Skip to content

What does a student learn in ?

This is the year students start making media projects on purpose, not just playing with the camera or tablet. They come up with an idea, plan it out, and put it together as a short video, slideshow, or sound piece. Students also talk about what their work means and share what they notice in other people's projects. By spring, they can finish a small media project and explain the choices they made.

  • Media projects
  • Planning ideas
  • Video and sound
  • Sharing work
  • Talking about art
Source: Delaware Delaware Content Standards
Year at a glance
How the year usually goes. Every school and district set their own curriculum, so treat this as a guide, not official pacing.
  1. 1

    Getting ideas for media projects

    Students start the year by coming up with ideas for things like short videos, drawings on a tablet, or simple sound recordings. They learn that their own life and interests are good starting points.

  2. 2

    Building and shaping the project

    Students put their ideas together using tools like a camera, drawing app, or recorder. They practice picking the parts that work and adjusting the parts that do not.

  3. 3

    Polishing work to share

    Students choose which project to show and clean it up for an audience. They think about what they want viewers to notice and make small changes so the meaning comes through.

  4. 4

    Looking at and talking about media

    Students watch and listen to media made by classmates and by other artists. They describe what they see, guess what the maker was going for, and say what worked well.

  5. 5

    Connecting media to the wider world

    Students notice how media shows up in their family, school, and community. They start to see that videos, photos, and songs come from real people with reasons for making them.

Mastery Learning Standards
The required skills a student should display by the end of Grade 2.
Connecting
  • Synthesize and relate knowledge and personal experiences to make art

    Students draw on what they know and what they have lived through to make media art. A memory, a hobby, or something learned in another class can become the starting point for a project.

  • Relate artistic ideas and works with societal, cultural

    Students look at a piece of media art, such as a photo, video, or digital image, and talk about where it came from, who made it, and why. Connecting art to real life helps students understand what it means.

Creating
  • Generate and conceptualize artistic ideas and work

    Students brainstorm ideas for media projects like photos, videos, or digital drawings, then choose one idea to develop into a finished piece.

  • Organize and develop artistic ideas and work

    Students arrange images, sounds, or simple animations into a short media project that makes sense from start to finish.

  • Refine and complete artistic work

    Students revisit a media project, make changes based on feedback or their own ideas, and finish it in a way that feels complete and intentional.

Performing/Presenting/Producing
  • Analyze, interpret, and select artistic work for presentation

    Students look at several pieces of media work, such as a drawing, photo, or short video, and decide which one is ready to share with an audience and why.

  • Develop and refine artistic techniques and work for presentation

    Students practice and improve a media arts project (a short video, a photo series, or a simple animation) until it's ready to share with an audience.

  • Convey meaning through the presentation of artistic work

    Students share a media project, like a short video or digital image, and explain what idea or feeling they wanted the audience to notice.

Responding
  • Perceive and analyze artistic work

    Students look closely at a photo, video, or digital image and describe what they notice, explaining why certain choices (color, sound, layout) stand out to them.

  • Interpret intent and meaning in artistic work

    Students look at a media artwork, such as a photo or short video, and explain what the creator was trying to say and why it makes them feel a certain way.

  • Apply criteria to evaluate artistic work

    Students look at a piece of media art and decide what makes it good or not so good. They use a short list of questions or rules to explain what they think and why.

Common Questions
  • What is media arts at this age?

    Media arts is making things like short videos, slideshows, simple animations, photos, and audio recordings. Students learn to plan a small project, put pieces together on a screen, and share it with a class. The tools are simple, often a tablet or classroom computer.

  • What should students be able to make by the end of the year?

    By spring, students should be able to plan a short media piece, like a 30-second video or a three-slide story, and finish it from start to share. They should also be able to say what their piece is about and why they chose the images or sounds in it.

  • How can families support this at home?

    Let students take photos or short videos of something they care about, like a pet or a meal, and ask them to tell the story behind it. Five minutes of talking about what they made, and why, builds the same skills as a full lesson at school.

  • Does a child need fancy apps or a good camera?

    No. A basic phone or tablet camera is plenty. The thinking matters more than the tool. Even drawing a comic strip on paper and talking through it counts as planning a media piece.

  • How should media arts be sequenced across the year?

    Start with looking and talking. Students describe what they notice in a photo, ad, or short clip before making anything. Then move to small guided projects, and save open-ended creating for later in the year once students can plan and revise a simple piece.

  • Which skills usually need the most reteaching?

    Two areas tend to lag. First, revising work instead of calling the first try done. Second, explaining why a choice was made, like why a sound or color fits the message. Build short reflection routines into every project to address both.

  • How does media arts connect to reading, writing, and history?

    A short video is a story with a beginning, middle, and end. A slideshow about a holiday or a family tradition pulls in history and culture. Pairing media projects with a book or social studies topic makes both stick better.

  • What does mastery look like heading into next grade?

    Students should be able to come up with an idea, plan it on paper or in their head, make it with help, and talk about what works and what they would change. They should also be able to give a kind, useful comment on a classmate's piece.