Pat Roth July 2013 LESSON TITLE Pop-up Portraits GRADE LEVELS Grades 4-6 TIME ALLOTMENT Five - Seven 45-minute class periods OVERVIEW Students will see a short image-based PowerPoint history of pop-ups, view a video on how modern pop-up books are designed and produced, and then create their own pop-up book using themselves as subject matter. SUBJECT MATTER Visual Art, History (books) LEARNING OBJECTIVES Students will view early examples of moveables/pop-ups from their beginnings; Students will discover the process by which artists create movable pop up books and see current professional artists work through the process of creating pop-ups; Students will uncover how art and engineering are combined in this unique art form and use paper engineering techniques to create their own 3D pop-ups; Students will use a variety of media to communicate via their personal symbols; Students will share and reflect on their work and the work of others. STANDARDS North Dakota State Standards Visual Arts Grades 5-8 Benchmarks Standard 1: VISUAL ART MEDIA, TECHNIQUES, AND PROCESSES Students understand and apply visual art media, techniques, and processes. 8.1.1 Understand differences between visual art media. 8.1.4 Understand how different visual art materials, techniques, and processes cause different responses. 8.1.5 Understand how different visual art media, techniques, and processes are used to communicate ideas, experience, and stories.
Standard 2: STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION Students understand how works of art are structured and how visual art has a variety of functions. 8.2.1 Know the effects of visual art structures and functions. 8.2.2 Understand visual art organizational structures and analyze what makes them effective or ineffective in the communication of ideas. Standard 3: SUBJECT MATTER, THEMES, SYMBOLS, AND IDEAS IN VISUAL ART Students know a range of subject matter, symbols, and ideas. 8.3.1 Understand how to apply subjects, themes, symbols and ideas in visual art to communicate ideas. Standard 4: VISUAL ART HISTORY AND CULTURE Students understand the visual arts in relation to history and culture. 8.4.1 Understand the characteristics of works of art in various eras and cultures. Standard 5: MERITS OF WORKS OF VISUAL ART Students understand the characteristics and merit of oneʼs own work of art and the works of art of others. 8.5.1 Understand multiple purposes for creating works of art. 8.5.2 Understand how one's own work of art may elicit a variety of responses. Standard 6: CONNECTIONS Students make connections between the visual arts and other disciplines. 8.6.1 Understand the similarities between visual art and other arts disciplines (Performing arts, literature, practical arts) that share common themes, historical period, or cultural context. 8.6.2 Understand the relationship between the visual arts and other disciplines in the curriculum. DIGITAL MEDIA COMPONENTS For the history of movables/pop-up books, I used these websites: http://www.library.unt.edu/rarebooks/exhibits/popup2/default.htm http://www.popuplady.com/about01- history.shtml Video from YouTube of the process of creating a pop-up book from start to finish (from the Smithsonian Libraries) http://youtu.be/srpzcfa8umc Video from PBS Learning Media on current Pop- up artists, Matthew Reinhart and
Robert Sabuda who share their process http://prairiepublic.pbslearningmedia.org/resource/60b0c334-203d- 4fc6-91d5-612560ed7979/60b0c334-203d- 4fc6-91d5-612560ed7979/ PowerPoint presentation (separate file) MATERIALS Technology needs: Computer with internet access connected to a projector, screen, and document camera. PowerPoint software Material needs: examples of pop-up books (optional but nice to have), teacher-created examples of simple pop-up constructions (3-4, complexity depending on grade/skill level), inexpensive paper for practice, cardstock of various colors for final designs, pencils, erasers, markers, colored pencils, scissors, white school glue and/or tape. Paper quantities will depend on how much practice you want students to do before their final, and how many pop-ups you will require in their self-portrait book. Otherwise, students can share scissors, glue bottles, tape, markers, etc. PREP FOR TEACHERS Watch the videos listed above to familiarize yourself with them ahead of time and bookmark on your computer the sites for quicker access. Read through the vocabulary list to see which are appropriate for your grade level and when and where you will introduce them to your students. (Before using the PowerPoint I created, make sure ahead of time that all these video links are working. For my pop-up examples, I used the book Paper Engineering for Pop-Up Books and Cards by Mark Hiner that I purchased on Amazon (and is still available.) There are ten pop-up mechanisms that can be replicated easily, though I use the first 4-5 with my 6 th graders. There are many other free resources and ideas on the internet as well if you want to save some money. INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY: SETTING THE STAGE 1. Share your pop-up book examples by handing them around the room. Show proper handling before releasing your books, as pop-up features are delicate and can be ripped or broken easily. Encourage opening and closing the pages as they intently view how the 3D pop-up is created to pop up when opening and then flatten back down when the page is
closed. Students that already have pop-up books at home may want to share their experiences with the class. 2. Show the students the PowerPoint. When you get to the last two slides that show videos of two different artists creating a pop-up book, focus their viewing by asking them to watch for the experimentation that goes into their creations and how these artists learn from trial and error. Idea: this could be their exit slip before leaving your class that first day: write an interesting fact they learned from one of the videos or maybe even a question they had after watching them. These could be read by the teacher before the next class and used to refresh memories or to clarify the process of creating a pop-up book when the class meets next. LEARNING ACTIVITIES 1. The next class period after viewing the Power point and videos, it s time to start playing with paper! Hand out the plain inexpensive paper along with copies of common 3D pop-up examples (either from the internet or copied from the book mentioned above) and have the kids start drawing, cutting and folding. Here is where I would introduce some basic pop-up vocabulary so you can start using the correct words and encouraging the students to use them as well. Depending on the level of independence you feel your kids can handle, you could either walk them through the steps together, or let them loose and monitor which kids will need individual help and who likes to figure it out for themselves. 2. Have a set amount of time or procedures you want the students to work on, such as 20 minutes of playing with paper, or create two pop-up samples that could work in their final book. Keep it fairly open, let the students share their ideas and successes with each other, or the teacher can bring attention to samples that the kids create in that work time. Make sure to have them save the samples that turn out so they can replicate them with the final cardstock paper the next day. 3. The next step would be to have them create their 3D pop-ups on the size of paper you want their final book pages to be. I would suggest at least 4 x 6 or 5 x 7. Have your card stock cut to this size along with some smaller sheets of card stock for them to draw, cut and color their illustrations with markers or colored pencil or watercolor. The book is to be a visual self-portrait, so they could draw on family, hobbies, activities, likes, etc. for subject matter. This could take anywhere from 2-3 class periods, depending on how many pages you are requiring to be in the final book. I would suggest at least 3 double page spreads. These pages would be glued together back to back. * Before the students glue
them together make sure all the pages are facing the right way and nothing will be upside down. It s easy to make this mistake! 4. Once the inside pages are complete and glued together, a cover completes the book. These would also be on cover stock, perhaps a color for contrast, cut a shade bigger than the inside pages all the way around. These could be given a title of the student s choice, illustrated with drawings or just lettering, and colored in with the media of choice. The cover would then be wrapped around and glued to the previously glued together inside spreads. The self-portrait pop-ups are now complete! CULMINATING ACTIVITY Self-portrait pop-ups will be displayed and shared with peers. Depending on how many students you have, they could be shared gallery-like attached to a bulletin board or inside a display case with the book open to one of the 3D pop-up pages. Or if multiple classes did the project, they could be shared with their peers within their particular class where each student sets their self-portrait pop-up book on their table or desk and then the kids walk around to view and enjoy each other s creative work. One critique technique I like is where every student gets a penny, and if they want to make a comment about a particular work, they put their penny on that desk. Depending on your time constraints, the projects with the most pennies are examined and discussed, with the artists whose self-portrait books have the most pennies would verbalize their process of creating the pop-up mechanism and their thought processes on what they drew to describe themselves visually. CROSS-CURRICULAR EXTENSIONS *Self-portraits from many cultures and time periods are researched and examined (Art History) * How paper is made (Science) and its contribution to learning and culture (Social Studies) COMMUNITY CONNECTIONS *Interviews with any local or community artists (individual assignment if students are old enough or the artist comes into the classroom to share their work and answer questions) *Community-based art project, where the pop-up books are shared with the community via a local library or mall display STUDENT MATERIALS GLOSSARY OF POP-UP TERMSDefinitions, terms, types of movables: It is only in the last 25 years or so that movable paper elements have been discussed and studied.
Pop-Up Vocabulary CAROUSEL-Folding the covers back and tying them with string, ribbon, snap, or Velcro, causes the pop-up or dioramic illustrations to form a carousel effect. Some have center strings for hanging or rods for twirling. DIE-CUT-The process of cutting paper in a shape or design using a wooden block (die) which holds hand-pounded steel in the shape of the desired pattern. Think of a die as a cookie cutter cutting a shape in dough. More recently, paper may be cut into shapes with a laser. DOUBLE PAGE-POP-UP- A three-dimensional illustration which spans the gutter formed by two adjacent pages. FANFOLDED POP-UP-Slits and folds are made on a printed page which is then folded accordion-style so that when the page is opened, the illustration will rise above the level of the page. A three-dimensional effect is achieved in this way. GATEFOLD-Edge of a page folded back on itself which when unfolded extends the size of the page providing more text or extending an illustration or pop-up LIFT-THE-FLAP- A single piece of paper attached to the base page at a single point which covers an illustration, text, or a movable illustration. 'Lifting the flap' exposes the base page's illustration, text, or movable. METAMORPHOSIS (or TRANSFORMATION)- Convention uses these terms interchangeably for two different mechanisms. 1. Two circular illustrations sharing one center axis have pie-shaped cuts which will allow them to intersect when moved (usually by a string or tab) so that the top illustration will rotate over then under the bottom illustration allowing the bottom illustration to show through. The top illustration 'metamorphoses' or 'transforms' into the bottom illustration. (also called DISSOLVING WHEEL) 2. Two illustrations are slit like Venetian blinds vertically or horizontally. When pulled by a tab or ribbon, one illustration will slide over the other, 'metamorphosing' or 'transforming' into the other. PAPER ENGINEER-An artist who makes paper illustrations move through various techniques, e.g. cutting, folding, gluing. The paper engineer may or may not also be the illustrator.
PEEP SHOW (or TUNNEL BOOK)-A series of illustrations die-cut to the shape of the illustration, spaced one behind the other, and supported by side panels. The front cover has one or more die-cut openings to allow viewing of the inside illustrations. The overlapping of the various illustrations creates a sense of depth, as in looking into a tunnel. Toy Theaters incorporated this technique. POP-UP- An illustration which when activated by the opening of a page, pulling a tab, or lifting a flap rises above the level of the page. A three-dimensional illustration. PULL-TABS (or TAB MECHANICAL)- Paper (or ribbon or string) extensions from an illustration which when pulled, pushed, or slid cause an illustration to move, lift up, or pop-up. SPIDER WEB -Within a circle, a spiral is cut either by hand or laser. A ribbon or pull is attached to the center area. When pulled up, a 'spider web' pop-up is created. WHEEL-An illustrated disc of paper secured between two adjoining pages by a paper disc or metal grommet. Die-cut holes in the top page allows for the illustrations drawn around the wheel to show through the holes.
Movable Books Books considered "pop-up" or movable are popular sources of delight for children and adults alike.
Turn-up" or Lift-the-flap" Mechanisms These were in use as early as the fourteenth century. They were especially helpful in books on anatomy, where separate leaves, each featuring a different section of the body
Early Children s Moveables Movable books were not created for juvenile audiences until the early nineteenth century. In fact, children's books were not published on a large scale until the latter half of the eighteenth century, when publisher John Newbery began selling books specifically for children. Image: Queen Mab or The Tricks of Harlequin, #6, Robert Sayer, 1771
Pop-Ups In the 1930s, Blue Ribbon Publishing of New York worked with talented artists and engineers to produce a successful series of imaginative pop-ups. Many of the books' colorful characters were inspired by the recent popularity of Walt Disney animation. Blue Ribbon introduced the term "pop-up" to market their books. Puss in Boots. Illustrated popup ed. New York: Blue Ribbon Press, 1934. Illustrated by C. Carey Cloud and Harold B. Lentz.
How do you make a pop-up book? CLICK
Video: The Making of a Dinosaur Pop-Up Book