Drawing Maps for Figurines with 2nd Graders
I came up with this idea from my daughter’s obsession with playing with her figurines and maps. She has a few of these map sets that come with a large fold-out map, a book and a bunch of related figurines…
Marcia
Marcia is an elementary art teacher and loves painting, drawing, sculpture, art journaling and clay. Her blog, Art is Basic, features many exciting art projects for kids.
Art Discussion Signs for Bulletin Boards
I have been dreaming about how I will be setting up my art room next year, as we will be having two art rooms and I will have a lot more space! The art discussion cards that I created have…
Carving Rubber Stamps with 5th and 6th Graders
Before I left for my maternity/medical leave, my 5th and 6th graders were carving rubber stamps. They were turning out so well and I can’t wait to see all of the finished projects. Here are some of our stamps from…
Non-objective Art Drawing – Shapes, Shading, Texture and Lines
Before I left for maternity leave, my 3rd graders were working on this Non-objective Line Design drawing. This was a lesson I wrote up last year for Scholastic Art magazine. I showed them a slideshow of artwork and they categorized…
Penguin Collage Paintings with Kindergarteners
Thank you, Patty Palmer, for this fun penguin collage project idea! We used paint dotters to paint the backgrounds instead of paintbrushes (and I also didn’t get out all the extra collage supplies because so much of our stuff is…
Fruit and Flowers Drawing with Watercolor Pencils
Fruit and Flowers: I colored in the sketch that I showed you here. I mostly used colored pencils, watercolor pencils and watercolor paints. A Mouse:My 5th/6th graders are painting animals and my go-to demo is always a mouse or hamster. …
Concentric Patterned Hearts: 2nd Grade Valentine’s Day Project
Concentric means that the shapes share the same center and are placed inside one another. Patterns are arrangements of repeated parts Creating concentric patterned hearts are a great way to explore creativity, pattern making, size and shape. We made these…
Artsy Book Club
Did you join the Artsy Book Club on Facebook? It was started by Cassie Stephens. You should come join us! We are starting to work through the book One Drawing A Day: A 6-Week Course Exploring Creativity with Illustration…
Paper Mache Masks — 3rd & 4th Grade
These paper mache masks by the 3rd/4th grade received lots of compliments when they were hanging in the hallway. The class was studying Native American history in their Social Studies and we looked at some Pacific Northwest Coast masks and…
100th Day of School Art Project: Kindergarten
Our 100th day of school was this past Friday and I thought I would participate with a 100th day art project for the first time ever. If your 100th day of school has already passed, this might be a project…
Map of My Heart | A Valentine’s Day Art Project for Kindergarten
My students made maps of their hearts! This is a charming project that gives you a window into the lives of your students. First, they drew a large heart and then inside the heart they included things or people that…
Vote for Art is Basic!
Hey readers! I’m happy to announce I’m in the running for the top 10 art ed blogs of the year over at The Art of Ed. I would be so honored to have your vote for Art is Basic.…
Have You Ever Drawn Flowers with Watercolor Pencils?
The week after winter break was up in the air. Due to construction, we weren’t sure if we were going to be able to use our art room and we didn’t know if we would have easy access to supplies. …
Creating a Collage with a Preschooler (My Little Pony!)
What did I do on our two “cold” days off school this week? Well, besides snuggling under the warm covers and working on some school work, my 4 year old and I made some canvas collages for her bedroom. While…
Mixed Media Masks for 2nd Grade
How many of you have also been off of school Monday and Tuesday this week? This is our 4th day off of school because of cold weather. It is supposed to be -45 windchills tomorrow morning, so we already know…