A great result

In a previous post I discussed that I was given the opportunity to teach an art lesson to fifth through eighth graders based on the Lewis and Clark Expedition. Well this past Thursday, May 8th, was the big day. It was an ambitious project. There were three realistic portraits of Lewis, Clark, and Sacajawea. The Lewis and Clark portraits were based on paintings by Charles Wilson Peale. He painted the likes of George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Andrew Jackson as well. The Sacajawea was a photo of an actress portraying her. I had around two hours and fifteen minutes with the kids. I wasn't sure if it would all come together, because that is really not a lot of time for this kind of project. I did my research before hand. I also knew a bit about the expedition from helping my tutoring student with his history project on the subject. What I didn't realize at the beginning of this project though was that I would find the most perfect historical example of Romans 8:28.
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him, who have been called according to His purpose. NIV
The New Century Version states it like this;
We know that in everything God works for the good of those who love Him. They are the people He called, because that was His plan.

For those who do not know the story, let me explain briefly. Sacagawea was a Shoshoni
Native American. She had been kidnapped from her family during a raid by another tribe when she was still a small child. She ended up being married to a French Canadian trader. This trader knew French and several native American languages. Sacajawea knew some of the same ones as well as several more. In this way they were able to communicate with each other. Around this time, President Thomas Jefferson assigned his friend and personal secretary Meriwether Lewis to explore the land that had been given to America after the Revolution by the British as well as the new land acquired from the French in the Louisiana Purchase. Jefferson wanted the USA to be populated throughout her borders, but no one really knew what was out there. William Clark had served in the army with Captain Lewis. Together they set off in May. When winter set in they had reached the land of the Mandan Indian tribe. Here they built a fort to wait out the winter and ended up meeting the French Canadian trader and his young and pregnant wife Sacajawea. It was agreed that when Spring came the trader and his wife would accompany Lewis and Clark as interpreters. When they set out Sacajawea carried her then two month old infant son named Jean-Baptiste in a sling. This arrangement with Sacajawea would end up becoming the most crucial aspect of the whole expedition. It was their plan to get to the Continental Divide, find a west bound river and raft it all the way down to the Pacific Ocean. The problem at this point though was that they needed horses. The expedition met a Shoshone Tribe who were not necessarily excited to meet them. Lewis and Clark asked Sacajawea and her husband to interpret for them so that the tribe's chief would know that no harm was meant and that in fact the expedition could really use a little help. Through the discussion with the Shoshone chief, Sacajawea learned that this was the very tribe that she had been stolen from as a child and that the chief was in fact her brother. The expedition was able to take advantage of this familial relationship and trade guns for 30 horses that would help them get to the Continental Divide. Winter set in again and there was no food. Any grass was eaten up by the horses and there was no game to hunt. Their only chance for survival was to eat some of the horses. They were able to make it as you well know, and westward expansion began. Just think, if Sacajawea had not been taken from her family, Lewis and Clark probably would have died that winter and never made it to the Continental Divide. Just think about that the next time you wonder why bad things happen.
On a side note, my class went great. I think the kids really enjoyed it, and they completed some great pieces. I will get to talk to some of the parents tomorrow at church so I'll hopefully get a good report from them too.
*Edit Note*
The first piece is oil pastel. I applied it directly like crayon and then used a Q-Tip dipped in baby oil to blend the colors and give it a more painted texture.
The second piece is pencil and the third is pen.
For the lesson, I gave each student a black line(like a coloring page) of each portrait to reference. I then proceed to guide them line by line by line through drawing each portrait. At the end the students were allowed to choose which portrait was their favorite and to use the oil pastel and baby oil medium to complete it.
It was my original intention to instruct in each medium but time constraints prevented it. I will see if one of the students will let me borrow their finished pieces to display here later.

There is a great online interactive game over here at National Geographic to help you learn more about the famous duo.