Date: September 14, 1999

Grade Level(s): 2, 3, 4

Subject(s):

• Arts/Visual Arts

Description: This is a lesson for an art activity dealing with Valentine's Day lasting approx. a week.

Goals: The students will be able to:

• have control over their fine motor skills in using scissors precisely.
• decorate their art demonstrating their own creativity.

Objectives: * The students will be able to:

1. acknowledge symmetry.
2. decorate using Valentine symbols.
3. demonstrate control over their fine motor skills in using scissors precisely.
4. decorate their art demonstrating their own creativity.

• scissors
• brown paper bags
• markers or crayons
• paper punch
• stickers
• construction paper

As the class as a whole, we will talk about the holiday of Valentine's Day.
Ask questions:
"What is the holiday all about?"
"What do you usually get in the mail?"
"What kind of shapes are used a lot during this holiday?".
Describe the activity they will be doing.
Demonstrate it.
First get brown lunch bag.
With the sack flat, fold vertically along the center.
Cut a handle in it towards the top, cutting with the fold in the scissors, and other possible decorations along the sides.
Make sure the bag is still sturdy enough to hold cards.
Decorate with markers, stickers, and/or construction paper.
Write my name on the bottom.
Give students phrases relating to Valentine's Day.

For example:

"I'm your friend" " Be my friend" "Be kind" "Secret Buddy" "I like you"

Have one student pass out the bags and have one pass out the scissors.
Have the markers, stickers, crayons, hole punch, and construction paper on a table to get as needed.
When students are finished, one student will collect scissors and one will collect projects.
At the same time, a student will go along with the garbage can to collect any scraps.

Follow-up Activity:

As an activity to coincide with this project, each student will be given a secret Valentine.
Their secret Valentine will be another student in the class.
Every day, have the students write a clue and hand it into you.
You will put the clues in the students bags.
To make it easier for you, also give the bags a number and the students will write that number on the clue corresponding to their secret Valentine.
Every day there will be a topic to base the clues on, such as: hair color, pets, brothers-sisters, glasses or not, etc.
If the students haven't guessed by the end of two weeks, have them reveal who their secret Valentine is to each other.
The students may also use the bags as a tote for when the students hand out their Valentine's Day cards.

Assessment: