Colors, Letters, and Rulers

Reilly & Dan

Centennial High School Teaching Practice
October 18th, 2016

Big Idea that drives Lesson/Unit:

Using basic perspective, math, and color theory to illustrate a cohesive, uniform, and balanced
composition. Combining disparate individual works to create a large unified piece. Showing how these
visual mechanisms, such as perspective and color schemes, can unify a collaborative artwork containing
multiple individual works. Students will be encouraged to learn and explore the fractions of an inch.
Instructors will attempt to show the artistic, as well as general life skill, value of being able to do simple
fractional math and understanding color schemes.
Fine Arts Goals Met by the Objectives:
26.B.4d Visual Arts: Demonstrate knowledge and skills that communicate clear and focused ideas
based on planning, research and problem solving.
26.A.4e Visual Arts: Analyze and evaluate how tools/technologies and processes combine to
convey meaning.
Vocabulary Acquisition:
Color Scheme: An arrangement or pattern of colors ... forming an integrated whole:
(Dictionary.com) **Change this definition if you want**
Complementary: Colors directly opposite each other in the color spectrum, such as red and green
or blue and orange. (Google.com)
Analogous: Analogous colors are groups of three colors that are next to each other on the color
wheel, with one being the dominant color, which tends to be a primary or secondary color, and a
tertiary. Red, orange, and red-orange are examples.
Uniform: Not changing in form or character; remaining the same in all cases and at all times.
"blocks of stone of uniform size" (Google.com)
Equidistant: Of equal distance. Located at the same distance. (Merriam-Webster)
Baseline: An invisible line upon which two or more letters sit. (Personal)
Tracking: The character spacing between more than two letters. (Personal)

Key Artistic Concepts:

Students will illustrate their initials in a consistent and uniform traditional lettering style (block
letters of uniform width on a single register, subsequently made three-dimensional by using 1pt
perspective)
Students will choose a sports logo to trace, and then color with a complementary or analogous
color scheme.
Handout on color schemes.
Handout on uniform text.

Sports logo samples

Artmaking Materials Needed:

Copy Paper (50 sheets)

Lined Paper (50 sheets)
Sports Logo samples (from my office)
Rulers (preferably 18 inch cork back x 30)
Prizes (art pencils/ pencil grips, etc.)
Markers (Large Case)
Blackboard/Dry Erase Board

Contemporary/Historical/Multicultural/Literature exemplars:
Examples of Amatuer & Professional sports teams logos/fields. General Advertising. Hanging of
a picture or artwork (using measurement skills to determine placement)
Procedures:
DISCUSSION: (10 minutes)
(Dan) Fractions challenge - Offer prize for first student who can tell me what half of
3/8ths is. Run through random fraction division challenge for 1-3 minutes depending on
if/how many students can answer - number of prizes.
Ask why fractions are important? What use is knowing how to read and use a ruler in art?
(Intentional placement of objects, consistent or intentionally inconsistent spacings.
General measuring. Hanging) What use is knowing fractions in everyday life? (Cooking,
Money management, Organization, General measuring. Communication) (3 mins)
(Reilly) Color challenge. Offer prize for students who can name the
complementary/analogous/triadic/monochromatic/etc. color pairs to one given. 1-3 mins
depending on if/how many students can answer - number of prizes.
Ask why color schemes are important? What use are knowing color schemes in art? In
everyday life? (3 mins)
(Dan) Explain Agenda for day (1 min)
(Reilly) Student volunteers (or pass along) for handouts, rulers, paper (1-2 min)
DEMONSTRATIONS: (10 minutes)
These are the techniques we will be using on this projects:
(Dan) Explain what baseline, equidistant, and tracking are during demo.
Draw 2-3 letters on board, note that letters are on same baseline, block width is
equidistant, as well as tracking. Demo a letter S and a letter O (note minor
difficulty increase due to curves) (3 mins)
Review - horizon line, vanishing point, note consistent depth. *Does not have to
be same width as letter block - only guideline is consistent depth* (2 mins)
(Reilly) Color Scheme: Partially color in example letters on board with a color
scheme (complementary or analogous) Interact with class about definitions and
schemes. (3 mins)

Show Historical/Multicultural exemplars

(Reilly) Show examples of sports logo in color (note color schemes) interact with
students about common sports team color schemes - ask if complementary or
analogous. ( 2 mins)
(Dan) Shows sports logo example with lettering, note the baseline, tracking, and
equidistant width of lettering. (2 mins)
*Let students know that only after they hand in their initials assignment to
either instructor can they can pick a sports logo out of the files to trace and
color.* (1 min)
REMIND STUDENTS TO WRITE THEIR WHOLE NAME ON THE BACK
OF THEIR ASSIGNMENT
DESIGN/WORK SESSION: (20 minutes)
USING A RULER: Students will draw their initials in block letters on a sheet of ruled (or
unruled to challenge) paper.
Block letters should be of uniform width, baseline, and kerning. (Define these terms
again, walk around class answering questions, offering advice {i.e. pick an easy to
remember width})
Students will make their initials three dimensional using 1 pt perspective technique that
they have been practicing with primary instructor.
Once students have completed their initials they are to hand in their drawing (***with
their full name on the back!***) to an instructor for approval to move onto color scheme
sports mascots exercise.
*If assignment is incomplete and the letters are not uniform, offer advice and help,
encourage students to measure twice and draw once.
Student can pick a sports mascot to trace on lined paper.
Students can pick their colors before or after tracing a mascot. (Instructors ask questions
with vocabulary words i.e what kind of color scheme are you using?)
If a student finishes early, they can be challenged to add uniform lettering to their traced
and colored mascot.
If a student finishes that, challenge them to make the new lettering three dimensional.
CLEAN UP: ( 5 minutes)
Student volunteers to make sure all rulers/markers/mascots have been returned.
CLOSURE: (5 minutes)
What are the benefits to having a color scheme?
What are benefits to having uniform lettering?
What are some drawbacks to uniform lettering?
What are some drawbacks to color schemes?
(Possible topics include legibility, originality, attention, recognizability, branding, target
marketing, expected/unexpected, ugly on purpose)
(50 Minutes Total)