Inspiring Art Room Doors. Lately, I've seen some truly inspiring art room doors posted by art teachers on social media.

S how Haring's works and discuss them: comic like people few details thick black outlines bright colors dashes that indicate mo...

Line printing is so simple and basic, but it’s amazing how captivating it can be! Kindergarteners were given cardboard and black paint, and had the freedom to create anything they wanted. T…

I apologize for being so behind this year on my blog this year! I've had so many other things going on with an action research PDP, Student Learning Targets and PBIS/CHAMPS that have been implemented that I haven't had a lot of time to update projects from this year. It's going to be my goal to update more regularly! I hope everyone has had a great first half of the year! The first week of school I always start out with a school wide collaboration project. It's a great way to get the kids involved in art on the first day instead of only going over expectations and it's also a fabulous way to get artwork up after the first week of school! We look at the artist Keith Haring and did giant posters of figures. I actually had the kiddos get on the floor and trace their bodies and then each class throughout the day continued on they same poster. So by the end of the day I had 4-6 posters done!

Using cotton swabs, 3rd grade students constructed skeletons in an action pose based off the book Skeleton Hiccups by Margery Cuyler.

Are you nervous about starting the school year? Or are you excited to get things going? Even though this is my lucky 13th year teaching, I still get anxious to go back. It’s a combo of nerves, excitement and anxiety about getting back into a different routine. I still have dreams that the class is out of control, I forget that I am scheduled to teach or I oversleep. Recently, I asked readers to share their top tips for starting … Read more... →

The Fall Preschool Unit is packed full of hands on math & literacy activities as well as no prep worksheets for easy lesson planning.

Looking for some educational arts and crafts for 3-year-olds? These seven clever options promote growth and development while keeping your little one entertained.

Earlier this year, my co-worker Jayne found the idea to make a collaborative school-wide paper mural based on the artwork of Thank YouX. The idea for a student mural originally came from Jenell Novello and you can see the lesson plan write-up on Artsonia. She also so generously provided the lesson plan and templates on Google docs. Thank You X got his name by accident. In 2009 Andy Warhol’s spray painted portrait was spotted on a city street in L.A.. … Read more... →

Having students color in posters with their names is a great first day activity that provides yearlong decoration for the classroom!

Each year our elementary school has an auction to raise money for the art program. As my daughter's classroom docent, I had to come up with a group project for the class to contribute to the auction. In the past, I have led the class in creating a collaborative canvas. This is from 3 years ago (I was docent to 2 classes): This is from 2 years ago: This is from last year: I really like to see the individual handiwork of each student manifest in the final product. I love seeing the uninhibited creativity of their little minds shining. This year, I decided to go mixed media 3D on our project by helping the class create a mobile. For this mobile project, you will need: Cardstock Mirrored Cardstock Permanent Markers and Crayons Laminating ability (optional) Embroidery Hoop Ribbon I began with an oval die-cut (in teacher's workroom) and several colors of cardstock. I included one cardstock that was mirrored metallic on one side. I thought the light-catching element would be nice in a mobile. I cut enough for each child to have 4 ovals in the art. Circles or triangles would also make super cute designs for this piece. I gave the students ideas and some instruction on decorating each of their ovals with sharpie and crayon. I included swirls, plaid patterns, pictures of "vegetation" (that was their new vocab word of the day), and I required that they each put their first initial on one oval--as their "signature" on the piece. My daughter's teacher was kind enough to laminate them for me. After I cut them all out of the laminating (about 40 minutes in the car at the soccer fields), I laid them out in the order I would be sewing them. Then I sewed them together. If you have never sewed through paper, it is easy-peasy. Just begin at the top, backstitch to tie-off just like you would on fabric, then feed each new piece in as you come to the end of one. Be sure to leave some thread "tails" on the top end of each of your rows. We'll use those later to attach them to the hoop. I measured the width of all my strings of ovals laid next to each other to determine how large my embroidery hoop should be before I bought it. Mine was 30 inches in circumference. I also bought some inexpensive ribbon that would coordinate with the colors of the ovals. Now, on to the assembly: This part isn't hard, but it is a bit tedious. Tie each row of ovals to the embroidery hoop, going around both rings using a square knot. Slide each piece around to evenly place the rows around the hoop. Cut four lengths of ribbon 24-28 inches in length. Tie double knots in each ribbon length at its center to four "corners" of the circle. Gather these doubled ribbons with a rubber band to create the top of the mobile. Tie short cuts of ribbon all around the hoop and over the rubber band on the top. I used some of the ribbons sticking out above the rubber band to tie on a loop ribbon for hanging. The students were SO excited to see what their ovals had become! I think this could be such a cute piece to hang in a child's room or above a baby's crib (out of reach, of course!). I think a mobile done just in black, white and silver would be striking. Or one in all blue or all pink tones would be fun. The possibilities are endless!

Paint, draw, sculpt, and learn about famous artists and their art.

Hello all! If you're here from Pinterest, welcome to my blog! I use Instagram as my daily art room journal, so if you enjoy seeing elementary art projects then follow me there! [@artsyblevs] These handouts are my first version of the Notan handout from years ago, but for my full Notan handout listing visit my TpT HERE! In case you don't know... Nōtan is a Japanese design concept involving the play and placement of light and dark as they are placed next to the other in art and imagery. You don't have to use collage to make a notan desing, but I love the process of cutting and flipping the paper. I haven't started this project yet, but it will address positive and negative space, contrast, and symmetry! I'll let you know how it goes this year! Here are the handouts! Enjoy!

In an era of high stakes testing, art is sometimes the first thing to go but we as teachers need to find ways to continue providing art experiences for our students. Not only is art just plain fun, and let's face it, kids do need fun, but it's much more than that. Art is beneficial in so many ways! Find out ways to incorporate art in this post by The Teacher Next Door.

Hey, y'all! We are officially back in school and in full swing! Our first days of art were spent printing dots after reading The Dot! We used Gelli-Arts plates to print our dots because I found that I had about 20 brand new round plates in my storage closet (wow, the things you find when you clean). Here's the video I created for my students: If you cannot see this video then it's because you are looking at my blog from your phone. Super annoying, I know. It's a blogger thing, it's not you. So here's the direct link to my YouTube page. You should totally subscribe because I add new content all the time. Now I know many of you don't have those Gelli Arts plates (and they are a bit expensive) so...I came up with an alternative for you: pie pans from Dollar Tree! I am using the pizza pie pans here: Again, if you can't see it, here it is. First grade through fourth were printing which means I had drying racks brimming with art. So a way to keep up with everything was clipping clothes pins with the teacher's names on them between the classes on the drying rack. Once dry, the clips were used to hold the artwork together. I know...every now and then I have a decent idea. After two 30 minute art classes of printing, my students looked at all of their prints and picked their fave for display. They then had to give their piece a title and 'sign it' like Vashti so it could be displayed in the hallway. Here was a video I created to explain this process: Need more Dot Day fun? Well, here is a simple one-day activity I created as a sub plan a couple of years ago. Sheet included: And if you want to check out a big ole blog post filled with TONS of Dot Day ideas, then here you go!

Here are a bunch of fun fall door decorations for the classroom! You will find pumpkins, halloween, thanksgiving, apples, and more ideas!

This week, our Carmel Mountain Preschool kids created silhouettes from water color paints.

Collaborative art is a fun, unique way to encourage a group of people (kids or adults) to work together and create something beautiful! Group art projects can take so many different forms and there is no right or wrong way to make art together. Ready for 28 of the best group art project ideas?! The

After each visit to the ocean, the Butterballs return with at least a bucketful of sea-sand( most of it brought home by 'accident') ...

Each Olympic Games has its own medal design. On one side is a picture of Nike, the goddess of victory, and on the other is a design unique to the Games. Design a medal for the upcoming Games or perhaps design a medal for the Olympic Games if they were to be held in your town.

Oh no! It's the big A word. ASSESSMENT! While it can be scary and intimidating to create numeric grades for an entire student body, there are simple tools that I use to make my job a little easier. I do not believe in grading an elementary student based on how well they can draw. That's so.... subjective! For the past several years, I have been a member of an elementary art PLC (professional learning community). Last year, we met once a month to discuss teaching strategies, assessment, evaluation, and a slew of other fun topics. During one meeting, we decided to design a basic rubric that could be used across the board in an elementary art room. Here is the result. Now, I know that this a VERY simple rubric. However, I have had a beneficial time using this skeleton to create worthwhile assessment of student work. The rubric basically scores being on task, craftsmanship/ creativity, and following directions and meeting goals. When it is time to assess student work, I will review the objectives for the lesson and write the goals on the board. Students are required to self assess as to whether or not they completed all the goals. In essence, we create a checklist. For instance... Did you... *Create an animal with shapes and textures *Fill the space with a habitat for your animal *Show foreground, middleground, and background Using a 10 point system makes grading simple and easy. I post the rubric and the grading scale in a highly visible place in my room, so as to familiarize students with the process from the beginning of the year. It also enables me to remain transparent when discussing my grading practices with colleagues and parents. I want everyone to understand that my class is a standards based class, with true numerical grades and assessments.