Mexican amate

You need:

1. brown paper bag
2. tempera paint in fluoresecent colours and white
3. brushes
4. jar with water
5. black marker
6. coloured paper for background
7. glue or stapler

Amate is a way of making paper, done for centuries by Mexican Indians. Amate paper is made by cooking the inner bark of various trees. At the beginning of the 20th century the Nahua Indians of Mexico started making amatepaintings as a form of folk art, especially in order to exchange and sell them to tourists.

Show some pictures of Mexican amate paintings. Discuss the striking features: birds, flowers, bright colours and black outlines. A frame around the drawing with a pattern in bright colours too.

Tear the edges off the paper: use thumb and fingers on both hands and tear very slowly. Use a pencil to draw some (two or three) birds and flowers, add a patterned frame and paint everything with fluorescent tempera. When it's dry, outline everything with a black marker. Don't forget the name of the artist!

Paste or staple the artworks on coloured construction paper.

Pompom easter bunny

You need:

1. cardboard
2. scraps of construction paper
3. wobbling eyes
4. yarn
5. scissors and glue

These easter bunny is made of several colours yarn. Search for an online lesson on 'how to make a pompom'. Cut ears and feet out of brown construction paper, paste them on the pompom. Paste also two wobbling eyes.

What's in your egg?

 

You need:

1. white drawing sheet A5 size 
2. charcoal
3. yellow sheet for background 
4. hairspray

A great lesson for Easter, to be done in several grades. 

Start this lesson with a yeaser: Imagine you break your egg on Easter, and it shows something very different than just the egg.... Draw this imagination with charcoal on a white sheet.
Give instruction on how to work with charcoal. Point out that charcoal stain quickly, and give students tissues with water to clean. Show that the charcoal stripes could be blurred by smearing. In this way the shadows on the egg can be made. Tell charcoal can be erased with kneaded eraser.

Let the children first practice to experience for their self how you work with charcoal.
Then they draw the two  seperated halves of an egg with that's what in it between them. The egg should not just hang not in the air, but has to lie somewhere on or in (grass, cloth or similar).

Fix the drawing with hairspray and staple or paste it on a yellow background.

Made by students of grade 3

Henhouse

Made by students from kindergarten

You need:

1. box
2. brown tempera paint
3. brush
4. paper plate
5. white paper 
6. red paper
7. black marker
8. straw

Paint the outside of the box with brown tempera paint. Fold the plate. Outline your hand and cut it twice out of a white sheet. Paste the hands on both sides of the chicken. Cut a comb and a beak out of red paper and paste them. Paste some feathers for the tail. 
Put the box on its side. Put some straw in the box and put the chicken in it. Stack the boxes of several students for a big hen house!

Henhouse

You need:

1. coloured cardboard for the henhouse
2. white cardboard for the chicken
3. yellow cardboard for the eggs
4. red cardboard for the wing
5. fabric from onion or potato bag
6. hay
7. scissors or cutter+mat
8. glue (possibly a glue gun)
9. markers
10. pattern henhouse
11. pattern chicken
12. carbon paper

Print the pattern of the henhouse. Use carbon paper to copy the henhouse on the cardboard. Cut the house twice. Place the onion bag fabric between the two houses and paste the houses together with the fabric in between. Cut away the fabric parts that hang out the house. Print the pattern of the chicken or ask children to draw one.

Use carbon paper to copy the chicken on white cardboard and cut it out. Colour the comb, beak and eye with a marker. Copy the wing with carbon paper on red cardboard or draw a wing. Cut it out and paste it on the chicken. If you use a glue gun, drop some glue on the wing to harden. After this paste the wing on the dollop of glue to create some space between wing and body. Cut out some eggs of the yellow cardboard. Paste the hen in his house, and paste hay on the bottom. Put the eggs in the hay and paste them.

Funky chicken

You need:

1. yellow cardboard
2. yarn
3. scrapbook paper
4. two wobbly eyes

Draw a chicken on cardboard and cut it out. Cut two double legs and glue them together with a piece of yarn between. Prick two holes in the body for the legs. Tie them down to the back. Cut two wings and a comb from the paper and paste them on the chicken. Draw eyes (or choose to paste two wobbly eyes), beak and mouth. Attach a piece of yarn to the head and hang the chicken.

Astronaut in space

Made by a student of grade 3

You need:

1. black construction paper
2. white drawing sheets 
3. water colour paint
4. brushes
5. jar with water
6. crayons
7. salt
8. glitter
9. scissors
10. glue
11. picture of yourself
12. picture of an astronaut

Fold two sheets of drawing paper in half. Paint the four halves with different colours watercolour. Allow the paint to blend together; you may first draw patterns with crayons or use salt for a nice texture. Let both sheets dry.
Cut circles in various sizes from the painted paper. Swap painted paper with someone else if you like to. Create a composition of space on the black sheet. Paste some planets at the edge and cut them, to the endlessness of space even better.
Cut the astronaut and paste a picture of yourself on it. Paste planets and the astronaut. Use glitter or confetti to add stars.

Patchwork landscape

By a student of grade 3.

You need:

1. white drawing sheets
2. tempera paint
3. brushes

This is an easy lesson in perspective for younger students. Talk about perspective and show the picture of the disappearing railway.
Do a step by step guide on the blackboard to make this drawing:


1. Put the sheet in the width for you.
2. Draw a wavy line on 2/3 of the bottom.
3. Place a dot in the middle on the top of the sheet.
4. Draw lines with a ruler from the bottom and sides of the sheet to the dot.
5. Divide the strips in squares.
6. Draw houses and trees on the horizon line.

After this the students can finish their artwork independently. Paint the squares all different and use different patterns. Stpale or paste the artwork on a coloured background.

Winter mittens and cap

Made by a student of grade 2

You need:

1. coloured construction paper
2. markers
3. white sheet
4. glue
5. scissors
6. oil pastel

Students draw a face on a large sheet of white paper and colour it with oil pastels. Be sure the eyes are not on top of the head, but in the middle. The space between the two eyes is as wide as an eye.
From coloured paper students cut mittens and a hat (or trace templates first and cut them). Draw patterns on the hat and mittens with marker. The patterns on both mittens should be similar, as well as the patterns on the hat.
Paste hat and mittens on the drawing. Make sure the thumbs point to each other!

Pastel planets

You need:

1. black construction paper A4 size
2. chalk pastel
3. hairspray

During our school project about Space, students of grade 5 made these fantasy solar system. Spheres were drawn with attention towards an imaginary light source creating light and dark values. Overlap was required to suggest depth. To suggest the endlessness of the universe, parts of planets had to be drawn at the edge of the sheet.

 

Draw circles by tracing round subjects or use compasses. Colour with chalk pastel. Note the technique of the chalk: colour, smear and blend until you're satisfied. Fix the artwork with hairspray.

 

International Space Station

You need:

1. piece of cardboard 30 by 25 cm (box)
2. space wallpaper or blue crepe paper
3. gold and silver foil
4. scraps paper and cardboard
5. metallic supplies like candle holders, stones, beads etc. .

During a school project about space students of grade 5 made the International Space Station - ISS, where Dutch astronaut André Kuipers currently stays. We saw photographs of the ISS and talked about the different parts of it. 

All students get a piece of cardboard and wallpaper or crepe paper. With different materials they make their own representation of the ISS.

Winter forest prints

I found this lesson on Mrs. Knight's art class blog. Take a look on that blog to see more beautiful artworks.

You need:

1. ribbed cardboard
2. flat cardboard
3. woodsies
4. coloured construction paper
5. block printing ink
6. piece of plexiglass
7. roller

Students make a collage of trees, cut from pieces of flat and ribbed cardboard and woodsies. Tell them the cardboard can be used in two ways: from top to bottom or from left to right.
Shake the bottle of blockprint carefully to be sure oil will mix with the rest. Drip some paint on the glass and roll it out. Roll the paint on the trees. Put a sheet on top of it and press firmly with a flat hand. Make different prints, choose the best one to paste on a coloured background.    

A journey through space

You need:

1. white drawing paper A5 size
2. crayons
3. black paint
4. brush
5. toothpick
6. coloured construction paper

As part of a school project about the Dutch astronaut André Kuipers and his space journey, students scratched these drawings.
Colour the entire drawing sheet with crayons. Choose the colours you want, but don't use black or white. Then Paint the entire sheet black and let dry. Scratch a space scene with a toothpick. Paste the artwork on a coloured background.

All artworks are made by students of grade 3

Stamped polar bears

 

Made by students of grade 1

You need:

1. blue construction paper
2. pencil
3. tempera paint white and black
4. marshmellows
5. brush
6. glitter
7. glue

Show how to draw a polar bear out of simple shapes: circle, half of a circle (ears) and a part of a triangle for the body. Talk about the grey shadow under the head. How do you make gray? Tell students they have to stamp with marshmellows or brushes. Do not paint!

Students draw the head of a polar bear on blue paper. Use white to stamp head and body. Use grey to stamp the shadow. Paint eyes and nose with a small brush. Decorate the artwork with glitter.

Snowmen mandala

You need:

1. white drawing sheet 
2. compasses
3. scissors 
4. crayons or oil pastels 
5. indian ink
6. brush

Step 1.
This lesson is a variaton on 'Autumn leaves mandala'. Click the link for full description.

Focus in this lesson: make sure the snowmen are really coloured white with crayons or oil pastels, otherwise they will turn completely black with ink after step 2.

Step 2.

Crumple the picture into a ball. Make flat again. Paint the entire drawing with indian ink. Rinse the ink immediately after it in the sink and let the work dry. The ink will rest in the folds of the paper  and creates a great "antique" effect.

Made by a student of grade 3

Golden Christmas

Made by a student of grade 6

You need:

1. white drawing sheet 20 by 20 cm
2. ruler
3. pencil
4. silver and gold marker
5. black construction paper
6. glue

Children divide their sheet with ruler and pencil in 16 squares from 5 by 5 cm. In each square they draw a Christmas figure: tree, candy, snowman, skates, mitten, sock, candle etc. These figures have to be coloured , just like a checkerboard, with gold and silver marker.  Paste the drawing on a black sheet.

Winter scenes

You need:

1. styrofoam
2. pencil
3. block printing ink
4. paint roller
5. flat piece of plexiglass
6. coloured paper

Explain the principle of printing. Why is it that people started to print texts and pictures?

Draw a winter scene with a pencil on the styrofoam. Squeeze out “toothpaste” amount of ink on plexiglass. Roll ink out. The ink is ready when lines appear. Ink should look wet.
Put the styrofoam on a newspaper. Roll one colour ink onto the foam, working quickly to cover all areas. Lay a sheet on top of foam and press with a flat hand. Take away the sheet and your print is ready. Let dry and cut it with about 1 cm around. Paste one or more prints on a white sheet. Decorate the frame with fingerprints.

Made by students of grade 2

House in cubist style

By a student of grade 4

You need:

1. drawing paper A4 size
2. colour markers
3. pencil
4. ruler

Draw a house simplified house with windows and a door. Add one or two trees. Divide the sheet in with three horizontal and three vertical lines. Colour the surfaces with four different coloured markers.

Amsterdam by night

You need:

1. white drawing sheet A4 size
2. liquid water colour
3. brush
4. jar with water
5. indian ink
6. straw
7. black and yellow construction paper
8. scissors
9. glue

Paint the white sheet blue or orange with liquid water colour; add water to get a brighter blue / orange above. Let dry. Drip some indian ink and blow it upwards with a straw. Cut a row of canal houses out of black paper and paste it on the coloured sheet. Cut and paste windows and a moon out of yellow paper.
Paste the artwork on a black sheet.

Artworks made by students of grade 4

In the style of Pablo Picasso

You need:

1. white drawing sheet A4 size
2. watercolour paint
3. brushes
4. black marker
5. ruler and pencil
6. scissors and gluetekenpapier op A4 formaat
7. black construction paper 

Show some cubistic works of Picasso on the digital board. What do you see? What does the face look like?

Students draw a portrait. In this lesson we made a portrait of Zwarte Piet (Black Pete), the helper of our Dutch Sinterklaas. We called him Pietcasso! Of course this lesson can be done with any other portrait.
Colour the portrait with watercolour paint. Paint a background too. Outline with black marker.
Measure the face between hair and neck. Divide it in three and draw the lines with ruler and pencil on the drawing. Cut the three strips. Divide the strips in quares.
Paste the top of the face on a black sheet. Make a composition of the little squares; be sure there's not a facial square on the outside of the face. Paste the squares. Finally paste the lower face. 
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