In elementary art class, it's important that students leave the 4th grade with a basic understanding of art vocabulary and concepts. These include: the color wheel and the difference between primary, secondary and complimentary colors, vocabulary words such as texture, pattern, repetition, shape, line, symmetrical, abstract.
I like to begin the year in fourth grade by giving students an opportunity to "show what they know" through an art assessment. In it, students get to draw and demonstrate their knowledge of the color wheel and many of the above mentioned art vocabulary words.
You can view the assessment closely here.
Based on the results of this assessment, I can cater my future lesson plans and units to their learning needs. I created this mind map to brainstorm ideas for different groups of students following a pre-assessment, and here I will expand on the activities I mentioned so that they are relevant to the students in my art room.
Students Who Did Very Well
These are students who clearly have a great basic art vocabulary and understanding of color. That means they're ready to learn about even more complex art concepts, like color saturation, hue, contrast, and composition. I would give these students a new list of vocabulary words to research and create an "experts" assessment about.
Students Who Knew Some of the Material
These students may understand some concepts but have gaps elsewhere. For this, I love the idea of having students grade and correct each other's quizzes in groups, and give them a chance to do a re-do. This will allow them to help each other close their learning gaps collaboratively.
Students who knew very little of the Material
These students need a whole lesson on color theory! One lesson I love to do involves putting different colored paint in plastic bags with shaving cream, and having students mix them together to discover what colors make what. It is a fun sensory activity, and I can do it with them to help them understand what makes a primary color primary, a secondary color secondary, etc. These students could have their own color wheel to fill in as they're working.
For the vocabulary, I could give the students a list of the words where they have to match the word or image to the definition. The visual might help them jog their memory or improve their retention. Later on, I would have them retake my initial assessment to see if the gaps in learning still exist.