How to Teach Symmetry with Some of the World's Best Architectural Works
If you’re looking for unique on how to teach symmetry, this post is for you! Did you know that you can use some of the world’s best architectural works to create a well-rounded, arts-integrated lesson that students will thoroughly enjoy? Here’s how.
I attended a workshop that was sponsored by Sargent Art. The artwork was pretty easy to create. The whole time I was there, I was thinking about how perfect this project would be for regular education teachers to integrate into their classrooms.
How to Teach Symmetry
To start, you can do a guided drawing lesson to show students how to use basic shapes to draw the buildings. Another idea would be to have basic shape templates cut out for younger students to trace.
The actual steps from the art lesson are to fold a piece of paper in half. Draw the building on the top half with a pencil. Fold the paper back together and burnish the outside of the paper until the pencil lines from the drawing transfer to the other half of the paper. This gives the impression of the reflection in the pool at the Taj Mahal.
Then, trace the first drawing with a black marker or crayon. (I used a crayon.) Trace the transferred drawing with a washable blue marker. Add color to the background of the original drawing with crayons or paint (or whatever you prefer).
Finally, use blue liquid watercolor paint to paint over the entire bottom half of the paper where the transferred image is. Paint on top of the marker.
Click here to access the lesson plan provided by Sargent Art.
Lesson Ideas: Some of the World's Best Architectural Works
You can take this way beyond just the Taj Mahal! Here are some other architectural works that would make great inspiration:
Big Ben
Notre Dame
The Vatican
The Empire State Building
The White House
Your state capitol building
The Lincoln Memorial
Not all of these architectural works have reflecting pools. So, instead of using blue watercolor, you could use watered-down black (or gray) to show a day and night contrast.
Extending the Lesson
I wanted to also share that this lesson can be arts integrated with math by talking about symmetry, shapes, and reflection. The students could also measure the shapes to find area, etc.
To integrate it with language arts, students can write about the process of creating the artwork in a procedural piece. They could also write an informational piece about the Taj Mahal or write an opinion piece about their artwork. Students could also write an acrostic poem with TAJ MAHAL.
Final Thoughts
There are many ways you can approach this lesson. In my classroom, I'd probably use a summative reflection like this 3-2-1 activity. This particular reflection sheet is available in my TpT store for just $1! Regardless of what you plan to use, this is a lesson I know your students will enjoy!