Are you looking for a fun 2026 New Year’s art project? Creating a Vision Board with kids is a great way to create a visual representation of goals, dreams and inspiration! These combine art making, reflection, goal-setting and creative expression, perfect for the start of a new year or at back-to-school time.
Whether you’d like to make them with your students, a small group of kids (like Girl Scouts) or just for yourself, this guide will walk you through what you need to get started: materials to gather, simple steps, brainstorming prompts, and examples. I’ll also share a printable Vision Board Kit you can get that makes it quick and easy to set up this activity. I’ve tried out lots of different materials for vision boards and I’ll share my favorites!
What is a Vision Board?
A vision board is a collection of words, images, pictures or drawings that show your hopes, dreams and goals. It’s a visual representation of your plans and what inspires you. Creating a vision board with kids is a perfect New Year’s art project.
Vision boards are for kids, teens and adults! There is no right or wrong way to make a vision board. They are perfect for art teachers, classrooms or just for yourself for fun!
Why Make a Vision Board with Kids?
- Helps to visualize goals
- Encourages creativity and self-reflection
- Builds confidence and motivation
- Helps students discover what they’re passionate about
- Makes for a great for a New Years art project
What Materials Should I Use on My Vision Board?
Here are some materials you can gather for your vision board:
- Construction paper, scrapbook paper, painted papers or cardstock as your background
- Magazine cut outs, printed images, photos
- Markers, crayons, colored pencils, paints
- Stickers, washi tape, or cut-out shapes
- Handwritten or typed goals and quotes
- Glue sticks and scissors
Step-by-Step: How to Make a Vision Board with Kids
First, like I said before, there is no right or wrong way to make a vision board. Here are just some general tips and suggestions! If you have an example that you have made or some examples you’ve found online, you can show those to your students.
1. Make the background for your vision board.
Start by gathering a variety of papers. You can use painted papers, solid color construction paper, magazine pages or scrapbook papers. While making my vision board, I used some papers that had been painted using watercolors. This is a great time to use up the papers in your scrap box.
In this picture below, I’m sharing my absolute favorite books I have ever bought for collages. They have beautiful, colorful and painterly papers that are awesome for backgrounds of vision boards and also in art journals. I haven’t used them with students, but I frequently tear out papers for my own art journals. (Amazon Affiliate links have been used at no extra cost to you, thanks for supporting this free blog.)
- Paper Play Volume #1 – Cut, Craft, Create by Amy Tangerine
- Paper Play Volume #2 – Cut, Craft, Create
Start with a large poster board or thick piece of paper. My boards are about 18″ x 24″, but you can use a smaller size as well. Cut or tear your background papers and glue to your poster board. Don’t overthink it, just pick the papers that appeal to you.
2. Create a title for your Vision Board that stands out.
Write or type a headline such as “My Vision Board” or “2026 Goals”. A great trick: mount the title on a contrasting color or patterned paper so it really pops.
3. Write out lists of your goals or other ideas you want to capture.
You can write lists such as:
- 3 Things I Want to Learn this Year
- My Goals for the Year
- Things I Want to Try
- Words that Describe Me
- People that Inspire Me
- Things I Love
- Places I Want to Go
- My Art Goal
- Ways I Can Be Kind
To make this project even easier to run, I put together a printable set filled with goal prompts, title headers, and quote boxes your students can use. You can grab the full Vision Board kit here!
In the photo below, you can see how I glued each printed box onto a contrasting color to help it pop on the vision board.
4. Cut out images that inspire you and glue to your board.
Spend some time looking through magazines, old calendars, photos or images online. Cut or print out any images that represent your goals, show things you like or just inspire you. Anything goes, as long as it’s positive and meaningful to you! Some items can be cut into simple squares, and others you can cut out more carefully around their outlines. The variety adds interest to your project.
Notice again how I placed some of the images on black backgrounds to help them pop. Play around with your layout and take your time arranging everything until it feels right!
5. Cut out words or phrases that speak to you.
It is really enjoyable to flip through magazines to find encouraging and inspirational words.
Look for empty spots on your vision board that could use a little extra pizazz. Try layering and overlapping your words on top of other images. In the example below, I glued my phrase on top of the moon picture.
Another option is to write or type your own words and quotes. If you’d like an easy way to have quotes and “power words” ready to use, I have some that are print-and-go. You can check out the Printable Positive Quotes set or the Printable Positive Words set—both are included in the Full Vision Board Kit.
6. Use stickers and washi tape for extra embellishments on your vision board!
Stickers are my favorite embellishment to use on vision boards or art journals. I’m always looking for fun new stickers! Washi tape is also available in so many fun styles.
In the images below, you’ll see some fun ‘Vision Board’–themed stickers. I’m sure there are plenty of great options out there, but these are just the ones I ordered.
- (on the left) Holographic Vision Board Stickers (these are super fun!)
- (on the right) Vision Board Stickers (these are simpler, but more cost effective, there were a couple that were religious)
Besides magazine images, you can also purchase Vision Board image books. I also bought a couple of Vision Board books, both by Free Period Press. I wanted to see what the difference was between them. The one on the left “The Vision Board Book“ is better for grown-ups. It has pictures of adults, words such as “New Job” and pictures related to business. The one on the right “Dream it. Do it.” is more kid-friendly and playful, but still appealing to adults.
So by now you’re probably wondering what my finished Vision Board looks like. Here you go, a finished 2026 Vision Board. In case you haven’t guessed, my motto is “More is More.”
Here is a smaller vision board I made several years ago as a spread in one of my art journals.
If you’d like an easy way to teach your students how to make Vision Boards, I’ve created a full Vision Board Kit that makes this project a breeze. In this kit, you’ll get:
- Vision Board Titles (with years through 2030)
- Printable Positive “Power Words”
- Printable Quotes (in B & W and also cute with colorful designs)
- Printable Goals and Inspiration Prompt boxes
- Vision Board Planning Sheets (an optional way to gather ideas)
- PLUS… a Vision Board Slideshow Presentation that walks your students step-by-step through the entire process. It features the same method I used to create the very first example image in this blog post.
If you are still looking for some fun winter art project ideas, I have a blog post with 15 Winter Art Projects!
Have you ever made vision boards with kids? How do you teach this project?
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