Allow your students to flex their imagination

Art teachers constantly look for innovative methods to impart the basic principles of art and creation to their students. The right projects are very important to instill art appreciation in young minds and give them an outlet for self-expression. Additionally, art can teach students practical knowledge with regards to shapes and perspective.

The following are some good elementary art lessons that allow student’s imagination to run free:

Monotype: Mediums and Methods for Painterly Printmaking: A wonderful elementary art lesson for students to learn about the history of printmaking and the artists who developed the processes.  The book details every aspect of the elementary art lesson from the tools to the ink or paint to be used. Moreover, the procedures are expertly explained with illustrations and steps for simple understanding.

The Art of Carving Netsuke: An elementary art lesson with a larger cultural purpose. Students will be introduced to Japanese culture through the art of carving miniature sculptures that were important in 17th-century Japan. Nine projects are featured in the book, accompanied by detailed instructions. Following these simple guidelines will facilitate the creation of realistic impressions of feather, fur and more. Instead of wood, students can use clay, clay tools and glaze, and there is no danger of them hurting themselves this way.

Radial Name Design: An elementary art lesson that makes use of the concepts of radial design and balance.  The project focuses on lettering, design elements and promoting a positive self-image. The lesson can applicable to demonstrate various line designs; rather than enter names/words students can study different line patterns. This is one elementary lesson pattern that can be molded depending on what the teacher wants to emphasize.

Glue Pastel Fish:  With this elementary lesson plan, students will learn about chalk pastels, sea animals, art of gluing and how to make fish. The lesson plan is easy to follow and will encourage students to learn more about fishes and their environment. Moreover, the variety of fishes that students can create renders this an exercise of artistic merit.

Egyptian Mummy Case:  With the help of visual aids and other resources, teachers can encourage students to create their own drawings of a mummy case. This elementary art lesson plan is geared toward helping students understand the Egyptian culture; symbols, design and representations. Moreover, color, unique patterns, symmetry and Egyptian facial features are other aspects of the project to assist in the students’ artistic growth. The materials are easy to acquire and the end result will demonstrate the creativity of the students.

Crime Scene Tracing Picture:  Perfect elementary art lesson to expose students to contour line drawings and get them to work as a team. Once the body outline has been done, students can fill the figure with any number of patterns: lines, forms, colors, objects etc. The project offers numerous opportunities for students to explore the many connotations of art.

These elementary art projects will allow students to flex their imagination and be interested in the subject. They are designed to impress on students the beauty and dimensions of art.

Posted in Elementary Art Lessons | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Easy Art Lessons for Teachers

As a teacher, you want to instill passion in your students for the subject you love. Elementary art teachers can do a lot for their students by igniting their imagination and creative ambition. A wealth of available resources enables teachers to design inspiring elementary art lessons, instead of simply following the school enforced curriculum.

Let’s take a glance at the best elementary art lessons that can real stir up the creativity of a classroom.

The Art Teacher’s Survival Guide for Elementary and Middle Schools:  A very popular book containing more than 110 creative art projects in a variety of media — from drawing to digital. Teachers will also have access to tips, tools and other similar resources in detailed illustrations.  Practical, innovative and user-friendly— with the help of this comprehensive guide, teachers can design an effective elementary art lessons plan.

Oil Pastel Owl Art Lesson: One of the best drawing elementary art lessons. The teacher demonstrates the basic drawing techniques for three different owls: a realistic owl, a whimsical one and an owl in flight. The simple supplies are 12″ x 18″ white paper, oil pastels and blue or black watercolor washes. Students select their choice of owl and draw it with an oil pastel. They love creating a lovely owl in their own individual style.

Tissue paper Butterflies:  A good elementary art lesson to keep students busy. Students create beautiful butterflies with tissue paper and liquid starch.  The alternative material is to use vintage wallpaper or scrapbook paper. The method to do it is simple: inside the outline of the butterfly, brush a small amount of liquid starch in the spaces and cover it with colorful scraps of tissue paper.

Painted Victorian Homes for Elementary Art Lessons: Teachers can increase the student’s interest for learning shapes (rectangles, triangles, etc) by introducing them to this project. Templates found in ‘Architecture Made Easy’ outline the foundation of the artwork so it is easy for students to comprehend the project. They can color small areas with markers and paint the larger shapes with watercolor paint.

Portrait of Dora Maar:  An elementary art lesson that derives inspiration from Picasso’s art, the portrait of his wife, Dora Maar. Students will love expressing emotion through color and shapes as Picasso did. Direct your students to use an oil pastel to draw a figure with in Picasso’s style. They will have a gala time painting in a unique blend of color, line and shape.

Make your own snow globe: A craft project that makes a good elementary art lesson. It is very easy and all it takes is some mason jars to act as the glass covering of the snow globe.  A pretty figurine or special decor you would like to encase in the glass. Other materials include hot glue, clay, distilled water, ½ tsp of glycerine and ½ of glitter. These materials can be acquired easily in order to create a lovely snow globe to fascinate the students.

With the right tools, teachers can lead students down a fantastic road of self-expression.

Posted in Elementary Art Lessons | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment