Lesson 4: Mystery Feeling Day 1

How does an emotion "behave" (e.g., Is joy bouncy or steady? Is sadness heavy or sharp?)? How can we represent a feeling without drawing a literal face?

Nuance: A subtle difference in or shade of meaning, expression, or sound. Thumbnail Sketch: Small, quick drawings used to explore multiple ideas before committing to a final.

VA:Cr1.1.HS: Use multiple approaches to begin creative endeavors and formulate new creative problems based on personal experience.

Analyzing Character Motivation: Just as a reader identifies a character's internal state through their actions, an artist uses "marks" to reveal an internal state.

Description: Emotion selection and brainstorming. Purpose: Developing empathy and conceptual translation skills. DOK Level 3: Strategic Thinking.

Graphic Design: How movie posters use specific "vibes" (color/font) to make an audience feel an emotion before they even see the film.

"I have to draw a person crying to show sadness." Correction: Push for abstraction—how can a line or a color cry?

For students who get a "difficult" word, provide an Emotion Thesaurus that lists synonyms and physical symptoms of that feeling.

Formative: Check that the student has selected a medium (Day 2 prep) that matches the "vibe" of the emotion.

Hat with slips of paper (emotions like: melancholy, frantic, serene, invisible, electric), journals, pencils.