MEDICINE WHEEL – Emotions, Emphasis, Mixed Media

Students create a mixed media artwork using acrylic paints, oil pastels, fabric scraps, fine line black markers, and found objects. They reflect on the emotional aspect of the Medicine Wheel, and how they express their feelings in positive ways.

Required Time

120 Minutes

Grade Level

Grade 4 to Grade 8

Subject

Language Arts
Visual Arts
First Nations, Metis, Inuit

Vocabulary

balance collage colour emphasis mixed media overlap syllabics

Materials

Crayola Acrylic Paint Crayola Permanent Markers - black Crayola Oil Pastels Crayola Paint Brushes Crayola School Glue Water Containers Scrap Fabric Pieces Foam Board or Canvases - 30.5 cm x 40.6 cm (12" x 16") - 1 per student Found Objects - a natural object connected to the student Paper Towels

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Steps

Step One

Begin with a circle and divide it into 4 equal sections.
Label each of the quadrants.
- in the east is spiritual energy (our spirit)
- in the south is emotional energy (our hearts, our feelings)
- in the west is physical energy (our bodies, our actions)
- in the north is mental energy (our thoughts, our thinking).
Focus on the emotional aspect of human beings.
Reflect on your feelings.
Close your eyes and focus on the activities you do to express how you feel.
- What images come to your mind?
- What life relationships and experiences give you happiness?
Write words and draw images about your feelings in the southern quandrant of the medicine wheel.
Include life experiences that allow you to express your feelings in a positive way.

Step Two

Brainstorm words and images connected to the emotional aspect of your life.
Use a variety of shapes to express the emotional area of your life.
Reflect on how you express your feelings in a positive way.
- What life experiences and relationships give you happiness?
Use watercolour pencils to draw/paint a variety of colours.
Brainstorm the different emotions connected to each colour.

Step Three

Use a canvas board, or a piece of foam core board to make your artwork on.
Choose two acrylic paint colours that give you positive feelings.
- colours that can be blended together to create another colour work well
Paint your background with the two colours.
Blend the colours together where they meet.
Allow time for your background to dry before moving on to step four.

Step Four

Use the Syllabics Chart (western Swampy Cree or from the First Nation community in your area) to translate your name into syllabics.
- There are many different versions of syllabic charts each connected to a different First Nation community.
Write your name in syllabics using black permanent marker.
Write about your feelings.
- What life experiences give you positive feelings?
- How do you express your feelings when you are sad, content, joyful, or confused?
- What life relationships support who you are and how you feel about yourself?
Create a rough draft.
Edit the rough draft.
Use a black permanent marker to write the good copy of your story on your painting.

Step Five

Choose an image from your earlier brainstorming activity, or the image you included in the southern quadrant of the medicine wheel.
Use oil pastels to draw the image that best expresses your emotional aspects.

Step Six

Choose a shape to represent your feelings.
Use fabric scraps to cut out multiple copies of the shape,.
Collage the shapes to your artwork.
Place the shapes you have chosen in a way that creates balance and meaning.

Step Seven

Choose a small, natural object that connects to your feelings and represents you.
Glue the found object onto your artwork in a place you would like to emphasize, your self-portrait, for example.

Learning Goals

Students will be able to:

blend two colours together using acrylic paints;
communicate their personal understanding of the emotional aspect represented in the medicine wheel;
communicate, through writing, a variety of positive ways they express their feelings;
draw images that communicate positive ways they share their feelings;
integrate images, words and background using collaged shapes;
emphasize an important part of the artwork.

Extensions

Have students:

discuss how growing plants helps people;
create a school garden together;
keep a regular journal where they can express their feelings and thoughts daily;
discuss emotions connected to colour, e.g.,
- examine posters, illustrations, and advertisements
- explore how the creators have used colour to evoke a variety of feelings
share their findings with others.

Prepare

Prior to the lesson download background information about the medicine wheel. The following is a list of helpful links for developing a deeper understanding of the teachings represented by the medicine wheel:
- Ojibwe/Powawatomi (Anishinabe) Teaching, by Elder: Lillian Pitawanakwat, 2006 (All rights reserved 4D Interactive Inc.)
- Teaching by the Medicine Wheel: An Anishinaabe Framework for Indigenous Education, by Nicole Bell, 2014
- Teachings of the Medicine Wheel is a curriculum unit developed by the Ontario Native Literacy Coalition – you can download a student and teacher manual on the Main Resources page.
Read The Sacred Tree (2003), by Phil Lane Jr. Lee Brown.
Download images from George Littlechild's website, or find images in books such as George Littlechild: The Spirit Giggles Within, 2012; and In Honour of Our Grandmothers, 1994.
- examples of his mixed media artworks are Strong is the Metis Man, Metis: Apeetogosan, Natashia Rae Learns Cree, and Too Ethnic Looking to Model #1
- George Littlechild's artworks tell stories and give voice to the life stories of the First Peoples
- his artworks make us think and question
Download information about the Cree Language, the many dialects and Cree Syllabics.
Read the article A Question of Legacy: Cree Writing and the Origin of Syllabics by Walter Strong, 2020.
Prior to this lesson teach about the Cree Language, exploring the different dialects, and examining the Mushkegowuk Cree Syllabics Chart.

Introduction

Introduce the students to the Cree artist, George Littlechild.
View and discuss several of George Littlechild's paintings, e.g, Strong is the Metis man, Metis: Apeetogosan; Natashia Rae Learns Cree; and Too Ethnic Looking to Model #1.
- How are the human figures feeling in each painting? – What do you see thta makes you say that?
- What do you think the artworks mean to communicate?
- How has the artist used colour?
- How do the colours make you, the viewer, feel?
- Reflect on what the artist has emphasized in each artwork.
Review the different teachings represented by the medicine wheel.
- Introduce the students to the 4 different aspects (physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional) that are part of each person, and represented by the medicine wheel.
Reflect on each area (physical, spiritual, mental, and emotional) inviting students to share their personal understanding and meaning of each human aspect. - The medicine wheel is a symbol teaching us to keep each area healthy and balanced.
Focus on the emotional aspect. Ask students to reflect on how they express their feelings in a positive way.
- What life experiences and relationships give you happiness?
- Where do you go to share your feelings?
Conduct a read-aloud with the book The Sacred Tree (2003), by Phil Lane Jr. Lee Brown.
- Explain to students that First Nations communities are diverse and may have different teachings connected to each direction.
Introduce the challenge.

Activities

The Challenge

Blend two colours together using acrylic paints.
Communicate your personal understanding of the emotional aspect represented in the medicine wheel.
Write about a variety of positive ways you express your feelings.
Draw images that communicate positive ways you share your feelings.
Integrate images, words and background using collaged shapes.
Emphasize an important part of your artwork.

The Process

Make sure everyone understands the challenge.
Establish success criteria with your students, for example,
I know I am successful when I have:
- blended two colours of acrylic paint together
- communicated my personal understanding of the emotional aspect represented in the medicine wheel
- written about a variety of positive ways I express my feelings
- drawn images that communicate positive ways I share my feelings
- integrated images, words and background using collaged shapes
- created emphasis in an important part of my work
- kept my artwork in good condition
Guide students through the steps outlined in this lesson plan, demonstrating as you go.
Observe students as they work.
Provide individual assistance and encouragement.
Guide students through the steps outlined in this lesson plan.
Observe students as they work.
Provide individual assistance and encouragement.

Sharing

Once all the artworks are complete ask students to bring their mixed media artworks into a large circle.
Invite each student to share how they express their feelings in positive ways.
During the circle discussion include references to colour and the emotions connected to the colours chosen.
Ask students to share how they have created emphasis and balance in their artworks.
Ask students to reflect on the objects they chose to add emphasis in their artworks, and the meaning of the natural objects to them.

Assessment

Observe students as they work – thoughtful focus, discriminating, seeking more information, elaborating, experimenting.
Observe students as they discuss their artworks – speaks with a clear voice, looks at audience while speaking, points to areas in the composition, provides accurate information, answers questions from the audience effectively.
Observe students as they listen – looks at presenter, asks effective questions, supports ideas with evidence found in the artworks.
Use a checklist to track progress (Download - Emotions_tracking.pdf).
Have students reflect on their own artworks in their sketchbooks. Ask students:
- What worked well in your artwork? Why
- What would you change or do differently next time?
- Explain how you express your feelings.

Downloads

Emotions_tracking.pdf