Art teachers start the school year with lessons that engage students while teaching them foundational skills and techniques. High-school students explore shape-based thinking and color theory while creating paintless paintings with tissue paper; middle-school students complete the second half of their self-portraits in the style of a chosen artist; elementary students utilize the elements and principles to draw realistic and abstract landscapes; young students learn about personal preferences while designing paper shoes; and more.
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As we approach another school year, shifting our mindset sets the stage for welcoming students with excitement, energy, and teaching what we love—art education. We reconnect with colleagues to reignite that school spirit. We enter the art room with wonderful ideas and summer art experiences to inspire, guide, and empower students through art.
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After sharing the picture book Pete the Cat: I Love My White Shoes, written by Eric Litwin and illustrated by James Dean (HarperCollins, 2010), I introduce students to the work of Virgil Abloh, a contemporary fashion designer known for his unique and popular shoe designs. Students then design a show that they would want to wear based on their preferences. The lesson concludes with students sharing their shoe designs with the class and completing a prompt.
The first art project of the school year needs to cover a lot of bases. It should (1) demonstrate the norms of the art room; (2) be versatile enough for different skill sets, (3) remind students of what they already know; (4) demonstrate how learning will happen in the art room; and (5) give teachers a chance to assess students’ current skills. Ideally, the first project of the year will also give students a chance to introduce themselves and provide an early win upon which to build our students’ confidence for the year to come. And if the first project of the school year can generate good-looking artwork to display right away, well, wow!
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My third-graders start the year with our Expression Through Art unit, designed to show them that this year, we will delve deeper into thinking like artists. This sets the tone for students to consider composition, examine details, and utilize the elements of art and principles of design as the tools they are for artists. I call this unit A Tale of Two Landscapes.
No matter what grade you teach, you get a certain reaction when you tell students, “You are drawing faces today”—and typically, it’s not cheers of joy and excitement. Creating art is a vulnerable act, never more so than when you are asked to draw a self-portrait. In middle school, students are already self-conscious and unsure of themselves, making the self-portrait even more dreaded. So, how do we teach our students facial proportions and techniques while still engaging them? My solution to this problem is inquiry-based learning.
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The glare from a massive floor-to-ceiling window in my new classroom prompted me to delve into the origins and purpose of stained-glass windows during the Middle Ages and beyond so we could create an installation that was beautiful and functional. I taught this same lesson to grades six through eight, and students exceeded my expectations. Ultimately, this installation project has created an opportunity to routinely display and celebrate the work of every student.
Many students tend to “draw with paint” rather than process the shapes that will lead to complex forms and color development. How do we teach students to switch their thought process when approaching a painting? What process will cause them to develop a deeper understanding of color and move away from local color? How can we teach color theory in a way that will challenge students’ concepts of perceived color? With these questions in mind, I developed a simple still-life project that proved to be a great launching pad for teaching painting and color.
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I wanted to keep this project simple for my introductory students while leaving room for those who were able to take on more challenging design possibilities. I thought it wise to have them use a flat design as inspiration. This approach is also an excellent way for students to explore creating visual diversity using only a few elements of art: shape, color, and value. This is a manageable way for them to become familiar with the Illustrator workspace, how to modify the default shapes within the program, and how to create a custom color scheme.
The “Awooo!” “Grrr!” and “Roar!” you hear as you pass by may not be the sounds you expect to hear from an art classroom. On this day, however, my young artists are building a zoo to house the plastic animals I’ve included in the Architecture center in my child-centered art room. This isn’t an unusual occurrence. My early childhood students frequently focus their art-making around play, demonstrating a level of creativity beyond my wildest dreams.
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Jennifer Halli is a multidisciplinary artist who specializes in ceramics and printmaking, creating abstract works that investigate place and material while exploring themes of travel, growth, and loss. She is conscious of ecosystems and creates biologically resonant sculptures, with one piece informing the next and growing out of the previous; in essence, representing cycles, generations, and replication. In creating various iterations of the same natural element, she seeks beauty found in the basic building blocks of nature.
