THINGS THAT MAKE US WANT TO SCREAM

The Scream, 1893
Oil, tempera and pastel on cardboard
National Gallery, Oslo

After looking at Edvard Munch's famous painting, The Scream, students will create their own artwork featuring images of things that make them want to scream.

• Learn about the artist Edvard Munch and his famous painting "The Scream".
• Learn about the connection of the explosion of Krakatoa and "The Scream" painting.
• Create a drawing of the screaming man and draw items that make them want to scream.

• Copies of the Scream for students
• 8x12 drawing paper
• Fat black Sharpie markers
• Colored pencils
• Web story of the correlation of "The Scream" to the explosion of Krakatoa.
  See link: HERE

1. Spend the first day teaching about "The Scream" by Munch and the relationship of the background to the astronomical theories of Krakatoa's explosion. (see HERE for the article to read to your class).

2. Talk about why the man was screaming, and what causes one to well up into a scream, of fear or another emotion.

3. Lead your students through the drawing of the head and hands of the screaming man in Munch's work. Explain as you work, how this painting has inspired Hollywood: i.e. "Scream" movie mask, the famous scream Macauly Caulkin did in "Home Alone", etc.

4. Once students finish the drawings, have them outline the "screamer" with a black sharpie marker.

5. Using items (not people) that make the students want to scream, have the students do drawings of things around the screaming man (i.e. needles, broccoli, brussel sprouts, etc.). Emphasize the importance of this being personal (I got some very creative responses!) and how to NOT use people, etc. The students picked terrorism and other political topics as well.

6. When they are finished tracing, have the students add color. I chose colored pencils, but any colorful media would work. Remind students to color heavy, dark and to fill their page.

samples