Last semester, we did a project in which students had to transfer their portrait to a coffee-filter-type paper 4 times. Each time the face needed to look correct, proportional and exact.. So I told my students they would actually be TRACING?! Yes, its true.
For this project, I explained that we would be 'transferring' the portrait 4 times, on the radial 'mandala', so the best way to maintain consistency would be to TRACE the face with a sharpie--no pencils allowed. I pre-folded the circles before passing them out to the students and emphasized the idea that this is a CIRCLE, the image will be repeated, so don't trace your face once in the middle, think of it more like a piece of pizza with your pepperoni-face on each slice-HA! Radial balance at it's cheesiest. Since students were tracing their own selfie (which I had printed off, and bumped up the contrast to make it easier to trace) I encouraged them to ONLY trace the 'black' shadows and shapes on their faces. Some kids did not heed my warning, and they tried to freehand their eyes and noses---normally, I try to make them draw things as they actually look, but often students will draw those features as they THINK they look, so it made them look a LOT like Quasimodo (no one knows who that is anymore!). After a few students had done it the Quasimodo--way, I printed off a picture of the Hunchback of NotraDame and hung it on the board to reinforce my emphasis, "Please, for the love of pete, listen to what I am saying, do not go off on your own in this process." I had also encouraged them NOT to show their teeth in their selfie because sometimes teeth look a little weird in the transfer process....the students that showed their teeth AND attempted to free hand the portrait...well, let's just say that those REALLY look like Quasimodo. (I DO try to help when I give instructions, honestly I do. I don't just talk for the sake of hearing myself talk!) One day, a boy who had been absent for the first step of the project raised his hand and asked, "Mrs. Mitchell, is that a picture of Quasimodo on the board?" "Why yes, yes it is." I almost wept with the sheer excitement that this kid knew who that was....and the fact that he asked by raising his hand. Also, I think I was so excited I said something like, " This kid gets me." We both laughed about the fact that some of the drawings were looking so 'off.' Later, I mentioned to the student that I was planning to turn the image of Quasimodo into a wood burning...so I could keep it hanging up in the classroom. He has asked me about the wood project several times since I mentioned it to him....way back in November. I was sort of waiting for a snow day...and we never had one. So I FINALLY wood burned Quasimodo. Happy Spring break.
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Mrs. Mitchell
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March 2020
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