One way I motivate students to become engaged is to introduce self-portraits, which are always popular, but I like to change it up and make the self-portraits more substantial than just drawing your face with a nice background. Then one day, while talking to the AVID teacher at my school, it hit me: Let’s look into the future. Where will you be in five years? College? Who will you be? What will you study? Let’s make some predictions.
What middle-school student isn’t just a tiny bit narcissistic? Well, my students are and they love to talk about themselves, look at themselves in the mirror, brush their hair, and even apply makeup during class. As a matter of fact, that’s why one of my Big Ideas is Identity.
Looking Ahead
One way I motivate students to become engaged is to introduce self-portraits, which are always popular, but I like to change it up and make the self-portraits more substantial than just drawing your face with a nice background. Then one day, while talking to the AVID teacher at my school, it hit me: Let’s look into the future. Where will you be in five years? College? Who will you be? What will you study? Let’s make some predictions.
Some people think middle school is too early to think about college and the future, but this is when students should start preparing and envisioning where they’d like to be. Many eighth-graders take high-school credits that will show on their GPA. College and the future should be a conversation at this time—but how can we make it fun?
Day 1: Research and Daydream
I begin this lesson by reminiscing about how much fun I had in college: painting classes with Barclay Sheaks, Mr. Britton’s ceramics classes, all of the friends I made, and, of course, how much I learned. The first thing I ask my students to do is to daydream: Stare into space and imagine the future you. What college will you attend and what will you study? Now that you have an idea, let’s research your college.
Day 2: Sketches
While students are exploring prospective colleges, I go from table to table, giving mini-lessons on how to draw faces. I explain the guidelines of drawing a face. We have to follow the same rules on scale and proportion even though we all look different. On day two, everyone’s picture looks slightly similar, but that will change with the next step.
Day 3: Adding Details
On day three, students start adjusting their drawings to resemble themselves. They have to keep in mind that some people’s eyes are larger than others’ and some people have freckles. Are your eyes more like almonds or lemons? Are your lips full or thin? Is your hair short or long? Do you have anything on your face that makes you unique?
Assembling the ID
When students have their portraits drawn and their college chosen, we check to make sure the college they picked offers their major. I also ask them to check out the college’s mascot.
Next, students add a mascot to their sketches, complete with the college’s school colors. We look at real college IDs and decide what format/layout we want to use. Students must have a large area for their portrait and another area for their mascot. Other than that, they choose where to place their name, active dates, barcode, and college name.
Advanced Art
Advanced art students put a different spin on the college IDs. Instead of choosing a college, they choose an artist to study under. Their self-portrait should be a representation of themselves, and the mascot is in the style of the chosen artist.
Wrapping Up
As we complete this project, students fill out a rubric, photograph their work, and upload it to their digital portfolios. All original artwork is displayed in the hallway for everyone to enjoy.
Jen Lee Lauzon is an art teacher at Landstown Middle School in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Jen.Lauzon@VBSchools.com
National Standard
Connecting: Relating artistic ideas and work with personal meaning and external context.
Art teachers inspire students to consider all layers of their identity and to celebrate their differences through a variety of exciting lessons. High-school students use photography to create abstract representations of their favorite icons, middle-school students envision their future selves while illustrating college IDs, elementary students celebrate their differences through self-portrait collage paintings, young students learn the value of collaboration while assembling a mural that combines all of their artworks, and more.
