Deer

I used a photograph of a fawn for my inspiration for this lesson on visual texture.  I did a simple directed drawing on the board with my 5th graders.

Materials:
 9 x 12 construction paper and oil pastels.

1. Start with a rectangle in the middle of the paper for the nose.  Add a triangle on top, and a half circle on the bottom.  This creates the nose.

2. Eyes are next.  We shape them much like a human eye with a "football" shape and a circle inside of it, keeping the eyes spaced farther apart than human eyes are.

3.  We connected the edges of the eyes with a curve for the top of the head, and did the same for the bottom of the chin,  making sure the chin was narrower.

4.  The ears are angled out at 45 degrees and are shaped to create the rounded edges.  Some students wanted to put the ears on top of the head, (which makes them look like bunny ears)  so be sure to check accuracy for location of the ears!

5.  We drew a simple curve for the back and stomach, and added a pine branch across the front of the deer to show depth.

6.  I did a demonstration on how to layer "strokes" of color with oil pastels to create the fur look on the deer.  We also talked about the direction of the strokes and how they lay on the face and body.  We used several browns, ocher, and white and black and layered those colors to create the visual texture.  Each student was very successful with this lesson, and they could not believe how well they turned out!  And I agree!