The earth is not about me or about you, it's about all of us; people, animals, plants
and every single creature on it. We have heard about global warming and
what it means for our future. Our planet needs our help! We can do something if we take care of little details at home. Let's work together hand by hand to have a better future.
Environment, Recycling and Eco-Art are three concepts that students need to know. Our planet earth is in desperate urge of help and we can make a little difference by recycling at home and making kids participate in the process. As we know Art is a messenger and we can count on it to pass along information and to educate our new generations. Lets make these three concepts work together.
Environment is defined by Merriam Western dictionary as the circumstances, objects, or conditions by which one is surrounded and also as the complex of physical, chemical, and biotic factors (as climate, soil, and living things) that act upon an organism or an ecological community and ultimately determine its form and survival.
Recycling meanwhile, is the process of taking a product at the end of its useful life and using all or part of it to make another product. It can be processed through biochemical, degradation or modification. Some of the benefits in recycling besides help our environment are; conserved valuable resources of energy and make money to your community by generating materials and reducing the amount of waste. According to Earth911, approximately 80 percent of Americans have access to a plastics recycling program in their community, and although the amount of plastic bottles recycled in the United States has grown every year since 1990, the actual recycling rate remains steady at around 27 percent. Which makes me think, we need to do a better job. Unfortunately you can still see plastic and trash left in parks and streets and after all the info you get from the media, people still not been careful with their waste.
Ecological Art or “Eco-Art” is a contemporary form of environmental art created by artists who are concerned about local and global environmental situations, and who take art making to a functional format, said Cynthia A. Robinson an eco-art elementary art teacher in New Hampshire. She has been researching and practicing this kind of education for the past 7 years. Her work is very inspiring and simple enough to be understood and loved by children.
“…Our Earth is threatened by polluted air and water, deforestation, desertification, declining fisheries, and farming practices that deplete the soil. The urgency and importance of the message to restore health to the environment needs to be carried in every possible form of media and communication and art is one of the most powerful languages humans have ever invented”, said Huey D. Johnson, President, Resource Renewal Institute. (© 2001) www.http://Greenmuseum.org
Objectives
Create conscience in the students in how important is planet Earth for them and the responsibility that we all have with it.
Be proactive in our community by speaking out through Eco-Art and claim to do something in pro of the environment by recycling plastic bottle caps.
Encourage to work as teamwork so our voices can be listening better as group.
Grade Level
3rd and 4th
Teacher Preparation
http://GreenMuseum.org
http://www.ecoartalacarte.com/
http://Earth911.com
http://bryantholsenbeck.com/index.html
Molly B. Right
Mary Ellen Croteau
http://artgrange.com
Discussion Starters
1. I'll talk to them about the importance on conserve our Earth by watching a video about Earth - and talk to them about the statistic in environment changes and recycling programs.One Video You Need to See
2. The students will be introduce to the theme by the following video. Caps Can Do
3. They will be asking about their thoughts about the video
4. I'll talk about contemporary artistic solutions to the problem and I'll name the following artist and I'll share some of their work.
a. Bryant Holsenbeck
b. Molly B Right
c. Mary Ellen Croteau
d. Michelle Stitzlein
5. They will be introduce to the materials to use and they will have about 15 minutes to sketch and plan their artwork.
Process
Classroom Time:
One to Two 45-min period.
Materials and Tools:
Plywood sheets 20x20" pre-painted in white / One per student.
Glue
hundres of Plastic Bottle Caps, all kind of colors
Extensions:
Display the student artwork at our local library to celebrate EarthDay on April 22nd. To unveil their pieces, we might have somebody to came a talk to us about the importance on taking care of earth. The students will be able to invite friends and family from our community to celebrate with us. The idea is to make conscience in our community about the theme but also the child will learn about the communication power that their art might had. The library might have extra activities to reinforce our message.