Jenna Covington- State of Being- GRADE LEVEL(S)- seventh or eighth grade

NATIONAL VISUAL ARTS STANDARDS AND NETSVA:Cr1.1.7a Apply methods to overcome creative blocks
VA:Cr2.1.7a - Demonstrate persistence in developing skills with various
materials, methods, and approaches in creating works of art or design.
VA:Cr2.2.7a - Demonstrate awareness of ethical responsibility to oneself and
others when posting and sharing images and other materials through the
Internet, social media, and other communication formats.
VA:Cr2.3.7a -Apply visual organizational strategies to design and produce a
work of art, design, or media that clearly communicates information or ideas.
VA:Cr3.1.7a -Reflect on and explain important information about personal
artwork in an artist statement or another format.
VA:Pr4.1.7a - Compare and contrast how technologies have changed the way
artwork is preserved, presented, and experienced.
VA:Pr5.1.7a - Based on criteria, analyze and evaluate methods for preparing
and presenting art.
VA:Re8.1.7a - Interpret art by analyzing art- making approaches, the
characteristics of form and structure, relevant contextual information,
subject matter, and use of media to identify ideas and mood conveyed.
VA:Cn11.1.7a - Analyze how response to art is influenced by understanding
the time and place in which it was created, the available resources, and
cultural uses.
VA:Cr1.1.8a Document early stages of the creative process visually and/or
verbally in traditional or new media
VA:Cr1.2.8a Collaboratively shape an artistic investigation of an aspect of
present-day life using a contemporary practice of art and design.
VA:Cr2.1.8a - Demonstrate willingness to experiment, innovate, and take
risks to pursue ideas, forms, and meanings that emerge in the process of artmaking or designing.
VA:Cr2.3.8a- Select, organize, and design images and words to make visually
clear and compelling presentations.
VA:Pr5.1.8a - Collaboratively prepare and present selected theme- based
artwork for display, and formulate exhibition narratives for the viewer.
VA:Re.7.2.8a- Compare and contrast contexts and media in which viewers
encounter images that influence ideas, emotions, and actions.
VA:Re8.1.8a - Interpret art by analyzing how the interaction of subject
matter, characteristics of form and structure, use of media, art- making
approaches, and relevant contextual information contributes to
understanding messages or ideas and mood conveyed.
1b. Students build networks and customize their learning environments in
ways that support the learning process.
1c. Students use technology to seek feedback that informs and improves
their practice and to demonstrate their learning in a variety of ways.

1d. Students understand the fundamental concepts of technology operations,

demonstrate the ability to choose, use and troubleshoot current technologies
and are able to transfer their knowledge to explore emerging technologies.
2b. Students engage in positive, safe, legal and ethical behavior when using
technology, including social interactions online or when using networked
devices.
2c. Students demonstrate an understanding of and respect for the rights and
obligations of using and sharing intellectual property.
3b. Students evaluate the accuracy, perspective, credibility and relevance of
information, media, data or other resources.
4d. Students exhibit a tolerance for ambiguity, perseverance and the
capacity to work with open-ended problems.
6b. Students create original works or responsibly repurpose or remix digital
resources into new creations.
6c. Students communicate complex ideas clearly and effectively by creating
or using a variety of digital objects such as visualizations, models or
simulations.
6d. Students publish or present content that customizes the message and
medium for their intended audiences.
7b. Students use collaborative technologies to work with others, including
peers, experts or community members, to examine issues and problems
from multiple viewpoints.
7c. Students contribute constructively to project teams, assuming various
roles and responsibilities to work effectively toward a common goal.

RATIONALE and GOAL(S) FOR THIS UNITStudents will be exploring new programs and applications and how to use
them to create meaning. Students will be focusing on ones awareness on
the present moment through art making. Students will be learning new
mechanisms to improve moods. These are life-long skills that students may
use throughout each day to positively manage their moods. This is
meaningful because students will have the chance to reflect on their self,
taking accountability and learning how to improve the way they feel and
make others feel throughout the day.
This is important to teach in middle school because a lot of the students are
encountering strong emotions and mood changes brought on by puberty that
are foreign to them. It is important to be able to be able to cope and manage
themselves through awareness and utilizing techniques that work best for
them. Some of these techniques can become a part of their everyday life or
used as needed, such as deep breathing exercises or meditation.
In this unit, we are exploring many ideas from the readings. In
Understanding Digital Literacies, we talk about how a medium is something
that stands in between two things or people and facilitates interaction. By
using digital media and traditional media, we are exploring how these

medias may expand the limits of creating, and some restrain, such as
making a drawing on Adobe Draw using your finger or a stylus rather than a
sharpened pencil or small paintbrush. This idea is also present in Critical
Literacy.
The students are becoming co-creators and bloggers by posting their
process and art work on Seesaw. These ideas were discussed and pulled from
the article Creativity, Technology, Art and Pedagogical Practices.
When having group discussions, we are making the highest intellectual
thoughts available to all students. In Understanding Digital Literacies, the
author comments on how the group is often smarter than the individual.
In the article Multi-modal Telling, I am inspired by the idea that art is a
vehicle for emotional expression, and a reflection of the social world the
artist lives in, which is why the students will be joining each other to discuss
differences in representations of the same mood to discover the many
different situations and environments which can cause a specific emotion.
This article also discussed how students will compose with a variety of
different modes, deciding which ones they can use to best represent their
emotions.
ENDURING BIG IDEA:
Mindfulness - a mental state achieved by focusing one's awareness on the
present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one's feelings,
thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique.
Students will be creating about their mood and emotions in a present setting.
They will be looking at different artists such as Edvard Munchs The Scream
(Figure 1). and Marina Abramovics performance art on mindfulness and
awareness titled The Artist is Present (https://vimeo.com/72711715).
Students will be connecting to these artists by also investigating their moods
(like anxiety is investigated in The Scream) and increasing awareness and
mindfulness (like Abramovic does in her performances).
A lot of the time, students are encompassed by digital technologies and
social media. They are effected by what they read and see, constantly,
whether it be a sad video about an environmental problem that is shared, or
a happy photo of a kitten snuggling a mouse. The range of emotions that a
student endures throughout the day can be variably intense. This unit plan
uses a mixture of digital and traditional methods to create, and it is designed
to increase awareness of the present moment and self through art while also
providing new efficient methods of creating, coping, and relaxing to help

manage negative feelings.

ESSENTIAL QUESTIONS
What is mindfulness and how is it connected to technology?
How can we represent how we feel through digital and traditional art forms?
How can we explore and improve our current state of being through
mindfulness and meaningful making?
KNOWLEDGE BASE, KEY CONCEPTS, AND EXEMPLAR ARTISTSStudents will learn about digital methods of creating multi-modal art works
with visual layers of meaning.
Students will learn about how traditional artists during expressionism used
art to express their emotions such as Edvard Munch (Figure 1), Van Gogh
(Figure 2), or Pablo Picasso (Figure 3).
Students will learn about contemporary artists such as Marina Abramovic
which creates performance art from mindfulness
(https://vimeo.com/72711715), and Ferne Jacobs (Figure 4), which creates
non-objective baskets inspired by emotion.
Students will learn about contemporary digital artists such as Louie
Swartzberg and Andrew Jones (Figure 5). Swartzberg merges the disconnect
between technology and mindfulness with his moving films and time lapses
of nature (https://movingart.com/about/filmography/). Andrew Jones creates
a self-portrait each day for 1000 days using programs such as Corel, Painter
12, Photoshop CS5, and Z-brush. These portraits guided his self-discovery
(https://www.behance.net/gallery/1121311/Andrew-Jones-1000-SelfPortraits).
Students will learn new methods for positive management of mood such as
zentangle, guided meditation (https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=DFkkyiLHbrU), or deep breathing (https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=Uxbdx-SeOOo).
Students will explore with layering and combining multiple different

traditional mediums.
Students will learn how layering impacts meaning and expresses emotion.
Students will learn how to use the application Seesaw (Tutorial:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKM4gGiXcJI), Adobe Draw (Tutorial:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzLujrsMQTc), the website
moodscope.com, and the parts of the program Adobe Illustrator.
OBJECTIVESStudents will explore the idea of mindfulness.
Students will be creating digital and traditional art forms representing their
state of mind at the time of creation using new programs and applications.
Students will reflect on their own works digitally and conversationally during
critiques.
Students will reflect on others works digitally and during discussion.
Students will explore the juxtaposition of digital representations of present
moods randomly versus representations of present mood after meditative
practices.
Students will be recording the evidence of learning and process of each art
work digitally.
Students will be displaying process video and final creations in a gallery
setting accessible by parents and community.
PRIOR KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge of common emotions.
Experience with common traditional mediums.
Basic function of IPads.
UNIT AND LESSON VIGNETTE
*each day there are questions to ponder, sometimes at the beginning,
sometimes at the end, sometimes in discussion form during the class. When
answering questions individually, students will record answers in their artist
journals, using text and possibly some imagery.
*Photographs, videos, or other digital recording methods will be used to
document the process of each creation, beginning, middle, and end.
*The representations are meant to be approached with an open and creative
mindset. Students are encouraged to experiment beyond the prompt.
*Students are assigned clean-up roles for the last 5-10 minutes of each class
period.
*Students will be using different and chosen supplies each day. A

smorgasbord will be set out each day, but students may request other
materials if okayed by instructor.
LESSON ONE (overlap with lesson two)
Using the application Adobe Draw, students can document their current state
of physical and mental well-being at any moment. This moment can be
determined by a source of inspiration, or a block of free time enabling them
to sink into awareness of the self. In this lesson, each student will make one
drawing per two school days. This means one will be due Tuesday, Thursday,
Monday, and Wednesday. This will give the students four drawings to work
with on illustrator at the end of the unit. (Adobe Draw Tutorial:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzLujrsMQTc). Each drawing will need
five layers, at least one photo and one drawing, the rest can be decided by
the student. (Art Assignment Tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=vGFxK7Yr8Bc)
Students will turn in each drawing on Adobe Draw to Seesaw page with a
corresponding reflection on process and content. The student can then
comment on at least one other persons creation. (Seesaw Tutorial:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKM4gGiXcJI)
LESSON TWO
The second lesson will be about mindfulness and coping. Students will
experience a different mindfulness activity during each class time, and
create a corresponding artwork using different forms of media. For example,
students will undergo 10 minutes of meditative silence. Students will then
create a representation of their current self.
(Guided Meditation Tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=DFkkyiLHbrU)
(Guided Breathing Exercises: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxbdxSeOOo)
(Types of Meditation Article: http://liveanddare.com/wpcontent/uploads/2015/06/Types-of-Meditation-LiveAndDare.com_.pdf)
(Meditation Application: http://mindful-app.com/#Pricing)
(Other Art Therapy: http://www.nursingschools.net/blog/2011/01/100excellent-art-therapy-exercises-for-your-mind-body-and-soul/)
(Mood Documentation Website: https://www.moodscope.com)
LESSON THREE
Using illustrator, students will create a visual representation of the
juxtaposition between lesson one and two, using creations from both. Here,
students will explore differences between what their mood is like before and
after a mindful practice. The purpose of this is to motivate students to utilize
these practices more often in their personal lives. Adobe Draw drawings can
be uploaded directly to Adobe Illustrator, and photos may be taken of
reflections on meditative mindful practice and utilized.

DAY ONE- MONDAY (lesson one overlaps with lesson two)

Students will open the class with a discussion about what it means to be
mindfulness, attentiveness, and how we deal with our emotions daily.
Students will view one of Louis Schwartzvergs Visual Healing videos (Link
Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTakVo8Q3FE) which combine the
ideas of technology and mindfulness.
Louie Schwartzbergs Visual Healing initiative
(https://movingart.com/about/filmography/) is based on the positive effects
of nature on the mind and body, incorporating nature into everyday
environments, such as offices, hospitals, hotels, and even education
facilities.
Research shows that viewing nature for as little as ten minutes is as effective
as meditation to reduce anxiety, stress, restlessness, and improve focus.
Students will discuss
Are there any coping mechanisms that you currently use to manage
your emotions?
Students will VTS The Scream by Edvard Munch (Figure 1). Students will
download app Adobe Draw and they will watch tutorial on how to use it
(Tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzLujrsMQTc).
Students will be given the prompt for lesson one along with a demonstration
of creation and documentation by the instructor Air Played on the screen.
Students will answer questions in Artist Journal.
DAY TWO-TUESDAY
Students will answer questions in Artist Journal.
Students will watch and participate in Art Assignment (Exemplar and Tutorial
Here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGFxK7Yr8Bc).
Marina Abramovic (https://vimeo.com/72711715)- Look into your partners
eyes for one minute. Document how your thought process evolved. Look into
your partners eyes and try to communicate happiness to each other without
words or movement. Document how your thought process evolved. Look into
your partners eyes and try to communicate angeretc. Now create a
comprehensive timeline of the emotions that you felt while enhancing
awareness of a single moment.
Students will ask any questions about Adobe Draw so far.
Students will answer questions in Artist Journal.
DAY THREE-WEDNESDAY
Students will ask and answer questions on their assignment that was due the
night before.
Students will be given a demonstration on Lesson Two using traditional
materials.
Students will be asked questions in artist journal:
How do you feel at this moment?
Students will do a guided meditation for three minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFkkyiLHbrU

Students will create to music for 3 minutes

Students will create a representation of their present state.
Students will answer questions in an artist journal.
How do you feel now? How has this changed from before? How did the
experience feel physically and psychologically?
DAY FOUR-THURSDAY
Students will look at artist examples and discuss their meaning.
Students will be asked questions in artist journal:
How do you feel at this moment?
Students will participate in guided breathing exercises for three minutes
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uxbdx-SeOOo
Students will create a doodle, or zentangle for five minutes.
Students will create a representation of their present state.
Students will answer questions in an artist journal.
How do you feel now? How has this changed from before? How did the
experience feel physically and psychologically?
DAY FIVE- FRIDAY
Students will have a discussion on how lesson one is going and what kind of
art works their peers are creating.
Students will have a catch up day. If the student is caught up, they may
participate in a meditative experiment of their choice followed by another
representation of their present state.
DAY SIX- MONDAY
Students will be introduced to mood-scope.com, (this is optional for them,
but can be helpful for many).
They will then be requested to partner up and use an iPad to research
another stress-relieving or coping mechanism to present to the class.
Partners will look at each others completed digital and traditional drawings
so far.
Students will pick one similar emotion being digitally represented, and they
will compare aesthetic similarities and differences, and differences in
circumstances (optional if sensitive).
Student will answer questions in artist journals
DAY SEVEN- TUESDAY
Students will answer artist journal questions.
Students will participate in guided meditation
(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFkkyiLHbrU).
Students will create a small anger or sadness sculpture out of clay.
Students will create a representation of their present state.
DAY EIGHT-WEDNESDAY
Students will be presented with a guided tutorial on Adobe Illustrator (not

developed).
Students will play, then answer questions in artist journal.
DAY NINE-TEN THURSDAY-FRIDAY
Students will be provided with the prompt and demonstration on lesson
three.
Students will begin working in class.
Students will answer questions in artist journal.
DAY ELEVEN-THIRTEEN MONDAY-WEDNESDAY
Students will have a partial critique, then finish up.
Students will be shown an example of an artist statement (students should
already know how to write one, but should be given a guided prompt) and
begin working on theirs (digital).
Students will create an iMovie of process using a plethora of their images
and the option of adding sound, video, etc.
Students will discuss gallery space (just Seesaw blog? Invite community to
look? Display physical creations in hallways with images of lesson three?
What will this look like?).

ASSESSMENT STRATEGIES (both formative and summative)FORMATIVE

Classroom discussion
Individual Discussion
Artist Journals
Documentation of process
Seesaw responses and posts (Tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?
v=OKM4gGiXcJI)
In-progress critiques
SUMMATIVE
Rubrics (EXAMPLE ATTACHED AT END OF DOCUMENT)
Digital Portfolio
Video of process
RESOURCES:
Adobe Draw
Adobe Illustrator
IMovie
Louis Swartsverg Website: https://movingart.com/about/filmography/
Louis Swartsverg Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tTakVo8Q3FE
Seesaw Tutorial: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OKM4gGiXcJI

Breathing Exercises- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uxbdx-SeOOo

Types of Meditation Article- http://liveanddare.com/wpcontent/uploads/2015/06/Types-of-Meditation-LiveAndDare.com_.pdf
Meditative Practices with Arthttp://www.nursingschools.net/blog/2011/01/100-excellent-art-therapyexercises-for-your-mind-body-and-soul/
Meditation Application- http://mindful-app.com/#Pricing
Guided Meditation- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DFkkyiLHbrU
Mood Documentation Website- https://www.moodscope.com
Van Gogh Resource- https://www.moma.org/learn/moma_learning/vincentvan-gogh-the-starry-night-1889
Andrew Jones Video/ Resourcehttps://www.behance.net/gallery/1121311/Andrew-Jones-1000-Self-Portraits
Adobe Draw Tutorial- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xzLujrsMQTc
Art Assignment/ Tutorial- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vGFxK7Yr8Bc
Marina Abramovic Ted Talk (only show appropriate portion)https://pc.tedcdn.com/talk/podcast/2015/None/MarinaAbramovic_2015480p.mp4
Marina Abramovic The Artist Is Present: https://vimeo.com/72711715
MODIFICATIONS
IF the student has no accessibility to school iPad and they have no access to
a smartphone, they will be provided with a few art making materials to
record these states of being at home. They can also come in after school or
during planning period or lunch to have access to the full spectrum of art
materials or a classroom iPad to create the digital drawing. Students will use
the classroom iPad to upload their creations.
IF the student has any disabilities, necessary modifications will be made
using available assistive technology, grouping, or extra help.
COLLABORATION OPPORTUNITIES
Students will have the opportunities to collaborate with each other during
class discussions, peer activities and discussions, digitally on the blog, and
during critiques. Students will collaborate with the instructor during class and
individual discussions, as well as on the blog. Instructors will have the
opportunity to collaborate with other staff and the community. They could
have the counselor come in and talk about new and successful coping
mechanisms, or they could reach out to parents and the community through
the digital blog.
IMAGES

(Figure 1) Edvard Munch, The Scream

Dance

(Figure 2) Vincent Van Gogh, Starry Night

Self-Portrait Facing Death

(Figure 5) Andrew Jones, Self-Portrait

(Figure 4) Ferne Jacobs, Heart

(Figure 3) Pablo Picasso,

EXCELLENT

:D

GOOD

:] ROOM FOR
:|
IMPROVEMENT
COMPLETIO Student has all
Student has 2-3
Student has one or
N
four drawings
drawings
less drawings
complete and
complete and
complete and
saved on Adobe
saved on Adobe
saved on Adobe
Draw.
Draw.
Draw.
LAYERS
Each layer has
Each layer has 3- Student is not
five or more
4 layers,
completed with
layers, including
including at least adding layers to
at least one photo one photo and
drawings.
and one drawing.
one drawing.
REFLECTION Student included a Student included Student needs to
reflection with
a reflection with
complete
each of the four
most of the four
reflections with
submissions
submissions
the submissions
describing process describing
describing process
and content.
process and
and content.
content.
MEANING
Student included
Student included Meaningful
meaningful
some meaningful connections to
connections to
connections to
states of being
state of being in
state of being in
need more work.
creations.
creations.
CONTRIBUTI Student
Student
Student needs to
NG
commented on
commented on a comment on more
FEEDBACK
many peer
couple of peer
peer submissions
submissions
submissions
providing wowies
providing wowies providing wowies and what ifs.
and what ifs.
and what ifs.

LESSON ONE: STUDENT FORM

COMMENTS:

EXCELLENT

:D

GOOD

:] ROOM FOR
:|
IMPROVEMENT
COMPLETIO Student has all
Student has 2-3
Student has one or
N
four drawings
drawings
less drawings
complete and
complete and
complete and
saved on Adobe
saved on Adobe
saved on Adobe
Draw.
Draw.
Draw.
LAYERS
Each layer has
Each layer has 3- Student is not
five or more
4 layers,
completed with
layers, including
including at least adding layers to
at least one photo one photo and
drawings.
and one drawing.
one drawing.
REFLECTION Student included a Student included Student needs to
reflection with
a reflection with
complete
each of the four
most of the four
reflections with
submissions
submissions
the submissions
describing process describing
describing process
and content.
process and
and content.
content.
MEANING
Student included
Student included Meaningful
meaningful
some meaningful connections to
connections to
connections to
states of being
state of being in
state of being in
need more work.
creations.
creations.
CONTRIBUTI Student
Student
Student needs to
NG
commented on
commented on a comment on more
FEEDBACK
many peer
couple of peer
peer submissions
submissions
submissions
providing wowies
providing wowies providing wowies and what ifs.
and what ifs.
and what ifs.
SCORE:

LESSON ONE: TEACHER FORM

COMMENTS:

TOTAL

TOTAL:
The rubric clearly outlines my expectations for the students in ways that they
can understand. I would also read the rubric aloud to the class so that they
can ask any questions they have. I included a student form that enables
them to grade themselves, and a teacher form for me to consider their selfgrade, then make any changes I deem necessary. There is also a comment
section for students to voice their opinions about the project, and for the
instructor to make positive remarks about the assignment, or more specific
remarks about changes that need to be made. I tried to make each section
positive or neutral in order to assure the student that they did not do a bad
job, they are just not finished, and there is room for improvement. This can
easily be translated into 5 points, 4 points, and 3 points if necessary. This
way, even if the student did not do their best, they still receive 9 points for
turning the artist journal in. All students are encouraged to resubmit their
projects before the final due date for an improved grade.