Many studies of children's learning in Art education have focused on the young child working in two-dimensional processes. This study examined ways in which emerging-adolescents worked three dimensionally with clay. The purpose of the study was to discover whether the introduction of adult models of three-dimensional form would affect the way the child perceived and constructed threedimensional form. These models were presented as perceptual frames of reference related to the problem confronting the child. The development of perceptual differentiation skills and perceptual, manipulative and conceptual modes of learning underpin this investigation. Four intact classrooms of 12 year olds were studied and the results were examined by a panel of judges. A rating scale devised by the author was applied to each model. The scale was designed to measure five aspects of three-dimensional form. Results indicated that three-dimensional art works made by adults do affect aspects of the way children approach visual problem solving. Implications for the use of such frames of reference in the art classroom and indications of associated motivational and attitudinal changes are presented in the study.