Marcia

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.
  • Joined: January 15, 2013
  • Articles: 1011
  • Comments: 272

Radial Pattern Design

Black and white circular geometric pattern with intricate triangular and diamond shapes forming concentric circles, creating a stunning radial pattern design.

  These were made by 3rd graders.  We learned about radial balance and patterns.  To make a radial design, use a compass to draw 5-6 circles around a center point.  Draw shapes and patterns around the rings.  Color in some…

Mondrian Trees

A painting of a bare tree with swirling branches against a blue-toned, textured background.

  Trees in the Style of Piet Mondrian-–The 4th/5th graders drew trees to complement their studies in Science class.  How can line be used creatively to make a stylized picture?  How can we capture a mood using color?  How can…

Kindergarten Apple Tree Paintings

A child's drawing from kindergarten features a tree with red apples, a flower, and a smiling stick figure under a blue sky with white clouds.

Apple Tree Painting Step One:  Pass out watercolor paper to kindergartners. Step Two: Write name on back! Step Three:  Demonstrate drawing a tree with brown crayon.  Add branches.  Color grass with crayons. Step Four:  Watercolor paint the sky with blue…

Deep Space Sparkle Blog

Logo of Deep Space Sparkle with a colorful dragonfly and text: "Deep Space Sparkle: Art Lessons for Kids, deepspacesparkle.com.

If you have not seen Deep Space Sparkle blog yet, and you are an art teacher, you must check it out! This is one of the first art blogs I started regularly watching for lesson ideas. There are so many…

Complementary Color Quilt Paintings.

Colorful square artwork with blue and orange layers featuring hearts, squiggles, and smiley faces, resembling a quilt. Name "Sophie" in bottom corner.

Complementary Color Quilt Paintings1st Grade Key Concepts:  What are quilts?                          What are complementary colors?                          What are patterns? We previously had done a fabric quilt square and I wanted to tie this project into their study of quilts already.  We learned…

Line Paintings

Colorful vertical brushstrokes in red, yellow, blue, and purple on a white canvas.

What are different types of lines?  What is the proper way to use paints?The kids in kindergarten learned about various types of lines.  We tried to think of all the possible types of lines that we could imagine– wavy, straight,…

Texture Teddy Bears

Child's crayon drawing of a teddy bear with a heart on its belly, showcasing a textured finish, on pink paper with a bordered edge.

To complement the teddy bear theme in their classroom, the kindergartners drew a teddy bear in art class with crayons.  We used texture plates to create texture rubbings on the fur.  On the inside of the teddy bear’s stomach, they…