Masks-Modern Art

Modern art was the topic of this Fourth Grade lesson. Realizing that art can be different than how we really see it was an important concept. An element that we covered during this lesson was texture.
To make the masks, we rolled out clay and made it as even as possible. We then carved whatever shape we wanted the mask to be. After we made the masks, we carved in different textures by using wooden dowls, pencils, and whatever other objects we wanted to use. We had four sections and each section had to have different textures in them. Once we designed out masks, we made the mouth, nose, and eyes. To get them to stick to our mask, we used a technique called scoring and slipping. To do that, we made small scratch marks where we would put those pieces, then, we put small amounts of water under the eyes, nose, and mouth. When we were finished putting our mask together, we painted the whole mask black. Once it has dried, we chose whatever colors we wanted to paint it.

As an extension activity, studying different cultures that use masks would be a great way to tie in social studies into the lesson. Learning the where and why other countries make masks to wear would be exciting and something new for fourth graders.