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Cardboard Chairs and Preschool Bird Art

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Cardboard Chairs and Preschool Bird Art

Hi folks!  What have you been doing this summer? It’s already flying by, isn’t it?  Here is a recap of my summer so far. What I HAVE been doing: keeping Daria busy playdates with friends Children’s museum, zoo, pool, splash parks, playgrounds feeding Desmond and changing lots of diapers organizing my room at school (I will give you a tour of my revamped room when it’s all done.) grilling out, eating icecream, going out to eat family reunion in IL … Read more… →

Review of Multi-Media Art Paper

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Review of Multi-Media Art Paper

Remember these samples I got from the Pacon company?  Several of you were curious about the multi-media art paper, so I decided to test it out. I primarily use watercolor and collage in my personal art and I am always looking for good paper to use.  I first tested this out by painting shapes and patterns with watercolor.  I do tend to use quite a bit of water when blending colors. Here are the results.  Here are the pictures (without … Read more… →

Foreign Language Art Postcard Contest

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Foreign Language Art Postcard Contest

Last fall, we participated in the Wisconsin Association for Language Teachers postcard contest. The theme was Languages:  Literacy for Life.  The students created postcards to fit this theme and one winning card was chosen to be reproduced in a pack of postcards that was given to all of the association members.  The members were encouraged to use the postcards in correspondence to parents or administration.  This would be a wonderful idea for arts advocacy! This is the card that was … Read more… →

Action Painting with Preschoolers

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Preschoolers painting with a giant paintbrush made from a cardboard tube on a long paper roll laid out on the ground, engaging in action painting.

The Pacon company sent me some free supplies to try out.  These are what I received.  Since it is the summer and I’m not teaching any classes, I decided to do a project with my daughter who is 4 years old. We rolled out the fingerpaint paper and poured some Crayola fingerpaints . She wanted to paint her pony with the paints.  I let her, because we have so many of those darn things from garage sales.  She knew to … Read more… →

Father’s Day Interview | Grandpa & Dad Questions | Free Printable

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Father’s Day Interview | Grandpa & Dad Questions | Free Printable

I was trying to find a good activity for my daughter to do for Father’s Day and decided to make my own.  Here is an interview printable for your little ones.  Have fun! For the PDF downloads, click the links below.  I recommend printing from the PDF files because they are crisper with a higher resolution. Fathers Day Printable Grandpa Printable

Art Project for Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

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Art Project for Chicka Chicka Boom Boom

At the beginning of the year when Kindergartners are learning how to write their letters I like to read the book Chicka Chicka Boom Boom  and teach an art lesson using the alphabet.  Most of the kids have already read this book, but it is a quick read and has a great rhythm.  The kids do love the book.  If you want to get a laugh though, read the one-star reviews on Amazon, lol. Start by painting a paper with … Read more… →

Creativity Banner

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Creativity Banner

I was approached by a representative from Build a Sign to review a product from their website.  They have a variety of types of signs (metal, vinyl, etc.) and also things like bumper stickers, magnets and license plates.  I chose the 3 foot x 6 foot vinyl banner!  I thought it would be fun to make a banner for my art room and also to hang up when we have an art show at school. I used the feather and … Read more… →

Butterfly Paintings with Kindergarten

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Butterfly Paintings with Kindergarten

Beautiful spring butterflies are a great way to end the school year.  Paint dotters give colorful results without a ton of mess. Kindergartners drew these with pencil first.  I read a suggestion from Patty Palmer on the art teacher Facebook group to use tracers for the top set of the wings to get the size proportional and then have the kids draw the bottom of the wings on their own.  Then they used paint dotters to create symmetrical designs on … Read more… →

Book Giveaway Winner

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Book Giveaway Winner

HEATHER KORDSMEIER you are the winner!  Congrats and email me your address.   Heather Kordsmeier May 20, 2014 at 5:05 pm I teach 3rd grade language arts and social studies. After our standardized test in April, I start Art and Art History. I have been puting together an artist timeline. We have learned about artists, their techniques, and do some sort of project using their techniques.        

Book Review & Giveaway: A Child’s Introduction to Art

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Cover of "A Child's Introduction to Art," showcasing famous artworks and children engaging in artistic activities, accompanied by a detailed book review.

**  This giveaway is now closed. ** I received a copy of a great new art history book to share with you!  The book is A Child’s Introduction to Art: The World’s Greatest Paintings and Sculptures, written by Heather Alexander.  The publishers are also giving away ONE free copy to a lucky winner.  To enter the giveaway, leave a comment on the blog telling one way you introduce art history to your kids.  I will pick one winner on Friday … Read more… →

Make a Magical Wand

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Colorful homemade wands laid out on a table with a banner at the bottom reading "Make a Magical Wand.

Every so often, I host after school art classes.  I try to have some fun projects that I wouldn’t normally teach during the school day.  These magical wands were a hit with both the boys and girls who signed up for this class. Use dowel rods or natural sticks as the wand base.  Twist, tie, wrap and hot glue fabric, ribbons, feathers, pipe cleaners and colored tape around the stick.  Tie on flowers, add glitter glue and sequins and use … Read more… →

  • Banner with colorful artwork promoting an art shop featuring kindness coloring pages, artist activities, and resources for teachers.