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Vote for Art is Basic!

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Vote for Art is Basic!

Hey readers! I’m happy to announce I’m in the running for the top 10 art ed blogs of the year over at The Art of Ed.   I would be so honored to have your vote for Art is Basic. You can vote for multiple blogs and I think you can vote every day this week..  Thanks for your support! If you don’t follow the other blogs listed, definitely check them out. They are ones I follow regularly. http://www.theartofed.com/2014/02/03/finalists-announced-and-voting-open-2013-art-ed-blog-of-the-year/   … Read more… →

Have You Ever Drawn Flowers with Watercolor Pencils?

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Have You Ever Drawn Flowers with Watercolor Pencils?

The week after winter break was up in the air.  Due to construction, we weren’t sure if we were going to be able to use our art room and we didn’t know if we would have easy access to supplies.  I planned for most of my classes to complete observational drawings during that week period, since they all could use the same supplies and learning to observe the edges and shapes of objects is great training for the eye. It … Read more… →

Creating a Collage with a Preschooler (My Little Pony!)

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Creating a Collage with a Preschooler (My Little Pony!)

What did I do on our two “cold” days off school this week?  Well, besides snuggling under the warm covers and working on some school work, my 4 year old and I made some canvas collages for her bedroom. While I would not necessarily recommend this for a project in an art class, I see no problem introducing appropriation in the context of Pop Art.  After all, Andy Warhol used cartoons in his famous art.  I observed a really awesome … Read more… →

Mixed Media Masks for 2nd Grade

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Mixed Media Masks for 2nd Grade

How many of you have also been off of school Monday and Tuesday this week?  This is our 4th day off of school because of cold weather.  It is supposed to be -45 windchills tomorrow morning, so we already know school is cancelled. I love making masks with kids! My second grade students learn about Alaska in their Social Studies class, so I introduce Alaskan masks to the kids.  We actually watch clips from a video series to teach about … Read more… →

Construction on the Art Room

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Construction on the Art Room

Our school is building an addition!  The addition will double the physical size of our school.  Included are several more classrooms, a teacher’s workroom, a performing arts center, multi-purpose room and AN EXTRA ART ROOM. Over winter break, the construction crew knocked out our paper storage closet and our kiln closet to make a connecting hallway.   Don’t worry though, after construction is done, we will have a new walk-in storage closet in between the old art room and the … Read more… →

Faux Stained Glass Paintings on Transparency Sheets

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Faux Stained Glass Paintings on Transparency Sheets

In the “better late than never” category, last Spring we made these super fun faux stained glass paintings in the 5th/6th grade class. For this project, you will need clear transparency sheets, Sharpie markers, Gallery Glass Paint (the kind used to paint suncatchers), regular acrylic paints (optional) and cardstock picture frames (also optional).  I had a bunch of transparency sheets in my classroom already and I got the glass paint FREE from an art re-swap, so I knew I wanted … Read more… →

Egyptian Clay Sarcophagus Art Project for 4th and 5th Graders

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Egyptian Clay Sarcophagus Art Project for 4th and 5th Graders

This is a clay lesson that has been a big hit with my students.  You can see my previous posts about this project here and here.  The 4th/5th grade class studies ancient Egypt in their social studies class and they are excited to learn more about the art and architecture in my class.  I show them a Powerpoint with an overview of Egyptian art and then they work on drawing a sarcophagus design of their own.  I encourage them to … Read more… →

10 More Spirit Day Ideas for School!

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10 More Spirit Day Ideas for School!

We are coming up with lots of good ideas for Spirit Days at our school. The first post on Spirit Day ideas was popular with Google searches, so I must not be the only one who is always on the look out for new and fresh ideas for fun days at school. Many art teachers wear multiple hats and end up leading groups like Student Council or plan school wide events.  Here are more Spirit Day ideas we came up … Read more… →

“I Heard You Can Draw!” Book Review

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“I Heard You Can Draw!” Book Review

I was happy to receive a review copy of I Heard You Can Draw: A Story for Class Artists Everywhere, written by M. D. Savran, who is an art teacher and author/illustrator in the Tampa Bay area.  I’m always happy to support other art teachers! The description reads: “Sarah loves to draw. When Mrs. Earl catches her drawing a picture in math class, the entire second grade discovers her talent! Suddenly, everyone asks her to draw pictures for them (strange … Read more… →

15 Favorite Posts from 2013

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  Another year is rapidly coming to a close, so I thought I would spend some time reviewing my favorite projects and blog posts from this year.  Here are my favorite posts, in no particular order! 15.  How to Paint Gorgeous Clouds with Watercolor 14.  Clay Castles 13.  Postage Stamp Art Project 12.  Heart Photography Project with 3rd Grade 11.  25 Amazing Books for Teaching About Art 10.  Editorial cartoons are a unit I teach every year.  We even were … Read more… →

Coffee Filter Snowflakes with 1st grade

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Coffee Filter Snowflakes with 1st grade

The week before winter break, the first graders made colorful coffee filter snowflakes. 1.  Color the coffee filters with washable markers. 2.  Spray with a water bottle and watch the colors magically spread like tie-dye.  Allow to dry overnight. 3.  The next day, fold the circle into half and then half again and half again.  Cut out little shapes and pieces of the coffee filter. 4.  Glue the snowflake on to a colored piece of construction paper.  Glue on confetti, … Read more… →

Winter Pop-up Scene Art Project for 2nd Grade

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Winter Pop-up Scene Art Project for 2nd Grade

Aren’t these fantastic?  I love these pop-up winter scenes. Guess what?  I just made a companion Facebook page for my blog!  I thought it would be fun to have another avenue to easily share all kinds of artsy inspiration I come across.  Most of the Facebook updates will be links to other blogs, articles and interesting artistic things I find around the web.  Of course, I will also share things about my blog, but MOST of the posts will be … Read more… →

Becoming an Art Teacher

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Becoming an Art Teacher

Maybe you are thinking about becoming a teacher or more specifically, an art teacher. Maybe you are already in a teaching program or perhaps you have just started thinking about your future career plans. Do you know what it’s like to be a teacher? What are the best ways to prepare yourself for the job? I was invited to write a blog post about my story of becoming a teacher and to give advice to someone transitioning into a teaching career. … Read more… →

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