top of page

Art 1 Self-Portriats

Lesson Relevance 

Students will complete a reflection sheet for their project and submit it online. This will give them a chance to create a artist statement, and reflect on their project. 

Concepts 

Shading

Self portraits

Value

Proportions

Representational

Photo realism 

Foreshortening. 

Essential Understanding 

Students will be creating self-portraits based on identity and culture of the student. They will be focusing on creating a portrait using shading, value, and proportions to create a self-portrait that tells a story about who they are. 

Colorado Visual Art Standards 

1. Observe and Learn to Comprehend

2.Envision and Critique toReflect

3. Invent and Discover to Create

4. Relate and Connect to Transfer

Objectives/Outcomes/Learning Targets 

  • Students will fill out a formal assessment, to generate ideas about their identify and culture. (Visual Art Standard #4 Relate and Connect to Transfer. GLE: Brainstorming ideas on identity and culture groups. Art Learning: Art and activism.) 

  •  

  • Students will create a sketch, of their self portrait to practice facial proportions and foreshortening. (Visual Art Standard #3 Invent and discover to create. GLE: Practicing facial proportions. Art Learning: Foreshortening and proportions) 

  •  

  • After the sketch, students will create their final self portrait that includes 2 -4 things that tells the viewer about their culture and community.  ( Visual Art Standard #1 Observe and Learn to Comprehend.  GLE: Value and Shading. Art Learning Value and Shading 

  •  

  • When the final is done, students will reflect on their self portrait and fill out a self reflection sheet and artists statement. ( Visual Art Standard #2 Envision and Critique to Reflect. GLE: Reflection and Critique. Art Learning: Artist Statement. 

Differentiation 

Access (Resources and/or Process)

  • Students will be able to use a light board or a grid to transfer their photo 

​

Expression (Products and/or Performance)

  • Students will use a light board or grid to transfer their image to their 9x 12 paper  

Material 

Paper 

Sketchbook 

Color pencils 

Charcoal 

Graphite 

Erasers 

Extension 

Access (Resources and/or Process)

  • Students will be encourage to draw photo realism and be limited to certain shades to create their values. 

​

Expression (Products and/or Performance)

  • Students will draw their self portrait using photo realism techniques  

Literacy 

Shading

Value 

Proportions 

Positive and negative space

Blending 

Overlapping 

Resources 

Inquiry Questions 

Who can think about what a wonder day self portrait is? You usally take it on your phone? Why do we do that? 

​

What is important about self portraits? How does self portraits tell a story? How would you do that? 

Student Work 

Student Reflective Activity 

Students will complete a reflection sheet for their project and submit it online. This will give them a chance to create a artist statement, and reflect on their project. 

Teacher Reflection 

This lesson I really tried to focus on reflection and conversation when it came to questions that I was asking during the introduction of the lesson. I am really proud of my students for the work that they produced, they worked hard on their portraits and it shows. They created these in less than two weeks. I think if I was going to change this lesson, I would have given them more time, and then each class period they would have to practice a part of the face and draw that facial portions. 

Lesson Plan

bottom of page