← BACK TO TEACHER LESSONGrade 4 · Cartooning · Pencil, eraser, and optional black drawing pen on paper

MODERN ART LESSONS · STUDENT WORKSHEET

Balloon Hedgehog: Faces with Feelings

Make an expression sheet featuring a hedgehog with a balloon. The character wants to deliver a party balloon, but worries about the balloon touching its spines. One possible ending: it carries the string on a long cardboard handle. Invent a different kind ending if you prefer.

Character reference shared across ten skill lessons—not a picture of the completed assignment. Study the example for possibilities, then close or cover it. Your work should make different choices.

Story starter and example

The character wants to deliver a party balloon, but worries about the balloon touching its spines. One possible ending: it carries the string on a long cardboard handle. Invent a different kind ending if you prefer. Face 1 shows hopeful anticipation; face 2 shows surprise or frustration; face 3 shows relief. The eyes and mouth change while the head stays recognizable.

What to do

  1. Your finished project is an expression sheet featuring a hedgehog with a balloon. Read the story seed: The character wants to deliver a party balloon, but worries about the balloon touching its spines. One possible ending: it carries the string on a long cardboard handle. Invent a different kind ending if you prefer.
  2. Start with small face, rounded spiny back, and round balloon. These are helpful shapes, not a tracing template.
  3. Draw the same head shape three times before adding facial features.
  4. Show the feeling before the problem, during it, and after the solution. Change eyebrows, eyes, and mouth deliberately.
  5. Keep the head shape and identifying features consistent. Add a short feeling label only after a partner guesses.
  6. Cover feeling labels and ask a partner to name each emotion. Revise one unclear face. Compare two arrangements and revise one unclear visual clue after peer feedback.
01

My project: an expression sheet featuring a hedgehog with a balloon. My chosen ending is…

02

Draw the same head three times.

03

Show BEFORE / PROBLEM / SOLUTION feelings.

04

Partner guesses… One feature I changed…

05

Story clue: How will I show that the character worries about the balloon touching its spines?

06

Before feedback, I wanted the reader to notice… The reader actually noticed…

07

Revision: I changed… because…

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