Last updated: December 17, 2021
Lesson Plan
George Washington Carver - The Artist: Yucca and Cactus
- Grade Level:
- Upper Elementary: Third Grade through Fifth Grade
- Subject:
- Social Studies
- Lesson Duration:
- 60 Minutes
- State Standards:
- Missouri Learning Standards - Visual Arts
3.VA.1.A; 3.VA.5.A; 3.VA.7.A
4.VA.2.A; 4.VA.5.A; 4.VA.8.A; 4.VA.11.A
Missouri Learning Standards - Social Studies
3.H.3.B.b; 3.H.3.C.a; 3.EG.5.D; 3.RI.6/E
4.EG.5.D; 4.EG.5.F - Additional Standards:
- National Visual Arts Standards – Media Arts
Pr6.1.3; Pr8.1.3
Pr6.1.4; Pr8.1.4 - Thinking Skills:
- Remembering: Recalling or recognizing information ideas, and principles. Understanding: Understand the main idea of material heard, viewed, or read. Interpret or summarize the ideas in own words. Applying: Apply an abstract idea in a concrete situation to solve a problem or relate it to a prior experience. Creating: Bring together parts (elements, compounds) of knowledge to form a whole and build relationships for NEW situations.
Essential Question
Why did George Washington Carver become an agricultural scientist when he hoped to pursue a career in art?
Objective
This is one lesson from the unit plan, George Washington Carver - The Artist. Students will learn about the career choice George Washington Carver made, from art to agriculture. They will learn how he shared his love of nature through art. Students will create a floral, relief sculpture using clay-like, modeling compound. Color will be kneaded into the clay to simulate the dyeing process of the time period. Students will use relief sculpture techniques to complete the composition.
Background
The first great highlight of George Washington Carver’s artistic aspirations was achieved in 1893 at the Chicago World’s Fair. Carver’s painting, Yucca and Cactus, won Honorable Mention. This was quite ironic because in 1891 Carver had decided to put his career in art behind him, at least temporarily. His art teacher, Miss Etta Budd, at Simpson College in Winterset, Iowa encouraged him to pursue botany after discovering his love of plants. Miss Budd, like so many in Carver’s past, recognized his ambition, talent, and intelligence. It didn’t take long for her to discover that “painting was in him” and “was natural for him.” She doubted that an African American man could make a living as an artist in that era. Etta Budd suggested that he enroll at Iowa State College, the agricultural college at Ames, Iowa where her father, J.L. Budd was a professor of horticulture.
Simpson College was an ideal place for George Washington Carver to resume his quest for an education. His studies included grammar, arithmetic, art, essay writing, etymology, voice, and piano. It was a good fit for him because he was not only accepted but respected. “They made me believe I was a real human being,” he noted.
Carver was accustomed to working hard to earn money for his living and educational expenses. He provided laundry service for fellow students, who spent time visiting with him while dropping off clothes. Students even provided him with much needed furniture and occasionally, theater tickets. He later recalled that when he had paid his college fees, he had only ten cents remaining with which he bought corn meal and suet for food.
Carver loved his work as an artist and was reluctant to put it behind him. He had already begun to believe that his talents were meant to be used in the elevation of “his people.” By becoming a trained agriculturist, he could obviously be of tremendous service, even if he made agriculture only a temporary career. When Carver left for Ames in 1891 he had no idea what lay ahead. He did not realize that his career at Iowa State would soon bring an end to his restless wondering.
When asked by James K. Wilson, then Dean of Agriculture, “George, why not devote a portion of your time to painting?” he replied, “Because with a knowledge of agriculture I can be of greater service to my race.” Dr. Wilson, who later served as Secretary of Agriculture under Presidents McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, and Taft, never forgot this unselfish and significant decision. However, Carver’s insatiable desire to paint remained strong.
In December of 1892, an exhibit of the paintings of Iowa artists was held in Cedar Rapids. A group of students bought George Washington Carver a new suit and a train ticket to Cedar Rapids. Carver’s painting, Yucca and Cactus, featuring the yucca gloriosa plant, was selected to represent Iowa at the World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago in 1893. Upon his graduation in 1894 and appointment as assistant botanist, he wrote to a friend, “This new position will require two years of postgraduate work and I hope to include in my studies a course at the Chicago Academy of Arts.” This plan never materialized.
Preparation
Supplies needed:
air-dry modeling clay
markers
blue paint
examples of Carver's paintings
cardboard for background
tempera or watercolor paints
Divide class into groups of 4 to 6 students.
Provide each student with cardboard cut into 6x9 inch pieces.
The background should be painted blue, using watercolors or tempera, and placed aside to dry. Be sure to have students write names on the back before beginning to paint.
Supply each group with one small container of white, air-dry modeling clay.
Divide the modeling clay into equal parts.
Give each student in the group a different colored washable marker. Students will share the color they make with all students in their group. Use colors of flowers and stem, i.e., red, yellow, orange, pink, violet, light and dark green.
Materials
Download George Washington Carver - The Artist Curriculum
Lesson Hook/Preview
Why did George Washington Carver become an agricultural scientist when he really wanted to pursue a career in art?
What method did George Washington Carver use to preserve and share the floral beauty of nature for others to view?
Procedure
- Conduct a short lesson on George Washington Carver's career choice, using the background information.
- Show students George Washington Carver’s Yucca and Cactus and other floral paintings.
- Model the following technique. Have students apply color with markers to the air-dry modeling clay and knead the color into the clay until the color is consistent. (The smaller the amount of clay and the darker the color of marker the faster the clay will attain desired color.) Repeat for various colors of flower petals, leaves, and stems.
- Tear small pieces of the clay starting with the stem and leaf color and apply directly to the background surface. Simply push with enough force to get the clay to stick, no glue is needed.
- Apply the flower colors last and mold petals with inside part stuck down and outer petals pulled up and away from the background, to create a three-dimensional quality.
Teacher Notes: This project is fun and aesthetically pleasing. It also promotes the understanding of kneading color into the clay. You could use berries instead of markers if you’d like to make the lesson more authentic. The project uses Carver’s style with a modern twist.
Vocabulary
composition - arrangement of elements or objects in artwork; the way principles of art are used to organize elements
relief sculpture - type of sculpture in which forms project from a flat background
kneaded - worked or manipulated, like clay kneaded with hands
simulated - made in resemblance of or as a substitute for another
Assessment Materials
Constructed Response QuestionsWhat hardships did George Washington Carver overcome in his quest for education?
Why did he choose a career in agriculture instead of art?
How did his paintings preserve and share beauty with others?
Optional: Use the word search in the downloadable file.
Supports for Struggling Learners
Model activity for students.
Allow extra time for students who may work more slowly.
Allow students to assess their own artwork to evaluate meaning.
Enrichment Activities
Lesson Extensions:
- Have students research other African American artists from the same time period. (i.e., Edward Banister, Edmonia Lewis, or Henry Ossawa Tanner’s “The Banjo Lesson”)
- Famous white actor John Wayne was born in Winterset Iowa. Compare and contrast what their lives were like in the same town. (May require further teacher research.)
Additional Resources
Watch the film George Washington Carver - A Man of Character: https://www.nps.gov/media/video/view.htm?id=6FA1262D-CD71-4C9D-A77C-D477D96D7727
Distance learning is available. Request a virtual visit with the park rangers at George Washington Carver National Monument: 417-325-4151
Related Lessons or Education Materials
For more art lessons based on George Washington Carver’s life, download the unit, George Washington Carver – The Artist from this lesson plan.