Patchwork Pixels

Notes

Teacher-facing slide. Use before class to open the lesson plan, student materials, Fractal Studio, and any links needed for today. This slide can be skipped when presenting to students.

Notes

Teacher-facing slide. Use before class to open the lesson plan and materials needed for the lesson. This slide can be skipped when presenting to students.

Say

Think about quilts or blankets you’ve seen before. Take about 90 seconds to draw or describe what you think a quilt can look like. Then think about this question: How might quilts and pixel art be related? Turn to someone near you and share one connection you predict.

Do

Give students approximately 90 seconds of independent think/draw time and then partner discussion. Listen for ideas such as: both use squares many small pieces create something larger colors and patterns repeat individual pieces can form an image Do not resolve the question completely yet; use student predictions to lead into the next slides.

Say

Today we’ll learn what quilts are, look for connections between quilts and pixel art, explore patterns and abstraction, and then begin creating our own paper quilt blocks.

Say

A quilt is made by joining layers of fabric together. The top often contains many smaller pieces of fabric, there is a soft middle layer called batting, and there is a backing. A quilt block is one section of a quilt, usually square or rectangular. Multiple quilt blocks can then be combined to create a larger design.

Do

Point out the quilt and the individual block shown in the images.

Say

All types of people make quilts. You or I could make a quilt. Here are some examples of people who make quilts for their job or their art. Michael Cummings is an artist who lives in New York and uses fabric to create complex quilts, often depicting scenes from books and African American history. Dr. Anne Sullivan is a professor at York University whose project Code Crafters “investigates connections between quilting and computational thinking”, and Kimberly Pierce Cartwright is an artist and teacher who creates abstract quilts and small scrap quilt postcards.

Do

Keep this introduction brief. The goal is to establish quilting as a living and varied artistic practice rather than spending significant time on artist biographies. Images: Michael Cummings: Artist standing in front of African Jazz. Photo by Clarence Johns. Retrieved from https://www.arts.gov/honors/heritage/michael-cummings Dr. Anne Sullivan. Retrieved from https://discover.academics.yorku.ca/Anne.Sullivan Kimberly Pierce Cartwright. Photo by Brett Villena. Retrieved from https://kimberleypiercecartwright.com/

Say

Now let’s come back to our warm-up question. What do quilts and pixel art have in common? Closing the slide… In pixel art, individual pixels combine to create a larger image. Quilts often work in a similar way: smaller blocks or pieces combine to create a larger design. So even though one uses digital pixels and the other uses fabric, both can build complexity out of many simple parts.

Do

Invite 2–3 quick responses before summarizing the connection.

Say

These quilts are good example of small parts coming together to make something bigger. Look at the Pixel Skull, Pixel Robot, and Pixel Tree all created by Boo Billstein. What makes these quilts feel similar to pixel art? Notice how recognizable images are created from simple blocks of color and repeated shapes.

Do

Invite students to identify visible squares, simplified shapes, repeated units, and limited detail. Image Sources: Portrait Public LinkedIN Account Quilts are from Artists website

Say

Another important idea in quilts is pattern. A pattern is something that repeats in a regular way. We can see patterns in colors, shapes, movements, sounds, or even events. In quilting, the word pattern can also mean a template or design that someone follows to recreate a quilt block

Do

Ask are there other ways people use the word pattern (e.g., what is the pattern in data? Where do you notice patterns in the examples on this slide?) Math: Number patterns, such as 2, 4, 6, 8… n+2 Reading/Writing: Sentence patterns or story structures that repeat. Art: Repeating shapes, colors, or designs in borders, drawings, or patterns Behavior pattern: A student raises their hand before speaking. Time pattern: The bell rings at the same times each school day. Routine pattern: Every class begins with a warm-up, then instruction, then independent work.

Say

Notice how Boo Billstein simplifies the tree. The trunk and a few branches are enough for us to recognize the basic form, while the leaves are represented by repeating rectangles in colors we often associate with fall, like reds and oranges. Artists can start with something from the real world—its shapes, colors, or structure—and transform it into a new representation. Here, Boo abstracts a tree by focusing on its most important features and using repeated shapes and colors instead of showing every detail. Abstraction means simplifying something by focusing on its most important features and leaving out details that aren’t necessary

Say

Many quilts use geometric shapes and repeated patterns abstracted from real life, such as this school house. Abstraction shows up not just in Pixel art but traditional quilt patterns too. Look at the Schoolhouse, Pinwheel, and Log Cabin patterns. Each one takes an idea or recognizable form and represents it using simpler geometric shapes. Turn to a near neighbor and share “Which parts of the real-world object were kept?”

Do

Reinforce that abstraction does not require an image to look realistic.

Say

Quilts can also carry memories, stories, and connections between people. Turn to someone near you: Is there a blanket, quilt, fabric, or other object that is important to you or someone in your family or home?

Do

Allow a brief turn-and-talk. Do not require students to share personal family stories publicly. Picture 1: Astronomical Quilt #1 is the first of a series of 28 community quilts created by NASA astronaut Dr. Karen Nyberg and a team of volunteers. While on the International Space Station Dr. Nyberg stitched a star quilt block, and invited the public to share their own. Over 2, 400 quilt blocks were submitted, and stitched together into these king-sized quilts.

Notes

Teacher-facing divider slide to help gauge lesson pacing and mark the transition into approximately 20 minutes of student work. Students have time to continue working tomorrow. This slide can be skipped when presenting to students.

Say

Our class quilt will be inspired by North Carolina Nature. First, you’ll choose an inspiration image. Then you’ll use abstraction to turn that image into a quilt block using simple geometric shapes and color. Your goal is to ask: What features are most important for communicating my picture? You can use realistic colors or completely unexpected colors. You can also adapt a traditional quilt pattern if you want another challenge.

Say

You can experiment with different levels of abstraction to turn it into a paper quilt block. Here we see the State bird had been broken down into the key shapes and translated into a 5 inch x 5 inch quilt block. You can choose whether to make the block more realistic or wild, your choice.

Say

Here we see three different quilting block interpretations of our source images the Northern Cardinal, Flowering Dogwood, and Tiger Swallowtail. Each one includes a different level of abstraction. These examples show different ways artists can transform nature into quilt designs. Your version does not need to look exactly like any of these. Something to point out that is Unlike Pixels, you can break up a square and use different colors in it.

Say

We have blank graph paper, quilt pattern template in plastic sleeves to help inspire you, or you can make your own pattern. Just remember to focus on simple shapes, color, and the features that matter most. Tomorrow we will work on our artist statement which is included on the side.

Do

Keep this slide projected during student work. Set a timer. Circulate and ask: What feature are you making sure to keep? What can you simplify? Which shapes are doing most of the work? How are your color choices helping communicate the image? Would someone recognize your subject without every detail? Give students a 5-minute warning before cleanup. Students may sketch first, use available line-art supports, work independently, or collaborate with a peer as described in the learner variability section.

Say

Before we finish today, let’s connect the big ideas. Quilts are made from many smaller pieces. Pixel art and quilt art both show how repeated blocks or units can combine to create something larger. We also saw that patterns repeat, and that quilt artists can use abstraction to take inspiration from the world around them and represent it with simpler shapes. Tomorrow you’ll finish your individual block and then we’ll combine everyone’s work into one class quilt.

Do

Have students store unfinished blocks carefully for Day 2.

Notes

Teacher-facing slide. Use before class to open the lesson plan and materials needed for the lesson. This slide can be skipped when presenting to students.

Say

Look back at the subject you chose yesterday or an image to the right if you were absent. Think of one feature you intentionally kept because it helps make your image recognizable. Draw or describe that basic feature.Then turn to someone near you. How might your block be different if you were actually constructing it from pieces of fabric instead of paper?”

Do

Use the first question to reactivate the idea of abstraction. Possible fabric-related observations may include cutting shapes, sewing pieces together, texture, thickness, seams, or limitations on shapes.

Say

Today you have four jobs: finish your block, write a short artist statement, mount your block and statement, and then contribute your piece to the class quilt.

Say

Each of our blocks are different, but our goal is to make them feel like parts of one larger artwork. Artists can create unity in different ways. They might repeat a shape, use a shared color palette, add a strong border, or repeat another visual detail. Look at these quilts. What helps the individual sections feel connected? Close slide with: The class will use a common mounting color palette and border spacing system to help bring our blocks together. This means that once the block is done you will need to cut it out and mount it in the center or arrangement, establish that convention here before students begin assembling.

Do

Invite several observations.

Notes

Teacher-facing divider slide to help gauge lesson pacing and mark the transition into approximately 25 minutes of student work then have student move to assembly.. Students have time to continue working tomorrow. This slide can be skipped when presenting to students.

Say

Here is today’s process. First, finish your quilt block [you have 15 minutes]. Then carefully cut it out and glue it to the center of your mat. Next, complete your artist statement and add it to your block. When your piece is completely finished, bring it to the class quilt area so we can create larger blocks of 4 to make one big composition.

Do

Distribute mat paper, scissors, glue, and artist statement handouts. Circulate to support finishing, cutting, mounting, and writing.

Say

As students begin to finish, have students begin creating larger blocks with other students who are already done. When your piece is completely finished, bring it to the class quilt area so we can create larger blocks of 4 to make one big composition.

Say

If you finish early, or while you’re working on your quilt block, we may watch this short video. As you watch, notice how art, technology, and making can all come together in the same project—and how people with different interests, skills, and backgrounds can all contribute. Community art projects can also bring together people who might not normally have the chance to create alongside one another.

Do

Optional enrichment. Show the video during work time or for early finishers. Afterward, invite students to make one connection between the video and the collaborative class quilt.

Say

Quilts and pixel art demonstrate that complex images can be created from many simple parts. Quilt artists use patchwork, quilt blocks, and abstraction to transform shapes, colors, and patterns into meaningful works of art. Like pixels in a digital image, individual quilt blocks combine to create a larger composition. By designing their own quilt block and contributing it to a collaborative class quilt, we experience how individual ideas, working together, can create something larger than any one piece alone.

Say

We’re going to finish with a short Pit Stop. Remember, this is not graded. It’s a quick opportunity to reflect on what you learned and help us see what ideas may need more attention.

Do

Distribute the paper version or provide access to the digital form. The lesson plan identifies the Pit Stop as optional