OBJECTIVE After discussing well known monumental works, students will design and propose their own monuments, thinking in terms of non-traditional representation.     VOCABULARY monumental, scale, commission, memorial, symbol, maquette     MATERIALS Images of monuments Drawing paper and/or posterboard Pencils, colored pencils, colored pens, etc. Writing paper   BACKGROUND As with many of his contemporaries, Rodin sought recognition by competing for public monuments. Throughout his lifetime, Rodin received numerous commissions for public monuments, such as The Bughers of Calais and the Monument to Balzac. Many of his monumental works did not see completion due to insufficient public funding or because the works were clouded with controversy due to Rodin's frequent departure from tradition. The public was accustomed to monuments that portrayed recognizable and traditional poses. Rodin often opted for more symbolic approaches as with is Monument to Victor Hugo and his uncompleted Monument to Whistler.    PROCEDURE Discuss examples of Rodin's monuments and then brainstorm about monuments students are familiar with— such as The Statue of Liberty, the Washington Monument, Mount Rushmore, etc. Discuss how these subjects and ideas are represented.   Using the following suggested subjects, ask the students to make drawings of the three different ideas. Each idea should be accompanied by a written proposal of why their project would be the best representation for the monument. Encourage students to think of depicting the subject in a non-traditional or symbolic way.   Ask student volunteers to serve as a judging committee to decide which idea would work best for each concept. They should be prepared to defend their choices.     Suggested subjects for monumental activity Propose a monument for your school that would represent the importance of education. Your city is building a new civic center. Design a monument that would symbolize the diversity of your community. Plan a monument for a new performing arts complex that would represent the diversity of the arts.     EXTENSION The class can bring in photos of various monuments from different places and different times in history. They can display them on a bulletin board and write a brief description to accompany each photograph to show the diversity of their examples.   Have students select a monument to research and report on.