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Owls Abound

Owls Abound

There is just something that mesmerizes kids about the ability to draw on dark paper and have it turn out great. The night-time scenes of Jane Yolen’s Owl Moon provide the perfect inspiration to create your own owls using dark construction paper and Crayola® Construction Paper Crayons or Pastels. The feather work gives the young ones lots of opportunity to practice lines, too.

Lesson Plan

Supplies Needed

Gather all the supplies needed to bring your craft ideas to life! From paints and markers to glue and scissors, our crafts section has everything to spark creativity and make every project truly special.

  • Black or Dark Construction Paper
  • Reference Materials

Steps

  • Step 1

    Introduce the lesson by reading Owl Moon by Jane Yolen. Discuss the story, talk about how Yolen’s illustrations set a mood for the reader. What kinds of colors does she use? How does the reader feel? What words in the story are represented by the illustrations?

  • Step 2

    Hand out oil pastels (neutral colors only: black, white, tan, browns, ochre, etc.) and scraps of dark or neutral colored construction paper. Let students experiment with creating lines on their paper scraps (thick, thin, short, repeating, etc.).

  • Step 3

    Hand out a 9”x12” sheet of dark or neutral colored construction paper to each student and reference materials with images of owls. Demonstrate how students should sketch lightly in a light pastel to get an owl outline that will fit as much of the page as possible. Remind students to use their reference materials to really look at the shape of the owls they want to draw and the texture of their feathers.

  • Step 4

    While students are working, circulate among the students and have them identify verbally at least three types of lines that they are using to create texture on their pieces.

  • Step 5

    When the owl is complete they may cut it out and start a new one.

  • Step 6

    At the end of class, display all the owls together on a bulletin board pre-decorated with a paper tree. (Optional)

Standards

LA: Use illustrations and details in a story to describe its characters, settings or events.

LA: Identify words and phrases in stories and poems that suggest feelings or appeal to the senses.

LA: With guidance and support from adults demonstrate understanding of word relationships and nuances in word meanings.

VA: Students will investigate, plan and work through materials and ideas to make works of art and design.

VA: Students will reflect on, share insights about, and refine works of art and design.

Adaptations

Create paper bag puppet owls and present a show.

Create informational texts on an owl (or bird) of choice using index cards (e.g., habitat, food, young). Present to the class.

Dissect owl pellets and analyze the results.