Art is the creative reflex of our imagination.
Teachers of different subjects look for innovative, hands-on artistic lessons that will expand and foster their students' love of learning. There are many incredible art lessons available for different age groups that encompass multiple subjects, and an equal amount of lessons that focus on art specifically. Incredible art lessons can inspire your students to develop their individual creativity and self-expression.
Kindergarten
This lesson incorporates concepts from the book "Harold and the Purple Crayon," by Crockett Johnson. Begin by reading the book to your kindergarten class, then ask your students what they think about Harold's imagination. Ask how they have used their imagination. Give prompts to shy students by asking if they have ever used their imagination to see pictures in the clouds. Cut out several large shapes out of purple construction paper and tape them to your blackboard. See if the class can come up with different ideas for arranging the shapes to make different scenes or objects. Pass out pieces of black construction paper, an assortment of purple paper shapes in different sizes, glue sticks, purple crayons and oil pastels, and tubes of purple glitter glue. Have your students position their shapes on the black paper shapes to form a scene. Show them properly glue the shapes in place with the glue sticks. Allow the class to decorate their pictures with the crayons, oil pastels, and glitter. When everyone is finished have each student display and describe their picture for the rest of the class one at a time.
Elementary School
For this lesson, you will need to have six circle templates. Make the first circle large and each circle after slightly smaller to fit inside of the other circles. You should be able to fit two of the largest size circle on one piece of white drawing paper. You will also need a template for a rectangle, smocks, painting supplies and tempera paints, and glue. Before class, cover your fluorescent lights with pieces of blue and green cellophane. Blow up clear balloons and attach white ribbons to the knots of the balloons so they look like giant jellyfish. Hang green streamers from the ceiling to resemble seaweed. Read the book "A House for Hermit Crab," by Eric Carle, aloud. See if your students have any idea how Mr. Carle created the book's pictures or what supplies he may have used. Have the class paint a solid color over two pieces of paper. Show them create different textures with other colors using a dry brush and pieces of carpet. Demonstrate stamp and spatter painting techniques with lids from film canisters and noodles. Let them make their own textures and collect the papers. Cut them into the circle and rectangle shapes from your templates. Organize and pile the set so that each student will get different circles. Obtain a hermit crab or use a picture instead. Discuss the crab's shell and appearance. Give each student a set of six circles. Have your students glue the largest circle onto a piece of paper and glue the second largest circle on top of it.the Instruct your students to continue gluing circles on top of the other circles in order of size. Obtain a starfish or get a picture of one and put it beside the crab. Discuss the starfish from the book. Let each student choose three pre-cut rectangles. Show them cut the rectangles from the top right corner to the bottom left corner to form triangles. Demonstrate make a star by overlapping the triangles slightly. Have them glue the arms of their starfish in place.
Middle School
Give each student a thick sheet of paper and a pencil. Have them draw three upside down curves for hills and a circle for the sun. Ask your class to make concentric circles around the sun circle to cover the remaining paper space. Tell your students to go over the lines they've drawn with a black permanent marker and then fill in each shape with bright oil pastels, covering the entire paper with color. Then instruct them to color over the whole picture with a black oil pastel. Give each student a wooden stick and have them scratch the black pastel off of the colored areas.
High School
This project ties in to Asian culture and tradition. Supply students with traditional Asian artistic images like dragons, koi fish, flowers, and bamboo. Demonstrate the watercolor wash technique, as well as wet on wet, wet with salt, and splatter. Have each student wash four 10 by 13 inch watercolor panels and choose one image. Have them paint the image on the panels leaving a 1 1/2 inch margin on all sides of each panel. Fold over the space of the margin and glue the folds down. Punch holes through the long sides of each panel so they line up. Lace the panels together like shoes and knot the ends. Tie the remaining string at the top and hang the lanterns.
