In the interest of sharing the research that precipitated this exhibition with a wider audience, we partnered with faculty in Kent State University’s Art Education Program to create resources for K-12 art educators and others to use with their students. Each Curricular Encounter, or lesson plan, refers to particular artworks and objects from one of the three themes of the exhibition: Community and Memory, Hair Politics, and Black Joy. We recommend reading the respective essay as an introduction to the themes, issues, and big ideas that inspired the Curricular Encounters and their intent to provide deep and personal levels of engagement with the art and artifacts, in culturally responsive ways. Each Lesson includes the grade range, estimated class periods needed, and National Core standards it meets. Page numbers referenced in the lessons refer to the exhibition catalogue. The Curricular Encounters below are written by art educators, Juliann Dorff, M.A.T., Linda Hoeptner-Poling, Ph.D, and graduate student, Christina Timmons. Over the course of the exhibition, additional lesson plans will be added written by students in Kent State’s Art Education program under the direction of Juliann Dorff.
Theme I. Community & Memory
Lesson Title:
The Senses of Memory
All our memories are stored in our minds ready to be brought to the forefront when we are triggered by our senses. It could be the stanza from a song, a fragrance in the air or a particular shade of color and we are instantly transported to a place, a time and with people long forgotten. We will explore how our senses hold the keys to our memories providing the basis for pencil, pen and collaged works.
Lesson Title:
Navigating Complicated Spaces
Navigating spaces in which one might expect to feel safe expressing one’s identity, including one’s gender identity, can be challenging and complicated. Teachers can be guides for students in navigating journeys through everyday complicated spaces. In this lesson, students investigate through collage in what spaces and with whom they feel free to express themselves. We assert that this lesson is indeed important in furthering dialogue and support for students’ identities and gender expressions and encourage educators to assess the climate of their school and community to create needed support in order to teach this lesson as appropriate.
Lesson Title:
Community Ties
Students will reflect on moments during their lifetime and depict a specific space where they feel at home while away from home. This could be a depiction of an interior space or landscape, as long as it includes the people and/or objects that make the specific space special. Using mixed media of their choice students will recreate a scene with special attention to the connection between the figures involved.
Theme II. Hair Politics
Lesson Title:
Advertising: Propaganda or Dream Making
We are inundated with advertising messages everywhere we look and in everything we do. From the backs of grocery receipts and church bulletins, on our internet searches and while driving down even the most remote street these messages work to create a story and influence us to view ourselves in a new way, push us to change our buying habits, and alter the way we understand the world. Through an examination of advertising messages students will consider the message they want the world to consider, to encourage the user (reader) to begin to see their idea (issue) in a new light. Is it propaganda (bad word) or Dream Making?
Lesson Title:
I Resist/I Celebrate Portraits
In this lesson, students will engage in a variety of activities that confront, deconstruct, and rewrite the narrative of “Black hair is bad hair” stereotype that pervades many mindsets. They will make the choice to either resist and reconstruct a narrative, drawing our focus to the injustice of a harmful stereotype they encounter or are aware of; or celebrate some aspect of identity politics that affect them personally. They will then stage and create an Instagram-like digital photograph using props that enhance and communicate their message.
Lesson Title:
Calling Out the Critics
For this lesson, students will reflect on their own experiences with being counted out, criticized, stereotyped, or discriminated against. Whether it be due to race, physical appearances, disabilities, or other reasons, students will develop a poster as propaganda against their critics. Through the use of academic texts, magazines, and reliable web sources, students will also conduct research to learn the stories of others who have faced similar issues. Students will be taught the basics about propaganda, how to compose a meaningful message through poster design, and how to consider their audience and location when making artistic decisions.
Theme III. Black Joy
Lesson Title:
I Am Unapologetically Black!
As defined by Miriam Webster, the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune or by the prospect of possessing what one desires or a source or cause of delight. Through the examination of works of visual art that evoke this emotion students will examine what is the “source” of this joy. How can it be that joy can be present in the face of the trials of the Black community? The answer lies in the inner strength and perseverance referenced in these works. This strong sense of self is joyful, the everyday act of living is joyful, the inner confidence is joyful. Students will examine the source of their joy creating (grades K-6) clay tokens each representing their sources of joy that are hung on a rod (natural twig) creating a wall piece or mobile, or (grades 7 – 12) a collaged work from paste papers created by the students and enhanced with embellishments.
Lesson Title:
SEE Me/See ME: Speak Truth to Power Portraits
In this lesson, students control how they want others to see them, celebrating those things in which they take joy, whether they are physical things, accomplishments, moments, facets of their identity, people with whom they are close, or any other things that they want to draw attention to, as opposed to those surface things they feel others often see and highlight first instead. Self-love, cultural pride, and thriving imbue this lesson, as does Speaking Truth to Power.
Lesson Title:
Individuality Within Togetherness
In this lesson, students will channel Nelson Steven’s use of expressive color and meaningful subject matter to compose an abstract piece Students will do so by being inspired by Chris Brown’s dance-painting process. Students will use their own bodies as art tools by reacting to the music of their choice, making marks on large pieces of fabric while simultaneously expressing the feelings the music evokes. Prior to beginning their pieces, students will be briefed on which body parts and music are considered school appropriate, this includes selecting the clean version of music without swear words. Once finished, the fabric will then be hung on a string in a banner-like fashion in an approved area of the school to represent individuality within togetherness.
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