It's easy to see the connections between science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics (STEAM) in daily life, but they may not be so obvious in the classroom. This month's lessons allow students to explore the components of STEAM through a favorite art supply, the crayon, and a beloved American tradition, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day…

When fifth-grade students were first introduced to abstract imagery in printmaking, the adjustment from figurative shapes to nonrepresentative forms was difficult for them. To make them more comfortable with the development of abstract ideas and forms, the students' initials were used. (RM)

Fifth-grade students used their bodies to form a design on blueprint paper. The end result was a frieze, which was used to brighten hallways. (RM)

A fifth-grade class was taught how animated films are made by actually making some. Each cartoon involved four parts: title, artwork, credits, and storyboard. In addition to learning about animation, they had the experience of thinking in logical sequence and of working cooperatively. (CS)

Discusses the integration of art and academics in a fifth-grade instructional unit on Native American culture. Describes how students studied Native American pictographs, designed their own pictographs, made their own tools, and created rock paintings of their pictographs using these tools. Provides a list of references on Native American…

Working in small groups, fifth graders designed and made a ceramic title mural that became a permanent display in the school entryway. The project is described. (RM)

Described is a project which made the study of Black history more real to fifth graders by having them make wire jewelry, smaller versions of the ornate filigreed ironwork produced by slave blacksmiths. (RM)

Fifth-grade art students examined Greek artists' drawings on the surfaces of clay vases and wine cups and read Greek mythology. The students then drew their own designs for ceramic pots. (RM)

Provides a lesson to familiarize students in grades four-six with the many ways that artists use the technique of collage. Students observe and discuss ways artists make use of materials other than paint on canvas. Examines how the introduction of foreign materials to a surface affects the illusion of space. (LS)

Uses a print of Homer's painting, "The Fox Hunt," to introduce students in grades 4-6 to paintings of wildlife as both factual record and as a storytelling medium. Includes learning objectives, instructional strategies, and background information on the artist. (GEA)

Recounts the creation by fifth- and sixth-grade students of their own personal "molas," based on the fabric art form of the Cuna Indians of the San Blas Islands off the coast of Panama. Tells how students created their designs based around a central image surrounded by geometric patterns and colors. (DSK)

Presents an activity with fifth-grade students called "crazy hat portraits" that is the end product of a sequence of lessons. Describes the beginning lessons and lists what the students learn and the time and materials needed for the assignment. (CMK)

How third, fifth, and sixth graders made sculptures from polystyrene strips is described. Specific instructions for introducing the lesson are provided. (RM)

This book outlines a nontraditional approach to papier mache and a process called "cloth mache" with fifth- and sixty-grade students. The volume describes a process called "cloth mache," a technique neither widely known or practiced. By combining the two media, a new dimension of sculpture is opened to the student. The paper…

Presents a lesson plan which uses Richard Tuttle's "Monkey's Recovery" to introduce students in grades four to six to contemporary nonrepresentational sculpture and to the critical discussion of the assemblage art-making process. Includes student objectives, background information on the artist, instructional strategies, evaluation…