As our highlighted lesson, the submitter was awarded a $50 honorarium. See our guidelines to submit yours!
 My Hero -- A Class Mural
Brief Description
Students discuss heroism and make a collaborative black-and-white mural of a hero.
Objectives
Students gain a deeper understanding of the concept of heroism, create a biographical lesson about their chosen hero, and work collaboratively to make a mural.
Keywords
hero, mural, proportion, research, creative problem solving
Materials Needed
computer with Internet access, Snap.com for photo search, black-and-white copies of hero's picture with grid marks, sheets of 8" x 11" white paper, pencils and/or black crayons, sheet of bulletin board paper approximately 4' x 5', glue or tape
Lesson Plan
-
Discuss heroism with students and help them understand that a hero is someone who helps or inspires others or who takes a personal risk to achieve something great.
-
Help students choose an appropriate hero, perhaps someone whose achievements are relevant to a current study topic.
-
Have students work together to find a photo of that hero.
-
Save the photo to your hard drive. Insert the photo into a Microsoft Word document.
-
Divide the photo into 16ths by drawing lines across the picture. These guidelines help identify half and quarter marks.
-
Print out and copy the photo and grid, and provide a copy for each student.
-
Number each box on the grid.
-
Assign a student or pair of students to draw one area of the grid on a piece of white paper, thereby enlarging the stamp-sized area to 8" x 11" size. (It's important for students to write the corresponding number and an "up" arrow on the back of their drawings!) Point out that if a line comes halfway across the little grid area, it should come halfway across their drawing (proportion). If a shadow is dark, they should try to make it dark on their drawing. They may find the student whose grid piece is adjacent to theirs and make adjustments as they draw, so the final pieces will line up well.
-
As students complete the individual areas, lay the big background paper on the floor and have each student glue or tape each piece to the appropriate spot.
-
Hang the final mural.
-
Students who do not have a grid piece to draw or those who have an "easy" background piece that takes only a few minutes to complete can write a paragraph about the hero or the concept of heroism to post alongside the finished mural.
Assessment
Ask students to self-assess their group's project as a whole and their specific area. This can be done in a short paragraph or in oral discussion. You can also give a brief quiz about heroism and/or the particular hero who was featured.
Lesson Plan Source
Submitted by: Linda Scudder, ([email protected]) Will Rogers Junior High, Claremore, Oklahoma
 [ SUBMIT YOUR LESSON PLAN ]
06/09/2000
|