Color Theory and Rhythm Drawings by 3rd Grade

This is a project I love to do with the 3rd graders. Their drawing all turn out so unique and fun. First, we talk about what rhythm in art is. Rhythm is like a visual beat in a picture, created by lines, colors, shapes and space. Rhythm can be made by repeating certain elements of art. Here is a good handout about rhythm. Here is another handout about rhythmic line designs. The students each drew their own line drawing showing rhythm through repetition. These were drawn on a half sheet of 8.5 x 11 paper.

After the students drew their designs, I photocopied them so each child had 4 copies. Then, we learned about color schemes through my Color Wheel worksheet and a Color Schemes worksheet. Next, they colored in each design using a different color scheme of their choice. The color schemes they picked from were: primary colors, secondary colors,
tertiary colors, complementary colors, monochromatic, analogous, warm colors, cool colors and rainbow order. They colored in as many copies as they had time to do.