Curated OER
AZTEC TILES
Pupils observe the shapes and lines that make up Aztec sculpture, study Pre-Columbian art as they discover the Aztecs, Mayans and Incas. They create a small-scale Aztec tile using pasta. Creative, clever and engaging.
Missoula Art Museum
Dance with Your Fingers, Draw with Your Toes
Pair dancing, music, and art into one elementary instructional activity. Using the work of Henri Matisse and Rudy Autio as inspiration, kids spend a few days listening to music that fits the moods of various pieces of art, then work on...
Curated OER
Here's My Family
Family traditions help to instill personal values, social norms, and the warmest of childhood memories. Elementary and secondary learners share their favorite family traditions with a fun diorama project. Using modeling clay, they create...
San Diego Museum of Art
Tapa-Inspired Pattern Painting
Middle schoolers are encourage to try their hand at traditional Oceania tapa art by crafting their own cloth using brown paper bags. Included in the resource is background information about the cultures of Oceania and their art.
Tasha McKelvey
Clay Whistles
Create clay whistles with your elementary or middle school students. The project is outlined in great detail here, complete with step-by-step photographs, finished examples, a materials list, student handouts, and a rubric. Students...
Curated OER
Brushstrokes From West to East
Students meld their ideas about art with the philosophy of the Chinese. They discuss each art project, discover the history and culture of each project in China. They create a tea ceremony and various Chinese art projects.
Curated OER
Hieroglyphic Cartouche Pendants
In ancient Egypt, mummified bodies were embellished with elaborate cartouches housing the name of the deceased. Elementary artists can read all about Egyptian burial practices then create a cartouche of their own using clay and real...
Denver Art Museum
Talking in Sculpture
Elementary schoolers take a look at the work of sculptor Roxanne Swentzell. They pay particular attention to her work, Mud Woman Rolls On. Then, the young artists use clay to create a sculpture of their own which has the theme of a...
Curated OER
Mosaic Tiles
Elementary schoolers create a mosaic project. This simple art lesson plan produces big results! The tile mosaics are beautiful, and will be cherished by the young artists who create them, and their parents. These are the kind of projects...
Curated OER
Masks from Around the World
Students examine the history of masks, and create their own mask as a culminating activity. They view and discuss a PowerPoint presentation about the history of masks, complete a class KWL chart, create their own mask, and write a...
Curated OER
Portraits in Clay: Elementary Sculpture Lesson
It is lovely how this activity incorporates the importance or personal expression and art history. Children create low-fire ceramic heads that express emotion or personal feelings. The entire process is laid out step-by-step. All you...
Curated OER
Art of Japan - Textiles - Kimonos
Students examine and discuss the role of the Kimono in Japanese culture. They create Kimono Paper Weavings, Kimono Scratch Art, and Kimono Clay Sculptures.
Curated OER
Native American Storyteller Figure
Third graders explore cultures that use clay figures in the art of storytelling. They discover the importance of cultural history being passed through generations. They also form their own storyteller from a clay figure.
Curated OER
Venetian Carnival Masks
Students investigate the history of the Venetian Carnival and the use of the carnival masks in French and Italian traditions. Masks are then created noting the emphasis non fantasy, stylization, and abstraction features.
Curated OER
The Chemistry of Ceramics
Students make ceramic sculptures to understand how clay works. In this sculpture lesson, students learn about porcelain sculptures to understand how heat can turn clay into a hard ceramic surface. They then experiment with clay to make...
Curated OER
Clay Animation
Students are introduced to the history of clay animation. The use of construction, technology, and integration of curriculum make the lesson unique. The highlight of the project is the creation of a storyboard.
Curated OER
Ceramic Draped Slab Masks
Middle schoolers will compare and contrast various forms of artistic expression associated with specific groups of people, geographic regions, or time periods. Investigate processes and beliefs used by various cultures and institutions,...
Curated OER
Marshland Ecosystems
Students identify animals in ecosystem depicted on 16th Century ceramic basin and classify them as herbivores, carnivores, or omnivores based on physical characteristics and prior knowledge, determine which life forms in ecosystem are...
Curated OER
Your Attention Please: Iatmul Orator's Stool
Learners investigate art by observing historical sculptures from New Guinea. In this art history lesson, students observe pictures of the "Orator's Stool"from Papua New Guinea, while identifying the small details that make it unique....
Curated OER
Creating Animal Prints
Students investigate the habits of animals by studying their prints. In this animal life lesson, students investigate the different types of tracks left from animals by researching the Internet. Students utilize clay or Play-Doh to...
Curated OER
The Chemistry of Ceramics
Learners compare the characteristics of a fired porcelain sculpture to the clay used to create it. They discuss the physical and chemical changes that occur in the clay as it is heated and then create their own clay sculpture. This...
Curated OER
Sculpting
Students use clay, molding, and cardboard to create a sculpture of a bird and a bird house. Students complete 5 steps to making this sculpture.
Curated OER
Dig This Dinosaur Relief Lesson
Students create low-fire ceramic relief sculptures of dinosaur bones. They incorporate art history, aesthetics, and criticism with hands on activity. Students work together to draw an enlarged skeleton on butcher paper. The Stegosaurus...
Curated OER
Clay Pot Snowmen
Students create "clay pot" snowmen using clay pots, glue, mitten scraps, paints, and markers in this early-elementary Art lesson. The lesson may take 1-2 days depending on the amount of time it takes for the undercoat of each snowman to...