Birds of Georgia, 3rd grade

Our goal with this lesson was first to observe local nature and discover artists who do this, like John James Audubon. Next, we experimented with creating space using atmospheric perspective - a way of showing distance with blurry and sharp focus. We also worked on showing emphasis, or what's important in the picture, by placing the birds in a central position and a large size.

We used our "Make It" planning sheet to do our thumbnail sketches and prep work, as well as our reflection when the art was complete. This planning sheet is available at my Teachers pay Teachers store - https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Store/Mrs-Knights-Smartest-Artists .

Once our thumbnails were complete, we began our final drawings in pencil and used a wet-on-wet process for a blurry background. We used water soluble oil pastels for the birds to create more detail and texture, then washed over those to melt them into a more painted look. These birds have so much personality and individuality, just like the artists who painted them.