Jess Pilya
Unit Plans
High School Units
Ceramics I Identity Vessels
Who are we and what determines that? That's the question students explore in this unit, looking at two parts of our identity. Our outer voice or how other people identify us through our appearance, actions, or projections. As well as our Inner Voice or how we truly are, the things we keep to ourselves, or things that it takes digging a little deeper to get to know. The unit was designed around the creation of a mask but with student feedback shifted in practice to the creation of a student proposed vessel.
Ceramics III The Exquisite Corpse Collaberation
The exquisite corpse is a collaborative drawing game that dates back to the 1920s and has it's foundations in surrealism. In this unit students explore how artists can utilize the same idea and incorporate their own style to create a unique body of work. Students investigates aesthetic and visual culture influences on their own style and created a full three part sculpture that despite it's unique and funky flow, connected through their ideas about style. Once finished students swap their pieces and reflect on how collaboration changes experience and meaning in art making.
Adaptive Arts Soundsuits inspired by the work of Nick Cave
In this lesson students in Adaptive Arts looked at artworks created by Chicago based artist Nick Cave and how he creates wearable sculptures that emphasis feelings of protection, shelter, and freedom from judgment. Students in this unit create their own found object sculptures that represent these ideas in their own way!
Ceramics II Reality vs Fantasy set
A study conducted in the 90s states that 98% of 5 year old test at a creative genius level and only 2% of adults. Why? Because 5 year olds engage more actively in fantasy. In this unit students explore duality through a set of vessels that ground themselves in a chosen reality and it's fantasy abstraction. Students chose their ideas, conducted visual research utilizing Miro, and acquired wheel throwing skills through active investigation.
AP 3D Art The Ultimate Wheel Throw Down!
Students in AP 3D art have worked long and hard on their sustained investigations this year. With that comes the dreaded art block. This lesson emphasizes play and out of the box skill exploration as means to stretch out of our comfort zone and out of a creative rut. We looked at 2009 retired website Learning To Love You More by artist pair Miranda July and Harrell Fletcher, who created 70 unique prompts for artists to share online. One of the very beginning formats for communal art prompts. Students engaged in the ULTIMATE WHEEL THROW DOWN! In this lesson they experienced the pottery wheel in all new ways, throwing with eyes closed, teeny tiny little hands, and throwing as a team. Students reflected on their experiences and whether or not they felt more engaged with their ceramic work after a creative problem solving exercise.
Elementary Units
5th Grade Art and Power Coil Vases
In this unit students look into French Art history. Dissecting the Rococo era and it's roots in French Colonialism, excess, and slavery.
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Students investigate the origins of Rococo and Baroque style art and look at how artists Kehinde Wiley and Roberto Lugo use this style to upend western perceptions of art and discuss beauty in their communities, people, and cultures.
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Students worked to create coil vases that represented something they wanted to honor or show has immense worth.
4th Grade Home Hermit Crabs
In this unit students explore what home really means, is it just a house? What about an apartment? An RV? Is it any of that at all?
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Students will read a book written just for this unit! (I love to write and illustrate kids books!) That follows a hermit crab on his journey to a new home, but don't worry while some things might not fit him they do work for members of his community! What matters in his home?
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Students then created symbols for their homes and looked at how other artists represent home before crafting coil made hermit crabs and snails they decorated with their symbols!
2nd Grade Invisible Things Gelli Prints
In this unit students look at the artwork and book Invisible Things by Andy J. Pizza and Sophie Miller. The book explores all the invisible things that we can feel but can always see and how can we represent them as creatures!
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Students identified the differences between feelings and emotions and used color, line, and shape to explore different feelings and emotions of their choice.
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Students created an invisible thing as well as a gelli print environment for it to live in!
4th Grade Found Object Sculptures
In this unit students studied the artwork of Chicago based artist Nick Cave. Nick Cave creates vibrant wearable sculptures that are performed in. Nick Cave's work is a response to feelings of being discarded by society due to his race after witnessing the Rodney King beating.
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Students ideate on how Nick Cave demonstrates ideas of protection and shields himself from judgement while being an art advocate.
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Students use found objects to represent how they would display themselves if completely free from societal judgments.
3rd Grade Art and Fantasy (Plants!)
In this unit students look at representational vs abstract art and what happens when artists make art somewhere in between!
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Students explore why fantasy is relevant in art making and how it shapes new innovative ideas in and out of the art world.
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Students look at artist Megan Bogonovich and her fantasy plant artwork. They will then create and identify their very own fantasy plant! What representational qualities did they choose? How did they make it fantastical? What is it called?
What does this artwork mean?
1st Grade Giving Gratitude Pinch Pots
In this unit students explore what it means to have gratitude for those around us. What is gratitude, what does being grateful do for us, how about our relationships with others?
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Students looked into the art of Lori Portka, and artist who made 100 different art gifts to express gratitude to people in her life.
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Students then made pinch pot flowers to give to someone and let them know how special they are!
Kindergarten Growing Up! Clay bead caterpillars
In this unit students explore what it means to grow! Kindergarten students are in their first step on a big journey! What will it look like? How will they change? What things are they excited about?
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Students watched an animation of the very hungry caterpillar in French and English to support their language acquisition and created clay beads to string and paint into their very own caterpillar. Students practiced cutting skills and demonstrated their ideas about excitement to grow on leaves!
