Lesson 8

Hannah Höch: The Fact File

Last lesson you made the collage. Today you meet the woman who started it all.

🔎

→RESEARCH

One artist. Six headings.
Your own words.Today: dig into Höch's life and build a fact file you're proud of.

Learning Objective:

Research Hannah Höch and select the facts that matter
Organise facts under fact-file headings
Write a fact file in your OWN words

Key words: photomontage • Dada • juxtaposition • fact file • own words

Teacher Print Tools

Pack: KO • arrival quiz • bio sheet • fact-or-filler grid • fact-file frame • scaffolds • exit • feedback sheet.

Bridge

Last lesson: you built a face collage ✂️

You already worked like Höch: you cut eyes, mouths and hair from different photos and glued them into a brand-new face. Today we find out who invented that technique — and you become the expert on her.

🧠 Hold onto these from last lesson

Photomontage — a picture built from cut-up photos.
Juxtaposition — two clashing things placed side by side.
Your collage face used BOTH.

🎯 Where we're heading

Today (L8): research Höch → build a fact file.
Next lesson (L9): study one of her real artworks → write an evaluation like a critic.

Tell your partner ONE thing you remember about your collage face — which two pieces clashed the most?

Use the word "juxtaposition" if you can.

Retrieval Quiz

Arrival Task — Retrieval Quiz (Do Now)

Instructions: Answer from memory. Q4 leads into today.

1) What is a collage?

A picture made by sticking different materials or images onto a surface.

2) Cutting up photos and gluing them into a new picture is called…?

Photomontage.

3) What does juxtaposition mean?

Placing two unrelated/clashing things side by side.

4) In your collage face, which pieces came from DIFFERENT photos?

Open answer — e.g. eyes, mouth, hair from different magazine photos.

1) What's the difference between collage and photomontage?

Collage = any stuck-down materials; photomontage = specifically cut-up photographs.

2) Why did your collage face look strange or unsettling?

The pieces clashed — different scales, tones and sources (juxtaposition).

3) Which artist painted dream-like scenes — Höch's opposite?

Salvador Dalí (Surrealism, painted by hand).

4) A fact file needs facts. What makes a fact DIFFERENT from an opinion?

A fact can be checked/proved; an opinion is what someone thinks.

1) Define photomontage AND name what makes it different from painting.

Cutting and reassembling real photographs; it re-uses real media images rather than inventing by hand.

2) Why is juxtaposition the engine of a photomontage?

The clash between unrelated pieces is what creates the new meaning/message.

3) Give one fact and one opinion about your own collage.

Open — e.g. fact: "I used five cut pieces"; opinion: "the giant eye looks creepy".

4) If you researched an artist, what 3 headings would you use?

Open — e.g. life/born, movement/style, famous work, technique, why they matter.

Starter

Starter — Fact or Filler? 🧐

A good fact file has STRONG facts — not filler. Tap each card: is it a strong fact (⭐ worth writing down) or filler (🗑️ vague, obvious or just an opinion)? Find all 4 strong facts to fill the XP bar.

Strong facts found:0 / 4

"Höch was born in Germany in 1889."

"Höch was an artist who made art."

"She helped invent photomontage."

"I think her pictures look really weird."

"She was the only woman in the Berlin Dada group."

"She cut images from magazines she worked on at a publishing house."

🧭 Test for a strong fact: Is it specific? Can it be checked? Does it teach the reader something new? If yes ×3 — it earns a place in your fact file.

Say one of the FILLER cards out loud and explain to your partner WHY it's weak.

Listen for: "too vague", "just an opinion", "doesn't tell us anything new".

I Do

I Do: Who Was Hannah Höch?

Key Idea: A German Dada artist who invented photomontage — cutting up printed photos to build bold new images that challenged society.

📝 Jot facts as we go — these are the raw material for your fact file. Aim for 5+.

1/10

Tell your partner the ONE fact so far you'd put at the TOP of your fact file — and say why it matters.

Then swap: did you choose the same fact? Listen for "because…"

We Do

We Do: Research Dig ⛏️

Real researchers don't copy everything — they MINE the text. Read the bio together. Tap a sentence to highlight it if it deserves a place in the fact file. Can we find the 6 golden facts?

Hannah Höch was born on 1 November 1889 in Gotha, Germany. She liked drawing as a child. She studied applied arts and graphic design in Berlin.

From 1916 she worked at the Ullstein publishing house, designing patterns for women's magazines — so she was surrounded by printed photos all day. The office was in the centre of Berlin. She became the ONLY woman in the Berlin Dada group — a radical anti-art movement born from disgust at the First World War.

Höch helped invent photomontage: cutting photographs from magazines, newspapers and adverts, then reassembling them into strange new images. She used ordinary scissors and glue. Her most famous work, "Cut with the Kitchen Knife…" (1919), is a chaotic collage attacking German politics and society.

Many people saw her work in galleries. Much of her art questioned beauty standards and the "New Woman" ideal sold by 1920s magazines; later the Nazis branded her work "degenerate", and she kept making art quietly in private until her death in Berlin in 1978. She is still talked about today.

Pick ONE highlighted sentence and shrink it to a 6-word fact with your partner.

e.g. "Invented photomontage — cut-up photo art." Shorter = stronger.

I Do

I Do: Building a Fact File 📇

Key Idea: A fact file isn't a list of copied sentences — it's facts SORTED under headings, written in YOUR OWN WORDS.

Step 0 of 4

Step 1 — The six headings. 👶 Born & died • 🎨 Movement & style • ✂️ Technique • 📰 Day job & life • 🖼️ Famous work • ⭐ Why she matters. Every fact you found fits under one of these.

Step 2 — Sort, don't dump. Take a highlighted fact → ask "which heading does this belong to?" → write it there. A sorted fact file reads like an expert wrote it.

Step 3 — The golden rule: OWN WORDS. Cover the bio. Say the fact out loud to yourself. THEN write it. If your sentence matches the bio word-for-word, you copied — cover and try again.

Step 4 — Finish with a "Why she matters" sentence. This is the expert touch: one sentence that says why anyone should care. Watch what a good one looks like ⤵️

✂️ KEY WORD📌 SPECIFIC FACT🔗 BECAUSE = EXPLAINING⭐ WHY SHE MATTERS

We Do

We Do: Sort the Fact File 🗂️

Practice the sort before you write. Tap a fact (pill), then tap the heading it belongs under. 5 facts, 5 headings.

Sorted:0 / 5

"Born 1889 in Gotha; died 1978 in Berlin"

"The only woman in Berlin Dada"

"Cut up photos and reassembled them"

"Designed magazine patterns at Ullstein"

"'Cut with the Kitchen Knife…' (1919)"

👶 Born & died

🎨 Movement & style

✂️ Technique

📰 Day job & life

🖼️ Famous work

🧠 Heading six — ⭐ Why she matters — has no pill. That's because YOU write that one yourself, in your own voice, during Independent Work.

With your partner, draft a "Why she matters" sentence out loud — one each, then pick the stronger one.

Starter: "Höch matters because…" — ban the word "famous", it's filler!

Independent Work

Independent Work — Build Your Höch Fact File

Your sketchbook, one page, six headings. Use your highlighted facts and the carousel. Golden rule: own words — cover the bio, say it, then write it.

Foundation

Title "Hannah Höch" + the six headings. Write one fact under each heading using the sentence starters. Add 1 small drawing or symbol per heading (e.g. ✂️ for technique).

"Höch was born in _____." • "Her technique was _____."

Middle

Six headings, 6+ facts in your own words (cover-say-write), 1 image/symbol per section, and a full "Why she matters" sentence using "because".

Higher

8+ own-word facts with context (WWI → Dada; 1920s magazines → the "New Woman"), a short Höch vs Dalí comparison under Technique, and a 2–3 sentence "Why she matters" linking her to collage art today.

📋 Scaffolding

Foundation: one starter per heading is on your sheet. Middle: write the fact, then re-read — does it match the bio word-for-word? Rewrite if so. Higher: every fact should answer "so what?" — add the because.

🏆 Success Criteria

Foundation: 6 headings, 1 fact each, own words attempted, 1 symbol per heading.

Middle: 6+ own-word facts sorted correctly, images, "because" in Why she matters.

Higher: 8+ facts with context, Dalí comparison, expert "Why she matters" paragraph.

🚀 Aspire: finished early? Add a "Key words" box (photomontage • Dada • juxtaposition) with your own one-line definitions — you'll need them next lesson when we evaluate a real Höch artwork.

Exit Ticket

Instructions: Answer independently. No notes — your fact file stays closed.

1) What technique did Hannah Höch help invent?

Photomontage — cutting up photos and gluing them into a new image.

2) Name ONE heading from your fact file.

Any of: Born & died / Movement & style / Technique / Day job & life / Famous work / Why she matters.

3) Why must a fact file be in your OWN words?

Copying isn't learning — own words prove you understood it (and it's honest research).

Knowledge Organiser (L8): Hannah Höch — Fact File

Heading	Key facts
👶 Born & died	Born 1 November 1889, Gotha, Germany • Died 1978, Berlin, aged 88
🎨 Movement & style	Berlin Dada — anti-art movement born from disgust at WWI • the ONLY woman in the group
✂️ Technique	Photomontage — cutting photos from magazines/newspapers and reassembling them into new images
📰 Day job & life	From 1916 designed patterns for women's magazines at the Ullstein publishing house • surrounded by printed media imagery
🖼️ Famous work	"Cut with the Kitchen Knife…" (1919) — chaotic collage attacking German politics and society
⭐ Why she matters	Proved cut-up REAL photos could critique society • questioned beauty standards and the "New Woman" • pioneer of all collage art since

Word	Meaning
Fact file	Facts sorted under headings, written in your own words
Photomontage	Cutting & reassembling photos into a new image
Dada	Anti-art movement born from disgust at WWI
Juxtaposition	Placing two unrelated things side by side
Own words	Cover the source → say it → write it — never copy

Arrival Task — Retrieval Quiz (Do Now)

Foundation

1) What is a collage?

2) Cutting up photos and gluing them into a new picture is called…?

3) What does juxtaposition mean?

4) In your collage face, which pieces came from different photos?

Middle

1) What's the difference between collage and photomontage?

2) Why did your collage face look strange or unsettling?

3) Which artist painted dream-like scenes — Höch's opposite?

4) What makes a fact different from an opinion?

Higher

1) Define photomontage and what makes it different from painting.

2) Why is juxtaposition the engine of a photomontage?

3) Give one fact and one opinion about your own collage.

4) If you researched an artist, what 3 headings would you use?

Höch Bio Sheet — mine it for facts, then write in YOUR OWN WORDS

Hannah Höch was born on 1 November 1889 in Gotha, Germany. She studied applied arts and graphic design in Berlin. From 1916 she worked at the Ullstein publishing house, designing embroidery and sewing patterns for women's magazines — surrounding her with printed photographs and mass-media imagery every day.

She became the only woman in the Berlin Dada group, a radical anti-art movement that grew out of disgust at the First World War. Höch helped invent photomontage: cutting photographs from newspapers, magazines and adverts and reassembling them into strange new images. Her most famous work, "Cut with the Kitchen Knife…" (1919), is a chaotic collage attacking German politics and society.

Much of her work questioned beauty standards and the idea of the "New Woman" sold by 1920s magazines. The Nazis branded her work "degenerate" and she lived quietly through the Second World War, continuing to make art in private. She died in Berlin in 1978, aged 88 — remembered as a pioneer of collage.

🖍️ Highlight the 6 golden facts — one for each fact-file heading.

🧐 Starter — Fact or Filler?

Tick ⭐ STRONG FACT or 🗑️ FILLER for each statement — and say why.

Statement	⭐ / 🗑️	Why?
"Höch was born in Germany in 1889."
"Höch was an artist who made art."
"She helped invent photomontage."
"I think her pictures look really weird."
"She was the only woman in the Berlin Dada group."
"She cut images from magazines she worked on at a publishing house."

Fact File Frame — Hannah Höch

👶 Born & died

🎨 Movement & style

✂️ Technique

📰 Day job & life

🖼️ Famous work

⭐ Why she matters

Scaffolding – Foundation

"Höch was born in _____ in the year _____."

"She belonged to an art movement called _____."

"Her technique, called _____, means cutting up _____ and gluing them into a new picture."

"Her day job was designing patterns for _____."

"Her most famous work is called _____."

"Höch matters because _____."

Scaffolding – Middle

Own-words routine: COVER the bio → SAY the fact → WRITE it → CHECK it doesn't match word-for-word.

"Höch matters because…" — banned word: "famous". Use: invented / proved / questioned / influenced.

Every section: fact + one extra detail.

Scaffolding – Higher

Context links: WWI → Dada (anti-art) • 1920s magazines → the "New Woman" • Nazis → "degenerate art".

Technique section: add a 2-sentence Höch vs Dalí comparison (cut real photos vs painted dreams — shared word: juxtaposition).

"Why she matters": 2–3 sentences linking her invention to collage art today.

Independent – Foundation

☐ Title "Hannah Höch" ☐ Six headings ☐ One fact under each (use the starters) ☐ One symbol/drawing per heading

Independent – Middle

☐ Six headings ☐ 6+ facts in own words (cover-say-write) ☐ Image/symbol per section ☐ "Why she matters" with "because"

Independent – Higher

☐ 8+ own-word facts with context ☐ Höch vs Dalí comparison in Technique ☐ 2–3 sentence "Why she matters" ☐ Key words box with own definitions

Exit Ticket – Foundation

1) What technique did Hannah Höch help invent?

2) Name ONE heading from your fact file.

3) Why must a fact file be in your OWN words?

Exit Ticket – Middle

1) Give two strong facts about Höch — from two different headings.

2) What makes a fact "strong" rather than filler?

3) Why did Höch have so many printed photos to cut up?

Exit Ticket – Higher

1) Explain how Höch's day job shaped her art.

2) "Höch matters because…" — finish it like an expert (no "famous").

3) What was Dada, and why did it appear when it did?

Höch Fact File — Feedback Sheet

For next lesson's review. Keep with your sketchbook.

Pupil name:	Date:
Artist: Hannah Höch	Tier: F / M / H

Fact file checklist	Own words check
☐ Six headings ☐ Facts sorted correctly ☐ "Why she matters" included ☐ Images/symbols	☐ Facts don't match the bio word-for-word ☐ At least one "because" explanation

✅ What Went Well (WWW):

🔧 Even Better If (EBI):

✍️ Pupil response — "My next step is…"

Höch Fact File Complete!

Pens down — quick partner check!

Hannah Höch: The Fact File

Teacher Print Tools

Last lesson: you built a face collage ✂️

🧠 Hold onto these from last lesson

🎯 Where we're heading

Arrival Task — Retrieval Quiz (Do Now)

Starter — Fact or Filler? 🧐

I Do: Who Was Hannah Höch?

We Do: Research Dig ⛏️

I Do: Building a Fact File 📇

We Do: Sort the Fact File 🗂️

Independent Work — Build Your Höch Fact File

Foundation

Middle

Higher

📋 Scaffolding

🏆 Success Criteria

Exit Ticket

Knowledge Organiser (L8): Hannah Höch — Fact File

Arrival Task — Retrieval Quiz (Do Now)

Foundation

Middle

Higher

Höch Bio Sheet — mine it for facts, then write in YOUR OWN WORDS

🧐 Starter — Fact or Filler?

Fact File Frame — Hannah Höch

👶 Born & died

🎨 Movement & style

✂️ Technique

📰 Day job & life

🖼️ Famous work

⭐ Why she matters

Scaffolding – Foundation

Scaffolding – Middle

Scaffolding – Higher

Independent – Foundation

Independent – Middle

Independent – Higher

Exit Ticket – Foundation

Exit Ticket – Middle

Exit Ticket – Higher

Höch Fact File — Feedback Sheet