Googly Eyed Sticker Monsters
With Halloween coming, this is an especially fun open-ended project for little kids. I did this with kids up to grade 3 and they were super excited to come up with their own monsters. Supplies needed (Amazon affiliate…
Art Projects for Kids + Tips for the Teacher!
Art Projects for Kids + Tips for the Teacher!
Elementary Art Projects & Creative Lessons for Kids
Welcome to Art is Basic, a blog full of elementary art lessons, easy art projects, and teaching ideas for K-5 classrooms. Browse hundreds of engaging activities designed to inspire young artists.
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How to Get Traffic to a Blog: Blogging Basics, Part Four
Are you interested in starting a blog? Here are some tips for you! If you missed the other posts in this series, be sure to read: Blogging Basics Part One: Why Blog and How to Choose a…
How to Make a Watercolor Mandala
Earlier this summer I wrote a blog post about how to make watercolor doodled flowers. These mandalas I created were made with a very similar technique. Both these mandalas and the flowers were made by starting with watercolor…
How to Write a Blog Post that People Will Read: Blogging Basics, Part Three
If you missed the other posts in this series, be sure to read: Blogging Basics Part One Blogging Basics Part Two So, you started a blog, picked a name and have a great idea for your first post. …
ABC Art Sketchbook for Kindergarten and 1st Grade: Plus one FREE DOWNLOAD
New product alert! I’ve been working on this fun and very educational printable booklet for Kindergarten and 1st Grade in art class. This printable booklet features the ABCs of art class. This book is perfect for Kindergartners and…
Blogging Basics, Part Two: Choosing a Blog Name and Getting Ideas
If you missed the first post in this series, check out Blogging Basics for Teachers and Other Creatives, Part One. In that post I share reasons to start blogging and how to choose a blogging platform. In…
Blogging Basics for Teachers and Other Creatives: Part One
So… you want to start a blog about teaching or art? One of the questions I get asked frequently is how do you start a blog? I asked the experts (other popular art bloggers) to share advice about…
All About Me Collaborative Puzzle Pieces
You are part of the puzzle! Each student in my older grades (3-5) made a puzzle piece about themselves and their interests. I should have written: You are a PIECE of the puzzle. Or, I could have said:…
Article in Arts & Activities Magazine
I’m pretty excited my article in the October issue of Arts & Activities is on the cover! I wrote about an art project my students did after learning about the artist William Wegman. I had the awesome opportunity to…
Annual Art Re-Swap
Today I am going to show you some fun pictures of super cool art teacher finds that I picked up at an Art Re-Swap. My city has an art supply swap at least once a year and it…
Art is Basic Newsletter
Hello friends! Did you know Art is Basic has a newsletter? If you sign up for my newsletter, you will receive emails about once or twice per month from me. The newsletters will point you to blog posts…
The Best Thing I Did to Start My School Year
Hi! Welcome back to another artsy school year! I had a brilliant breakthrough this summer while reading Facebook Art Teacher groups online. Someone had created a video about their rules and procedures for their art room. I saw…
Inspirational Quotes into Artworks
At the end of last year my students created some inspirational quote artworks using artistic lettering and their choice of media. I typed up a list of inspirational quotes (below) for them to choose from. Many of the…
3-D Bedroom Constructions and Perspective
This is an example of how teacher-directed projects (perspective and interior models) can include lot of student choice and opportunities for creativity. When I went to the Art Institute of Chicago this Spring, I was lucky to be…
Free Symmetry Challenge Sheet
I have been working on making printable activity sheets to put into sketchbooks for my students. My plan is to have them work on some of these for “bell ringers” or 5 minute warm-ups while they are waiting…