What can you do with a plastic water bottle besides just recycle it?? Here’s one idea…. make something fishy!! Celebrate civic engagement through art making! In honor of their 30th anniversary, the Children’s Museum of Art in NYC is issuing a new creative challenge each month. Are you ready to get creative? The #CMACIVICKIDS challenge for April is the "Plastic Bottle … [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...]
Quilled Paper Designs
Quilling, also known as paper filigree, is an art form that involves rolling and gluing thin strips of paper into various shapes and arranging them to form designs. Quilled paper designs can be very simple or as complex as you have the dexterity and patience for! The art of quilling dates back to the Renaissance when French and Italian monks and nuns would use … [Read more...]
Underwater Fantasy inspired by Paul Klee
Swiss painter and graphic artist, Paul Klee, is known for his child-like use of line and color.... maybe that's why kids relate so well to his work! The influence of Surrealism, Expressionism, and Cubism is easily seen in his art, yet he really had a style all his own. This project is inspired by his painting, "Fish Magic", where he combines traditional underwater imagery … [Read more...]
Oil Pastel Fish – Kindergarten Style!
Oil pastels, with their rich colors and expressive line quality, are one of my favorite mediums to use with kids. And the key to getting the best results with any oil pastel lesson is LAYERING! Materials:12x18 black construction paperOil pastels (We use the Pentel 16 color set.)Directions: 1. Set aside your black oil pastel... you won't use it until the end!2. To begin this … [Read more...]
Drawing Fish with Lines and Shapes
In Kindergarten this year, we've been focusing on drawing the world around us using lines and shapes. This colorful fish was drawn by Gabe. For this project, we first read a story about different kinds of fish, and talked about the shapes, lines, and patterns we saw in each one.... lots of ovals, triangles, circles and rectangles, and lines of all kinds: straight, zig zag, … [Read more...]
Watercolor Fish
These are your basic crayon resist fish, but with a new twist.... students painted the fish separately from the background, then we glued them on top after everything was dry. The result is a background that looks continuous. Try sprinkling some salt on your background before it dries for an interesting, "watery" effect! I like to put up lots of visual references for students … [Read more...]
Foil Fish
Self-adhesive mounting board made this project a snap to prep and clean up! Special thanks to Mabel Gidcumb for sharing this fun lesson plan, which she adapted from a project in the Usborne Book of Art Projects. She made these colorful fish with her Vacation Bible School kids and reports that it was a huge success! They used self-adhesive mounting board, but you could also … [Read more...]
“Catch of the Day” – Ceramic Fish
Clay fish platter by AllisonKids love clay! There's just something about getting your hands covered with mud that kids can't resist! Clay is a great medium for learning about texture and form, and its possibilities are endless. Here are my directions for this fun fish platter.... a perfect summer project!Directions:1. Draw a fun fish design on a piece of 9x12 construction … [Read more...]
Abstract Scatch Art
This project was inspired by Swiss artist Paul Klee. Paul Klee (1879-1940) was an abstract artist known for his highly individual style, which was influenced by many different art movements, including Expressionism, Cubism and Surrealism. Random colors in the background appear as your design is scratched out, offering a fun surprise whether you create a partial or total … [Read more...]
