The Arts · Grade 6

Active learning ideas

Indigenous Art of the Americas: Symbolism

Active learning works for this topic because students need to experience how symbols carry meaning beyond literal representation. Through hands-on creation and discussion, they will see how Indigenous artists communicate ideas, emotions, and cultural values without relying on realistic forms.

• Ontario Curriculum Expectations
• VA:Cn11.1.6a
• VA:Re9.1.6a

• 20–45 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 3 activities

Activity 01

• Inquiry Circle
• 45 min · Small Groups

Inquiry Circle: The Cubist Puzzle

Groups take a photo of a common object (like a chair) and cut it into geometric pieces. They must reassemble it from multiple 'viewpoints' at once to create a Cubist-style collage that shows the object's 'essence.'

Analyze how traditional symbols convey ancestral stories and connections to nature.

Facilitation Tip

During the Cubist Puzzle, provide each group with a printed image of a Cubist artwork and scissors so they can physically manipulate the composition to understand how fragmenting shapes creates new meanings.

What to look for

Provide students with images of two different Indigenous artworks. Ask them to write one sentence explaining a symbol in each artwork and one sentence on how that symbol connects to nature or ancestral stories.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Self-Awareness

Activity 02

• Think-Pair-Share
• 20 min · Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Surrealist Dreams

Show a Surrealist painting (like Dali's melting clocks). Pairs discuss: 'If this painting were a dream, what would the dreamer be feeling?' and 'Why did the artist choose to make these objects look 'wrong'?'

Explain how the preservation of traditional art is linked to cultural identity.

Facilitation Tip

For the Surrealist Dreams activity, give students exactly 5 minutes to sketch their dream before writing, ensuring they focus on the process of translating abstract thoughts into visual ideas.

What to look for

Pose the question: 'How does creating or preserving traditional art help an Indigenous community maintain its cultural identity?' Facilitate a class discussion, encouraging students to reference specific examples of art forms and their meanings.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Self-Awareness
• Relationship Skills

Activity 03

• Case Study Analysis
• 30 min · Whole Class

Whole Class: The 'Is It Art?' Debate

Show a controversial modern work (like a blank canvas or a 'ready-made' object). Students move to different sides of the room based on whether they think it is 'art' or 'not art,' then must explain their reasoning using artistic vocabulary.

Differentiate the symbolic meanings of colors and forms in Indigenous art.

Facilitation Tip

During the 'Is It Art?' Debate, assign roles (e.g., artist, critic, cultural representative) to structure the discussion and prevent vague opinions from dominating.

What to look for

Show students a slide with several common Indigenous art symbols (e.g., raven, bear, sun). Ask students to write down the potential symbolic meaning of each symbol based on what they have learned, or to identify which symbol represents a specific concept like 'creation' or 'family'.

• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Decision-Making
• Self-Management

A few notes on teaching this unit

Approach this topic by first grounding students in concrete examples of Indigenous symbolism before introducing abstraction. Avoid starting with Modernist theory—instead, let students analyze Indigenous artworks first to see how symbols already communicate complex ideas. Research shows that students grasp abstraction better when they see it as a natural extension of symbolism, not a rejection of it.

Successful learning looks like students confidently explaining the symbolic meanings in Indigenous artworks and connecting those meanings to broader cultural or natural themes. They should also demonstrate an understanding that abstraction requires intentionality, not randomness.

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Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Collaborative Investigation: The Cubist Puzzle, watch for students who dismiss Cubist art as 'just random shapes' without considering the intentional arrangement of fragmented forms.

  Prompt students to rearrange the pieces until they form a balanced composition, then ask them to explain why certain arrangements feel more 'correct'—this reveals the thought behind abstraction.

• During Think-Pair-Share: Surrealist Dreams, watch for students who claim Surrealist art has 'no meaning' because it doesn’t look realistic.

  After the quick sketch, have students write three words describing their dream, then ask them to explain how those words connect to their symbols. This highlights how abstraction conveys emotion.

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Methods used in this brief

• Inquiry Circle
• Think-Pair-Share
• Case Study Analysis