Here is a fun way to encourage a cooperative classroom, drawing skills, and creative expression. Each child draws a design or shape on his paper, then he rotates to the next child's paper where he adds to the previous design. When the...

Who wouldn't love to get a letter from a blue bird? Elementary art enthusiasts analyze the social and historical context of Ason Yellowhair's Navajo piece, Bird and Cornstalk Rug. They examine the construction and images on the rug...

Our art often reflects who we are as individuals and as part of a larger community. The painting Hopi Eagle Dancer reflects the history and culture of the artists who created it. Critical thinkers analyze the piece and then compose...

Upper graders having skills in music performance will extend their abilities through creative musical composition. They'll use Finale 2000 to explore facets of music composition, they'll then compose a piece for their instrument in C, F,...

Middle schoolers explore and experience jazz through collage. They listen to improvisational jazz, discuss the origins of jazz, then design and create a collage that shows jazz being played. This project will result in amazing works of...

What a great activity. Kids create humorous ceramic character (heads) spikes to enliven a planter. Modern art is full of expressive and exaggerated forms and your class gets to create them out of clay. This would be a lovely activity to...

A neat art project is on the horizon. Your class can experience impasto, or textured painting with this expressive art lesson. They design and then paint using the impasto technique. This is done by mixing toilet paper into the paint....

Everybody has a special place they like to go. I hang out on top of the fridge, for example. Upper graders analyze the painting Mountain Lake, in terms of technique, style, and imagery. They then write or draw a place that expresses...

Examine the way water moves, drips, and splashes with an expressive dance. Learners discuss the ways in which water moves, then create dance sequences that show or describe water. There are several suggestions to adapt this activity to...

A fun way to grow a class of creative thinkers, is to add creative projects to your weekly line up. Kids pretend they are small insects or spiders crawling up the side of a huge building. They use vivid imagery, rich detail, and their...

What a great lesson, upper graders are sure to love. They explore costume design and the relationships between theatre, culture, and history. They research three time periods, write a response about two of them, then create a composit...

Learners dance the image of falling snow. They move, swing, fall, and rise to music working to depict snow falling, the sun, and high/low movements. This is a well-thought out lesson that aids them in seeing movement as a form of...

A series of six lessons that focus on the importance of journaling and sketching awaits your ninth graders. The lessons get into the intricacies of responding to life experiences and events, the creative process, and an exploration of...

High schoolers explore protein synthesis through creative expression. They constructa three dimensional, move-able model of protein synthesis depicting all of the processes involved, from replication to the production of the protein.

Why not get creative and use paper clay to create colorful fish sculptures? All the steps needed to complete this activity are included. Your class will sculpt beautiful fish while exploring color, shape, and creative thinking. Use these...

A few bits of paper can really go a long way when it comes to art. Learners build motor skills and a creative voice as they shape and glue thin strips of paper, creating an original scene. 

The four-faced Hamat'sa mask is the inspiration for a lesson on ceremonial art and the process of initiation. The class examines images of the piece, then discusses how the mask represents ceremonial initiation. They get imaginative...

Here is a lesson that sounds like a lot of fun. Kids discuss the artistic elements and motives for the painting, Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. To get the scope and scale of this oversized masterpiece, they use butcher paper and the...

Shadow puppetry has an ancient past, it is also a great way to build oral expression and reading fluency. Young thespians research folk tales, compare and contrast reality and fantasy, then create and perform a shadow puppet play based...

Learners discuss Sol LeWitt and conceptual art, then analyze the differences in expressing a concept through model-based inquiry and aesthetic art criticism. They develop a geometric, scientific, or mathematical concept, then create an...

Art, identity, and an imaginary community, three components that should make for an interesting lesson. Critical thinkers explore and evaluate the work of contemporary artist, Elizabeth Peyton. They discuss her use of subject and art to...

Found metal objects were welded together to create an inspiring African sculpture. Learners consider the use of objects and the inspiration of African art seen in Picasso's work. They then find and create a scrap art sculpture, as well...

Young scholars learn about and create a pet rock.  In this creative expression lesson, students pick a rock to make into their "pet".  Young scholars use various art materials to create their pets and write a personal profile...

Problem solving and creative thinking are top priority in an interesting lesson. Learners explore how they can think creatively to use four common objects in three different ways, they discuss senses and using senses differently to...