Artful Squid

Shape Robots

To create a collage robot, third grade students cut out and glued down overlapping organic and geometric shapes. Supplies: Glue Sticks Scissors (mix of small and larger sizes) Construction Paper Pencils, erasers Downloadable PowerPoint: Shape Robots One of the challenges of teaching elementary art is learning to think like a kid again. What is fun?…

Pop Art Words

Third grade art students drew and painted onomatopoeias inspired by Lichtenstein’s artwork to create Pop Art Words. Supplies: Poster board, 9″x 12″ Pencils and erasers List of onomatopoeias Sharpies Tempera paint Brushes Water cups PowerPoint: Pop Art Words I was so surprised by how quiet my classroom got when my first group of 3rd graders started…

Independent Projects

At the end of the quarter, fourth grade art students created Independent Projects by choosing their subject and medium. Supplies: Markers Colored Pencils Crayons Watercolors Construction paper and glue Printmaking supplies Yarn Poster board Drawing paper PowerPoint: Independent Project For whatever weird scheduling reason, the third quarter is a little longer than the others. I decided…

Miro Creatures

Third grade art students “painted” a background with bleeding tissue paper, then created creatures using lines and shapes from Miro paintings. Art Lesson Videos: Miro Creatures, Part 1 & Miro Creatures, Part 2 PowerPoint: Miro Creatures Supplies: Poster board – 9″ x 12″ Bleeding tissue paper, cut into rough squares Small spray bottle for each table, on mist setting…

Hybrid Animals

Using photo references, fourth graders practiced observational drawing by combining characteristics of two different animals to create a hybrid. Supplies: Pencils, erasers Photo references of animals Sets of 24 colored pencils 9″ x 12″ drawing paper Downloadable PowerPoint: Hybrid Animals I wrote my hybrid animal lesson plan the first year I was teaching. I had middle school…

Free Computer Timer and Alarm Clock

The worst art teacher feeling in the world is looking at the clock while your students are painting and realizing that they leave in 3 minutes! I have tried multiple alarm solutions to avoid that stomach-sinking feeling. For a year, I had alarms set on my phone. It was better than nothing, but sometimes the…

Motivate Students with Art Tickets

It’s important to me that I have meaningful incentives built into my classroom routines. I wanted to use something more substantial than a box of trinkets to motivate my students. I came up with three different Art Tickets that students can choose from. I love that the tickets are for things that really matter to…

Monster Sculptures

Third grade art students created three dimensional monsters by painting their design onto a cardboard tube, then hot gluing “extras” onto their artwork. Supplies: Toilet paper tubes Sharpie Tempera paint Brushes Hot glue “Extras” like googly eyes, gemstones, pom poms, feathers, colorful wire I like to finish the quarter with a project that introduces my…

Radial Symmetry using Printmaking

Printmaking art project – fourth grade students carved designs into styrofoam using a pencil, then repeated it four times to create radial symmetry. Supplies: 4 inch squares of paper 4 inch styrofoam squares Painter’s Tape 8 inch squares of neon paper Spray bottles Plates or mirrors for rolling out ink Brayers Black printmaking ink Downloadable PowerPoint:…

Embracing Chance with Circle Art

A collaborative art project that revolves around the element of chance – second graders worked with their table to create sculptures using colorful paper scraps they chose randomly. Supplies: Long scraps of construction paper Cardboard Paint Art Paste Downloadable PowerPoint: 2nd Circle Sculptures My original inspiration for this project was to use up paper scraps. I saw…