Pop Art for Kids

For the last couple lessons of the school year we are to provide the students with supplementary lessons as their workbooks are finished and exams out of the way. Usually teachers will print off worksheets and word searches to fill the time before holidays begin and we all count down the seconds until freedom. Others will have classroom parties and play fun games (like JP's awesome Angry Birds classroom party).


My students love to draw and create so, I decided to try something that involved their creative side as well as practicing English. I came up with idea of a self portrait in a cartoon, pop art style surrounded by encouraging and descriptive words that tell all about that student.


First, I took up close photos of each student (a couple of days before the project). I then printed each picture on A4 size paper in black and white. I also prepared A4 white paper, A4 black card stock for each student and lots of coloured card stock. In the classroom I have markers, glue and scissors for the students to share. Each student only needed to bring a pencil and eraser (but having these on hand is also a good idea for those who forget).


On the day of the lesson I showed the students the final project we would be creating (using the one I made for my niece). The students all giggled because my "self portrait" was not of me. I also showed them the different steps of the process using my own photo as an example. We discussed each step and I took time to answer all questions they had. 


Next, we brainstormed positive words that we could use to describe ourselves. We made a large list to fill the whiteboard. I encouraged them to think of all the words they knew and then let them use their dictionaries to look up a few more. Once we were happy with the list we were ready to begin. I handed out the required materials and set up a supply station on my desk for any necessary extras. The examples were displayed on the board and the students were then given the time to work on their own cartoon version of themselves. I gave them the freedom to make it look any way they wanted. They could make it look as much like themselves as they could, make small changes in colour or they could draw a hamburger hat on their head if they felt like it (and on student did just that).


The results were WAY better then I could have imagined. The students took so much pride and care in their work. They also took time out from their project to check on the progress of others. I could hear squeals of joy as the students pointed out "That looks the same as you!!" When the students were finished I took a quick pic of the final product and displayed them in our classroom. They will be used as classroom decoration and as a name card for written work to be displayed under. I loved this activity as much or more than the kids. 



Here are the steps and some examples of the work.

 step one: Print a large picture of someone's face.

step two: using a sharpie outline the picture.

step three: trace the image onto another piece of white paper using a pencil.

step four: outline the traced image with a sharpie.

step five: colour the image and paste it onto black hard card.

step six: cut and paste descriptive and inspirational words around the picture (have fun and be creative with this part, you can use quotes from books, pictures from magazines ANYTHING GOES)

students hard at work . . .