Visual & Performing Arts · 7th Grade

Active learning ideas

Found Objects and Upcycling in Art

Active learning works for found object art because students must physically engage with materials to grasp their potential. Handling rusted metal, cracked ceramics, or frayed fabric shifts perception from 'waste' to 'possibility,' building both conceptual understanding and tactile confidence.

• Common Core State Standards
• NCAS: Creating VA.Cr2.1.7
• NCAS: Creating VA.Cr1.2.7

• 15–50 min
• Pairs → Whole Class
• 4 activities

Activity 01

• Gallery Walk
• 30 min · Pairs

Gallery Walk: Artist Assemblage Analysis

Set up printed examples of works by Louise Nevelson, Joseph Cornell, and El Anatsui around the room. Students rotate with a note-taking sheet, recording one formal observation and one interpretation of found-object meaning at each stop. Pairs compare notes before a whole-class debrief.

Analyze how the original function of a found object can add new meaning to an artwork.

Facilitation Tip

During the Gallery Walk, assign each student one artwork to focus on, asking them to note not just visual elements but the emotional tone created by the objects' original functions.

What to look for

Provide students with images of three different found objects (e.g., a bicycle wheel, a broken teacup, a rusty key). Ask them to write one sentence for each object explaining its potential symbolic meaning if used in an assemblage.

• Understand
• Apply
• Analyze
• Create
• Relationship Skills
• Social Awareness

Activity 02

• Project-Based Learning
• 50 min · Small Groups

Hands-On Workshop: Object Story Hunt

Students bring 5 to 8 found objects from home (bottle caps, broken toys, hardware pieces) and lay them out. In small groups, they identify the inherent story of each object and brainstorm how that story could support a theme. Each student then plans their assemblage layout on paper before building.

Construct an assemblage using found objects to convey a specific theme or message.

Facilitation Tip

For the Object Story Hunt, limit the search area to a single classroom or hallway to ensure manageable collections while still encouraging close observation of everyday items.

What to look for

Students display their nearly completed assemblages. In small groups, students identify one object in a peer's work, state its original function, and suggest how that function contributes to the artwork's overall message. Peers offer one suggestion for enhancing the theme.

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills
• Decision-Making

Activity 03

• Project-Based Learning
• 25 min · Whole Class

Critique Protocol: Theme Check

After assemblages are built, run a structured critique using sentence frames: "I see..." for formal description, "I notice the object ___ is being used to suggest..." for interpretation, and "I wonder if..." for a question to the artist. Each student receives responses from at least two peers before the artist responds.

Justify the artistic and environmental benefits of using upcycled materials in art.

Facilitation Tip

In the Critique Protocol, provide sentence stems like 'This object’s original use suggests...' to scaffold students’ verbal analysis of thematic choices.

What to look for

Facilitate a class discussion using the prompt: 'Imagine you are an artist creating an assemblage about 'connection.' Which three found objects would you choose and why? How would their original functions add meaning to your theme?'

• Apply
• Analyze
• Evaluate
• Create
• Self-Management
• Relationship Skills
• Decision-Making

Activity 04

• Think-Pair-Share
• 15 min · Pairs

Think-Pair-Share: Sustainability Stakes

Project two images side by side: a landfill and an upcycled sculpture by El Anatsui made from bottle caps. Students write privately about the artistic and environmental stakes of choosing found materials, then share with a partner before bringing key points to the whole class.

Analyze how the original function of a found object can add new meaning to an artwork.

Facilitation Tip

During Think-Pair-Share, assign specific pairs to discuss 'connection' and 'waste reduction' separately so contrasting perspectives emerge.

What to look for

Provide students with images of three different found objects (e.g., a bicycle wheel, a broken teacup, a rusty key). Ask them to write one sentence for each object explaining its potential symbolic meaning if used in an assemblage.

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

A few notes on teaching this unit

Teach this topic by balancing process and product: students need time to explore materials without immediate pressure to 'make art.' Avoid rushing to finished pieces; instead, prioritize sketching and arranging objects in low-stakes formats. Research shows that students better internalize artistic intention when they first practice articulating it verbally before translating it into physical form. Use the language of 'repurposing' rather than 'recycling' to emphasize creative agency over environmental duty alone.

Students will move from seeing objects as trash to recognizing them as intentional carriers of meaning and material. Successful learning is evident when students articulate connections between object histories, placement decisions, and thematic intent in their own work and critiques.

---

Watch Out for These Misconceptions

• During Gallery Walk: Watch for comments like 'This is just trash art.'

  Redirect students to focus on the artist’s compositional choices by asking, 'How does the placement of this gear next to the fabric create tension or harmony? What does that tell you about the artist’s intent?'

• During Object Story Hunt: Watch for students treating objects as interchangeable.

  Prompt students to document each object’s original context by asking, 'What did this item do before it was in your hands? How might that history shape its meaning in your artwork?'

---

Methods used in this brief

• Gallery Walk
• Project-Based Learning
• Think-Pair-Share