Enduring Understandings - important ideas that students should carry with them years beyond the instruction received this year.

• People and cultures communicate through visual arts.
• Visual arts tell stories with mood and emotion through images.
• Visual arts inform us about our culture, history and society. 

Essential Questions - most important “big picture” questions students should be able to answer after completing learning activities.

• What is art?
• What makes a piece of artwork good?
• How can I communicate my ideas thoughts and feelings effectively through art?

Standards-Based Assessment Items
I. Recognizes and uses the visual arts as a form of communication.  (Selects visual images for works of art to communicate ideas.)
II. Knows and applies elements of art and principles of design.  (Identifies primary colors.)
III. Knows and applies the use of tools, materials, techniques, and processes.  (Demonstrates appropriate use of tools and materials.  Demonstrates instructed techniques and processes.)
IV. Demonstrates an understanding of art in relation to history, culture, and community.  (Produces art that has been influenced by aspects of history. Produces art that has been influenced by aspects of culture. Produces art that has been influenced by aspects of community.)
V. Critiques works of art through analysis, assessment, and evaluation.  (Describes/shows similarities and differences between works of art. Describes the mood and/or feeling in works of art. Explains personal likes and dislikes about works of art.)

Math in Art
Standard 4: Geometry - September
Identify lines of symmetry in regular polygons and other familiar objects.
Sort shapes and objects by attributes.
Identify geometric figures in art and nature.
Standard 4: Geometry - October
Recognize & identify geometric shapes.
Identify and list the characteristics of 2- & 3-dimensional (i.e., cubes, spheres, cylinders).
Identify points, lines, line segments.
Discuss right angles, acute angles and obtuse angles (to include rays in relation to angles).
Create a figure with at least 1 line of symmetry in regular polygons.

Literacy in Art
Writing: Writes for a Variety of Purposes
Write in a variety of modes such as personal narrative, friendly letters, and expository pieces.
 Write summaries demonstrating understanding of main idea and supporting details
Art students choose from a variety of styles to illustrate their own narrative or expository writing. Students critique their artwork using design principles.