Charcoal worlds: draw, smudge, imagine
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can use charcoal to create an imagined place.
Key learning points
- Charcoal can be used in many different ways: smudging, shading, erasing and layering
- Artists use marks, shapes and atmosphere to build places and tell stories
- Animation or atmosphere can transform a still drawing
Keywords
Charcoal - a black, crumbly art material made from burned wood
Smudge - a blurry mark made when something like charcoal is rubbed or smeared
Atmosphere - the mood or feeling created in an artwork
Common misconception
Charcoal is just for colouring or outlines.
Remind children that charcoal is a powerful tool for mood and space – it can create atmosphere.
Teacher tip
For Task C, children may require photocopies of thier work so their original drawings are not rubbed out.
Equipment
charcoal, rubbers, A4 paper, digital devices to take photographs, photocopies of artwork made in Task B, pencils
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What is a sculpture?
Q2.What is sketching?
Q3.What is mark-making in drawing?
Q4.Match the sculpture tool to its use.
shape clay
make marks on paper
support or build framework
Q5.Put these drawing steps in the right order.
Q6.What material can you roll, shape, and build with?
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What material did we use in this lesson to draw?
Q2.What word means the feeling or mood in a picture?
Q3.What can you use to smudge charcoal?
Q4.Match the charcoal skill to what it helps with.
Create soft shadows.
Make bold, dark lines.
Draw light lines and shapes.
Q5.Put these ideas in order to show how atmosphere is created.
Q6.What word means to rub and blur your drawing?
To help you plan your 3 art and design lesson on: Charcoal worlds: draw, smudge, imagine, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 3 art and design lesson on: Charcoal worlds: draw, smudge, imagine, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 2 art and design lessons from the Imagined spaces and shared stories unit, dive into the full primary art and design curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.