Street Art Hearts

These adorable heart works of art were inspired by James Goldcrown. We began by tracing heart shapes and painting them in different colors of watercolor paint. We then used paper towel rolls in the shapes of hearts to stamp fluorescent colored hearts all over a black piece of construction paper. The final step was to cut out our watercolor hearts and glue them on top of our printed hearts. This is a very easy and fun Valentines Day themed lesson that gives every student an opportunity for success!

Mondrian with a Twist

These new takes on the paintings of Piet Mondrian were made by the amazing artists of PreK and Kindergarten. We began with a review of the three primary colors and how they can be used to create all the other colors on the color wheel. Students then cut out squares and rectangles in the primary colors and glued them onto a paper. During the next class, we learned about Mondrian and used cardboard and black paint to create lines all over the paper. I let students choose which lines to use in their artwork. We could use horizontal, vertical or diagonal lines. These lines could be parallel or intersect. This lesson results in a modern and simple artwork that incorporates lessons about primary colors, lines and shapes for young artists.

Ice cream Snowmen

Students in PreK and Kinder created these delightful mashups of snowmen and triple scooped ice cream cones! We began by painting the backgrounds with a pattern of the three cool colors- purple, blue and green. Next, I had students construct the ice cream and cone and showed them how to add all the necessary details to turn it into a snowman. We even used cool colored oil pastels to smudge a little shadow along the side to make it appear more three-dimensional. This turned into a perfect winter project just in time for snow to fall!

Catching Fall Leaves

Students in grades PreK and Kinder created these wonderful watercolor paintings. We began by tracing our hands on different colored construction paper. Students chose a color that was close to their own skin tone. We then blended blue and violet paint to create a beautiful sky background. We then did several leaf rubbings and colored them in using warm colors for fall. Students got to do lots of experimenting with blending paints to create these paintings to welcome autumn!

Line Monsters

This is a super fun lesson for Kinder and PreKinder students on line, shape and color! We started by drawing out a bunch of different lines. Straight, curved, zig zag, cloud, castle, etc. Next, students took watercolor paint and filled in the sections between the lines. This was our first attempt at painting so students learned all the techniques and procedures for the first time! For the next class, we cut out the shape of our monsters and added arms and legs. The final class was spent learning how to change the eyes, mouths, and eyebrows to make the monsters have an emotion. The kids loved how these turned out and some even resemble the artists!!

Starting with Selfies!

PreK and Kinder classes began the year with a self-portrait project. We began the first class of the year by completing a crayon drawing. These were then mounted onto a large yellow paper. We used different shapes to create a self-portrait and drew the faces using simple lines. During the final class, students attached yarn for hair and Made a pattern around the border. We also attached a crayon to the hand to commemorate their drawing from the first week of school!

Alphabet Soup

The alphabet experts in PreK and Kinder created these wonderful mixed media table settings of alphabet soup. We began by looking at several alphabet visuals before tracing a large circle and filling it with every letter in the alphabet. I made sure to demo how to turn the paper and do a variety of different colors and sizes. These were then painted over with a yellow and gold mixed watercolor paint. The second class was when students used markers to create a table cloth in a mock flannel style. We went over the lines with a wet brush to blend the colors together. The final class everything gets put together- we cut out the soup and add it to the place setting with a napkin and foil cutout spoon. I showed the students how to use a black oil pastel to shade under the bowl and napkin to create a 3D effect. This is a great project to apply literacy along with mixed media to create a fun work of art!

Be a Rainbow!

Students in PreK and Kinder learned about the color wheel and Roy G. Biv to create these wonderful artworks to welcome spring! We began by looking at rainbows and comparing them to the color wheel. We noticed that the colors are in the same order- so when students used watercolors to paint they followed the wheel from red to violet. During the second class, students mixed black and white paint to create clouds and cut yellow paper to make a sun. This is a great lesson for teaching basic color relationships and also for younger students to practice cutting with scissors safely.

Self-Portraits!

Students in PreK and Kinder created these super sweet and hilarious self-portraits. We began by tracing a head and neck shaped template onto a piece of paper. I gave students several colors of paint (brown, black, white, yellow and red) and showed them how to mix the colors to create a unique skin and hair tone that matched their own. During the next class when these were dry, we talked about the proportions of the face and drew out all of our features. I encouraged students to add details that are unique to them- such as blacking out teeth if they are missing or jewelry. We then painted a pattern background from the center to add emphasis to the face, cut everything out and put it all together. These portraits are so fun and really capture each students personality!

Elmer Collage

Elmer is a wonderful children's story about appreciating people's differences. I enjoy teaching this lesson to PreK and Kinder classes and the kids love the story. Elmer discovers that when he tries to change his appearance in order to 'blend in' with the other elephants, they no longer recognize him or accept him as one of their own. This makes Elmer sad and he experiences how it feels to be treated like an outcast after being ostracized by his old friends. It's only when it begins to rain and the grey paint that Elmer has covered himself with starts to disappear that Elmer's 'true colors are revealed, much to the surprise and delight of his friends who preferred his multicolored and fun loving persona. Following their happy reunion, the elephants reassure Elmer that they love him because of his differences and not in spite of them. As a way to celebrate the elephants cover themselves in multi-colored paint in recognition of Elmer's unique appearance and personality.

We began by using a glue and water mixture and brushing it over squares of tissue paper to attach it to a white paper. During the next class, we drew an elephant shape on the back of that paper and cut it out to create the Elmer. All you need to add is an eye and an ear with black crayon or marker. We glued our elephants onto a torn paper background of palm trees.