| AUDIENCE Educators, Parents | GRADE LEVEL Intermediate (4-7) |
| CONCEPTS Patterns & Linear Relationships | PEDAGOGICAL APPROACH Creative-Arts |
This lesson, created by Janelle Findlay, transports students back to 2004 when Vancouver held a city-wide contest to design storm sewer covers. They follow in the footsteps of Coast Salish artist Susan Point and her daughter, winners of the competition, who used traditional storytelling through their design.
The journey begins with exploring the concept of rotational symmetry, a key design element in many cultures, including Indigenous art. Students will learn a practical technique to create beautiful symmetrical patterns while noting what story they want to tell through their art.
Questions that they will consider are:
- how many times you would like your core slice to rotate around the circle?
- What options do we have for how many even slices may go into a circle?
- What do we already know about degrees in a circle?
- Are some amounts of slices “friendlier” than other amounts?