Give them a HAND!!!

6th graders studied Michelangelo. Most of the students had heard of Michelangelo, well... OK, I admit, they had heard of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle.  Students were really excited to learn that all of the Ninja turtles were named after famous artists.  After discussing turtles, we were ready to talk about the artist.  Before we began this project we spent one class talking about the Sistine Chapel and how Michelangelo spent 4 years painting on the ceiling.  Students then taped paper under our tables and drew a fall picture.  The objective of this assignment is not the product, but the process.  Students can appreciate Michelangelo's artwork more because of this experience.

We continued our discussion of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel and the most famous part, the hands!!! We practiced drawing hands for two whole classes before we began our final project.  Students were asked to draw their hands in two different positions.  While drawing their hands, students were asked to hold a piece of string to wrap and hold which helps create real positions as well as keep the hand still.  They were allowed to chose one word that had meaning (except their name) to put in the middle.  Hands are one of the most difficult things to draw and these student rocked them!!!