Standards Addressed

National Visual Arts Standards (National Core Arts Standards)

1. Creating

• VA.1.8: Idea development and exploration – Investigate multiple ideas and apply knowledge to create works of art, including exploring media, techniques, and processes.

  • This standard aligns with the concept of combining photos and experimenting with digital techniques in Photoshop.

VA.1.8: Organize and develop artistic ideas – Develop personal artistic ideas and show how they are used in a composition, considering the impact of visual elements (such as texture, color, shape) and media (such as photography or digital media).

• Students will be combining images in Photoshop, considering how to merge them into a cohesive composition with attention to visual elements like color, texture, and scale.

VA.2.8: Refine and complete artistic work – Apply feedback and revise artworks in the context of media and techniques, refining technical skills.

• The lesson requires students to refine their work, adjust details (such as how the eyes, mouth, and hands fit with the fruit), and assess their composition.

2. Responding

• VA.1.8: Analyze and interpret art – Analyze how art and design principles (balance, emphasis, contrast, unity, etc.) contribute to the meaning of a piece of work.

  • As students explore the composition, they will analyze their digital creation, considering how the juxtaposition of living features on a fruit alters its meaning or aesthetic.

3. Connecting

• VA.1.8: Analyze the connections between visual art and other disciplines – Investigate the connections between art and other subjects (e.g., technology, science, history) through exploration of new tools, media, and techniques.

  • This standard is relevant since the lesson integrates digital technology (Photoshop) with traditional art-making practices. The concept of photo manipulation blends art, technology, and visual storytelling.

Standards Addressed

National Educational Technology Standards (ISTE Standards)

1. Empowered Learner (Standard 1)

• 1a: Set and achieve learning goals – Students use technology to set personal learning goals, work toward achieving them, and demonstrate their learning.

  • Students will use Adobe Photoshop to achieve the goal of creating a combined composition, setting their own goals for refining the image.

2. Creative Communicator (Standard 6)

• 6a: Choose the appropriate tools for creative expression – Students use a variety of digital tools to express their ideas, creatively solving problems.

  • Photoshop is the tool used for students to express their creativity by combining images, which aligns with this standard.

• 6b: Create original works using digital tools – Students use digital tools (like Adobe Photoshop) to create original visual artworks or compositions.

  • This directly aligns with the task of combining photos and adding features to produce a new image.

3. Innovative Designer (Standard 4)

• 4a: Know and use a variety of digital design tools – Students use digital tools for design, creating original products, and solving design problems.

  • This standard applies as students explore the layers panel, manipulating images and designing their final product in Photoshop.

4. Global Collaborator (Standard 7)

• 7b: Use digital tools to broaden personal learning networks – Students collaborate and share work using digital tools, gaining feedback and new ideas from a broader audience.

  • As students work with digital tools like Photoshop, they could share their work for feedback or inspiration, broadening their learning experience.