Scotch Removable Mounting Putty
Mounting things on the walls of your classroom (or home!) can be a horribly frustrating ordeal. Reliability has been hard to come by as inconsistency seems to be the underlying […]
All Hans on Deck
My kindergarten and 2nd grade students are studying Abstract Expressionism this year and one of the artists I introduced them to was Hans Hofmann. Abstract Expressionism Started in the late 1940s–early […]
Wall Decorations at the Elementary Level
Okay, I am back! This year I got to kiss my art cart goodbye. That’s right … I have my own room. Yay! With a room, though, comes different realities than […]
Butterfly Symmetry
Symmetry is one of those tricky concepts for kids; especially such a young group as kinders. But, as many teachers learn, students can surprise you. Some projects go smoothly because […]
Value Landscape
Value is one of the Elements of Art that can be tricky. On the face of it, value refers to dark and light. Once you transition to upper elementary, middle […]
Tropical Tails (Watercolor Fish)
Drawing fish can be daunting, especially if you press your students to let go of schemas they rely on to help them get by. Schemas for this age might look […]
Kandinsky Geometric Shape Painting
I used a lesson from The Art of Education to introduce Wassily Kandinsky to my students. It seemed like a fine next-step in our study of line and shape. Although […]
One-Page Art Advocacy
“If any man will draw up his case, and put his name at the foot of the first page, I will give him an immediate reply. Where he compels me […]
How to Clean Dirty Erasers: Supply Surgery
If you have taught art for more than a week—to just about to any age group—you have experienced the dirty eraser. Well, what do you do when a few 4th […]
Teaching Kids to Use Glue Bottles
After much thought, I have decided to formalize my teaching of bottled glue. Why? Because we, as art educators, take it for granted. Glue is magical to my younger students. […]
Fixing Torn Tops on Marker Boxes: Supply Surgery
Many teachers remove their supplies, such as markers, from their boxes and then put them in other containers; usually organized by color. It looks great and I love the idea […]
How Valued?
For today’s students to be innovators and economic leaders of the future, they will need to have experiences as musicians and dancers, painters and sculptors, poets and playwrights…” Arne Duncan, […]
The Poetry of Seeing 