I have taught this Tim Burton Snowman lesson to upper elementary through 8th grade students and it is always a FAVORITE! I would imagine high school kiddos might like a quick drawing lesson too. This lesson is a favorite because it has room for creativity, students love to practice creating values with drawing pencils and most of all the subject matter is somewhat easy and festive! This has been my holiday go to lesson for years and I have never had any issue keeping my students engaged and excited.
The Lesson Objective
I piggyback this lesson to my Tim Burton Spooky Selfies that I teach in October. My students critique and analyze the style and artwork of Tim Burton. We look for common characteristics associated with his style such as oversized eyes and head, tiny nose and mouth, values of gray and high contrast. My students use value to create a snow person that looks 3 dimensional using shading and blending techniques. Each student creates an original masterpiece, with the help of a Tim Burton Inspired Snowman ideas handout I pass out.
Drawing With Value
From my experience students love drawing with value and getting their fingers dirty. In fact, I will ask my students to show me their evidence of learning – gray fingertips, LOL! This lesson encourages students to smudge and blend their pencil lead to create blended values and a 3D form for the head and body. This lesson is a great way to introduce shading and highlights to create a 3D sphere. I prefer to use Prismacolor Ebony Drawing pencils for this lesson, but a regular 2B pencil works too. Ironically, the lesson that requires just a pencil and white paper can be just as engaging as clay!
Success
Due to the simplicity of this lesson, I find most students are successful with this lesson. In addition, the lesson teaches the simple skill of shading and blending. Students can master the skill of creating a 3D sphere and find pleasure in adding creative details that express who they are. Lastly, Tim Burton’s style allows students to be different, unique, and messy.
Simple Style
Tim Burton’s style is whimsical, simple and full of personality. His simple monochromatic style allows students to focus on the subject matter and storytelling. His simplistic characters provide the opportunity for students to use their imagination and explore a variety of facial expressions. Lastly, his style is so popular with the students, they are giddy with excitement when developing their characters.
How I Teach the Tim Burton Snowman lesson
I introduce my students to Tim Burton. They learn a few fun facts about the artist and spend some time critiquing his work. As a class we analyze some of his characters to define his style. I show my YouTube video tutorial to preview the steps of creating a “Spooky Snowman”. Then have my students practice the technique on scrap paper as they draw along with me. I provide my students with a “Tim Burton Inspired Snowman” ideas handout to help them build their snowman. In addition, we develop a story and add a setting to the snowman.
Once my students have had time to practice blending and sketching ideas, they begin the final drawing. We use paper towels to smudge the pencil and purposely get graphite everywhere. This creates a very light gray value in the sky and allows my students to draw with their eraser to create a white value. If desired, my students use Sharpie markers to create contrast and define the edges of the snow person.
My Tim Burton Snowman Lesson including ideas handout is available here.
Enjoy, Trista
Related: For more winter art lessons, check out Winter Art Ideas.
Related: Tim Burton Art Lesson: A Student Favorite
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