Let's Talk Watercolor! 12 Watercolor Tips and Tricks!

Watercolor is a staple in the elementary classroom and art room BUT...it can be a bit of a headache. I recently saw on an art teacher's Facebook group a teacher sharing a brand new watercolor tray completely demolished in just one painting session (well, demolished is an exaggeration; all watercolor trays can be cured with a simple rinse at the sink). It reminded me how much I have learned from teaching art after a million years...and all that I learned about teaching watercolor paint to kids. So I put all of the tips and tricks I could think of (I'm sure I missed some!) in a video. I'll list them below but if you wanna just watch then...here ya go!

Tip #1: Ditch those cases! 

I kick off the video sharing super cute vintage watercolor cases and then...I tell you to ditch the case. Trust me! You will save the sanity of dealing with messy watercolor cases. AND it will help the paint to dry between use. 

Tip #2: Remove black, brown and white!

THIS IS A GAME CHANGER!! Trust me on this one. You will send me letters, flowers, hugs and well wishes when you do. 

Tip #3: Customize your paint trays!

I have a rainbow tray, a warm tray and a cool tray. I want to create a flesh mixing tray too. 

Tip #4: Only buy refills!

So a big brand art supplier STOPPED making refills for their watercolor trays. I KNOW. However...my friends at Prang STILL DO! Hooray! You can check out all of my recommended watercolor supplies as well as those refills in my Amazon store! 

Tip #5: Use trays!

They capture the mess and make transport of supplies easy for you and your students. Need a supplier for trays? See my Amazon link...OR...check Dollar Tree's website! I often buy those trays in bulk on their website; I never see them in their stores. 

Tip #6: Try dog dishes!

I did add a link to these in my Amazon store BUT you can find them cheaper at Dollar Tree. These I actually do see in the stores!

Tip #7: Use wake up juice!

This might be the kids' favorite trick. They LOVE Wake Up Juice! They think it's so funny and my older kids love to use it independently. 

Tip #8: Teach proper brush care!

Isn't that the worst?! Seeing your precious paintbrushes ground to bits? Not to mention your paint pans demolished?! Try teaching a couple of my hacks: Ballerina Paintbrush and Pet the Kitten.

Tip #9: Cleaning the brush!

Nothing muddies up a paint set like not cleaning the paintbrush correctly. Get a sponge for this and thank me later!

Tip #10: Explain translucence!

So that kids know the difference between watercolor paint and tempera, you may want to explain the difference between translucence and opaque. 

Tip #11: No waster watercolor!

I'm getting tired of typing so check out the video on how I use every last drop of watercolor paint!

Tip #12: Let the paint dry out!

I share my simple hack for letting paint dry completely between use.

Now, I have chatted about watercolor paint in the past. You can see my video about watercolor here. And if you want to see me teaching watercolor to my students, you can check out this playlist! Or check out the one called A Glimpse Inside on my YouTube channel.  

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Introducing Kindergarten to Watercolor Paint!

How do you introduce watercolor paint to your students? We are heading into our third week of kindergarten in art class (or is it our fourth?! I think it's our fourth!) and we have already tackled our first and second art projects. With kindergarten, we move quickly through lessons! We are now going into our unit on line. In the past, my students painted lines with paintbrushes and ink. This year, we created them with ink-filled bingo daubers. I created a couple of short videos on that which you can find under my Reels tab on my Instagram. 

This is the same routine I use to introduce (or reintroduce) all of my students to watercolor. I also keep a spray bottle on hand that I call Wake Up Juice (in keeping with the theme of "waking up the paint") which I spray when the paint becomes tacky or dry. Here's our introduction...and a glimpse inside my art room with kindergarten:

I am updated my YouTube a lot...I've neglected it a lot! I have gotten hooked on creating short videos for Instagram...but will be updating my YouTube and my blog frequently. Be sure and subscribe to my YT so you can stay up to date!  To learn more about watercolor paint in the elementary art room, check out this blog post. 

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