For centuries, artists have created self-portraits to give others a glimpse into who they are. Since our likes and dislikes, personalities, hobbies, and skills all contribute to making us interesting and unique, why not include those in a self-portrait, too? And what could be a more fun approach to this than a mixed media collage??! For this project we used a bit of … [Read more...]
Most Inspiring Book of 2017
My favorite books this year have not been books about teaching art to kids, or even books about ART at all. But they are relevant to teachers and parents…. and everyone, really. The three books I’ll be sharing with you are inspiring, life-changing, and important. The most inspiring book I read this year was A Little Radical - The ABC’s of Activism, by Danica and Jason … [Read more...]
22 Ways to Combine Writing & Art to Encourage Creativity
I recently had the privilege of helping my adult daughter edit the manuscript for her first book. Her first real, published book. A book with an agent, a publisher, a release date (April 2017), and it’s own pre-order page on Amazon. A proud parenting milestone for sure! But this book of hers has been a long time in the making. In fact, we can trace its origin all the way back … [Read more...]
Make a Leaf Collage
Now that summer’s here, how do you keep your kids learning, creating, and spending more time outdoors than in front of a screen? One way is with this inspiring little book, “Look What I Did with a Leaf!” by Morteza E. Sohi. This is not so much a read-aloud type of book that you would share with a roomful of students, but rather a book to enjoy at home with your kids, or for … [Read more...]
Basic Japanese Notan Designs for 1st Grade & Up
Are you looking for an easy project that will give your youngest students more practice with scissors? This very basic Japanese Notan lesson is perfect for working on cutting and gluing skills, and kids will love the striking designs they create! Notan is a type of Japanese art that uses the contrast of light and dark to make an eye-catching composition. (Pronounce it just like … [Read more...]
Christmas in July! Japanese Notan-Inspired Ornaments
Even though Christmas falls on the same day every year, it still manages to sneak up on me! Why is that??! My best intentions are always to post some new Christmas art projects & ideas a month or two ahead of time, but then the busyness of the season just gets the best of me! So my answer to that is to get a head start by posting them in July! My 5th graders loved making … [Read more...]
Save Your Catalogs!
Catalogs of all kinds can be a great resource for collage projects and more. Here are two of my favorites, which I'm always happy to find in my mailbox! I save them for their pages full of color, texture, and pattern... perfect for my Fundraiser House Magnets, and any project where you need a cheap (free!) substitute for expensive scrapbooking paper. If you don't already … [Read more...]
Masterpiece Mosaics: a Collaborative Art Project for Grades K – 8
These colorful projects, which I call "Masterpiece Mosaics", were a collaborative effort by my students in grades K through middle school. Each grade level created their own copy of a famous painting - six masterpieces in all, on display now through Christmas at our local art store. These were really pretty easy to do, and super FUN! We're hoping they'll command a high price at … [Read more...]
Basic Collage with Positive and Negative Shapes
I do this project with my first graders every year to help them understand the concept of positive and negative shapes. This project also teaches symmetry and offers important practice in cutting on a fold and applying glue. First graders are often surprised by the shapes they see when they unfold their papers - they are some pretty cute kids! Materials: 9x12 black (or … [Read more...]
Blossoming “Popcorn Trees”
Spring has sprung, and to celebrate, our Kinders painted trees blossoming with flowers made of popcorn! This lesson reinforces the color mixing skills we've been working on all year, as well as teaches a basic technique for drawing/painting trees. Adding popcorn also gives the opportunity to talk about the concept of "mixed media". And who doesn't love … [Read more...]