About 6 years ago I came up with the idea to do a Summer Art Challenge, based on the fun I had as a girl doing those summer reading programs where you earned a little prize at the library. You can see the first one my students did back in 2012 here. They brought in their summer artwork and we had a great display! In 2015, I did another summer art challenge with printable handouts on my blog. I think … Read more…
This month the Art Ed Blogger’s Network is talking about student engagement and participation. When I tell people that I am an art teacher, some people who say ”Wow, that must be so much fun! I bet the kids all just love art.” Well, there are fun times, but there are times when not everyone is engaged in the media or project we are working on. I’m sure this happens in all classrooms. Sometimes it is due to lack of alignment … Read more…
Hello friends! Did you know Art is Basic has a newsletter? If you sign up for my newsletter, you will receive emails about once or twice per month from me. The newsletters will point you to blog posts you may have missed, tell about new products and give you words of encouragement or art teaching tips. I will never spam you or send you too many “salesy” emails. You can sign up with this form below (you might have to … Read more…
From time to time I receive comments on blog posts or emails from readers that might be interesting to other art teachers. These new Reader Mailbag posts will highlight questions and comments that I think are intriguing and you will too! Elizabeth asked, “Do you think it’s crucial to be an extremely talented artist yourself if you’d like to teach it?” Wow, that is a great question! First, I think it depends on what level you are planning to … Read more…
I love organizing things, especially art materials. It makes it easier to find things you need when your room is organized! I am always revamping my organizational systems and I feel like my room now is arranged pretty well for my needs. I am sure I will find some things that need tweaking over the next few years. On each table I have a plastic drawer set labeled with pencils & eraser, glue sticks & scissors, and markers. On the … Read more…
