Task Details
Making Inferences about Art (Visual Arts and ELA Integration Unit)
In this 4th grade visual arts and ELA integration unit, students practice inference skills by studying linguist staffs from the Asante people of Ghana, creating a drawing of a linguist staff to convey an American proverb, and writing about their artwork and a peer’s artwork. Over four lessons, students (1) make inferences and learn about linguist staffs through readings and group discussions, (2) draw linguist staffs that represent personally meaningful American proverbs, (3) write artist statements about and practice presenting their drawings, and (4) present their drawings and write inferences about a peer's drawing during a gallery walk. This lesson includes rubrics to assess students' drawings, artist statements, and written inferences.
This unit was created in collaboration with Safari Montage and Arts Grow SC. Every public school teacher in South Carolina has access to Safari Montage through their school district. To view the full unit and resources, log into your Safari Montage account and search for the "Making Inferences about Art" lesson.
Proficiency Level(s)
- Novice
Targeted Grade Level(s)
- Upper Elementary
Prompt(s)
- Sample Drawing of an American Proverb
Use this example drawing of a proverb to practice making inferences during lesson 2. The artist represented the proverb time flies when you are having fun. Ensure students understand that the drawing is not an example of a linguist staff. If you do not want to use this drawing, choose a personally meaningful proverb and create your own drawing to share with students.
Classroom Piloting Status
- Not yet piloted
Standard(s)
Content Area | Artistic Process | Standard |
---|---|---|
Visual Arts | Creating | 1. I can use the elements and principles of art to create artwork. |
Visual Arts | Presenting | 4. I can organize work for presentation and documentation to reflect specific content, ideas, skills, and/or media. |
Visual Arts | Responding | 5. I can interpret and evaluate the meaning of an artwork. |
Benchmark(s) and Indicator(s)
Benchmark | Indicator |
---|---|
VA.CR.NH.1 - I can select and arrange the elements to demonstrate principles of art. | VA.CR NH.1.2 - I can use principles of design to convey intended meaning in my artwork. |
VA.R.NH.5 - I can explain how the objects and elements within an artwork represent ideas. | VA.P NH.4.2 - I can describe the theme and media of my artwork. |
- | VA.R.NH.5.1 - I can identify ideas or themes presented in an artwork. |
- | VA.R.NH.5.2 - I can describe the organization of an artwork using art vocabulary. |
Rubric and Sample Student Work
PRINCIPLES OF DESIGN | |||
Proficiency Level | Description | Sample Student Work | Justification |
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Exemplary | The student clearly represents the proverb in all of the artwork:
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Proficient | The student represents the proverb in most of the artwork:
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Approaching Proficient | The student sometimes represents the proverb in the artwork:
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Emerging | The student rarely represents the proverb inthe artwork:
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Needs Major Support | The student conveys no meaning from the American proverb, or the student’s artwork is off-topic or incomplete. |
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OVERALL COMPOSITION | |||
Proficiency Level | Description | Sample Student Work | Justification |
Exemplary | The student always demonstrates a high level of craftsmanship:
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Proficient | The student mostly demonstrates craftsmanship:
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Approaching Proficient | The student sometimes demonstrates craftsmanship:
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Emerging | The student demonstrates poor craftsmanship:
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Needs Major Support | The student demonstrates poor craftsmanship, or the student’s artwork is incomplete. |
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ARTIST STATEMENT | |||
Proficiency Level | Description | Sample Student Work | Justification |
Exemplary | The student demonstrates clear, strong ability to write about the artwork:
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Proficient | The student demonstrates ability to write about the artwork:
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Approaching Proficient | The student demonstrates some ability to write about the artwork:
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Emerging | The student demonstrates little ability to write about the artwork:
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Needs Major Support | The student’s artist statement does not demonstrate the ability to write about the artwork, or the writing is off-topic or incomplete. |
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INFERRING MEANING ABOUT AN ARTWORK | |||
Proficiency Level | Description | Sample Student Work | Justification |
Exemplary | The student demonstrates clear, strong ability to infer meaning in all of their writing:
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Proficient | The student demonstrates ability to infer meaning in most of their writing:
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Approaching Proficient | The student demonstrates the ability to infer meaning in some of their writing:
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Emerging | The student rarely demonstrates the ability to infer meaning in their writing:
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Needs Major Support | The student demonstrates no ability to infer meaning from the artwork, or the students’ writing is off-topic or incomplete. |
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ASKING INFERENTIAL QUESTIONS | |||
Proficiency Level | Description | Sample Student Work | Justification |
Exemplary | The student creates a thought-provoking question about the artwork that requires logical inference. |
Student work samples coming soon! | |
Proficient | The student creates a question about the artwork that requires logical inference. |
Student work samples coming soon! | |
Approaching Proficient | The student creates a question about the artwork that requires some logical inference. |
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Emerging | The student creates a question about the artwork that requires little inference. |
Student work samples coming soon! | |
Needs Major Support | The student creates a question that does not require inference, or the student does not create a question. |
Student work samples coming soon! |