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Making a Collage

Second graders learn about collage — art made by cutting or tearing materials and gluing them onto a surface — and discover the many materials they can use to make textured, colorful artwork.

Grade 2Techniques40 minutes1 class periodArtistic ProcessExplicit teaching4 StandardsNCAS
Start the Lesson
Lesson at a Glance

Everything you need before the bell rings

Learning Objectives

Students will be able to…

  • ✓Explain a collage.
  • ✓Choose materials.
  • ✓Cut, tear, and glue.
  • ✓Make a collage.
Essential Question

What if you could make art by gluing bits of paper, fabric, and other materials together? That’s a collage! What can you use to make one?

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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

Can You Glue It?

Project this and sort each thing into materials you CAN glue in a collage or things you cannot.

🖼️ Sort each — can you glue it in a collage?Try it
👍 Can Glue It
👎 Can’t Glue It
Tap a material, then tap a bucket.
The Lesson · Artistic Process (Look · Explore · Create · Share · Reflect)

40 minutes, five moves

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

1

Look — Art from Bits

5 min

You can make art by gluing bits together — that’s a collage! What can you use?

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show a collage.
  • Ask what it’s made of.
  • Set the goal.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Look.
  • Wonder.
  • Predict.
2

Explore — Explore Materials

8 min

Students explore.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Send students to Can You Glue It?
  • Sort each material.
  • Gather materials.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Sort them.
  • Gather.
  • Explain.
3

Create — Create

14 min

Students create.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Cut or tear materials.
  • Arrange them.
  • Glue a collage.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Cut/tear.
  • Arrange.
  • Glue it.
4

Share — Share

8 min

Students share.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Show their collage.
  • Name the materials.
  • Give kind feedback.

🎒 Student Actions

  • Show it.
  • Name them.
  • Be kind.
5

Reflect — Reflect

5 min

Students respond.

👩‍🏫 Teacher Moves

  • Explain a collage.
  • Name a material.
  • Complete the exit ticket.

🎒 Student Actions

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

Built to the standards you report on

Aligned to the National Core Arts Standards (Visual Arts).

NCAS
VA:Cr2.1.2

Experiment with collage materials and techniques.

NCAS
VA:Cr1.2.2

Make art using a variety of materials.

NCAS
VA:Cr2.3.2

Repurpose materials to make art.

NCAS
VA:Cr1.1.2

Generate collage ideas.

Differentiation

One lesson, every learner

Multilingual Learners

ELL / EMERGING READERS
  • Material picture cards.
  • Sentence frame: “I can glue ___.”
  • Show real materials.

Support & Access

IEP / 504
  • Start with paper and fabric.
  • Sort one at a time.
  • Use real materials.

Stretch & Extend

GIFTED / EARLY FINISHERS
  • Make a themed collage.
  • Explain texture in collage.
  • Use found objects.
Materials

What to gather

  • 📽️Screen / board
  • 🖼️Collage materials
  • 💻Can You Glue It?
  • ✂️Safety scissors
  • 🧴Glue
  • 🎫Exit-ticket slips
Vocabulary

Key terms — hover for a quick definition

collageart made by gluing materials downmaterialsomething you make art fromcutto slice with scissorstearto rip by handgluea paste that sticks thingsarrangeto place in a designtexturehow something feelssurfacethe paper or board you glue onto
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
What is a collage?
Art made by cutting or tearing materials and gluing them onto a surface.
QUESTION 2
Name one material you could use in a collage.
Sample: paper, fabric, leaves, or buttons.
QUESTION 3
Can you glue sunlight into a collage?
No — you can only glue real materials you can hold.

Reflect: collect materials.

Have students collect small flat materials at home (paper scraps, leaves) to use in a collage. A printable collage 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.

🃏 CollageFlip
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.

📝 CollageQuiz
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.

🖨️ CollagePrint
Name: ________________________
Date: ____________

Part A · Write the word that matches each meaning

Word bank: arrange, collage, cut, glue, material, surface, tear, texture
  1. how something feels
  2. art made by gluing materials down
  3. the paper or board you glue onto
  4. a paste that sticks things
  5. to place in a design
  6. to slice with scissors
  7. something you make art from
  8. to rip by hand

Part B · Show what you learned

  1. What is a collage?
  2. Name one material you could use in a collage.
  3. Can you glue sunlight into a collage?
Answer key — Part A: 1) texture · 2) collage · 3) surface · 4) glue · 5) arrange · 6) cut · 7) material · 8) tear
Part B: 1) Art made by cutting or tearing materials and gluing them onto a surface. 2) Sample: paper, fabric, leaves, or buttons. 3) No — you can only glue real materials you can hold.