Get inspired by Vincent Van Gogh’s Starry Night. Create a glittery crayon-resist reproduction of this masterpiece.

• 1.

  Van Gogh painted Starry Night in 1889 while he was in an asylum in Saint-Remy. During one of his most troubled personal times he created a painting that is today one of the most recognized in the world. Why do you think this painting intrigues so many people?

• 2.

  Look at the images in the painting. How did he portray the stars? What techniques does he use to imply movement? Look at the landscape and the town. What are your impressions of these elements?

• 3.

  Using construction paper and crayons, sketch a scene that resembles Starry Night. Try to capture the movement and bold strokes used by Van Gogh in his painting. Once the sketch is complete go over the shapes and lines heavily with crayons.

• 4.

  Cover the picture with black paint. The waxy crayon will "pop" through the painted surface. Allow the paint to air-dry.

• 5.

  Decorate the previously painted area by overpainting the swirls on the dry surface with Crayola® Glitter It! Mixing Medium. Try creating dots by dipping the tip of a brush handle into paint and then onto the painted surface. This will add a glittery effect to your painting.

Standards

• LA: Read with sufficient accuracy and fluency to support comprehension.
• LA: Engage effectively in a range of collaborative discussions with diverse partners on grade level topics and texts, building on others' ideas and expressing their own clearly.
• LA: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English capitalization, punctuation, and spelling when writing.
• LA: Demonstrate command of the conventions of standard English grammar and usage when writing or speaking.
• LA: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience in an organized manner, using appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details to support main ideas or themes; speak clearly at an understandable pace.
• SS: Describe ways in which language, stories, folktales, music, and artistic creations serve as expressions of culture and influence behavior of people living in a particular culture.
• SS: Explore factors that contribute to one's personal identity such as interests, capabilities, and perceptions.
• SS: Use appropriate resources, data sources, and geographic tools to generate, manipulate, and interpret information.
• VA: Use different media, techniques, and processes to communicate ideas, experiences, and stories.
• VA: Use visual structures of art to communicate ideas.
• VA: Identify specific works of art as belonging to particular cultures, times, and places.
• VA: Describe how people's experiences influence the development of specific artworks.

Adaptations

• Possible classroom resources include: Vincent's Colors by Vincent van Gogh; Vincent Van Gogh: Sunflowers and Swirly Stars by Joan Holub; Vincent van Gogh: The Starry Night by Richard Thomson
• Working in small groups, students research information on van Gogh's life and work. Students collaborate to compose an essay focused on van Gogh's childhood experiences that influenced his career.
• Working individually, students select a single painting of van Gogh's that they feel is their favorite. Students identify when the painting was created, what styles van Gogh used, and why they think they like it. Students may also attempt to replicate the painting. Provide space in the classroom to display student artwork and explanations.
• What would Starry Night look like by day? Students brainstorm how this painting would change and attempt to re-create it in daylight.
• Working individually or in teams of two, students select another artist from van Gogh's time period to investigate. What is this artist best known for? What was his childhood like? Who or what influenced his work? Organize research into an electronic format for presentation to classmates.