Let's Make an Origami House!

Mother's Day is around the corner! I thought I would create some fun videos of projects that could be created for any occasion or to celebrate mom on her special day! To create your origami house, all you'll need is paper and something to draw and color with. Have fun!

Read more »

Let it Glow: Monsters in the City!

A lesson that I was sharing a lot of images from on my Instagram got a whole lot of love and questions this year and that was this Monsters in the City project! After learning about the artist Kudu-Lah, my students began by designing their cities and creating a series of monsters. I thought I'd share some images from our project but also create a video to walk you and your students through. Because these works of art were going to be apart of our Glow Gallery, I'll be sharing my favorite glow products from Pacon. With my students, we used 24"X36" sheets of paper for the cities and 12"X18" paper for the monsters. I'll be working half that size for the video. And my paper of choice is Pacon's Mixed Media paper. Here you go:

If you are doing this at home, try using a permanent marker to draw your cities and monsters with. Then add color with crayons, markers, colored pencils or paint! 

 In my thirty-minute art classes, my fourth graders spent two days drawing their cityscapes. 

The following day we used fluorescent oil pastels and watercolor for the sky. 

Then we created TONS of monsters! I had them make as many as they could to really loosen them up. I love the variety they achieved! 

 We used our fluorescent paint to make them glow!

Then we cut them out to add to our cities! We used a little bit of foam and cardboard glued to the back of the monsters to make them pop up from our cities. For a sneak peak of last year's glow gallery, check this out:

Read more »

Superhero Week: Super Pop-Up Card!

Wow! The artists who joined me live yesterday really had a lot of fun with this one: a Super Pop-Up Card! If you've not made a pop-up card before, you really outta give this simple project a shot. Here's the list of supplies you'll need:

You'll need two pieces of paper, one for the card and the other for your buildings and superhero. And here's how you can create your own card:

The possibilities of what you can create with this simple pop-up concept are limitless! If you want to join us today, here's what you might want to have on hand:

You can watch LIVE today (and every weekday) on my Facebook or my Instagram. You can also watch all videos the next day on my YouTube channel. New videos are up all the time so you might want to be sure to subscribe! 

Read more »

In the Art Room: My Favorite Sub Plans!

DISCLAIMER: I am offering these lessons, handouts and videos to you for free. PLEASE do not take my lessons and sell them. Because that would be super crappy of you (yes, someone is doing this. Yes, they are super crappy). Thank you.

Going to NAEA in Boston next week? Need some sub plans? Y'all, I got you COVERED! Today I'm sharing my favorite VIDEO sub plans and my tips and tricks to planning for being out. There's nothing like the amount of WORK you gotta do just to take some time off. I'm here to make your life a little easier, I hope. So, without further ado, my Top Ten Sub Plans!

Let me just start by saying that the sub plans I am sharing were created for my kindergarten through fourth grade kids. I ALWAYS make a lesson that's age appropriate for all my classes. This makes my prep life so much easier and the life of the sub all the better. For more tips and tricks, check out this video!

Lessons like this require a lotta prep. Yeah, I will be keeping it much easier this time. More about how I prep for a sub can be found in this blog post. 

1. James Rizzi Cities! This sub plan was a huge hit with all of my kiddos. They started it while I was away and I was able to easily slide back in to a low-mess/low-stress project for them to continue. Lesson, handouts and video can be found here!

 2. Loud Mouth Collages! My kids thought these were the most fun ever...while I thought they were the most funniest ever. Complete video lesson and plans here!

3. A Colorful Village! Again this is another lesson that the kids work on while I'm away and we finish up with oil pastel and watercolor when I return. Easy, fun and super colorful. Video and lesson here! 

4. Chris Uphues Inspired Hearts! Who doesn't love Chris Uphues and his happy artwork?! My kids love learning about him. I've not only got a video lesson but I have a short clip of an interview I did with Chris and his wife Jen. More here!

5. I am a Super Star! This lessons is so fun...it really incorporates so much, from mixed media to literacy to a good ole boost to the self esteem! I DID ask the sub to make the stars for the kindergarten before they arrived because I'm not that crazy. Lesson here! 

6.  Collage Monsters! Another fun lesson that the kids really enjoyed. This one required more prep than most, just an FYI. Complete details and video here!

 7. Kerri Ambrosino-Inspired Still Life! Need a pop of colorful happy for spring? Try this sub plan on for size. So fun and we busted out the PUFFY PAINT! Lesson here. 

8. Wings Mural! I know, you've seen it a thousand times...but the lesson originated here! The feathers were created while I was out on jury duty, I believe...and then we assembled it when I returned. Lesson and video here. 

9. Britto-Inspired Collaborative! I love having the kids work on collaboratives when I'm out. It means we have a big beautiful work of art to hang when I return! Lesson video and details all right here! 

10. Monochromatic Self Portraits! Lastly, here's a lesson that's always a hit: monochromatic self portraits. We love hanging these in rainbow order for a beautiful display. Have your kiddos follow along with me in this video! 

There are PLENTY more lessons and videos on my YouTube channel so be sure and give those a glance if none of these strike your fancy. And be sure to subscribe, I upload videos and content all the time. If you are gonna be in Boston, see you there! 

Read more »