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What are Kwik Stix? My first vlog.. video blogging!

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What are Kwik Stix? My first vlog.. video blogging!

What are Kwik Stix?  Today I will share with you my first vlog.  What is vlogging?  Video blogging.  In this video, I will share with you a new product I am loving and tell you my opinions. In the picture below, the butterfly was painted with paint dotters.  The background designs were drawn with Kwik Stix. The designs drawn on top of the shapes are drawn with Kwik Stix. You can blend the Kwik Stix with water and a paintbrush. … Read more… →

Huge Printable Art Advocacy List! What Do Artists Do?

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Huge Printable Art Advocacy List! What Do Artists Do?

Many of you probably know of Ian and Melissa from Apex High School.  They have developed a list of Artistic Behaviors for the high school level.  I have been following along and seeing how they teach their students.  Seeing their list gave me the idea to create posters that shows kids what artists do and what exactly is an artist.  I decided to simplify the behaviors for elementary school students and start from the basics.  Start from the ground and … Read more… →

The Value of Independent and Exploratory Art

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A vibrant exploratory art painting with various geometric shapes and swirls in multiple colors, dominated by red, blue, and yellow.

I wanted to explain to you how our art class periods are structured.  Students have art twice a week for 40 minutes.  Typically, we start with a 5 minute art warm up drawing in a sketchbook.  Then we move to instruction, demonstration, art history or literature connections.  Finally, for the majority of the time, the students work on their artwork.  Students work at all different paces.  Some students work very quickly and others take as much as double the amount … Read more… →

Sand Art Pictures with 5th & 6th Grade

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Colorful abstract painting featuring vibrant geometric shapes like stars, hearts, and various polygons on a pink background.

This project was a huge hit with my 5th/6th grade classes.  There’s something about the feel of sand through your fingers that is soothing.  I’m telling you, every kid was very engaged.  I got applause after one of my demonstrations.  Applause!  When was the last time you had your class cheer and applaud after a demonstration? We used Sand-O Adhesive Boards and X-Acto knives to make our pictures.  First, we drew the design with pencil.  Then we carefully cut one … Read more… →

Peanut Butter and Jellyfishes Book

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Two alphabet books titled "Peanut Butter and Jellyfishes" and "ABC Book" on a white surface.

I want to show you a beautiful book I discovered called Peanut Butter and Jellyfishes: A Very Silly Alphabet Book by Brian P. Clearly. The book was illustrated by Betsy E. Snyder and I think the pictures are fantastic.  The style of the book is reminiscent of Eric Carle’s painted paper collages. Aren’t they beautiful?  On each page of the book are pictures that feature things that start with one letter of the alphabet.  My first grade students created an … Read more… →

Some of My Favorite Presentations from NAEA 2016

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Image of the Dalai Lama with quotes on kindness and compassion, accompanied by a message on teaching with empathy.

In my last post, I wrote an overall recap of the National Art Education Association conference.  I also gave a summary of the artist Jesse Reno’s speech.  In another post, I put together a little art history quiz of artworks from the Art Institute of Chicago. Today I am going to share with you some highlights from a few of the presentations.  If you would like to see all of the handouts from the presentations that were uploaded, they are … Read more… →

NAEA Convention Recap Part 1

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Art supplies arranged around a framed painting with text "NAEA Convention 2016" at the bottom.

  Hi, artsy friends!  It’s taken awhile for me to gather all my pictures and information from the National Art Education Association conference and compile them into a recap.  At my school, if you go to a conference, you present something about your experience at one of our weekly staff meetings.  So I am “killing two birds with one stone”.  If you have never been to an art conference, it is really fun! There are many, many sessions to choose … Read more… →

Jesse Reno: ambition over direction

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A colorful abstract face with various patterns and textures, featuring two horns and closed eyes.

When I found out that Jesse Reno was going to be at the National Art Education Conference this year, I was stoked.  I’ve been following his artwork and blog for several years and I love how layered and complex his paintings are.   You have to watch his process of transforming one thing into another while painting.  He has several videos on his blog where you can watch him paint.   I was excited to hear him talk, but it would have … Read more… →

How Well Do You Know Art History?

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How Well Do You Know Art History?

How well do you know artists throughout history?  Take this quiz to test your knowledge.   If you are reading from a blog reader or email, you may need to click on over to the actual blog post.  Art History Quiz from Marcia Beckett This past week I had the pleasure of attending the National Art Education Association conference in Chicago, IL.  I have lots of information to share with you from some of the great sessions I attended.  Coming … Read more… →

Watercolor Animals with 5th and 6th Grade

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Colorful watercolor painting of a green parrot with blue wings and an orange tail, set against a bright blue sky.

With all the fancy projects an art teacher can find on Pinterest, sometimes it’s good to go back to the basics.  Simple drawing and painting of familiar subjects.  This week my students drew art manekins.  You could see much more concentration in the students than while doing other projects.  I was looking through the folders on my computer and found these animal watercolor paintings my students had made last year. For more watercolor lessons, check out these old posts: How … Read more… →

Published Magazine Article!

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Published Magazine Article!

An article I wrote was published in the April issue of Arts and Activities magazine! If you want to read the digital version, here is the link: http://pubdev.ipaperus.com/ArtsandActivities/AAApril2016/?page=24 Big thanks to the editor, Maryellen, for publishing my article.  I really appreciate it!  Writing about art and teaching is a hobby of mine (as you might have guessed from reading my blog) and it’s exciting to hold an actual physical copy of my writing. I have subscribed to Arts and Activities … Read more… →

What Do Artists Do? Signs about ARTISTS and Artistic Behaviors

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Colorful poster with art supplies at the edges and the text "What Do ARTISTS DO?" in the center, highlighting various artistic behaviors.

I have something to share with you that I’ve been working on for a long time.  Well, a couple of months.  It takes forever for me to accomplish anything lately (I have a clingy toddler who doesn’t like to sleep) so I work in short spurts whenever I get a chance. Many of you probably know of Ian and Melissa from Apex High School.  They have developed a list of Artistic Behaviors for the high school level.  I have been … Read more… →

Stuffed Animal Still Life Drawings with 1st Grade

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1st Grade children drawing stuffed animals with crayons and markers. Text reads "Stuffed Animal Still Lifes.

Do you want to know what will really get first graders excited about drawing still lifes?  Have them bring in their own stuffed animals!  I invited the kids to bring in their favorite stuffed animals to draw.  I also had a garbage bag full of my own stuffed animals from home in case someone forgot to bring in one. I demonstrated how to observe the shapes and positioning of the stuffed animals and then I let the kids get to … Read more… →

Clay Projects for Kids

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Three clay dog sculptures, each painted differently: one black and white, one brown, and one yellow.

Hello!  Today I am going to catch up on some of the clay projects my students have been working on.  The last few weeks we have been busy learning clay techniques, building and glazing.  We weren’t able to use regular clay for the past year since the kiln was out of commission, so my students were itching to work with clay! The 5th/6th grade classes made Clay Castles. We connected a clay unit to their study of the Middle Ages.  … Read more… →

A World of Your Own: Creativity Drawings

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Children's book "A World of Your Own" features two creative drawings.

I have a fun creativity drawing project and excellent children’s book to share with you today. I came across this book called A World of Your Own by Laura Carlin and thought it looked intriguing, so I ordered it. I love the illustrations in the book and the story encourages children to think of how they would imagine a world of their own. On a day when I was out sick, I left this book for the substitute teacher to … Read more… →

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