I like to Move it Move it -- Amanda Chen

 Lesson name: I like to Move it Move it 

by Amanda Chen

Age group: 3rd to 4th grade 

Objectives and missions of the class: 

• Bring up the relevance of shoes through the movement of the body 

• Identify the design processes specific for different sports/ exercises

• Learn the different ways designers create shoes for different sports and explore in detail the reasons of the creative choices and the purpose of the shoes 

• Promote imagination and creativity by creating their own favourite exercise shoes for their activity of choice 

• Promote courage and confidence to explore your own identity through art and design and sharing ideas with other people

Lesson Plan: 

1) Introduction and Inspiration: 

    Present the museum and ask them questions about sports and activities they like to do to start brainstorming about the topic. 

   Question examples: What is your favourite sport or activity? Have you thought about what you wear on your feet when you do that (specific) sport? Why do you think shoes are designed differently for different activities? What is the difference between the design of (example of a sport i.e. ballet shoes to another example of a sport i.e. running shoes)? 

    Guide them through a tour to explore the different possibilities of shoe creations for different sports, activities and terrains and explain why they are designed their own way to inspire their creativity to create their own.

    For example, explain why shoes made for weight lifting are designed to be flat to stabilize the body and provide more balance when holding a heavy weight. However, running shoes have more cushion and elevation for the ankle to protect the feet and the joints from hurting when the body is constantly bouncing against gravity. 

2) Creation Process: 

    Settle down in a classroom environment where they have a comfortable space and materials to create their own shoes. 

    Topic of the shoe: Design a shoe for my favourite sport/exercise/activity

    This is my weightlifting shoe! It has sun and clouds because I like to train in sunny mornings. I added a lot of hearts to show the passion I have towards this sport. My choice of colour is bright to bring me a lot of energy. The material is soft and comfortable and I added a lot of upper and lower support so it can support heavy weights. The shoe is flat and light weighted to provide comfort and stability. 

Present examples of shoes and drawings they can be inspired by to start their creations. 

In the shoe, describe what is special about it with simple words.

Question to think about when designing the shoe: Why did you design the shoe and for what sport? What are the materials used? What are the design choices you made for the specific exercise? What were the challenges when designing the shoe? 

Materials needed: different colours of paper, graphite pencils, erasers, rulers , color pencils, markers, paint, paint brushes, water containers, colour crayons, scissors, glue sticks, etc 

3) Reflection and discussion: 

- Present your shoes to the class 

- Talk about the creative process and decision making

Location: In the Bata Shoe museum. The first part takes place in the general exhibition area and the second one takes place in a smaller classroom area in the museum