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VISUAL LITERACY
GRADE 5
TERM 2
We see signs and symbols all around us every day. Some give directions, some are warnings
and others give information. Some signs are used to name and identify things and express
emotion and ideas.
SYMBOLS are things that stand for an idea or belief e.g. a white dove can be seen as a
symbol of peace.
SIGNS are things like a STOP street sign - it has no deeper meaning.
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Here are different signs and symbols we encounter every day:
Road Signs
Weather Symbols
Logos and
Brand Names
Male and Female
Signs
Star Signs
Peace Symbols
Musical
Symbols
Mathematical
Symbols
CIRCULAR PATTERNS:
Of all the forms in nature, the circle is the most common. The earth and planets circle around
the sun. The full moon appears to be circular. Many seeds, fruits and flowers are circular. We
call events that repeat themselves in a certain order, CYCLICAL EVENTS.
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CONCENTRIC CIRCLES are circles of different sizes that share the same centre.
RADIATING PATTERNS are lines that point outwards from a central point.
Some examples of concentric circles and radiating patterns in nature and buildings:
Rose windows in churches
Fir cones
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Sunflowers
Mandalas
A modern western use of concentric circles shows the personal symbols of a person. Each
ring represents a different aspect of one’s life.
ACTIVITY 1: FORMAL ASSESSMENT
You will be given a template for a Mandala, consisting of five concentric rings. Complete each
ring according to the following guidelines:
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The centre ring must show your beliefs/religion.
•
The next ring must have a repeated pattern symbolising the important people in your
life.
•
Choosing 3 topics from the list below, to complete the final 3 rings, using repeated
symbolic patterns again.
Here are the topics to choose from:
1. Country
2. Sport
3. School
4. Organizations
5. Interest
6. Nature
7. Achievements
8. Music
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MARKING CRITERIA:
You will be marked as follows:
•
5 marks for pattern designs
•
5 marks for correct use of symbols
•
5 marks for rich colours in wax crayons
•
5 marks for neatness
RUBRIC FOR MANDALA
5
4
3
2
0-1
CRITERIA
Outstanding
achievement
Substantial
achievement
Moderate
achievement
Elementary
achievement
Not achieved
PATTERN
DESIGNS
Perfect repeat
patterns
1 -2 errors in
repeat patterns
Many errors
made in repeat
patterns
Errors in repeat,
where no pattern
is obvious
No effort made to
draw different
patterns
USE OF
SYMBOLS
Excellent choice
of symbols
Good choice in
symbols
Adequate choice
of symbols
Weak choice of
symbols
No effort made to
create symbols
COLOURS IN
WAX
CRAYONS
Excellent colour
choices
Good colour
choices
Fair colour
choices
Poor colour
choices
No effort made to
use good colour
choices
NEATNESS
OF WORK
Very neat work
Work done as
neatly as
possible
Smudging across
colouring in
Colour outside
lines
No effort made to
colour neatly
TOTAL:
20 MARKS
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KENTE CLOTH
Kente is a brightly coloured, banded material
and is the most widely known cloth produced
in Africa. It was originally made from white
cotton with some indigo patterning, but it
evolved when silk arrived with the Portuguese
traders in the seventeenth century. Kente cloth
was originally only worn by Royalty.
Colours are significant in Kente cloth:
•
Blue means love
•
Green means growth and energy
•
Yellow(Gold) means wealth and royalty
•
Red means violence and anger
•
White means goodness or victory
•
Grey means shame
•
Black means death (or old age)
Even today, when a new design is created, it must first be offered to the royal house. If the
king declines to take it, it can be sold to the public. Designs worn by Asante royalty may not
be worn by others.
NDEBELE DESIGNS
Ndebele people live in Mpumalanga, South Africa and consider themselves a nation within
the nation of South Africa. The women are responsible for decorating the homes. Their
patterns are always geometric, yet imperfect. Their designs are inspired from nature, Roman
numerals, texts and other facets of their ever-changing environment. Ndebele wall paintings
are interesting because it is a “tradition” that has been created only in the last 60 or so years,
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but its style is instantly recognizable, and it has become a dominant marker of a people’s
identity.
The following colours show both POSITIVE and NEGATIVE ideas associated with
different colours:
COLOUR
Black
POSITIVE
Marriage, growing again
NEGATIVE
Sorrow, despair, death
Blue
Loyalty
Feeling ill, hostility
Yellow
Wealth, a garden
Thirst, being bad, coward
Green
Environment,
bliss
Pink
High birth or rank, oath, promise
Poverty, laziness
Red
Love, strong emotion
Anger,
danger
White
Spiritual love, purity
Emptiness, lack of feeling
pleased,
domestic Illness, jealous
heartache,
impatience,
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ACTIVITY 2:
You are going to make a weaving plate.
You will need:
1. 2 large strong paper plates
2. Glue
3. White string
4. Different colour wool to show what you are feeling
5. A large needle
FOLLOW THESE STEPS:
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Spread glue evenly over the surface of one plate and paste the other plate on top of it.
Make sure the edges are pasted together! Let the glue dry.
•
Make evenly-spaced slits with your scissors around the outside of the plate.
•
Use your string to make a “Star Web”. Thread the string in diagonal lines through the
slits. This “web” is called the warp. Make sure that the ends of the string are taped
onto the back of the plate.
•
Now you are ready to begin weaving. You must start from the centre of the warp and
work outwards. This material is called the weft.
•
Now thread the weft under and over each string of the warp.
•
Change colours as often as you wish, by knotting the new colour thread to the thread
you have been using.
•
When you have covered the whole plate, your weaving is finished.
•
Share the reason for your colour choices.