Name of Project: Character Creation Program - Perspective/Lair

Grade Level or Age of Participant: Students age 8-11

MCAD Teaching Artist:  Kristina Wacker

OVERVIEW OF PROJECT

Character Creation Program

“Our mentors and students work together to create a one-of-a-kind character and costume based on the child’s imagination and values — along the way, we spark imagination and build confidence. With the help and guidance from their creative mentors, kids are able to explore their creativity and build something more ambitious than they ever thought possible.”

In-person program/Hybrid

  • Connect with your buddy for 1 hour every week for a period of 8 - 10 weeks

  • Create a character and costume using our huge collection of art supplies 

  • Celebrate your creation & participate in a costume parade, presentation, and professional photoshoot

Students will also: 

  • Learn skills and elements of illustration, including the use of color, shape, mark-making, and fore/middle/background

  • Learn more about creative careers from visiting artists


“BIG IDEAS”/ ESSENTIAL QUESTION(S)

Students will, over the duration of the course, build their confidence and explore their creativity through the creation of their super buddy characters and costumes.


STUDENT OUTCOME OBJECTIVES 

Students will:

  1. Distinguish between the foreground, middle ground, and background

  2. Use their knowledge of fore/mid/background to build a landscape/lair with depth

  3. Create a poster using a combination of the skills they have learned throughout this program


ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

[Lesson Timeline]


CHECKING-IN TO STUDENTS UNDERSTANDING

Students will demonstrate their knowledge of the concepts and skills taught throughout the program by using them when creating their final poster.


MATERIALS

  • Buddybook

  • Large paper to create poster

  • Smaller paper to sketch on

  • Crayons

  • Markers

  • Colored Pencils

  • Fabric

  • Tape

  • Scissors

  • Staplers

  • Hot glue guns, glue sticks

  • Ribbon

  • Pipe Cleaners

  • Construction paper

  • Popsicle sticks

  • Pom poms

  • Fake floral items

  • Cardboard

  • Miscellaneous plastic items (bottle caps, googly eyes, etc.)


LEARNING ACTIVITIES AND TIMING

  1. Greeting

    1. “Hey, good morning/afternoon, how are you all doing today?” etc

  2. Lesson (15-20 min)

    1. Foreground, middleground, background definitions (+example)

      1. How to make something part of these perspectives

      2. How to use these to make a space seem more 3D

  3. Students work time with mentor

    1. Student focus on thinking about how they can use what they’ve learned so far to show the answers to questions about their lair/scene

      1. Where lair is, can they use any skills they’ve learned in previous sessions to show this? (ex: color, mark-making)

      2. What is one thing in the background of your lair? One thing in the middle ground? One thing in the foreground? 

      3. Any decorations? Can you tie it to your hero’s powers/likes/backstory?

      4. Where is the super buddy placed?

  4. Virtual check in time (10 min)

    1. Ask about work, if there’s anything the student would like to share about it/how they used what they learned today?

    2. Students respond ____

  5. Wrapping up / Closing - Sharing Circle 

    1. Students will all say one word about lesson

    2. Share one thing they put in their lair

    3. Walk around to see what everyone made maybe?

etc.

Download support materials here: