Tessellations
are designs made of repeating shapes that are congruent - the same in size and shape. When I taught my 5th
grade students how to make translational or slide tessellations, they used
traditional tools like index or note cards, scissors, and tape to make a
stencil or pattern that would tessellate or repeat without gaps or overlaps.
You can share the infographic I used (at the
first link below) to guide your students through this process.
Students
physically moved their congruent shapes across their papers to test if it would
in fact create an M.C.Escher-inspired optical illusion. This became a finished
piece of art once students added embellishments to transform the shapes into a recognizable
image. (You can see the finished ones at the second link below.) After learning
how to physically make these tessellations, I challenged my students to
transfer what they learned into a digital artwork using the iPad with the help
of an Amaziograph app (third link below).
Before
I introduced this digital version, I prepped by making what I thought would be
a few translational tessellations using this app. Once I got started, I
couldn’t stop! I made over 15 tessellations in one weekend! My obsession with
this app and my desire to learn it helped me figure out some tips and tricks
that would make this process easier for my students.
Creating
a Video Tutorial
With
this in mind I created a video tutorial (see link below) that took my students
step-by-step through the process while preventing distractions and keeping my
students focused on creating an artwork that demonstrated understanding of
translational tessellations. When you watch the video you will hear me giving
tips and advice to my students as they navigate the tools and interface of the
app. Playing the tutorial projected on my big screen while the kids followed
along on their iPads ended up being the best way to get everyone started in the
right direction.
Getting
Digital
Students
used our class set of styluses and drew, zoomed in for detail, mixed colors,
added textures, touched up, and saved their work over two class periods. I
printed table copies of my tessellation examples to help
inspire students to explore new ideas, decorative techniques, and design
solutions. I also passed out my Escher sliding puzzles to remind them of the
artist that inspired this lesson and technique in the first place.
This
use of digital tools in the art room is not necessarily transformative. I asked
students to use a new media to make the same kind of art. But, once you explore
the app you will realize that it will not allow gaps or overlaps (which you do
not want) and you don’t have to individually redraw an image over and over
again. The app will do this automatically. This digital media made the
process faster, more dynamic, and forgiving.
My
students were all able to successfully create tessellations and easily demonstrate
understanding. Students saved and uploaded their final pieces to our online
digital art gallery using the Artsonia classroom with the QR code I printed ahead
of time. This digitally tucked away their artwork into students’ digital portfolios
before they left my classroom. I posted my video, tutorial, and handouts on my
Fugleblog (the last address below) so once you have the app and iPads available,
you can give your students a chance to try it. I know they will like it as much
as mine did.
by Tricia
Fuglestad, an art teacher at Dryden Elementary School in the Arlington
Heights School District, New York. tfuglestad@sd25.org This article was published in the April 2014 SchoolArts Magazine.
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