GOLDEN GATE BRIDGE

This lesson in architectural drawing techniques came after previous lessons on triangles, repetition, perspective, and horizon line. This prior knowledge was key in the children's individual development of their rendition of the Golden Gate Bridge.

The first step in the creation of this drawing was a direct teaching method of drawing the basic image step-by-step for the whole class to see. As the watched, they jotted down the most the could as they tried to keep up with Mr. Mueller's pace. The faster they become at sketching, the more comfortable they become at drawing in general.

Their preliminary sketches were fairly accurate and creatively inventive in some cases.

Then, each child was given a copy of the black and white photograph of the Golden Gate Bridge to fill in the detail, value, shading, and other finishing touches.

A few workshop-type lessons were given on how to shade in a sky with gradient value and how to erase puffs of clouds. This helped immensely with the overall quality of these drawings.

In the end, the finished products looked great!