{"id":820788,"date":"2025-08-22T09:05:04","date_gmt":"2025-08-22T16:05:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/?p=820788"},"modified":"2025-08-22T09:05:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-22T16:05:09","slug":"free-lesson-plan-1-sgraffito","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/free-lesson-plan-1-sgraffito\/","title":{"rendered":"Bring Ancient Art into the Digital Age with This Scratch Art-Inspired Lesson\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you\u2019re looking for a way to blend art history, culture, and hands-on creativity in your classroom, this one\u2019s for you. This Digital Sgraffito \u2013 Modern Scratch Art lesson takes an age-old technique and reimagines it for today\u2019s digital learners. It\u2019s the perfect way to explore artistic tradition while giving your students a chance to play with color, texture, and digital tools in an expressive, low-pressure way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>So, what is sgraffito?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Sgraffito is an Italian word meaning \u201cto scratch,\u201d and it refers to a technique where layers of material are scratched away to reveal what\u2019s underneath. It was popular during the Renaissance and can still be found today in architectural facades, pottery, and even murals around the world. In traditional art classrooms, sgraffito often shows up in the form of scratching oil pastels to reveal color \u2013&nbsp;but now, students can explore this same effect digitally.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This 1-2 day lesson is adaptable for upper elementary through high school and works across various paid, low-cost, or free digital art tools like Adobe Photoshop, Chrome Canvas, and Paint Sumo. Students will learn to work with layers, explore textured eraser brushes, and develop a deeper understanding of how digital media can replicate \u2013 and even expand upon \u2013&nbsp;traditional artmaking processes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>What\u2019s in the lesson plan?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A mini-lesson on the history and cultural context of sgraffito<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Step-by-step instructions for setting up a digital canvas and using layers and eraser tools to \u201cscratch\u201d into a top color layer<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Discussion and reflection prompts to deepen understanding<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The process is simple, but the outcomes are as diverse and expressive as your students. Whether they\u2019re designing abstract patterns, animals, or cultural motifs, the digital sgraffito effect creates bold, high-contrast pieces that pop off the screen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This lesson is also a great introduction to working with digital layers and non-destructive editing \u2013&nbsp;concepts that are foundational for students interested in digital design, illustration, or animation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1080\" height=\"540\" src=\"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2023\/02\/202206-Wacom-Education-School-Classroom-146_LowRes-1080x540.jpeg\" alt=\"Wacom tablet in classroom with teacher\" class=\"wp-image-809951\" title=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2023\/02\/202206-Wacom-Education-School-Classroom-146_LowRes-980x490.jpeg 980w, https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/40\/2023\/02\/202206-Wacom-Education-School-Classroom-146_LowRes-480x240.jpeg 480w\" sizes=\"(min-width: 0px) and (max-width: 480px) 480px, (min-width: 481px) and (max-width: 980px) 980px, (min-width: 981px) 1080px, 100vw\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Download the lesson plan \u2013 and get even more<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">We\u2019ve made it easy for you to bring this lesson to life in your classroom.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"http:\/\/bit.ly\/lessonplan1-blog\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Download the full Digital Sgraffito Lesson Plan and get started<\/a>!<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Want the full set of teacher resources?<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There's more than just the lesson plan, though. <a href=\"https:\/\/bit.ly\/lessonplan1-blog\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Sign up for our Education Newsletter<\/a> and you\u2019ll receive:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>A downloadable slide deck you can use to guide your students through the lesson<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Monthly lesson plans and project ideas delivered to your inbox<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Bonus classroom resources and tips for integrating drawing tablets and digital tools<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Whether you\u2019re just beginning to explore digital art, or are looking to expand your library of creative lessons, this is a great activity to spark curiosity, connect to art history, and empower students to experiment with digital techniques in a meaningful way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Ready to scratch the surface \u2013&nbsp;and beyond?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Get the lesson plan, the detailed slide deck, and sign up for our Educators eNewsletter by <a href=\"https:\/\/bit.ly\/lessonplan1-blog\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">clicking here<\/a>!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you\u2019re looking for a way to blend art history, culture, and hands-on creativity in your classroom, this free, all-ages digital art lesson plan is for you.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":820691,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2325,2637,2330,2317,2656],"tags":[2913],"class_list":["post-820788","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-back-to-school","category-classroom","category-creative-education","category-digital-drawing-painting","category-education","tag-lesson-plan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/820788","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=820788"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/820788\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/820691"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=820788"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=820788"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/community.wacom.com\/en-us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=820788"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}