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A Proportional World

A Proportional World

Create a vibrant watercolor while learning about proportions.
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Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

Gather all the supplies needed to bring your craft ideas to life! From paints and markers to glue and scissors, our crafts section has everything to spark creativity and make every project truly special.

  • Colored Pencils
  • Paper
  • Washable Watercolors

Steps

  • Step 1

    Discuss the word "proportion" - how it is a method of comparison - and the various ways it can be used. It is a mathematical term that describes two ratios being equal. In simpler use we say objects are "out of proportion" in appearance, or we use it as a figurative expression, for example, when we "blow something out of proportion".

  • Step 2

    Ask students to draw a representation of a room in their home or school, keeping the items in the room proportional. Then have them draw themselves in the picture, but completely out of proportion. Invite them to fill in their art with watercolors for a vibrant background.

  • Step 3

    Have students write a story about what their life would be like if they were the size they portrayed themselves in the artwork.

Standards

LA: Apply knowledge of how language functions in different contexts to make effective choices for meaning or style, and to comprehend more fully when reading, writing speaking, and/or listening.

LA: Demonstrate understanding of figurative language, word relationships, and nuances in word meanings.

MATH: Analyze, compare, create, and compose math ideas using written, oral, and drawn lines, shapes, forms, and patterns.

Adaptations

Challenge students to come up with examples of using proportionality in everyday life, such as serving a smaller portion of food to a young child versus an adult or the amount of medication we might give a pet depending on its weight.

Read excerpts from the classic story of characters being out of proportion--"Gulliver's Travels" by Jonathan Swift.