Investigate facial expressions in portraits
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can identify and describe different facial expressions in portraits and their emotional impact.
Key learning points
- Facial expressions convey emotions such as happiness, sadness, anger, and surprise.
- Artists use facial features to depict different expressions in portraits.
- Portraits can evoke an emotional response from the viewer.
Keywords
Portrait - a painting, drawing or photograph of a person, with an emphasis on the face, personality and attributes of the sitter
Feature - a part of the face like eyes, mouth, or nose
Realistic - a representation of something that is accurate and true to life
Exaggeration - a representation of something that is more extreme or dramatic than it is usually
Common misconception
Only strong emotions can be seen as facial expressions.
Facial expressions can sometimes be subtle or mixed, making them challenging to identify accurately.
Teacher tip
Consider using pictures or photos of the children’s loved ones that show clear expressions as a reference point. These familiar faces can help pupils connect emotionally and better understand how expressions convey feelings.
Equipment
Mirrors, sketching paper, pencils, rubbers
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.What are the main features of the face?
Q2.A is an image of a person.
Q3.What is a facial expression?
Q4.In a portrait, what does the mouth often show?
Q5.What is a light source?
Q6.What is an important factor to consider when capturing photographs?
Assessment exit quiz
5 Questions
Q1.If someone’s eyes have tears and their mouth is frowning, what might they be showing?
Q2.Which feature is most important for conveying emotion in a facial expression?
Q3.Why might an artist exaggerate facial features in a portrait?
Q4.What does observing someone’s face help us understand?
Q5.Match the emotion to the related facial expression.
surprise
happiness
anger
To help you plan your 5 art and design lesson on: Investigate facial expressions in portraits, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 5 art and design lesson on: Investigate facial expressions in portraits, 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 Photography and painting: facial expressions in portraiture unit, dive into the full primary art and design curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.