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7 Secrets to Success for Using Oil Pastels with Kids

By Cheryl Trowbridge 2 Comments

A child's oil pastel artwork illustrating the 7 secrets to success for using oil pastels with kids

Your K-8 students can create stunning works of art by following these secrets to success for using oil pastels. Kids love the clear, bright colors of oil pastels and their creamy consistency. They can cover a large area quickly, which makes them ideal for the shorter attention spans of early elementary students. Parents and teachers love that oil pastels are … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Burch, Laurel, Cezanne, Paul, Chagall, Marc, Coloring, Famous Artists, Impressionism, Oil Pastel, Post Impressionism, Tips for Teaching Art, Van Gogh, Vincent Tagged With: clean-up tips, oil pastels, secrets to success, supplies, teaching tips

5 Fun Art Ideas with Pencil and Paper

By Cheryl Trowbridge 2 Comments

A young girl drawing

If you're looking for alternatives to screentime for your kids, nothing beats going "old school" with a pencil and paper! It's amazing how much fun can be had with such simple supplies. What you'll need All you need is a pencil, some paper, a flat surface to draw on, and my free download, "5 FUN Art Activities Kids Can Do with a Pencil & Paper". An eraser can also be … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Paper, Art Games / Activities, Drawing, Pencil, Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: drawing activities, drawing lessons, free download, teaching tips, tip vault, tips

Basic Collage with Positive and Negative Shapes

By Cheryl Trowbridge 9 Comments

Colorful 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...]

Filed Under: Abstract Design, Collage, Cutting, Mixed Media, Paper, Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: collage, paper, positive/negative space, scissors, symmetry, teaching tips

A Safer Way to Send Artwork Home

By Cheryl Trowbridge 3 Comments

1st grader holding art in a tube

Without a doubt, the best way to send artwork home is tucked safely inside a portfolio, or a homework folder if the art is a smaller size.  But when that's not an option, here's your next best bet.... simply roll the artwork (with the drawing or painting facing inward) and slip it inside a cardboard tube ring.  Rubber bands and paper clips will often damage the artwork, but a … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: cardboard tube rings, teaching tips

Better Bulletin Boards!

By Cheryl Trowbridge 5 Comments

Bulletin boards are a great way to exhibit student art throughout the year, and let the world (or at least your school) see what your students have been up to. Use bulletin boards to teach a concept, tell a story, share a message, or just brighten everyone's day! (The bulletin board above, created with oil pastels by my 3rd graders, is one of my all-time favorites.... it even … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Bulletin Boards, Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: bulletin boards, teaching tips

Fight Germs… and Marker Stains, Too!

By Cheryl Trowbridge 10 Comments

Have you ever thought about all the germs that your students share, while sharing those innocent classroom supplies like crayons, scissors and pencils?? Here's a great tip from our Kindergarten aide "extraordinaire", Michelle L.Keep a small spray bottle filled with household rubbing alcohol (91% works best) for tackling germs as well as permanent marker stains on tables and … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Supplies / Products, Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: teaching tips

Get Ready for a New School Year!

By Cheryl Trowbridge 3 Comments

My basic supplies for teaching "affordable" art.... most of my lessons use just these simple materials.Preparing for a new school year can be an enormous job! But like anything else, if you break it down into smaller, more manageable tasks, it's a lot less overwhelming! Here's what works for me....The first step is to get back into the classroom (or storage/prep area, … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Lessons, Supplies / Products, Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: basic supplies, teaching tips

Easy Borders – Without Measuring!

By Cheryl Trowbridge 2 Comments

Creating a border without using a rulerUsing rulers is an important skill for kids to develop, but it can add a lot of time (and sometimes frustration) to an Art lesson. Sometimes it's best to do a separate lesson on using rulers and find ways to avoid them during Art time!In my last teacher workshop, I shared an easy way to create a border without having to use a ruler. … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: borders, teaching tips

Teacher Workshop: Self-Portraits!

By Cheryl Trowbridge 8 Comments

I just finished the 4th workshop in my "Teaching Teachers to Teach Art" series. This workshop focused on teaching Self-Portraits and we had a blast! We learned the basic "rules" for drawing portraits (see below) and did three self-portrait projects inspired by famous artists Paul Klee, Frida Kahlo and Amedeo Modigliani. I'll be sharing those lessons here on my blog over the … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Portraits / Self-Portraits, Teacher Workshops, Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: frames, portraits, teacher workshops, teaching tips

Send Artwork Home Safely

By Cheryl Trowbridge 4 Comments

Sending student artwork home can be a perilous experience! A project that took hours to create can quickly get crinkled or torn by the well-meaning rubber band you put around it. You can avoid this problem by keeping a supply of cardboard tube-rings on hand. Simply cut an empty paper towel tube into rings about 1-1/2" wide and slip the rolled-up artwork inside. A single … [Read more...]

Filed Under: Tips for Teaching Art Tagged With: teaching tips

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Find a ** FREE ** Lesson (Below):

  • Lessons Inspired by Famous Artists
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