1. Where are the Crossing Points?
Science & Art
Where are the Crossing Points?
There are numerous natural “crossing points” or connections between the Georgia third through fifth grade GPS Science Standards and our Fulton County Schools (FCS) third through fifth grade Art Education Curriculum. FCS art curriculum is aligned with Georgia Quality Core Curriculum and National Art Education Standards, thus the connections discussed here and the accompanying handouts should apply to any school system in Georgia and most in the nation.
To the surprise many, visual art and science are based on very similar thinking skills. The processes of artistic creation and of scientific creation are tightly aligned. (Thus the DNA strand above – get it? )
Additionally, much of basic information in elementary science is aligned with the physical and chemical characteristics necessary to understand artistic media.
Connections between art and science are a way to help children make personal connections with the science they are studying. Indeed the arts are a place where learning across the elementary curriculum can connect and come to life for students.
When learning is personally meaningful and students use new learning to construct artistic work, the learning becomes deep and lasting.
The arts are an often untapped, powerful tool for learning across the curriculum, This presentation discusses how the classroom teacher and art teacher can facilitate learning in and through the arts in third through fifth grade science and visual art.

2. Basic Processes Are Alike
Thought processes in both visual art and science are almost identical. So are the skill sets for high level creativity in both areas.
It’s no accidentof fate that much of science was birthed by artists/sceintists—think Leonardo da Vinci.

3. Scientific Process Artistic Process Requires: Requires :
Close observation
Seeing patterns
Careful lab habits
Seeking and seeing new frames of reference
Reflection on possibilities and results
Close observation
Seeing patterns
Careful workmanship
Seeking and seeing new frames of reference
Reflection on possibilities and results
The skill sets are almost identical for both artistic creation and scientific creation.
Both require the ability to zoom in and observe with great detail and precision coupled with the flexibility to zoom out and see the big picture – the patterns. This is true both visually and metaphorically in both disciplines.
Both disciplines require the predisposition and skill sets to seek and find new ways of looking at things –new frames of reference. Both require the ability to reflect deeply on possibilities, results, and the new possibilities results uncover. Both are a “dance” or conversation between the work in process and the scientist / artist.
Both require a dedication to seeking and finding meaning in seemingly disparate phenomena.

4. Standards and Elements Intersect
The arts use science extensively, from the chemistry of clay and glazes to the theory of light to the physics involved in sculptural constructions.
The arts are a place where elementary students can see and personally connect with their learning in science (as well as in language arts, math and social studies).
Transfer of science learning to art helps set the science and make it come to life. Transfer of artistic concepts and modes of thinking to science class helps students see the intellectual rigor or work in the art and how it connects with many areas of life and school.
Scientists use the creative thinking that the arts nurture
Art uses science knowledge
Examples include:
Light & color theory
Chemistry in clay and glazes
Chemistry in paint pigment and binders

5. Grade 3 Example Science GPS: Art Standards/Elements:
Organisms have habitats
Art Standards/Elements:
Artwork reflecting a range of concepts ideas, subject matter
Formal qualities of art…
Media and technique
Artist as researcher
Observational paintings of landscapes (landforms) of habitats found in Georgia; research and include appropriate plants and animals for the habitat selected; research could be done in science class prior to art class; paintings taken back to classroom to write about in science class
Here is one example of third grade art / science alignment and a learning series that might support it.
On the left is a third grade GPS Element. On the right are Fulton County Schools grade 3 art standards
The activity described is one way the two subjects can intersect while keeping the validity of learning in both disciplines.
This isn’t about art becoming the handmaiden of science learning or science becoming the handmaiden of art learning but a true symbiotic relationship where the whole is greater than the parts. Each discipline supports and deepens learning in the other.

6. Grade 4 Example Science GPS: Art Standards: Nature of Light
Understands and applies media, techniques, and processes
Watercolor Painting: transparent, translucent and opaque paint media; how watercolorists use the transparency of the medium to create tints of colors; color wheel and pigment based color theory compared and contrasted to the spectrum seen with a prism
Again the science GPS Element is on the left, art of the right. This time the lesson deals with transparent, translucent and opaque media and the quality of light.
This whole concept of degree of opacity is key to painting in watercolor. It’s also inherent in understanding how to work with different types of paints (oils, acrylics, gouache) and different pigments (opacity varies greatly and a master needs to understand and use the subtleties of his media). It’s a perfect vehicle for students to practice and apply their understanding of the scientific principles of opacity, translucent, transparency.

7. Transparent? Translucent? Opaque? Why?
The science involved helps the artistic differences in paint media make more sense. The art helps students process their new scientific knowledge.

8. Grade 5 Example Science GPS: Art Standards: Classify organisms
Reflects on and assesses characteristic and merits of artwork
Critical thinking skills and perceptual awareness necessary to understand and produce art
Same set up on the slide, different concepts at fifth grade.
One of the keys to understanding art from different eras and cultures is to be able to “read” it for subtle clues to style, era, culture. Those “clues” or characteristics enable us to classify artwork.
The same is true in “reading” characteristics and understanding classification systems for scientific classification of organisms.
Classify different styles of art; relate the process to scientific classification of organisms.

9. True Integration Keeps The Validity of Both Disciplines
But adds power to learning in both
Art validates science
Science enhances art
The vision:
Classrooms where students learn by doing and see the connections among subjects of study.
The Goals:
General Classrooms that use the power of arts based methods across the curriculum.
Art classrooms that keep the integrity of the art curriculum yet integrate learning from other core curriculum areas,
Today’s Situation:
Not enough time to teach science
All students are not learning
Students are not interested
How Did We Get Here?
Each subject taught with no relation to others
Lack of consistent performance tasks and personal connections to science
Art class thought of as “other”, downtime, way to give real teacher a period off

10. How can it work? Pre-teaching (before) Concurrent teaching
Reinforcement (after)
It’s not really complicated. It doesn’t have to happen all a tonce. It could begin with oe, twoor three connections duringthe year. Here’s a way to begin
Grade level science pacing shared with specials teachers at beginning of year/semester
Art specialists plan with classroom teachers (or grade level team)
Some units simply reinforce
Some units are fully integrated

11. Pre-Teaching 4th Grade: Survival or Extinction of Organisms
Clay Sculpture Unit: Invent, plan & sculpt a creature with all adaptive features needed to survive in selected habitat
Take to science class to create habitat in which it will live and
Write how each adaptive feature helps creature survive
We want our students doing science not simply studying about science, this is one way to get to that creative, hands-on process.
In this pre-teaching approach, the art unit takes place before the science unit. In this case it needs to do so because of the logistics and time involved in the studio work with clay.
After this fully integrated unit, students will own the idea of habitats and adaptation. It’s one example of a perfect fit for both subjects. The learning in each is valid and encompasses multiple elements in each discipline. Work in each discipline is assessed. The work is symbiotic in that learning in each area is strengthened by learning in the other area.
Think about science the way I think about art. How reasonable would it be for art class to simply talk about drawing and study how you draw without ever drawing? The same applies to learning science!

12. Concurrent Teaching 5th Grade Science: Physical and chemical changes
Clay Unit: stages of clay
Plastic – malleable
Bone Dry – physical change
water evaporated
dissolves in water
can reprocess to plastic
Fired – chemical change
will not dissolve in water
permanent chemical change
In art or science do an experiment with bone dry and bisqued clay to observe the above – write up in “experiment form”
Though presented here as an example of concurrent teaching, this art/science connection could certainly take place before the science unit (pre-teaching) or afterward (reinforcement).
What is important is that the art and science teacher both:
know what the other is teaching and when they are teaching it
use the same vocabulary and
Remind students to think about this application of their scientific learning
Give students time to reflect on that connection – learning journals in science are an excellent way to do this. One option is a double page spread in their visual/verbal learning journal. First page is done before the unit, second page is done after the unit. Left page is at the beginning of the unit, “ What I know about physical and chemical changes before the unit.” Right page is “What I know about physical and chemical changes after the unit.”

13. Concurrent Teaching 4th Grade Science:
weather patterns and measurement; severe weather research paper
Computer Art Unit:
create computer art image, based on research, as cover for severe weather report
Place appropriately altered self-portrait into severe weather event
This example of concurrent teaching – both units are happening simultaneously - really reinforces the big idea that research is the basis of much work in art and in science.
The artist as researcher reinforces the scientist as researcher. The scientist as researcher reinforces the artists as researcher.
In addition, the importance of visualization of things that may not yet exist or the ideas of stepping back and visualizing a different way of looking at things and it’s importance to work in both art and science can be stressed.
Again this unit strengthens the personal meaning in both subjects. Learning in each is stronger than it would be if done in isolation. Multiple learning elements are included in both the art unit and the science unit.

14. Severe Weather / Computer Art Units
Plus who would not be just a little more excited about their severe weather research when they get to put themselves into the scene?
True, deep learning requires an affective connection – this does it! That’s one of the reasons learning through the arts-based methods is so powerful. The arts speak to our emotions, to our humanity.

15. Reinforcement 3rd Grade: Rocks and Soils
Art: Natural Pigment Paintings
Minerals as pigments in paint and other art materials
Show minerals and other pigment in natural form, as pigment, as paint
Not all connections have to be full units, sometimes they are small components of units that reinforce learning in the other subject.
This connection, though presented as an example of reinforcement that takes place in art after the science unit on rocks and soils, could just as easily happen concurrently with or before the science unit.
Just as we discussed before what is important is that both teachers:
know what the other is teaching and when they are teaching it
use the same vocabulary and
Remind students to think about this application of their scientific learning
Give students time to reflect on that connection

16. Natural Pigments From Rocks & Minerals
Who would have thought that you can paint with dirt? 

17. How to make it happen?
Classroom and art teacher review science GPS and Art QCC or local art curriculum
Identify natural crossing points
Look at year-long pacing/units and plan for pre-teaching, concurrent teaching or reinforcement of
Art in science and
Science in art
Identify common vocabulary and non-common but related vocabulary to stress in both classes
The handout that you have shows possible units/lessons/parts of lessons based on alignment of Grade 3-5 Science GPS Standards and Elements and Fulton County Schools Art Standards/Elements (which align with GA QCC and National Visual Arts Standards).

18. Why do it? Motivated Learners Personal Meaning Deep, lasting learning
Interdisciplinary connections really do make learning come alive for students.
True interdisciplinary connections deepen learning in both disciplines and keep the validity of learning in both.
Learning in and thought the arts is a powerful part of a complete education for all children.

19. Coordinator of Art & Drama Education Fulton County Schools
Prepared by:
Denise Jennings
Coordinator of Art & Drama Education
Fulton County Schools
With thanks to:
Fulton County Art Teachers
Marylou Andrews
Kacey Ciprari-Murphy
Stephanie Menke
Nancy Reed