Description
Create bold op art eggs that bend lines, distort shapes, and turn a simple drawing into a striking optical illusion art lesson. This upper elementary and middle school drawing project combines color theory, perspective drawing, geometry, and design choices so students can build a checkered egg, add diamonds or circles, and explore how curved lines create form. With illustrated directions, presentations, templates, starter pages, labels, and rubrics, this resource gives teachers plenty of ways to scaffold a challenging but rewarding middle school op art project.
★ Why Teachers Love This Resource
✔︎ This op art eggs lesson connects art to geometry, perspective drawing, science of optical illusions, and color theory, making it a strong interdisciplinary choice.
✔︎ Students can choose from multiple egg designs, including bulging, diamond, mixed shape, irregular, long-shaped, and background options, which makes differentiation much easier.
✔︎ The packet includes illustrated presentations and step-by-step pages that break down a complex process into manageable parts.
✔︎ Optional templates, starter pages, and coloring pages provide support for students who need extra structure.
✔︎ Labels and rubrics are already included, so the lesson is easier to assess and display.
★ What’s Included (123 Pages)
✔︎ Contrasting Colors lesson & presentation (34 pages)
✔︎ Op Art Eggs Presentation (46 pages)
✔︎ Teacher Instructions (9 pages)
✔︎ Vocabulary Terms (3 pages) covering Op Art, perspective, geometry, and color terms
✔︎ Bulging Egg (2 pages)
✔︎ Diamond Egg (2 pages)
✔︎ Mixed Shape Egg (2 pages)
✔︎ Irregular Egg (2 pages)
✔︎ Long Shaped Egg (2 pages)
✔︎ Diamond Egg with Background (2 pages)
✔︎ Mixed Shape Egg with Background (2 pages)
✔︎ Egg Template / Instructions (3 pages)
✔︎ Starter / Coloring Pages (6 pages)
✔︎ Labels and Rubrics (5 pages)
★ How It Works
✔︎ Start with the Contrasting Colors lesson if you want students to review color complements, warm and cool colors, and value before beginning the egg project. The color resource guides students in choosing light and dark contrasting pairs for stronger results.
✔︎ Show the Op Art Eggs Presentation in full-screen mode to introduce how curved horizontal and vertical lines can make an egg appear three-dimensional. The presentation also explains implied contour, foreshortening, eye level, and how a checkered pattern changes when it wraps around a curved form.
✔︎ Students draw an egg, add a grid, and curve the lines inside the egg so the shape appears to bulge outward. They then fill the squares with a checkered pattern or add designs like diamonds and circles.
✔︎ Students can make one or more of 7 different egg designs, ranging from a simpler bulging egg to more detailed mixed-shape and background versions.
✔︎ For students who need support, use the templates, starter sheets, or coloring pages. For students ready for more challenge, let them vary the spacing of lines, add backgrounds, or build more complex shape combinations.
✔︎ Finish with the included labels and rubrics so students can explain their color choices, evaluate how well they created the illusion, and prepare the work for display.
★ FAQs
What grade level works best for this lesson?
✔︎ This resource is best suited for grade 6 and up, though the coloring pages can be used as a starting point for younger students.
Do students need to use color?
✔︎ No. The eggs can be completed in black and white or with contrasting colors. Both approaches are shown in the resource.
Are templates included?
✔︎ Yes. There are optional egg templates, a grid template, starter pages, and coloring pages.
What concepts does this lesson cover?
✔︎ Students work with Op Art, optical illusion, implied contour, positive and negative shapes, color complements, tints and shades, parallel and perpendicular lines, and perspective ideas such as foreshortening and eye level.
Is this a one-day lesson?
✔︎ It can be stretched across multiple class periods, especially if you include the color lesson, vocabulary, and more detailed egg designs. This is one of the more challenging Op Art lessons in the packet.
★ National Standards
VA:Cr1.2.6.a Formulate an artistic investigation of personally relevant content for creating art.
VA:Cr2.1.6.a Demonstrate openness in trying new ideas, materials, methods, and approaches in making works of art and design.
VA:Re8.1.6.a Interpret art by distinguishing between relevant and non-relevant contextual information and analyzing subject matter, characteristics of form and structure, and use of media to identify ideas and mood conveyed.
VA:Cn11.1.6.a Analyze how art reflects changing times, traditions, resources, and cultural uses.
★ Learning Objectives
✔︎ Students will plan and develop an op art egg design that reflects their own design choices while using the lesson structure as a guide.
✔︎ Students will use curved lines, grids, and repeated shapes to create the illusion of form and space in a two-dimensional drawing.
✔︎ Students will analyze how line, shape, color, and structure work together to create an optical illusion.
✔︎ Students will connect their finished artwork to larger ideas in Op Art, color theory, geometry, and perspective.
✨ Give your students a challenging optical illusion drawing lesson where they build bold op art eggs, apply color theory, and create artwork they will be proud to display! ✨
Stay Connected
Thanks for visiting!
Expressive Monkey makes engaging resources that help students build confidence and express themselves through ART!
Oh, wait! Don’t forget to follow me on Teachers Pay Teachers … just click to follow!
***************************************************************
Easily download this zip file with a link that is automatically emailed to you immediately after your purchase and you can begin using this lesson right away!
***************************************************************
If you have a Mac computer, just click on the zip file and it will create a folder (almost magically) filled with all the goodies you just purchased.
Windows uses File Explorer to open zipped files. Here are some easy instructions from Microsoft in case you’ve not done this before.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.