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.
A simple face drawing featuring yarn hair, a bow, and colorful paper for eyes and mouth on a white background.

Scrap Faces

 The 1st graders learned about recycled art and how to use unconventional materials in art.  We read 2 books by Hanoch Piven, which feature portraits made out of objects.  The children brought in objects from home that represented…

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A person wrapping yarn around a balloon at a craft table covered with newspapers and supplies, creating String Balls.

String Balls pt. 2

    So, in one of my previous posts, I talked about making string balls.  All you need to do is blow up a balloon, dip yarn in glue and wrap the balloon.  When it dries, pop the balloon…

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Colorful text "ART IS AN EXPLOSION" with paint splatters and shapes on a white background, celebrating creativity.

Art is…

The 3rd/4th grade classes thought about what art means to them.  We also read the book Art Is, by Bob Raczka.  They made a poster that used a slogan about what art can be.

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The Dot features a colorful abstract composition with various shapes and sizes of circles and polygons in bright hues on a light background.

The Dot

Grade K learned about the most very basic marks in art… DOTS and CIRCLES.  The class read the book The Dot, by Peter Reynolds. They also looked at a slide show of artwork that uses dots.  These are…

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A drawing of two sunflowers with black centers in a blue vase, featuring green leaves in the background.

1st grade Sunflowers

Sunflowers Last year, when the 1st graders were in kindergarten, they planted sunflower seeds in the garden in the back of the school. Over the summer, these flowers grew tall and bloomed radiantly. Each child also brought home…

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A spherical craft made of intertwined blue and white yarn hanging from the ceiling in a cluttered room, resembling decorative balls.

String Balls

I have this cool idea to make a mobile out of string balls.  It’s a project where you blow up a balloon, dip strings in glue and place around the balloon.  When the glue dries, you pop the…

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Colorful abstract painting with splashes and circles in blue, green, pink, and yellow on a white background. Incorporating elements of Bubble Prints gives it a unique touch.

Bubble Prints!

After experimenting with several ways of doing bubble prints, I think I found a way that works well.  I poured some kids bubbles into small containers.  Then, I mixed a few drops of food coloring into the containers. …

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