3 Fun and Easy Kindergarten Art Lessons
For me it is always a challenge to keep up with Kindergarten art projects. I see my classes twice per week for 40 minutes, so they get to do a lot of art! They go through lessons and…
Elementary Art Lessons, Projects & Teaching Ideas for K–5
Because art is fundamental to who we are. Art has always been a basic form of human communication. From cave walls to classroom walls, art helps us express ideas, tell stories, and better understand the world around us. I believe art is an essential part of every child's education, which is why I chose the name Art is Basic. Here you'll find K–5 creative art lessons, teaching ideas, and printable resources to help K–5 art teachers inspire young artists.
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Color Theory and Rhythm Drawings by 3rd Grade
This is a project I love to do with the 3rd graders. Their drawing all turn out so unique and fun. First, we talk about what rhythm in art is. Rhythm is like a visual beat in a…
Abstract Shape Collages and Artist Reggie Laurent
Reggie Laurent: Contemporary Artist Reggie Laurent is a self-taught artist living in Georgia. He creates very intricate abstract shape paintings. I saw his paintings online and I was immediately drawn to all of the fun patterns and…
Letter Painting with Kwik Stix
I love Kwik Stix and so do my students. “It’s like drawing with lipstick!” I posted a video review of the product because I liked them so much. Then, the Kwik Stix company saw it and contacted me…
Published Article in Arts & Activities Magazine
I have a new article in Arts & Activities magazine this month! I am very excited. I encourage you to submit articles to magazines if you have ideas you’d like to share. It is very rewarding to see…
A Great Way to Communicate with Parents in Art Class
This year I have started using a new way to communicate with parents. After receiving some feedback last year that parents didn’t know quite what we were learning about with each project, I decided to type up description…
Blogging with Students: A Guest Post
Hi friends! I have a treat for you today. My very intelligent and dedicated co-worker Katie McEnaney is guest posting for Art is Basic today. She was previously our 3rd grade Language Arts/Social Studies/Drama teacher and this year she…
Painted and Doodled Stars Tutorial
I feel like I have stumbled upon my newest art series for my own art. Earlier I wrote a blog post about how to make watercolor doodled flowers. Using a similar technique, I made watercolor mandalas. I have a…
Animal Personality Drawings
Here is a really fun twist on self-portraits! I teach the grades K-4/5 at my school and the middle school art teacher is in charge of grades 5 We have a new art teacher at the middle school…
If I Were President… by Kindergarten
With the election coming up, my kindergarten classes answered the sentence “If I were President, I would make the world a better place by…” and they drew themselves as President. I got this idea from my daughter’s art…
Create a “Create” Banner
I’ve been busy this school year, but proud of myself that I feel like I’m keeping on top of things. It is so easy to feel like you are drowning in artwork, messes and things on your to-do…
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…
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…