Tone, hue and colour
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can use colour and tone to express ideas and feelings in my work
Key learning points
- Variations in tone create the illusion of 3D space, makes objects more lifelike, and attracts attention
- Colour is a powerful tool in the communication of a thought, idea or emotion
- Colour encompasses both hue and tone, and its combination can influence how viewers perceive and react to the artwork.
- Different colours can symbolise various ideas or emotions, allowing artists to communicate more than just the visual.
Keywords
Tone - how light or dark a colour is
Colour - what we see when light hits an object
Hue - the pure colour itself, like red or blue
Saturation - how intense or vivid a colour is
Common misconception
Hue and colour mean the same thing.
Colour is the overarching name for what we see but it is made up of hues and tones.
Teacher tip
This is a great lesson as a review as it encourages lots of reflection around how students are using colour to communicate.
Equipment
Materials suitable for your specialism that encourage playful exploration of colour and tonal combinations. This could include dyes, glazes, paints, coloured gels or other semi transparent materials
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which of these is an element of art?
Q2.True or false? Shading with a pencil can help create the effect of depth in a drawing.
Q3.Match the artist with a key visual focus they are known for
Q4.Which of these words describes how something feels or looks like it would feel?
Q5.True or false? Primary colours are red, green, and yellow.
Q6.Match the term with the correct idea
To help you plan your 10 art and design lesson on: Tone, hue and colour, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 10 art and design lesson on: Tone, hue and colour, 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 4 art and design lessons from the Foundation workshops: revisiting elements of art and principles of art unit, dive into the full secondary art and design curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.