At their best, classroom art projects are engaging ways to lift students up. They help kids and teens of all ages explore their emotions and imaginations, hone their understanding of the physical world through kinesthetic play, practice their problem-solving abilities, and gain a deeper appreciation for artistic expression in its many forms.
This post introduces three of the most engaging art activities to try in your classroom. Alongside each, find a brief rundown of the learning outcomes you can expect students to develop during the project. To incorporate these projects into your lesson planning, first visit a diversely stocked online art supply store like AboveGroundArtSupplies.com; there, you will find several options for each medium, tailored to your students’ ages and skill levels.
Art as Teamwork: Collaborative Murals
Collaborative murals are a fantastic way for students to rally together and create something big.
Art has always centred on community; in this project, students must act as a community to develop a large concept, choose materials that suit the project, and then divvy up the work to create a cohesive whole. The result should be a singular expression of the class’s interests and sensibilities (even if it does turn out to be one giant portrait of a YouTube gamer or TikTok star). For this project, stock a wide variety of materials like paints, coloured papers, tapes, glue, glitter, magazines, etc.
Learning Outcomes: Kids will practice their teamwork and collaboration, as well as collective problem-solving skills and mediation.
Painting by Numbers: Music-Inspired Painting
Throughout history, the visual arts have been in dialogue with other art forms—whether poetry, sculpture, dance, etc. Artists drew inspiration from these other compositions to influence their own artistic expression.
That’s certainly true of music, which shares a long history of mutual influence with the visual arts. To develop this lesson, consider trying a music-inspired painting project. Encourage the students to bring in a piece of their favourite (appropriate) piece of music, and paint a picture to represent the arrangement visually. They can draw inspiration from the literal lyrics, but they should be encouraged to dig deeper as well, developing visual themes based on the tone, mood, structure, and rhythm of the song.
For this project, stock various paints, such as acrylics, watercolours, and—for more advanced ages—oil paints.
Learning Outcomes: Kids will connect throughlines between music and the visual arts, helping them understand parallels in various forms of expression. They are also encouraged to think critically about what makes art compelling and affecting.
Focusing on the Details: Upside-Down Drawing
Sometimes, it’s hard for young artists to see the shapes and constituent lines that compose a piece of art. If you ask them to draw a particular face, for instance, they will revert to drawing faces the way they already know how.
Upside-down drawing allows students to remove that sense of automatic recognition, focusing instead on the shapes and volumes in front of them. Essentially, it involves placing a picture upside-down in front of the student (Picasso’s “Igor Stravinsky” is a classic subject) and asking them to draw it on a blank sheet of paper.
For this project, consider stocking various pencil grades, tones and sizes to give students options for thickness and shading. Alternatively, order charcoal art supplies for a fun twist on the drawing process.
Learning Outcomes: Students practice creating art using shapes and volumes rather than from previous experience. For more information, read this article about drawing “on the right side of your brain.”
Of course, there are several other art projects worthy of your classroom. However, the three above represent powerful opportunities for advancing students’ skills and conceptual knowledge.
