawing exercises below to help your drawing exploration.

Drawing Exercises

  1. Have the children draw in a quiet room, with the video on the whiteboard.

  2. Stop the video at a chosen frame and use your voice to direct their drawing. Choose words which relate to the imagery, for example you might decide to focus their attention on vertical lines, so you might choose words like: line, growth, upward, downward, fall… or you might choose to attract their attention to the energy of a wave or the curve of an animals back. Think carefully about the words you use – they don’t have to be used in sentences – you can speak lists. 

  3. Each sketchbook response might take just 3 to 5 minutes, then move on to another still. Create a sense of momentum. 

  4. Direct pupils to use a chosen medium. You might like to start with soft pencil or handwriting pen. 

You May Also Like…

Pathway: Stick Transformation project

This is featured in the 'Stick Transformation Project' pathway

This is featured in the ‘Stick Transformation Project’ pathway

using sketchbooks to make visual notes

Sketchbooks used for observations, research drawing and experimentation.

Show me what you see

Show Me What You See Method 250 Words by Tobi Meuwissen