Michelangelo’s Ceiling Art

Lesson Plan:

Activity:

Michelangelo’s Ceiling Art

Lesson plan developed by Ms. Erika Geelhoed, BA Ed

Age Group:

Preschool

* Lesson plan objective and assessment can be adapted to use this activity with school-age children.

Objectives:

Children will:

develop fine motor skills.
share about the artist Michelangelo.

CDA Competency Standard:

II.4.4b

Candidate’s facilitation promotes children’s physical development

b) Guides the development of children’s fine and gross motor skills

Michelangelo’s Ceiling Art

Materials:

paper
tape
crayons or markers
pictures of Michelangelo and his artwork, including the Sistine Chape

Resources:

Procedure:

Prep for the activity by taping a piece of paper to the bottom of the tables.
Introduce Michelangelo by giving the children a brief biography and sharing a variety of his works.
Show the children the Sistine Chapel.
Answer any questions they have about how he created it.
Tell the children that they will be creating upside down just as Michelangelo did.
Invite them to go under the tables and draw.
When finished, meet with the children again to talk about the process of creating upside down.
Be sure to ask open-ended questions to encourage discussion.

Assessment:

Observe and record the children as they are drawing. How well were they able to control the crayon or marker upside down? What did they share about Michelangelo and his art?

Online Early Childhood Education
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The Gift of Art

When children study art, they are learning so much more than how to simply draw, paint, or sculpt. They are developing the ability to think creatively. While most of your students will not choose to become artists when they grow up, the skills they are learning will carry with them into other professions as well. Although it may seem like a good idea to some to cut art when time or money gets short, doing so causes more harm than they realize. Children need art just as much as they need other subjects.

As you begin to think about incorporating art appreciation into your curriculum, be mindful of how you present artists and information.

Art appreciation should:

Inspire children to create their own art
Include artists of different genders, race, and nationalities
Develop critical thinking skills by asking open-ended questions
Introduce more advanced art vocabulary terms
Go beyond “do you like this art?”
Challenge students to think abstractly (i.e. what do you think the artist meant by _____?)
Include respectful and mindful discussions as a class
Never make students feel pressured to recreate an exact image of another artist. Be sure to have a conversation on originality