What do you do when students finish an assigned project before the rest of the class? Finding fun and engaging things for your early finishers in art can be challenging! As an elementary art teacher, you probably have this situation where some kids work really quickly and others stretch a project out for much longer than you anticipated. I thought I had written about this recently, but it turns out it’s been quite a few years, so I thought I would revisit it.
First, I would first make sure that students are completing a project to the best of their abilities and putting in as many details as they can. I also try to pace a multi-step project so kids are not rushing ahead to finish. For example, one day we do brainstorming. No one moves on beyond that. The next day we do the drawing and laying out our ideas. No one moves beyond that. Then the follow day add colors and details. I also will give goals for the day, so students know “by the end of this period, you should be at this point.” So, hopefully, your slower paced students will aim to be at those points and you won’t have as many early finishers in art class. In this previous blog post, I gave some ideas for extending a project or independent work.
What To Do with Early Finishers in Art?
Today, I am going to share with you my Early Finishers in Art Station! My room is not one of the rainbow Instagram classrooms you will see scrolling through your feed. I have a small room and it’s more like organized chaos in here! Keep reading to see what are the most popular art centers in my class.
Magnetic Blocks for Kids Who Finish Early
These are a new building toy I discovered this year- magnetic blocks! They are a HIT with my students. They are so easy to build with, come in fun designs (inspired by video games) and they have a satisfying click when they snap together! I have a longer review here about them.
(Amazon affiliate links used at no extra cost to you. The small amount of commission earned goes towards maintaining this website, which is to help other art teachers with ideas and resources. Thanks for your support!)
I have several sets that are all mixed together. Check out this basic set here. Here is another magnetic building block set! This particular brand has boxes to check on the Amazon page to receive a coupon discount- make sure to check that to bring down the price. There is also this cherry blossom set which is cute.
This pink unicorn set is also very cute!
This one also has some cute video game inspired characters!
This icy blue winter themed set is very fun.
Hashtag Blocks as an Art Early Finisher Option
These little hashtag blocks are amazing! Kids use their creativity to build all kinds of interesting little things. And, there’s very little mess to clean up! You can buy the name brand ones called Plus Plus blocks (which are kind of expensive) OR you can (do this, it’s cheaper) buy little tubes of them in the Dollar Spot at Target throughout the year. They come and go with different colors, so when you see them, you can stock up on them!
Magnetic Tiles for Building
Magnatiles or Picasso Tiles are another super popular option for students to build with. They offer endless opportunities for creativity and collaboration. They are pretty sturdy, I’ve only had one break in about 10 years of using them. I found a big box on Facebook marketplace for a reasonable price. I’ve become quite good at scouring Facebook marketplace, jumping on offers in local “Buy Nothing” groups on Facebook, digging at garage sales and so forth. I highly recommend doing that and seeing what you might find.
Animal Figurines to Add on To Your Builds
Pair these animal figurines with Magna-tiles, blocks or Lego bricks and the kids will have a blast creating all kinds of buildings, pens and scenarios with these animals. You can buy tubes of these from Amazon or look for people getting rid of them at garage sales and on Facebook marketplace.
Lego Bricks are Always a Creative Early Finisher Option!
Lego bricks are a classic center idea for the art room. Another idea is to ask parents if they have old pieces to donate.
Flower Building Toy for Kids
This flower building set is so much fun and perfect for your little aspiring gardeners. Even the boys like building with these. Just be careful they aren’t building them super high to knock over, we had a couple break like that! There are so many fun and colorful pieces in this flower building set!
LCD Drawing Boards/Writing Tablets
These are really fun to draw on. Saves paper! This drawing board set comes three in a package. They are very lightweight, but also very thin. You need to be careful and not make sure your kids are rough housing with them because they could probably break if you’re too rough with them. We’ve already lost one of the styluses, but you can actually just use your finger or a wooden stick to draw on it. All you do is draw on the board and then if you want to erase it, you hit the garbage can button on the bottom. The back of it has a “lock” and “unlock” switch so you don’t accidentally push the trash button.
How to Draw and Children’s Books
Books are always, always a great option for kids. I find they love pop-up books, colorful books, Look and Find books and books about artists. Where’s Waldo is still popular with kids. And it’s great for looking and seeing skills. Check out my Amazon shop for my favorite How-to-Draw books. These are some great ideas for children’s books.
This is the Book Browser Storage Unit I bought to display some books and building toys.
Play-Doh Creations
Play-Doh is another favorite extension activity for my students. I have 4 mini-containers of Play-Doh for each student in a plastic bag labeled with their name (for grades K-2). I find if they have their own bag and their own containers, they are more responsible about keeping it nice and putting the lids back on. If you have too many kids to do this, then just buy one pack and they can share.
Origami Folding for Early Finishers in Art
The older kids at my school really love origami. Here are a few of my favorite beginner origami books.
Another Great Early Finisher Option: Coloring Pages
Coloring helps people of all ages to de-stress and spark creativity. It can be a way to meditate and focus on the moment. I would never use coloring pages in place of actual art lessons, but spending a few minutes of class during free time is just fine! There are many free coloring pages you can find on the internet, or you can check out one of my coloring page bundles!
Word Searches!
I also have a whole bunch of art word searches available! These can be grabbed as a bundle or individually.
Art Centers or Stations for Early Finishers in Art
While I don’t have the space for ongoing free choice art stations, this could work if you have extra room in your classroom to set up centers. I have also used these signs for a free choice art center day! This listing below has 43 different possible art centers to pick from. You can print out these signs, place them in a plastic sign holder and put them by your centers. With this package, you’ll also get teacher tips, descriptions and recommended supplies!
Here are more popular printable options for early finishers in Art!
What Do I Do When I’m Done? poster
“What do I do when I’m done?” These posters will help your students decide what to do when they finish an assigned art project. There is a PDF version (non-editable) and a PPT version that is editable.
These colorful files can be printed, cut out and glued to a large poster board. You can use either the full size sheets or cut them smaller. You can also use Velcro for the cards if you want to switch them throughout the year.
Well I hope this helps you as you set up your classroom and start to think about options for enrichment for your students as they finish their art projects. Let me know if you have any questions or comments!
Discover more from Art is Basic | Elementary Art Projects
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.