All of this was done within a 45 minute class period. Each of my 7th grade classes made 4 long strips of butcher paper pieces. We talked about line and color a bit and then they traced a partner with crayola washable markers. Everyone in the class was traced, making sure to overlap their bodies (not while the other person is still laying there of course).
After the lines had criss-crossed everywhere, making lots of shapes, I told them to start filling in the shapes with different patterns of line. Sort of like a zentangle. They did this for about 8 minutes and then we brought out the paint!
I use these tempera cakes palettes a lot now. It's quick clean up, they last forever! The brush comes in the palette. I used to hate tempera and I still don't like the texture much. But when you have 35 students and 3 sinks...the less clean up the better.
After filling in with lines, they started painted inside the shapes. Because we used crayola washable markers, when the wet paint touched it, the markers started to bleed, but I loved the effect. It was a welcomed accident. So in just 45 minutes, we had lots of huge colorful papers to hang on the walls. =)
