Whether you're a specialist art teacher with your own art classroom, or a classroom teacher looking for lesson plans to spice up your art lessons, here are some new and engaging art projects to complete with your students!
Not only do kids LOVE visual art lessons, but student artworks are a great way to brighten up your bulletin board displays too!
So, here are a few of my favourite art lesson ideas and art activities that you can complete at any time of the school year!
Pete Cromer Inspired Artworks
Quality art lessons should not only explore different elements of art, but should also expose students to famous artists. In Australia, one of our most loved artists is Pete Cromer.
If you have followed me for a while, you'll know that I jumped on the Pete Cromer bandwagon as soon as he burst onto the Australian scene!
So, if you (and your kids) love Pete Cromer as much as I do, then you'll love these Pete Cromer inspired art templates!
We use oil pastels to colour the birds- I suggest that the kids stick to 3 or 4 colours, as this really makes them pop!
We then use a contrasting watercolour paint for the background.
You can download these templates for FREE from Miss Learning Bee.
Mindfulness Colouring
Another famous artist in Australia is the talented Brentos. You might like to download these free mindfulness colouring templates for students to complete during their free time.
The end result will be a gorgeous student artwork which you could then also display!
What to do with a dot?
These free print-and-go art templates are the perfect addition to International Dot Day which is held on September 15th. Or alternatively – use for an engaging art lesson or activity at any stage throughout the year. I’ve included alternative headings for ‘What to do with a dot?’ as well as headings for ‘International Dot Day’.
Students will have so much fun creating different illustrations and artworks from a simple dot - this activity is such a creative way to encourage students to free draw and create a unique piece of art.
Here are the step-by-step instructions for how to complete this activity:
- Start by reading 'The Dot' by Peter Reynolds
- Provide students with a circle or dot sticker to place anywhere on their page.
- Students turn the circle into an illustration
Alternatively, here are some examples of where students simply placed a dot sticker on construction paper and drew their art work with sharpie markers.
You might also like to use The Hive's dot app which randomly generates different dots on a digital white board for students to turn into a picture!
Check it out with our 14 day free trial!
Rainbow Hearts
I love to use these art lesson to generate positive discussions in the classroom. This art activity is perfect for special events like RU OK Day, World Kindness Day, Valentines Day or at any time that you want to inject some social-emotional learning into your classroom.
Steps:
- Lightly trace a heart shape on art paper with lead pencil.
- Students use watercolours or tempera paint cakes to paint a rainbow pattern around the heart— great for working on blending skills and/or patterns!
- In the middle of the hearts, ask students to write 3-5 people who they care about. Encourage them to check in on those loved ones. Or, flip this, and write 3-5 trusted people who they can go to when they feel sad or worried.
- In the heart, draw ways that we can show our friends and family that we care for them.
Here are some of the ways that you could use this art lesson as an opportunity for positive classroom discussions too:
- Whilst kids are painting, provide them with discussion questions to talk about with their table group — e.g. what makes a good friend, what signs might show us that someone is feeling sad, how can we help someone when they feel sad, etc.
- Or, while they are painting, encourage students to share how they’re feeling with a partner (you may need to provide prompts for this).
Simple, but beautiful. Both the artworks— and the life lessons.
Collaborative Art Projects
I also love a good collaborative art project with my students. Here are a couple of examples of collaborative art projects for special events: Harmony Day and NAIDOC Week.
This free Harmony Day collaborative artwork can be downloaded for from Mrs Learning Bee.
This NAIDOC Week collaborative artwork was created with oil pastels.
Directed Drawings
I LOVE using directed drawings in the classroom. Not only is following instructions a great skill for our students to develop, but there are so many fun artworks that you can create with any grade level.
Plus, you can yet again tie them in with other parts of the curriculum. For example, you might like to check out my free Inside Out resource pack, where I combine art lessons with social-emotional learning.
Here are a few of my favourite directed drawing artworks that I've completed with my students over the years:
Looking for more?
Here are some more simple art ideas for the classroom!
