Four Seasons

Four Seasons lesson plan

Vivaldi inspires paintings incorporating symbols of the seasons.

  • 1.

    List weather changes that occur with each of the four seasons in temperate climates. How do those changes affect the natural environment and your activities, including the clothing you wear? What is your favorite season? Why?

  • 2.

    Cover a table top with recycled newspaper. On white paper, use Crayola® Washable Paints and Paint Brushes to paint one picture that shows something relating to each of the four seasons. Include plants, animals, clothing, and activities.

  • 3.

    Listen to a recording of Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" as you paint. Which selections best match the season or mood of your work? Dry your painting on a flat surface.

  • 4.

    Use Crayola Markers to add details and outlines.

Benefits

  • Children identify changes in weather, nature, and clothing associated with seasons in temperate climates.
  • Students create original artwork reflecting their observations and knowledge about seasonal changes.
  • Children listen to a recording of Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" and choose the selection that best matches the mood of their painting.

Adaptations

  • While listening to Vivaldi's "The Four Seasons" paint in response to the music. Focus on abstract marks and color rather than representation. Compare the work you made listening to "Winter" to the piece you did listening to "Summer." How are they differen
  • Paint four separate panels, each one depicting a different season. Display them mounted together, in order. Write poetry about the differences and similarities in each painting and season.
  • Collaborate with a music specialist to learn more about Vivaldi, his music, and the times in which it was written. Learn to play recorders and make your own melodies.
  • Young children and special needs students might paint small symbols of the seasons (mittens, butterflies, fall trees, and kites) and cut them out when dry. Work in teams to arrange painted season symbols on mural paper into four scenes, one for each season. Paint skies, weather elements, and other details around each scene.