In this “classic” Calvert project, sixth graders first learned about the history of tessellations (and artist M.C. Escher, who is famous for his unique tessellations like the one pictured here) before creating one of their own. Tessellations, which have been around for thousands of years, are a special kind of pattern/design made from repeating shapes called polygons (closed shapes with three or more sides). In tessellation designs, congruent polygons fit together like jigsaw puzzle pieces that repeat again and again- they could go on forever! Students painted their unique tessellation designs using acrylic paint in a warm or cool color scheme of their choice. To create the portrait, on a separate piece of paper, students traced the light and dark areas of their faces using a projected digital photograph. Using the opposite color scheme from their background, they painted their portrait, making sure that the light and dark areas were highly contrasting. Here are the colorful finished pieces!