Lesson Six: Monster Encyclopedia

This week, I wanted to take a step back from some of the bigger projects we've been doing and focus
more on one of the basics of art: drawing. With Halloween coming up quickly, I decided to create a themed lesson based on monsters. I got the idea from a lesson plan given to me at the Arts Bridge orientation meeting written by Cindy Clark and entitled 'Monster Mania'. Her lesson was gear more toward the older grades, so I made some accommodations and changes in order to best meet the needs of my 2nd graders.

I started today by writing the word "MONSTER" on the board. Then, we brainstormed as a class things that we think of when we see the word monster. Answers ranged from types of monsters like Frankenstein, mummies and ghosts to monster characteristics like scales, sharp teeth, claws, and red eyes to emotions that monsters make us feel like scared, happy, nervous and funny. I wrote these answers on the board under "MONSTER" as students said them. Then, I had the students 'act out' some of the different characteristics we had brainstormed. For example, I asked the students to think of a big, scaly monster with sharp claws, and on the count of three, to strike a pose like that kind of monster would. I really wanted the students to grasp the idea that monsters can have all different types of characteristics; that not all monsters are alike.

Next, I had the students come sit on the carpet while I read I Need My Monster by Amanda Noll. (There's also a great video of a read-aloud of this book here.) Many of the students had read or seen this book before, so I reminded them that we will be seeing many different types of monsters, and I needed them to pay attention to the different details and characteristics that each had so we could add to our list when we finished. This tied in one of the reading standards for second grade; having students "use information gained from the illustrations and words in a print or digital text to demonstrate understanding of its characters”. When we finished the book I asked students to recall the different types of monster characteristics they saw so we could add to our list.

Next, I introduced our art activity for the day: creating our own monster encyclopedias! Just like in the book, the students were to draw the type of monster that they would want to live under their bed, adding in as much detail and characteristics as they could. I showed students the worksheet they would be using, and when through the different sections on the sheet. The big empty box was were they would draw their monster, then on the left side of the sheet they would write a little bit about their monster, including giving it a name, describing its physical traits, and giving it some unique qualities (or things that their monsters liked to do).

I sent student back to their desks with their worksheets, and they set to work right away in sketching and coloring their monsters. I referred them back to our brainstorm on the board when they were stuck on what to draw, and encouraged them to try and come up with new characteristic ideas as well. For the first 10 or so minutes, the class was pretty quiet as everyone focused on their own monsters. Then, as they got into the groove of it, students starting sharing with their neighbors and observing other types of monsters. I love that the students were curious about the monsters their classmates were drawing, and I was surprised that despite the sharing, students didn't really 'copy' ideas off of each other or end up with similar drawings. Every monster was different, whether in color, size, characteristics, personality, etc.

With about 10 minutes left, I had students start working on the 'description' portion of their worksheet. They gave their monsters cool names like 'Monsterator', 'Bullufabigfoot', and 'Bloodtooth'. They described the cool characteristics they had given their monsters. Students were constantly calling me over to show me their monsters and tell me about the cool things they do. We had 'Reese's pieces' monsters, chef monsters who loved to bake, ghost monsters that scared people, furry monsters that told jokes, and so much more. I loved that students were proud and excited about what they had created. Lastly, I had students share with the person next to them about their monsters before our whole class discussion. I asked students, "Why was this an art activity?" Their answers brought in topics from previous lessons, saying that it was art because they used color (topic of the past 2-3 weeks), because they were drawing, and because they were using their imagination (one of our art rules). This showed me that they were really engaging in our art lessons and learning about what it means to be an artist. The last couple of classes as I've wrapped up my lesson, some of the students have reminded me, "Miss Belknap! Don't forget to put on your artist hat!", which is something I told them in our very first couple of lessons. It makes me so happy that they've caught on to the overarching message that everyone is an artist.

I've enjoyed seeing these 2nd graders get more confident in their artistic abilities. In our first lesson, students were nervous to start using pens and colors to create art instead of sketching with erasable pencil first. Today, students set straight to work drawing their monsters without hesitation. As Maya Angelou said,

"You can't use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have."

**I've posted a link to my lesson plan for this week under the 'Resources' page of this blog.