Series Arts Integration with David Cooper: Greek Mythology in the Classroom & Museum: Interpreting Ancient Art in Social Studies

ELA.SL.6.1c

Common core State Standards

  • ELA:  English Language Arts
  • SL:  Speaking and Listening Standards 6-12
  • 6:  6th Grade
  • 1c: 
    Engage effectively in a range of collaborative
    discussions (one-on-one, in groups, and teacherled)
    with diverse partners on grade 6 topics,
    texts, and issues, building on others'\x80\x99 ideas and
    expressing their own clearly.

    a. Come to discussions prepared, having read or
    studied required material; explicitly draw on
    that preparation by referring to evidence on
    the topic, text, or issue to probe and reflect on
    ideas under discussion.

    b. Follow rules for collegial discussions, set
    specific goals and deadlines, and define
    individual roles as needed.

    c. Pose and respond to specific questions with
    elaboration and detail by making comments
    that contribute to the topic, text, or issue
    under discussion.


    d. Review the key ideas expressed and
    demonstrate understanding of multiple
    perspectives through reflection and
    paraphrasing.

Download Common Core State Standards (PDF 1.2 MB)

|
ELA.SL.6.2

Common core State Standards

  • ELA:  English Language Arts
  • SL:  Speaking and Listening Standards 6-12
  • 6:  6th Grade
  • 2: 
    Interpret information presented in diverse media
    and formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally)
    and explain how it contributes to a topic, text, or
    issue under study.

Download Common Core State Standards (PDF 1.2 MB)

|
ELA.SL.6.6

Common core State Standards

  • ELA:  English Language Arts
  • SL:  Speaking and Listening Standards 6-12
  • 6:  6th Grade
  • 6: 
    Adapt speech to a variety of contexts and tasks,
    demonstrating command of formal English when
    indicated or appropriate. (See grade 6 Language
    standards 1 and 3 on page 52 for specific
    expectations.)

Download Common Core State Standards (PDF 1.2 MB)

Interpreting Ancient Art in Social Studies

Lesson Objective: Analyze art using a See-Wonder-Think thinking routine
Grades 6-8 / Social Studies / Arts
10 MIN
ELA.SL.6.1c | ELA.SL.6.2 | ELA.SL.6.6

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Discussion and Supporting Materials

Thought starters

  1. How does the See-Wonder-Think thinking routine deepen the way students look at art?
  2. Why is it important to focus solely on observations during the first part of the routine?
  3. How do students apply their knowledge of social studies when analyzing art?

8 Comments

  • Private message to Maria Martin
I have been using videos to emphasize ancient civilizations´ accomplishments especially the art and architecture as they reveal the culture of each civilization and would highlight with the students the beauty and the unique sense of art in each different civilization. Students loved it and enjoyed it. I was and am ready to take my students to the next step and you have presented it beautifully. This is a great approach to lead and guide the students into deep critical thinking and as you said, they develop these skills and they will take these skills with them into the real world and will apply them wherever they need it. I would like to add that these skills can be applied into any work of art of any historical period, it does not have to be restricted to the Greeks and Romans as the skill applied can be used in almost anything that implies to develop the ability of skillful observation.
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  • Private message to Karen Cunningham
I have been teaching this same subject for a couple of years, and did not know how to incorporate art in an intelligent way. As I watched you scaffold each section of the lesson it showed me how to easily do this on my own. This lesson also gave the students total success because it was based on their observations. Thank you for this method. I took a tremendous amount of notes. Now for implementation!
Recommended (0)
  • Private message to Carolina Rodriguez Gacía
I wish I had a teacher with this kind of methodology in the classroom....amazing.
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  • Private message to Dianna Jones
This was a great video. I feel that this would be a good strategy to use to teach Greek gods and goddess
Recommended (0)
  • Private message to Jovita Operton
This lesson was interesting. I like that the students were given a graphic organizer to guide them through the activity. Analysis of the sculpture fostered recall of content.
Recommended (0)

Transcripts

  • Interpreting Ancient Art in Social Studies Transcript

    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:00:05 If you watch people look at art, most people, this

    Interpreting Ancient Art in Social Studies Transcript

    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:00:05 If you watch people look at art, most people, this is how they look at art. They take about five seconds. Today I’m going to give you a technique that you can use any time you’re looking at an object. And really what we’re working on is we’re working on interpreting art. So choral read the learning target for today for me, please.
    CLASS
    00:00:30 I will interpret art.
    00:00:33 [TITLE: See, Wonder, Think]
    [TITLE: Interpreting Ancient Art in Social Studies]
    DAVID COOPER
    00:00:36 I teach 6th grade Social Studies. That Social Studies covers prehistoric time through ancient civilizations, all the way up to the Roman Empire. Incorporating that cross-curricular approach where art is the basis from which they learn the curriculum is such a terrific way to engage students.

    00:00:54 So, this unit focuses from the beginning on Greek mythology. First step in the unit is researching Greek god and goddess attributes. We move from there into Greek mythological stories, giving them some more background on some of the gods and goddesses.

    00:01:09 The lesson that I taught today was See, Wonder, Think. It’s designed to allow students a strategy to observe art and to foster an inquiry-based learning process. We want them to look at something closely and create a thoughtful interpretation of what they’re looking at.

    00:01:30 And so, we give ‘em a process by which to do that.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:01:34 I am going to project a work of art on the board. And what I want you to do is to look at that art for 60 seconds.
    00:01:44 [TITLE: STEP 1 – SEE]
    [TITLE: Observe closely.]
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:01:48 You’re not going to write anything. I want you to focus only on what you can observe. We are not making any inferences here. Who can tell me what an inference is?
    LIGHT BLUE SWEATSHIRT
    00:01:59 An inference is a guess about what you’ve seen so far.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:02:04 An inference is a guess, absolutely.
    DAVID COOPER
    00:02:06 I tell the students that they are going to look at an image for 60 seconds. The image is an image I’ve downloaded from the Getty’s website. They’re not supposed to be guessing anything about the object that they’re looking at, but that they’re limiting themselves to visual observation – things they can directly see.

    00:02:24 This is a Getty lesson from the Getty’s education section of their website. All the items in the See, Wonder Think lesson are available online. All the images are available for download in large file format and it is free.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:02:40 Fifteen more seconds. Alright. I want you to take two minutes. Then in that two minutes I want you to write down three things that you detected. Three things that you saw. Please remember, no inferences. Go.

    00:03:02 Go ahead and put your pen or pencil down. Okay, now I’m going to have you share with a partner one thing that you saw. Go.
    TIMOTHY
    00:03:10 I saw a broken forearm of the man’s. Like it was right here. Like the rest of his arm was broken.
    ANGELICA [sync]
    00:03:19 I saw a man sitting on a throne.
    ANGELICA
    00:03:22 It’s teaching us, like, to pay attention that you look at everything. Don’t just look at the whole thing. Try look at the small details.
    DAVID COOPER
    00:03:31 Once they’ve had a chance to share with a partner, I have them share out with the class. Now, I’m getting a chance to assess them as a group.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:03:37 Alright, what did you detect, Angelica?
    ANGELICA [sync]
    00:03:39 I detected a man missing many parts of the body.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    Missing many parts of the body. Well, can you give me an example?
    ANGELICA [sync]
    The foot.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:03:47 Okay, can you give me an example, please.
    ANGELICA [sync]
    The foot.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    We answer in compl- We answer in complete sentences.
    ANGELICA [sync]
    00:03:52 Oh.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    Give me an example of something missing.
    ANGELICA [sync]
    00:03:54 An example-
    [TITLE: Common Core Standard ELA]
    [TITLE: Adapt speech to the context, demonstrating command of formal English]
    ANGELICA [sync]
    00:03:56 -that is missing is the foot.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    Yeah. There’s a foot missing here. Alright, terrific. Now, you’re going to wonder about the things that you saw. Write down three questions about what you can observe.
    00:04:11 [TITLE: STEP 2 – WONDER]
    [TITLE: What do you wonder about what you see?]
    DAVID COOPER
    00:04:15 Then we move on to the Wonder section of this lesson, allowing them to make inferences, to wonder about things that they can’t see, based on things that they can see.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:04:25 Go.
    GLASSES
    00:04:33 One of the questions I had was, “What about if his shirt was on?”
    00:04:36 [TITLE: Common Core Standard ELA]
    [TITLE: Pose detailed questions that contribute to the topic under discussion]
    GLASSES
    00:04:38 If he had a shirt on.
    JASON
    00:04:39 What was he made out of?
    TIMOTHY
    00:04:41 Who was the artist?
    WHISKERS
    00:04:43 Is this sculpture a symbol of something important?
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:04:46 Thank you. We’ve got a bunch of different questions about things that we can’t observe. Our next step is to think. And for this part I don’t want you to write anything down yet.
    00:04:57 [TITLE: STEP 3 – THINK]
    [TITLE: What can you infer about your observations?]
    DAVID COOPER
    00:04:58 The Think section requires them to think about what might answer the question they posed, help them create those thoughtful interpretations, see if they can find an answer to their own question.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:05:09 Try to figure out if there’s any evidence in this object that might help you answer your question.
    00:05:17 [TITLE: Common Core Standard ELA]
    [TITLE: Interpret information and explain how it contributes to the topic]
    BLUE SLEEVES
    00:05:21 I think the statue is pretty old because the arm and some of the foot is dissolved.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    Dissolved. So, let’s zoom in on this object a little more closely.
    DAVID COOPER
    00:05:31 The images are such high resolution I can zoom in and the students can see the detail of that from across the room.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:05:37 This is what you’re gonna do – you’re going to share out one question with everyone at your table. Then I want you to pick one question and I want you all to think of what the answer to that question might be.
    00:05:49 [TITLE: Aphrodite]
    [TITLE: unknown artist]
    [TITLE: 200-150 B.C.]
    ANGELICA [sync]
    00:05:51 My question is, “Is she a goddess?”
    JASON
    00:05:54 My question was, “Who is she?”
    TIMOTHY
    00:05:57 My question was, “Why does she wear such an old dress? Is she an elder or something?”
    JASON
    I think the best question-
    STUDENT [off-camera]
    00:06:06 Who is she?
    ANGELICA [sync]
    It could be Persephone or Hera.
    TIMOTHY
    Yeah, is it- It could be Hera or Persephone.
    STUDENT [off-camera]
    So, who is she?
    TIMOTHY
    Who is she? Okay, there- Who is she? We all agree?
    DAVID COOPER
    00:06:15 I could give students a worksheet of Greek gods, what they’re they god of, and what their attributes are and have them study it and give ‘em a quiz on it, but if they’re identifying those attributes in actual art objects and facing that challenge, it hooks them in ways that I haven’t found anything else does.
    STUDENT [off-camera]
    00:06:31 Alright, let’s discus.
    ANGELICA [sync]
    And our answer will be Hera because the pomegranate.
    TIMOTHY
    00:06:34 Yeah, but we don’t know. Hera, her symbol was a pomegranate, too.
    STUDENT [off-camera]
    [unintell]
    TIMOTHY
    00:06:39 But Persephone was the queen of the Underworld.
    ANGELICA [sync]
    But she would probably wear, like, darker clothes because she’s an Underworld [unintell]
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:06:46 Were Persephone and Hera the only Greek gods or goddesses that were known to have a symbol that was round and they could hold in their hand? Because I will tell you that this is neither Hera nor Persephone.
    TIMOTHY
    So, “Who is she?” is a perfect question.
    ANGELCA [sync]
    Yeah, but we don’t know.
    DAVID COOPER
    00:07:01 One of the groups, their interpretation was incorrect. I stepped in and pointed out that while their interpretation was potentially correct, in truth, it turns out that it- it was not the right direction and I redirected them.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:07:14 Now I’d like to focus on the identification of who is in your object. So, I’m going to start with Table Two.
    BLACK & WHITE STRIPES
    00:07:22 Well, we think that that goddess is Artemis because Artemis always wears a short tunic and in the shoes, it looks like there’s a crescent moon there.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:07:29 Terrific. Alright, this is the goddess Diana, which is the Roman version of Artemis. Often shown wearing a short tunic. Look at the placement of her hands. What in gen- If somebody is doing this, and they’re not scratching their back, what else might they be doing? Genesis?
    GENESIS
    00:07:47 Artemis must have been reaching for her bow.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    Artemis might have been reaching for her bow. Maybe her bow was back here. Absolutely. Or maybe her bow was here…
    DAVID COOPER
    00:07:54 When I do See, Wonder, Think with students, I’m hoping to teach them something that they can use for the rest of their lives. This is a strategy that helps them slow down and notice things.
    ANGELICA
    00:08:09 I use See, Wonder, and Think in math class because sometimes I don’t understand things, so I look at the whole page of the math assignment and I think of the questions and I look in the focus boxes and examples to see if I can my answer easier.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:08:26 What are the three steps we use when we interpret art?
    JASON
    00:08:29 Three steps we use to interpret art were See, Wonder, and Think.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:08:33 See, Wonder, and Think. Absolutely. Terrific. Who can tell me what we do when we See?
    GENESIS
    00:08:38 When we see an object we inspect it, look for big details or small details.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    Absolutely. When we Wonder, what are we doing when we’re looking at a piece of art and we’re Wondering?
    BLUE SHIRT
    00:08:49 We wonder about the details and what had happened to them.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:08:52 Absolutely. And the last step- What’s the last step?
    GLASSES
    00:08:56 Our last step is to think.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    The last step is to Think. What do you do when you Think?
    GLASSES
    00:09:01 When we Think, we- we answer the questions that we- that we were Wondering of.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    00:09:09 Right. When we Think, we answer the questions that we came up with during our Wonder. Based on what?
    WHITE SHIRT & GLASSES
    00:09:16 What we focus on is the details of the art.
    DAVID COOPER [sync]
    The details in the art. Absolutely. What we can visually observe is what we focus on.
    DAVID COOPER
    00:09:26 The See, Wonder, Think lesson is gonna help them when they see these Greek and Roman gods in art form, but it’s also going to help them understand the mythology and learn why the Greeks included these mythological figures in their art and their culture.
    00:09:48 [TITLE: See – Wonder – Think is adapted from the Visible Thinking Routines developed by Harvard University’s research group PROJECT ZERO.]
    00:09:57 ***FILE END***

School Details

Prairie Vista Middle School
13600 South Prairie Avenue
Hawthorne CA 90250
Population: 833

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David Cooper