Cheetah Pastel Art!

Last year I worked at a school whose mascot was a Cheetah. I wanted to do a fun pastel art project and I thought celebrating our school mascot would be the perfect subject matter! I first practiced drawing a cheetah so I could break it down into manageable steps for my second graders. The students used their iPads to look up pictures of cheetahs so they could become familiar with the physical characteristics of the cheetah.

Then I approached the teaching using a directed drawing method. The students were able to transform and adjust their cheetah drawing however they chose. I then introduced the "fuzzy" paper.

"Fuzzy paper" is a velour paper that looks great with oil pastels. The material "grabs" the pastel allowing a wonderful textured appearance. I use black because it gives the pastel pieces a depth and value without having to add additional black pastel for shading. I taught the students how to transfer their drawing to the velour paper.

I then modeled using pastels on the velour paper. Check out the amazing work that my students produced!

I am so excited to try this project again this year with my new school's mascot, the bobcat! I am going to practice my bobcat drawing over the next few days so I am ready to teach the drawing when we get back to school. I will be sure to post pictures of our bobcats soon! For now please enjoy the art from my last year's second graders!

Here is a list of the supplies we used for the cheetah pastel pieces:
oil pastels
velour paper
white drawing paper
pencils
erasers
black markers
tape

If you have any questions about this project, please leave a comment! :) Happy Teaching!

Candy Christmas Tree Fun!

Before we went on break for Christmas our class made the most adorable Candy Christmas Trees! This is the third year I have done this project and my students always have so much fun! I love this project because the kids can get creative and it is much easier to prep than gingerbread houses. I used waffle cones this year because I was hopeful the trees would be bigger than the sugar cones, but looking back I realized the sugar cones were much sturdier. Check out the pictures of the fun we had!

I wish I had a picture of how the we wrapped up the trees. We used cookie bags and placed the trees inside. We used ribbon to tie them up and the kids took them home. Our rule was that we can eat the leftover candy from our cups, but the trees had to be saved for home. I can't wait to do this fun project again next holiday season!

Here is a list of supplies we used:

white frosting and coconut flakes for snow
green frosting
sugar cones
plastic knives
small containers for candy ( I used Dixie cups)
twizzlers pull and peel candy
small candy stars
holiday plates
plastic cookie bags and ribbon for transport
sprinkles
mini m&ms
other candy of choice for decorating

Pastel Penguin Art Project

This winter I decided I wanted to get creative and come up with a new art project for my kiddos. I decided to choose something more "wintery" than "Christmasy" because I wanted to hang the projects for more than two weeks.

I decided on a multi-media penguin. We used construction paper, paint, pastel, and glitter all in one art project! The penguins took two sessions to complete, but they look adorable and brighten up our hallway.

I showed my students how to draw a penguin chick on black construction paper using a white chalk pastel. I then showed them how to blend the penguin's feathers to make it look like down. I added a little bit of black pastel to add definition and then let the kids give it a try. I stressed the importance of making their penguins big, as most of the time students tend to draw on the small side. Some kiddos used a little too much black pastel and the white did not show as much, but we fixed that with the addition of  a little white oil pastel on top.

We then cut out the penguins and set them aside. Next was the snowy/glittery background. We used white tempera and sponges cut in circles to sponge paint the snow onto blue construction paper. I showed the students how to "dab" since their first reaction is to "scrub" using the sponge. Once the students covered a half to three quarters of their page with snow, I had them sprinkle glitter on the paint. Oh boy, did they LOVE that! Every kid loves glitter, and since it was the Christmas season, I decided to go all in with glitter mess.

Once the background was dry we used white glue to affix the penguins to the page. It took quite a bit of glue due to the thickness of the glitter. Some penguins needed a little glue touch up because they were peeling up, but the process ended up working out great.

We love our glittery penguins and my mind is already swirling with other winter projects! Please leave any questions in the comments below! :)

Supplies:
Blue Construction Paper
Black Construction Paper
Chalk Pastels
Glitter
White Glue


Click here for more winter themed units and ideas:
Polar Bear Unit
Penguin Unit
How to Draw Polar Animals

Last year we made these adorable polar bears using a similar technique I found from whimsy workshop and my students LOVED them. Here are a few pics of the adorable bears. :)

Watercolor Pumpkins!

Each year when fall rolls around my class creates many fall themed art projects and activities. One of the favorites is the watercolor pumpkin activity. I have created these a few different ways based on the grade level I teach that particular year.

These adorable pumpkins look like stained glass and I have two methods that are tried and true. The first one is more simple. I model a few different compositions of pumpkins for the kids using watercolor paper and pencil- whole class. The students either recreate one of my compositions or try one of their own. During this part I stress the importance of drawing large images so the glue will not run together. I explain that tracing little images with glue is very tricky and sometimes it ends up blobbing together.

After the students have a pencil outline I have them trace their lines with black glue. You can purchase black glue, but I prefer to make my own by mixing white glue and black tempera paint. I buy little squeeze bottles that are easier for little hands to use and let them go for it!

I let the glue dry overnight and the pumpkins are ready to paint the next day.

The other method is a little more complicated. The drawing of the pumpkin is the same, but then the lines are covered with white glue. Once the glue dries I have the students use sharpie to line the inside and the outside of the glue lines. After the glue is dry, the students paint in the sections of the glue.

These are both great methods for creating a stained glass look and create a wonderful fall display in the classroom. If you have any questions be sure to leave them in the comments section and I will be happy to answer them!

Items used:
Watercolor paper
Small Squeeze Bottles
Watercolors
Glue

3-D Spider Report

3-D Spider Report

Fall is inching closer and closer! Once the cool weather creeps its way in I start to think about fun units to teach. One I always like to present to my kiddos is the study of spiders! To make the learning even more exciting I created these 3-D Spider Reports for the students to create. There are a few different versions included. One contains report pages with lines and a blank report page version. I also included a blank template for those teachers who would prefer to keep this an art project rather than include a report component. Check out the video tutorial below! You can grab the spider template here!

3-D Spider Report

3-D Pumpkin Life Cycle

3-D Pumpkin Life Cycles

I can't believe it is almost September! With the end of summer brings planning for fall in the classroom. I always love teaching the pumpkin life cycle during the fall while celebrating fall holidays like Halloween and Thanksgiving!

I created a fun and hands-on way to study the life cycle of a pumpkin with these adorable 3-D models! Check them out at the link! Happy fall planning! Stay tuned for more fall inspired ideas soon!

All About Me 3-D Posters! (Plus Digital Versions!)

As the new school year approaches it is that time again to think of classroom set-up and engaging first week activities for students. This summer I went a little 3-D poster crazy and came up with some fun new "All About Me" activities that look great in any classroom.

I started thinking about all of the cute cactus classrooms I have been seeing on IG and Facebook. I decided that a 3-D All About Me Cactus would be a great addition to succulent themed rooms! Of course I just had create a tutorial video to go with it!

I have also had bright and colorful decor for the past few years and decided to create an All About Me 3-D Crayon poster to go with the eye catching rainbow decor of many teachers.

*** Just added to the file! Two digital slides to use for distance learning! Check it out here!

I loved the way my 3-D Butterfly All About Me posters turned out. These look adorable in primary classrooms! *** Update July 2020*** I have added a digital version which is great for distance learning! It is included in the file! 

This All About Me 3-D Hanging Poster was a classic I have used for years! Upper elementary students love this one!

These 3-D Star Posters looked great in my second grade classroom and the students loved making them!

These 3-D Dodecagon Posters were so much fun for my 4th and 5th graders a few years ago! They loved the folding and constructing process.

I also love the simplicity of these All About Me Cubes! They also look great hanging in the classroom! 

 These apples are great for primary classrooms and look adorable hanging from an apple tree bulletin board creation! Click here to grab the apples!

****Update! New poster added! Check out the All About Me 3-D Owl!

I love being able to pick whatever poster I feel will match my room decor and be fun and engaging for my students each year. Stay tuned for more options coming soon! If there are any themes you would like to see for All About Me Posters, be sure to leave a comment and I will get working on them! 

Happy Back to School!!