Mixed Media Exploration and Elements of Art Review!

Recently, when I was working on THIS line design lesson...

Where I shared how to make black glue without actually making black glue...quick video here:

It got me thinking. If you can make black glue that way, then couldn't you do the same with any water-based marker on white paper? 

The answer, YEP! You can! And that's how this lesson came to be!

For this project, which I envision would be perfect for 5th grade and up, I started with a 12" square of paper, water-based markers and Elmer's Glue All. Check out the full lesson here:

Once the glue is dry, I used my paper cutter to cut the papers into 4 6" squares. Then I decided to do a mixed media exploration on each!

To alter this lesson, you could always NOT cut the paper and just pick one of the mixed meda methods to do on the entire paper. Just a thought. I did find exploring all of these really fun but I know that would take a several art class days...so I'll leave that up to you!

For the first one, I just used a permanent marker, a cup of water and a paintbrush. I used my Line Design sheet and a permanent marker for the first step. Then I added water to the marker lines to create a blurred line effect with a little bit of a tint of color.

For the next square, I used chalk. Whenever I use chalk in my art room, I always use a color wheel. I created this free color wheel download for you to use, you can access it here!

If you have hesistated to use chalk pastels in  your art room in the past, don't sweat it! I created a whole video and blog post of all of my chalk Tips and Tricks and you can see it here!

I also just recently posted a lesson for 2nd grade and up using chalk and line...and you can check that out here!

Okay, back to the lesson at hand! I LOVE chalk and my students do too. I really enjoyed creating this little chalk square study.

BUT THIS ONE...

Was even more fun! For this, students will use bright and light color oil pastel and saturate their paper in color. THEN...

Using a combination of black paint (I used acrylic but tempera would work) and a squirt of dish soap (I only had Dr. Bronner's on hand but Dawn or any other would work!) blended together well, paint over the areas you wish to do scratch art on.

Allow that to dry COMPLETELY before using a skewer to remove the paint and create line designs. 

I really recommend adding the dish soap. What it does is help the paint scrap off evenly and not in chips. I've tried it without dish soap before and...it just didn't work as well (chips. We had chips).

So fun, right?

And for the final method, we explore wet-on-wet with watercolor.

Now, when it comes to display, I laid my pieces back out like a puzzle. But these could be displayed individually, on in a vertical or horizontal manner...so many options! I'm so stoked about this lesson. I don't often do lessons for upper grades because I never taught beyond 4th. I do think this could be done with fourth (maybe after Christmas, when they are officially fourth graders) and definitely beyond. 

By the way, if you are looking for books, downloads and resources for all things art teacherin', I have a library of them! You can see them all here!

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Line and Shape Paintings!

Y'all, I don't know if you have noticed but...I'm on a bit of a lesson-sharing roll lately and I hope you all are here for it! Because...I have much more to come. The best way to stay tuned is to check back here often, join my email list or subscribe to my YouTube channel. My lessons are always FREE and usually come with free downloads too. 

I'm so excited about this lesson!

This video lesson has THREE lessons in it...and you can decide what works best for you and your artists. Before we dive in, here are the supplies I used:

* Oil Pastels (I like neon ones, you can find them here)

* Square paper (I only use 80lbs paper)

* Ink-filled bingo daubers

* Watercolor Paint

This first portion of the lesson goes perfectly with my book Larry the Line...if you don't have it and would like to take a look, you can find it here. 

This video is broken down into three different lessons. It's perfect for a wide range of learners! Here's what I would recommend: K-6th Grade: Everyone can do the first portion of this lesson! It's a wonderful line introduction and review. Students will also learn how to use their watercolor paint to add color. 3rd-6th Grade: The second portion of this lesson is great for these learners as it will introduce them to geometric and organic shapes as well as positive and negative space. 4th - 6th Grade: The final portion is perfect for these learners but does require paint pens (I am using the POSCA brand) or metallic Sharpies. I know these supplies can be pricey so you may wish to limit this portion of the project based on the supplies you have available.

The second half of this lesson focuses on SHAPE. I dive into all things shape in my book Alfred the Ape Knows his Shapes!

I dive in deep in this book...I wrote it when I noticed that most books on shape just focus on learning the names of shapes and seem to cater to very young children. I used the second grade curriculum to guide me in writing this rhyming book and it covers ALL things shape!

For this final portion, students can use paint pens or metallic sharpies. Both can be pricey...which is why I recommend this for your older students who may take better care of supplies. 

Regardless of which portion of this lesson you use, I know you and your artists will love it! I especially know they will love the first portion of creating lines from sounds!

If you have not used ink-filled bingo daubers, I have lots of info about it here. It's one of my very favorite art supplies!

Thanks for letting me share, y'all! Have a great weekend!

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Let's Learn Shapes: Funny Face Geometric Shapes!

Recently, I shared a lesson on organic shapes. Today I thought I'd share one on geometric shapes!

Both lessons are inspired by my book Alfred the Ape Knows his Shapes. You can check it out here!

And before I forget...I did create a BIG post of my top 12 favorite lessons on shape! You can check out all of those lessons here. 

Back to the lesson at hand! In this one, students will use watercolor paint and a wet-on-wet technique to create their jumble of geometric shapes! For my favorite watercolor supplies, you can visit here.  Here's the video lesson:

This lesson pairs perfectly with my previous one on organic shapes so they are fun to do together. And they are quick lessons, so no need for a lotta days set aside for this!

Transparency film is totally not necessary BUT...I have found that kids love to draw on the slick surface of a dry erase board. With that in mind, I thought of my stash of transparency film when it came to these projects. If you ask around at school, there is usually a ton under a pile of dust somewhere in the librarian's closet! Or you can pick it up here. 

OR students could simply draw directly onto their paintings!

This shape sheet can be found in the back of my book!

OR you could just totally leave 'em like this! I love the look of these with the watercolor dots!

Regardless, I do hope you and your amazing artists have fun!

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Let's Learn Shapes: Organic Shape Exploration

Hey, y'all! I'm coming to you this week with two new fun lessons with a focus on SHAPE! I'm super stoked about these and how they tie in with my book Alfred the Ape Knows His Shapes. Now, you don't need my book for the lesson as I share some images from the book in the video but...it would really suppliment the lesson for sure! 

For this project, you'll need the following supplies:

* Paper cut to 8.5" X 11"; I like to use 80 lbs mixed media paper

* Watercolor paint; I'm using Prang's new Color Wheel Palette!

* Cup of water (I love these no-spill cups!) 

* Paintbrushes

* Transparency Film (not necessary but fun to draw on!)

* Permanent markers

The focus of this lesson (and the one I'll be sharing in the next couple of days) is SHAPE. In particular, the difference between ORGANIC and GEOMETRIC shapes. In this lesson, the artists will be creating an organic shape painting while learning a fun watercolor technique called Wet-On-Wet. 

By the way, my book explores ALL things shape! I wrote it because...while there are a lot of books on shapes they seem to focus namely on teaching the names of shapes. Often, they seem geared to ward a very young audience. I wrote this book with the second grade curriculum in mind and all of the knowlege that children that age should know. To take a look inside my book, watch the video or...visit here!

I was recently sharing with some art teachers during a virtual PD (did you know that I host those? Yep! You can always contact me at cassieart75@gmail.com to learn more!) and we were talking about 'early finishers'. For this lesson, students who finish painting early can always...create another painting! I like to offer smaller papers for my early finishers. This saves paper and, if students are given a smaller brush, they are also forced to WORK smaller! 

Often, I'll ask my early finishers to be 'art helpers' and ask their friends "do you want some help?" before assisting them on their work. Some students love the help of their friends while others prefer to work independently. It's important that students have that choice. 

Just a couple of thoughts on those early finisher friends!

Going on a SHAPE walk, especially outside, can be fun when introducing organic and geometric shapes. Or! Just press pause on my video and let the students see if they can identify the difference between the two. 

Personally, I think the paintings without the lines are a lot of fun! My students LOVE the wet on wet watercolor technique. It's also great for teaching paintbrush control. 

Of course, a great book for that would be....The Paintbrush Ballerina!

Don't forget I have a TON of free downloads that go perfectly with this book!

Not sure about using watercolor paint with your students or looking for some tips on how to improve your watercolor game? Then...check out this blog post! I cover it ALL!

Now no matter what the thickness of paper, unless you are using watercolor paper (and who has the budget for that?!), it's gonna wrinkle. This is why I keep a thrift store iron in my art room to stack and flatten the artwork. Just a hot tip of ya, in case you too are a little wrinkly (I blame the children for each of my wrinkles).

Now, once the paintings are complete and dry, the kids could draw directly on their artwork OR...they could use transparency film.

I like the transparency film because the slick surface is super fun to draw on AND....if the kids draw something they don't like, you can 'erase' the lines with a dry erase marker! Just trace over the lines with the dry erase and wipe off with a tissue. Boom! It's gone!

WARNING! I made the error of not making my paper the same size as the transparency film...so don't make that mistake! Be sure and cut the paper to a 8.5" X 11" before letting the kids paint. Trust me! It will make things a whole lot easier.

Have fun and stay tuned for the GEOMETRIC shape lesson. 

Oh! And!

Just a reminder that I'll be at NAEA next month, signing and selling my books. Hope to see you there!

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Line and Shape Monster Collage!

Hi, y'all!

I recently created a lesson with my friends over at Prang using (my favorite!) their Tru-Ray construction paper and Prang's white school glue. You can find the lesson, with the step-by-step process here!

For a link to my favorite Tru-Ray paper and glue used in this lesson, check it out here.

To dive into the video, here ya go:

I hope you like it!

This lesson is perfect if you are wanting to do a line and shape review and create something a little fun and silly for the Halloween session. 

I shared a variation of this lesson a couple years ago that is more line focused. It's the perfect lesson for pre-K and you can find it here. 

Need some shape books for the lesson? You can find my book Alfred the Ape Knows his Shapes here. 

And another fun book to read would be this one. It's always a hit with the kids!

I hope your artists have fun with this one!

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