Island
Drawing
A Place Of My Own
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Island
Drawing |
Descriptor & Goals
Paint a picture of your backyard or some favorite spot showing
the things you like and things that make it special to you.
Time: 30 min.
Marker or crayon
Heavy white paper, watercolor paper preferred
Sketchpad or tablet for a drawing surface
Paint
Paintbrushes
Container with water
Paper towel
Paper plate to mix colors
Mounting paper (option)
Pencil and writing paper
Read through the activity
Set out the supplies
Orly introduced you to a few of her favorite spots: her backyard, the junkyard, the dock. She pointed out some of her favorite creatures or objects; others you see in the pictures. You get to know Orly and you get to know about her homeland, Jamaica. You probably have a few favorite places with special stuff, creatures, and friends. Maybe your favorite place is in your backyard, or in a tree house, or in a park. Wherever it is, when you draw and paint such scenes, pay attention to all the details that give you the good feeling you have there. Even the colors can be unique to a particular place. Then pretend you are introducing the place to a new friend. The friend can learn about the place where you live and about your family and yourself.
A landscape is a picture that shows the artist’s view of a scene. Landscapes are unique to the place and to the artist painting it. Paint a landscape, i.e. a view of a favorite place, as if you were showing a new friend like Orly.
1. Sit in your favorite spot and look at all the things that make it special. What plants and animals and objects are there? What buildings and people? Are there trees, grasslands, sky, water, or roads? What colors do you see? What large things and smaller things? What sounds do you hear? What smells reach you? Do these sounds and smells remind you of certain colors, patterns, or textures? Look at the space. How does it make you feel? Is the space open and large or is it small and cozy?
2. When you are ready, draw a favorite object near the center of your paper. (But not dead center, drawing it there would make it the only thing people would look at and they’d miss all the other interesting things in your favorite place.) Draw what you see around that object, until you have filled the paper with the scene. Pay close attention to how things look to you.
3. Paint the sketch. Mix colors to match the colors you see or feel.
4. When finished, let it dry. Then use markers, crayons, or a thin brush to draw over any lines you may have painted out.
5. Show others your painting and tell them about this favorite place.
Your favorite place is different from Orly’s. Why?
Name some of the things that make your place unique.
How is your spot similar to Orly’s?
What colors, shapes, sounds, textures, smells, and spaces are ordinary to you, but may be different than Orly’s?
Paint other scenes you see around you. Send them to a pen pal or a relative living far away. Ask them to send you drawings of their favorite places.
Make only a detailed drawing of the scene.
Draw the place from memory. Before drawing, have the children close their eyes and picture the place in their mind’s eye.
The children:
Drew a detailed scene of a familiar place.
Mixed and painted colors that expressed what they saw and felt about the place.
Expressed interest in telling others about their surroundings.