5th graders learned about the artist Chuck Close through the DVD Up Close with Chuck Close. I had to fast forward through some parts, but it's a great video that shows how he works in his studio and how he had to overcome his disability to continue painting. I photographed each student and printed out a 4x6 photocopy of their portrait. Cut 18x24 paper down to 16x24 to get the same ratio size of the photograph. I had pre-cut strips of tagboard to use for when the students had to grid their photographs and drawing paper. 1 inch strips for the photo, and 3 in for the drawing paper. This is a great lesson to help improve drawing skills. They need to really look at each box individually and draw only what they see. I kept telling them that once they give in to this process of drawing, they will have great results. And we did!
