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PRINTMAKING
Theme: TREES
LESSON PLAN FOR TEACHERS
Drawing for a Print
Looking at: Line, Pattern, Shape, Structure, Texture.
Materials: HB pencil, Photocopying paper, ruler, compasses, cardboard viewfinder.
Younger children often draw trees like lollipops, a sort of visual shorthand for a tree. This exercise is to encourage them to look at trees as a living, growing entity - perhaps even to create a personality for their tree. Trees have a structure similar to a great river, with a main form, sometimes curving, fed by narrower branches and finally small burns from the source. This form can also be echoed in road structures.
First create a border using a ruler, now draw the main trunk of the tree with branches feeding off this gradually becoming smaller and smaller until they are twigs. Use the edge of the pencil to create a texture on your tree trunk by leaning on something with a hard, rough texture and take a rubbing from it. This is called FROTTAGE. Use the point of the pencil to make darker marks or leaves on your tree.
Strand 5-14
- Investigating and recording
- Using media
- Visual elements
Outcome 1: Using materials, techniques, observational skills and media.
Developing the Print
Looking at: Shape, pattern, structure, texture.
Materials: Tracing paper, biro pen, quickprint.
Trace the drawing done of the tree. Keep the shapes simple. Place the tracing paper over the printing tile and press through with a biro pen. Some areas of the drawing could be cut out, for example, each side of the tree trunk.
Press very hard on the quickprint tile with the biro to create texture on the trunk, or fine branches. The printing block is now ready. Write your name on the BACK of the tile.
Strand 5-14
- Investigating and recording
- Using media
- Visual elements.
Outcome 3: Expressing ideas, creating, solutions.
Making the Print
Looking at: Shape, pattern, texture, colour.
Materials: Printing block, ink, rollers, printing paper, ink plate, newspaper, sellotape (to repair damaged printing blocks!).
Step 1.
Set out your printing area like the illustration below.
Step 2.
Put a tiny amount of ink on the ink plate [ as much toothpaste as would go on a toothbrush - less is more! Teacher does this ALWAYS!]. Roll the ink with one of the rollers until it is tacky and looks like the texture of velvet. Now roll the ink onto your tree printing block. Turn it ink side down onto your printing paper and roll on top of it with the clean roller. Carefully lift the block up and you should have a print. You can make several of these.
Step 3.
Wash the block and dry. Draw on more twigs or add texture to the trunk and branches, leaning very heavily with the biro pen. Roll another colour of ink onto the plate, then ink up your tree block. Carefully position this on top of one of your original prints and roll with the clean roller. You now have a two-colour print!.
Step 4.
Clean up all your equipment and tidy away.
| Suggested materials list for printmaking | ||
|---|---|---|
| 700223 | pencils 576 HB Noris school pack @ | 27.84 |
| 733229 | < or HB pencil pk12 | 0.48 |
| 114820 | Drawing paper (recycled photocopying paper 5 reams of A4 @ | 11.25 |
| 110973 | Tracing paper pk 500 (250 x 185mm) @ | 1.35 |
| 717533 | Black biros pk 50 @ | 1.95 |
| 31336X | Scissors class set 32 (28rh, 4lh & block) @ | 10.88 |
| 731188 | Ink plates @ | 1.08 |
| 111430 | Printing paper pk 100 A4 sheets recycled @ (20 sheets each of yellow, red, blue, orange, green) | 2.05 |
| 745847 | Rollers (75mm) @ | 2.25 |
| 307262 | Quickprint (polystyrene sheets) A4 pk 25 @ | 7.50 |
| 747254 | Black Watercolour printing ink @ | 1.98 each |
| 747270 | Blue Watercolour printing ink @ | 1.98 each |
| 747297 | Red Watercolour printing ink @ | 1.98 each |
| 747300 | Yellow Watercolour printing ink @ | 1.98 each |
| 747289 | Green Watercolour printing ink @ | 1.98 each |
| 747262 | White Watercolour printing ink @ | 1.98 each |
Obviously multiples of some of the above would need to be bought i.e. 2 printing rollers per print station. I use old mirrors for printing plates, but absolutely smooth wall tiles would do just as well. The quickprint can be chopped into smaller pieces for economy and some of the items are re-useable i.e. the scissors etc. In addition a sizeable quantity of newspapers would be needed.
ALL AVAILABLE FROM - YORKSHIRE PURCHASING ORGANISATION
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WAKEFIELD,
WF2 OXE.
