Lesson video

Hello, everyone.

How are you today? I hope you're feeling great.

My name is Miss Afzal and I am your art teacher for today.

I am also feeling great 'cause I love teaching art and also I especially love what we are going to do today.

We are gonna be preparing some clay to create our low relief tiles.

I wonder if you enjoy working with clay.

Have you used clay before, I wonder? I hope we're gonna have fun in this lesson.

Our lesson is called Create a low relief ceramic tile: Trace and prepare a tile.

It comes from the unit of work, Views of a local landmark: ceramics.

So we're going to be bringing together our designs for our local landmark and we are going to be preparing our tile that we are gonna be creating into our low relief tile.

Are you feeling ready? Are you excited? Are you focused? Let's begin.

The outcome for today's lesson is I can prepare both my design and clay tile.

We have some keywords in our lesson today.

Let's go through them.

My turn, your turn: trace, design guide sticks.

Great stuff.

I liked hearing those words.

Let's find out what these keywords mean.

Trace is drawing over the outline of an image or shape to copy it.

Design is the process of planning and creating something.

And guide sticks: a tool used to ensure a consistent depth of clay.

These are our keywords: trace, design and guide sticks.

Let's listen out for them.

Let's look out for them.

Let's think carefully about them.

They will be coming up in our lesson.

Our lesson is called Create a low relief ceramic tile: trace and prepare a tile.

We've got two parts to the lesson: Tracing a design and Rolling a clay tile.

Let's begin with Tracing a design.

You might remember creating a design for your low relief tile.

Pause the video and tell someone nearby, which features did you choose to add to your design? Thanks for sharing.

As your design was full scale, it can be directly traced onto a clay tile.

Izzy is going to trace her design onto tracing paper.

This means creating a copy of her design onto a special paper.

Can you remember what were the three features of Izzy's design? Pause the video and tell someone nearby.

Thanks for sharing.

Hopefully you came up with the window, which is what takes up most of Izzy's design.

The texture of the wall, which is on the right and the initials of the king who is imprisoned in the castle.

And we can see that J at the bottom.

Izzy starts by making the outlines of her design a little darker.

She says, "This is so I can see the lines clearly when I place my tracing paper over the top." That's a really good idea, Izzy.

Tracing over lines makes them darker so they're easy to see and transfer clearly when printing.

It's also great because it helps ensure the design stands out and looks neat.

Definitely something worth trying.

Let's have a check for understanding.

Which image shows outlines which are ready to trace? Is it image A, B, or C? Pause the video while you decide.

Well done if you selected image B, these outlines have been made darkest, so will be visible through the tracing paper.

Izzy then places her tracing paper over her design.

And there it is.

There's her tracing paper laid on top of her design.

And she says, "I can see my darker outlines clearly." It's a really good idea that Izzy went over her drawing using darker lines and now she can see those through the tracing paper.

She uses masking tape to hold her tracing paper in place.

That's a really good idea, 'cause otherwise the tracing paper might just slip and slide around.

So it's great to just hold it in place steadily with the masking tape.

Izzy uses a sharp pencil to trace over her outlines.

"I can be more precise if I use a sharp pencil," says Izzy.

Yeah, I love these little tips and tricks that we're getting from Izzy.

Some really great ideas here.

Check for understanding.

When tracing a design, which step should come first? Is it A: Attach tracing paper with masking tape, B: Use a sharp pencil to trace over your outlines, or C: Place the tracing paper over your design? Pause the video while you decide which step should come first when tracing a design.

Well done if you selected C.

Tracing paper must be placed over the design first.

And now it's time for your first task.

I would like you to trace your design.

Ensure that the outlines of your design are clear by drawing over them to make them darker.

Next, use tracing paper to trace over your outlines.

And you might want to use some masking tape to stick down your tracing paper first.

And also you might like to use a sharp pencil that will really help you to be precise and accurate with your tracing.

Pause the video while you have a go at this task and I'll see you when you're finished.

It's good to be back with you.

How did you get on with that task? Your design should now have outlines that are much darker and be seen through your tracing paper.

When you trace your design, you may have remembered to use masking tape to hold your tracing paper in place and to use a sharp pencil to trace over your design.

And this is really useful because it helps the print turnout neat and well-defined in a final design.

Well done for having a go at this task.

You are now all set for the next stage in this process.

And here we are, we're onto the next stage where we will be rolling a clay tile.

Are you ready? Hey, what are these? Do you know? What are these tools called? Pause the video and tell someone nearby.

These tools are called guide sticks.

Do you remember? That was one of our keywords.

Artists use guide sticks to make sure their clay is not thin in some places and thick in others.

This means the clay is a consistent depth.

That means it's the same depth throughout.

Guide sticks are useful when working with clay because they help keep the thickness even.

By placing them on either side of the clay slab, they guide the rolling pin to prevent the clay from becoming too thin or uneven.

This makes the clay easier to work with and helps create smooth pieces.

Guide sticks also give more control, making it easier to roll out consistent shapes, which is especially useful for your tile.

Using them ensures that the clay stays strong and durable, making the final piece look neat and well-made.

It's a really good idea to use guide sticks.

I think we can all agree.

Let's have a check for understanding.

True or false: Artists use guide sticks to make the clay wet? Pause the video and decide, is this true or false? You're right and the answer is false.

And now I would like you to say a little bit more about your answer.

Pause the video and share with someone nearby.

Maybe you had an answer like this: Artists use guide sticks to ensure the clay is a consistent depth.

That means it's the same depth all over.

Well done if you came up with an answer like this.

Here's Izzy with her guide sticks.

Izzy is going to use guide sticks to ensure her tile is a consistent depth.

She starts by placing her clay in the middle of her guide sticks.

"I'll make sure my guide sticks are not too far apart." Now there is a trick to this.

Izzy makes sure that her rolling pin will rest on both of the guide sticks.

So as we can see, the left hand side of the rolling pin is resting on the left hand guide stick.

And the right hand side of the rolling pin is resting on the right guide stick.

And Izzy's piece of clay is in the middle, in between the two guide sticks.

And Izzy says, "This means my tile would be the same thickness all the way through." Check for understanding.

What image shows the correct way to place the clay, rolling pin and guide sticks? Is it A, B, or C? Pause the video and tell someone nearby.

Well done if you selected C.

The rolling pin is resting on both of the guide sticks.

In image A, the rolling pin isn't actually resting on any of the guide sticks.

In image B, the rolling pin is only resting on the left hand guide stick.

But image C has got the rolling pin in exactly the right place, resting on both the guide sticks, which is going to give Izzy consistent depth to her clay.

And what's great about this is this also helps make the clay smooth, strong, and easy to use.

So this is a really great idea.

Izzy rolls her clay until it is slightly bigger than her design.

And we know that because Izzy's rolling pin was resting on both the guide sticks, we know that her clay will be at a consistent depth.

It won't be thin in some places and thick in others.

Izzy places her trace design gently on top of her clay.

Izzy cuts around her traced design using her clay tool so her tile is the correct size.

"I can use this clay tool or blunt cutlery to cut my clay." This artist is also cutting their clay tile.

Let's watch.

What do you notice? Pause the video and tell someone nearby.

Perhaps you noticed that the artist is cutting very close to their traced design so they are the same size.

And now it's time for your task.

I would like you to roll out your clay using guide sticks and a rolling pin.

When rolling out clay, it's important not to press too hard.

Rolling too hard can make the clay uneven and cause cracks.

So roll gently and evenly to keep the clay smooth and at a consistent thickness.

If you find the clay starts to stick to the rolling pin, don't press harder.

Instead, gently turn the clay or use a little water to help keep it from sticking.

This will help the clay stay smooth and prevent it from tearing.

Remember how far apart you're going to place your guide sticks.

Remember to carefully place your rolling pins so that it is resting on both of your guide sticks.

And then cut out your clay tile using your traced design.

Pause the video while you have a go at this two part task.

First of all, rolling out your clay using your guide sticks and a rolling pin.

And next, cut out your tile using your traced design.

And here are a few more tips for this task.

Roll gently with the rolling pin, pressing evenly to keep it smooth.

And you can use a little water if the clay feels dry, but not too much.

And when cutting your tile, press firmly with your cutting tool.

But don't push too hard, smooth the edges with your finger or a damp sponge to make them neat.

And you're going to get a great outcome, I'm sure.

Enjoy your task and I'll see you when you are finished.

It is great to be back with you.

How did you get on? You might have cut out your clay tile like this artist.

I wonder if you cut your clay really close to the edge of your tracing paper so that you are making your clay tile exactly the same size as your design.

Your clay tile might now look like this.

Oh wow.

Look at that.

Fantastic! Just exactly the size that you need it to be.

The clay is a consistent depth.

That's because you used your guide tools to help you as you were rolling out your clay and you made sure your rolling pin was resting on both of the guide tools.

The tile is cut close to the traced design.

Well done, everyone for this really fantastic, precise work.

In our lesson, Create a low relief ceramic tile: trace and prepare a tile, we have covered the following: Artists can prepare a drawing to be traced by making the outlines darker.

Artists might use tracing to make a copy of a full scale design.

Guide sticks can be used to ensure clay is a consistent depth.

Well done, everybody.

There is so much we have covered in today's lesson.

First of all, you went over your outlines using darker lines so that you could see it through the tracing paper.

You then traced your design and then you rolled out your clay.

I loved how you remembered to use your guide sticks so you could get a consistent depth to your clay.

And then you cut out your clay tile by cutting really closely to the edge of your design.

You are all set for the next part of creating your low relief ceramic tile.

I can't wait for the next lesson.

I hope you're feeling that way too.

Stay creative and I'll see you at the next art lesson soon.

Bye for now.