Woodland Creature Collage Lessons Inspired by Charley Harper!

One of my favorite contemporary artists is Charley Harper. I love his retro style (well, it probably wasn't considered 'retro' at the time!), his flat design and his subject matter: creatures! A while back, I created two fun fall lessons for my second and third graders featuring Charley Harper. These are quick lessons that you should have time to create just before Thanksgiving break. 

I love creating mashup lessons with a mixture of artists. Including a nod to Vincent van Gogh just seemed appropriate for this nocturnal bandit. Of course, you could read about Vincent while the kids create by using my book Find Your Way! 

What better way to learn about an artist and their life then by...going on adventures with them!?

This lesson does include an intro to Charley Harper so your students can become familiar with his work. They had so much fun drawing their raccoons!

Supplies needed and more details can be found in this blog post!

Both of these lessons are guided drawing projects. For this lesson, you can read more here. 

Both lessons use the same art supplies which makes prep SO much easier! 

If you are low on time, you could always shorten the project by eliminating the collage portion and just draw and add color straight to the construction paper. Also, cutting down on the size of the paper might help too.

No matter what you and your artists decide to create, I know you'll love learning about Charley Harper and creating your own woodland creature collages!

4 Fun Lessons on Gratitude!

Hey, friends! 

I gathered together a handful of my favorite lessons for showing gratitude...always a fun thing to do ANY time of the year but especially terrific as we approach Thanksgiving.

So here you'll find a couple of lessons on creating faculty and staff portraits to surprise and thank those in your building, courtesy of your amazing artists!

For the other two lessons, I've got a daily doodle or a grati-doodle and a fun drawing activity that can be worked on by your early finishers. Did I mention I have a free download for you? Yep! Two, actually! So let's dive in!

First up, we have these modeling clay portraits! These were so much fun to create and made especially fancy with our Hobby Lobby metallic plates/frames! 

Now, the ONLY thing that was tough...connecting the students to the staff. Many of the kids have favorite teachers...and those teachers tend to be mighty popular. So I had to come up with a system where it was fair and where all the teachers and staff were chosen. To learn how we did it, you can check out the process here. 

Now the key for this: work small. On our first day, we covered our mat board with a solid color for the background and then began adding layers of clay for the face shape, neck and shoulders. I created a video to walk the artists through the process and you can find it here:

My students who finished early either helped their classmates OR...many of them wanted to make a self portrait! These were so fun. 

We even wrote about the faculty and staff members before hanging them all up for the display. To check that out, you can visit here. 

Now...I will say this: when we created these, we used modeling clay. Modeling clay never dries out, it always remains workable. That's not great for what we're going for here. Initially, I coated each piece with a hardening solution made by Crayola...that they no longer carry. So! Now, I would recommends something made by Mod Podge. They have a huge line of varnishes in a variety of finishes that would probably do the trick. The clay will ALWAYS be a little squishy. Just an FYI.

The lesson that inspired the clay portrait was this one! I had done a Gallery of Gratitude and it was a huge hit! It's much less prep and work...as you can see it involved the students drawing a portrait and writing up a statement about the person whose name the selected. 

For details on this lesson, I've got it all right here. 

Now if you are looking for some lessons that are a little less involved...you might be interested in these couple of FREE downloads! This one was created for my 3rd and 4th graders and can easily be used for a sub plan. So keep it in that sub tub, y'all!

If you are looking for a download that might be easier for your kindergarten through second grade students, I have that free download here!

And if you are looking for a continuing practice of gratitude by maybe doing a daily doodle (this is something fun just for you, if you like!), you can check out that process here.

Have a great week, friends!

4 Easy Ideas for {Surviving} Halloween!

Hi, y'all! 

With Halloween (thankfully!) falling on a Friday this year, I thought I'd share some make-n-take art lessons with you for the big day. One thing I learned REAL FAST as a teacher is that ya never want to bust out those beautiful projects the kids have been working for days on at a time like this. Instead, let 'em have at it with some quick lessons. So! I'm sharing some of my faves with ya today!

Let's start with this Mixed Media How to Draw Silly Pumpkins lesson! You can find my draw along video here!

Got some construction paper, glue and scissors? Then this lesson is a fun one that always yields the cutest Frankensteins! Check out this lesson video here. 

Why not just let 'em draw?! I have this totally free download and a quick video that you can check out here. 

Now one of my fave things to do was to set up CENTERS on Halloween (and any major holiday when I knew the kids were gonna be 'touched'...and not by an angel!). You can see how I do that right here!

Here's to survivin' and thrivin' this week, friends! You can do it!

Let's Draw Sunflowers (and 3 Bonus Sunflower Projects!)

Hey, friends! I'm coming to you with my second sunflower themed lesson because, well, they are just so perfect for this time of year!

Recently, I shared a sunflower printing collage project here that I know you'll love:

This lesson is also perfect for a line and shape review as well as an introduction to collage!

Making your own sunflowers is also super fun! I have done projects like this with my students with kiln fired clay...but this one was done with salt dough clay. Recipe and details here!

If you are looking for a fun printing sunflower lesson with a nod to Warhol, you may want to check this lesson out! 

Speaking of artist inspiration, this one was clearly inspired by Vincent van Gogh! To watch the full drawing video, just go here:

Now, more on Payons and how I use them in a moment! I have lots to say about this art supply from Prang. But first...

Did you know that Vincent is one of the seven artists featured in my decide-your-direction art adventure titled Find Your Way? There are seven world famous artists for you to go on adventures with!

I wrote this book for my students...as they worked, they loved to be read to. But I always struggled to find the perfect art history book for them. So...I wrote one! My book also includes art activities and biographies of the seven artists featured. To read snippets, find out more and get a copy, visit here. 

Oh! Did I mention that I created over 80 illustrations to bring the book to life?! Yeah...this was a huge project and one that I know you and your artists will love. To learn more about how I read chapter books in my art room, visit here!

I also included actual quotes from the artists...that's what you see here in bold print. The other artists featured are: Hokusai, Frida Kahlo, Claude Monet, Augusta Savage, Leonardo da Vinci and Salvador Dali!

What better way to create artwork inspired by Vincent van Gogh than while hearing all about him in art class!?

Okay, now let's talk art supplies...

For this lesson, I am using Prang's Payons which are water soluable or watercolor CRAYONS! I had never played with them much before until the last couple years and I love them! They go on just like a crayon BUT...with the addition of water, the colors transform into watercolor. The colors are super vibrant and fun. 

However...if you don't have those on hand or they are not in your budget, you can do THE SAME THING with Prang's markers! I used ton only buy a certain brand of markers (ahem, I think you know the ones I mean) until I discovered that they seemed to dry out quickly and just seemed like they didn't last as long. When I got my hands on Prang's markers, I was suprised: they are juicy and bright...AND work perfect for a project like this where you just add water! If you aren't familiar with this method, you can see it in action in this lesson of mine here. 

Anyway, have fun friends! I hope there's a sunflowery lesson here that you and your artists enjoy!

Sunflower Still Life Collage

Hey friends! Today I'm sharing with you a fun sunflower still life lesson that is the perfect review for lines and shapes...while introducting collage and monoprinting! This lesson is perfect for your 1st grade and up...and I'm going to share with you a bunch of alternative art supplies just in case you are on a cart or don't have the supplies I am using on hand. So, like many of my videos of late, I'll walk you through a 'teacher talk' at the start of the video to help you think through how you can best make this lesson work for you. Here you go:

Before we dive in, I do want to share...my book, Art Teacherin' 101, has been sold out for the last month. I'm happy to say that I now have it back in stock! If you have been waiting to get a copy or just want to find out more details on my book, you can find it here. 

I'm so excited that my book has sold 10K copies! It's so amazing to think that I've been able to share with so many incredible art teachers. A big thanks if you have ordered a copy! And...just so you know...I sign all copies before packing them up. That's right...my books are packed and sold by yours truly. I'm an independent book publisher and seller. If you ever have any questions about that, feel free to reach out! 

And now...back to the lesson:

To begin, I used my tempera paint filled bingo daubers! You can pick up your empty daubers here.  And my preferred paint (and supplies) are here.

Knowing that not everyone has bingo daubers or the time to fill them, in the video, I share a couple of alternatives. Students could use tempera sticks to create their line papers or...they could paint the lines! So even if you are on a cart or short on supplies, I got you.

This lesson could be done on 9" X 12" paper as the final result or, my preference, 12" X 18" paper. I like the larger format only because it allowed more room for the bigger flower prints. 

For the flower prints, I would recommend using a pizza pan. I got a class set at Dollar Tree for $1.25 each and use them ALL THE TIME. We print on them so much! 

By the way, if you are new to using tempera paint with students and are looking for some pointers, I got you covered right here!

I would split this lesson into three days: 

Day #1: Creating the line papers! Do a Line Review with my friend Larry the Line, of course!

Day #2: Flower Printing! You could include a shape review here! In the video, I talk about both organic and geometric shapes. Alfred the Ape Knows his Shapes would come in handy here!

Day #3: Collage it all together! On the final days of this lesson, it's time to create a collage! If students need a reminder on how to use their scissors and glue...well, I think I can help!

AND...if you are looking for a way to have a Calm and Focused art class, you may want to check out my tips here...and my book that kids LOVE to hear while they work...here!

Have a great week, friends!