Submitted by Holly L., of Central Middle School in Sheridan, WY.
Grade Level: 6th - 7th grade
Lesson: Portraits to Picasso

Materials:

• Roman prints
• white paper
• scissors
• acrylic paint

Procedure:

We look into Roman portraiture and how the Romans drew the perfectly proportionate face all the time, regardless of who the person was and most of the portraits looked alike because of this.

A fun motivator for portraits is doing them on the white board with the students doing the drawing. Most middle schoolers "know" or so they think they do :) exactly where all of the features belong. Don't forget the "be nice" to others lecture. It is quite hysterical, since the eyes start on the forehead. We do a wacky face and then a proportionate face.

So, then we drew the perfect face using the guide on the white board and the guide I have created. The kids can put their choice of hair on.

We, then, look into the life of Picasso and cubism. We cut our face into 5-10 shapes and redesign our portraits. I usually tie in color and acrylic painting with this lesson but you could finish it however you like. Good luck and happy faces.