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Mixed Media & Experimentation

Tenth graders explore mixed media and experimentation — combining flat, two-dimensional techniques with three-dimensional and found materials — to push past a single medium and invent their own approaches.

Grade 10Media50 minutes1 class periodArtistic ProcessExplicit teaching4 StandardsNCAS
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Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Explain mixed media.
  • ✓Tell 2D from 3D techniques.
  • ✓Sort the media.
  • ✓Experiment freely.
Essential Question

Who says art has to be just a painting OR a sculpture? Mixed-media artists combine and experiment. Which techniques are 2D, and which are 3D?

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Lesson Phases
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Vocabulary Terms
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Standards Aligned
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Interactive Task
Sort It · Interactive

2D or 3D Media?

Project this and sort each technique into flat 2D media or dimensional 3D media.

🖼️ Sort each — 2D media or 3D media?Try it
🖼️ Flat / 2D Media
🗿 Dimensional / 3D
Tap a technique, then tap a bucket.
The Lesson · Artistic Process (Look · Explore · Create · Share · Reflect)

50 minutes, five moves

Tap any phase to open the teacher moves and student actions.

1

Look — Combine and Invent

5 min

Art doesn’t have to be just one thing — mixed-media artists combine and experiment. How?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show a mixed-media work.
  • Ask what’s in it.
  • Get ready.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Look.
  • Wonder.
  • Get ready.
2

Explore — Mixed Media

12 min

Students explore.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to 2D or 3D Media?
  • Sort each one.
  • Imagine combining them.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Sort.
  • Imagine.
  • Name.
3

Create — Create

14 min

Students create.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Combine two media.
  • Experiment with materials.
  • Make a small piece.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Combine.
  • Experiment.
  • Make it.
4

Share — Share

12 min

Students share.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show your mixed-media piece.
  • Name your materials.
  • Give feedback.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Show it.
  • Name it.
  • Feedback.
5

Reflect — Reflect

5 min

Students respond.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Name a 2D technique.
  • Name a 3D technique.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Name one.
  • Name one.
  • Complete the exit ticket.
Standards Alignment

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the National Core Arts Standards (Visual Arts, HS Accomplished).

NCAS
VA:Cr2.1.HSII

Use mixed media.

NCAS
VA:Cr2.2.HSII

Experiment with materials.

NCAS
VA:Cr1.2.HSII

Plan experimental work.

NCAS
VA:Re7.1.HSII

Perceive media choices.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Media picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “___ is 2D / 3D.”
  • Show real materials.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with painting vs. sculpture.
  • Sort one at a time.
  • Use examples.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Combine three media.
  • Explain your process.
  • Push a material’s limits.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Projector / board
  • 🎨Mixed-media supplies
  • 💻2D or 3D Media?
  • 🗑️Found objects
  • ✏️Pens
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

mixed mediacombining different materialsexperimentationtrying new approaches2Dflat, two-dimensional3Ddimensional, has depthassemblageart from found objectscollageglued layered materialstechniquea way of making artmediuma type of art material
Evaluate

Exit Ticket

Preview the three formative checks. Tap “Sample answer” to see what mastery looks like — hide them before you print for students.

QUESTION 1
Is a watercolor painting 2D or 3D?
2D (flat).
QUESTION 2
Is an assemblage of found objects 2D or 3D?
3D (dimensional).
QUESTION 3
What is mixed media?
Combining different materials and techniques in one artwork.

Reflect: mix it up.

Have students name two media they’d combine in an experimental artwork. A printable mixed-media sheet is in the Arts library.

Study · Flashcards

Study the key terms

Tap a card to flip it, then rate whether you knew it. Built from this lesson’s vocabulary.

🃏 Mixed Media & ExperimentationFlip
Card 1
Term
Tap to flip →
Meaning
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Nice work!

Practice · Quiz

Check your understanding

A quick self-check with instant feedback, drawn from this lesson’s key terms.

📝 Mixed Media & ExperimentationQuiz
Score: 0
1 / 6
Question 1
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Nice work!

Practice · Worksheet

Printable worksheet

A print-and-go review sheet with a built-in answer key. Tap “Show answer key” to reveal answers, or print the clean version for students.

🖨️ Mixed Media & ExperimentationPrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: 2D, 3D, assemblage, collage, experimentation, medium, mixed media, technique
  1. trying new approaches
  2. dimensional, has depth
  3. glued layered materials
  4. flat, two-dimensional
  5. a type of art material
  6. art from found objects
  7. combining different materials
  8. a way of making art

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. Is a watercolor painting 2D or 3D?
  2. Is an assemblage of found objects 2D or 3D?
  3. What is mixed media?
Answer key — Part A: 1) experimentation · 2) 3D · 3) collage · 4) 2D · 5) medium · 6) assemblage · 7) mixed media · 8) technique
Part B: 1) 2D (flat). 2) 3D (dimensional). 3) Combining different materials and techniques in one artwork.