SecondaryThe Arts

Wire art – Simple 3D activities for KS3/KS4

What's included?

PDF lesson plan

Key Stage

KS3, KS4

Age

Years 7-11

Subjects

Inspire students’ imaginations and take them on a creative voyage of discovery with these deceptively simple 3D wire art activities from AccessArt’s Sheila Ceccarelli

Wire art is a very accessible and immediate way of introducing notions such as ‘drawing in space’ and volume.

It requires limited resources and simple tools. As an artistic activity it aids the development of 3D skills, like dexterity and the manipulation of materials.

Often, storage is an issue for teachers – so a 3D project spanning several weeks can be problematic. On the other hand, you can do wire art in one or two double lessons with very satisfying and often outstanding results.

Visual/spatial thinkers

Wire art is suitable for all levels of ability. You can extend it to introduce more materials and processes such as binding and attaching elements in different materials together.

It’s often the ‘unlikely’ child who succeeds in a 3D task, so this is the opportunity for visual/spatial thinkers to come out and shine!

Ironically these learners often find drawing difficult, as it requires similar parts of brain activity as writing and reading, not ‘making’ and ‘doing’.

Given the opportunity to draw three-dimensionally, visual/spatial children can ‘articulate’ in a more immediate and natural language. As a teacher, you may find talent where you had least expected it.

Like all exercises, wire art requires time, space and practice. What’s most important is that students enjoy the sense of play and inquiry and don’t worry about changing their sculptures/drawings as they go.

Sheila Ceccarelli is the co-founder of AccessArt. She is a graduate of Norwich School of Art and has an M.A. from RCA Sculpture School. Read advice for helping students with their GCSE art final piece.

Wire art lesson plan
DOWNLOAD A FREE RESOURCE!
Wire art – Simple 3D activities for KS3/KS4
SecondaryThe Arts

You'll also receive regular updates from Teachwire with free lesson plans, great new teaching ideas, offers, and more. (You can unsubscribe at any time.)

Which sectors are you interested in?




By signing up you agree to our Terms & Conditions and privacy policy

Explore teaching packs

Pie Corbett Ultimate KS2 Fiction Collection
Pie Corbett Ultimate KS2 Fiction Collection
Fire up KS2 pupils' imagination with this collection of 20+ fictional stories, written by literacy expert Pie Corbett. Each ... more
21 x resources
Pie Corbett KS2 Non-Fiction Collection
Use Pie Corbett’s non-fiction texts to inspire your KS2 pupils to get writing. Each resource contains an original text in ... more
7 x resources
Pie Corbett KS2 Poetry Collection
Inspire KS2 pupils to be creative and express themselves with this pack of Pie Corbett poetry. Each of these Pie Corbett Tal... more
7 x resources
WAGOLL classroom resources
WAGOLL Packs from Real Authors
Peer inside the mind of award-winning children's authors and help pupils understand how to create engaging characters, capti... more
13 x resources
Art KS2 inspiring medium term plans
Art KS2 Inspiring Medium Term Plans
Get pupils' creative juices flowing with these expert medium-term art plans for KS2. Each resource consists of a full half-t... more
6 x resources
Magical Harry Potter Teaching Ideas
Magical Harry Potter Teaching Ideas
Spark pupils' imaginations with these inventive and exciting teaching ideas, all themed around the wonderful world of Harry ... more
11 x resources