Walter Hays Fourth Graders will be participating in a project
with fourth graders at Hoover School in PaloAlto.
Phase 1: In pairs, students draw pictures of monsters,
then write descriptive paragraphs. The paragraphs are e-mailed
between classrooms. The receiving students draw from the descriptive
paragraphs, and those drawings are scanned and exchanged electronically.
Students then compare original drawings with "second generation"
drawings from the other class to assess their own skill at descriptive
writing.
Phase 2: Through the same process, students describe a
work of art by Mondrian, Klee, Matisse, etc. Written descriptions
are sent to partner classes, and receiving students attempt to
duplicate the art works from the descriptions. Art is electronically
exchanged and compared to the original works for detail and accuracy.
Phase 3: Students study and work on self portraits, then
write a descriptive passage to describe their face. Following
the same process, students exchange and compare each other's portraits.