In this article, the author describes how her students made pendant necklaces. This project is simple to make but sophisticated in appearance.

It is no secret that America is overweight. A record number of children are obese and are showing signs of adult diseases such as high blood pressure and type 2 diabetes. Fortunately, people are recognizing this and beginning to do something about it: (1) restaurants and markets are offering healthier options; (2) menus are starting to list…

Romero Britto is a wonderful artist for young students to study when learning the building blocks of art and design. Colorful, linear, and full of bold patterns, Britto's work blends a contemporary cubist style and pop art commercial appeal. Themes of this contemporary artist's work include animals, flowers, still life, and people in joyful…

In this article, the author describes a cultural collage painting project. Three things served as the impetus for this project: (1) a desire for students to explore the theme of "culture"; (2) an appreciation for the photo-montaged, layered images one sees in print media; and (3) noticing that projects from core subject areas hanging on the walls…

In their 2005 exhibit of John Biggers' work, the New Orleans Museum of Art described it as being inspired by "African art and culture, the injustices of a segregated United States, the stoic women in his own family, and the heroes of everyday survival." In this article, the author describes how her students reinterpreted Biggers' work.…

Listening to people complain about the hardships of winter and the dreariness of the nearly constant gray sky prompted the author to help her sixth graders recognize and appreciate the beauty that surrounds them for nearly five months of the year in western New York. The author opines that if students could see things more artistically, the winter…

While an empty cardboard box from a ream of copy paper may be the most coveted box among teachers in the author's school, for other people, brass boxes from India, Khokhlova lacquer boxes from Russia, and puzzle boxes from Japan are more the type that are collected and admired. Whether it is used for storage or decoration, a box can evoke a sense…

As part of a Professional Learning Community (PLC), the author is asked to focus on the four essential questions of learning when developing projects: (1) What is it teachers want their students to learn?; (2) How will teachers know if each student has learned it?; (3) How will teachers respond when some students do not learn it?; and (4) How can…

A major construction project at a school necessitated the reorganization of nearly the entire building at the end of the school year, a time when teachers are already busy with final exams, grading, and cleaning. To ease the burden for teachers moving to their new rooms and to provide a bit of fun, a school-wide garage sale was held. Unneeded…

In this article, the author describes a project which gave students a chance to explore the idea of using "extreme" materials in a sculpture. While the process was, at times, challenging and stressful for teacher and student alike, the results proved that, with proper planning, even young students can independently demonstrate multiple solutions…

Spry Middle School's annual eighth-grade trip to Washington, District of Columbia, coincided with the opening of the National Museum of the American Indian. The museum, with its distinctive curvilinear architecture covered in Kasota limestone, stands as a wonderful testament to the rich culture and history of the many and diverse Native American…

With standardized English Language Arts exams on the horizon, the author thought a game of Antonyms would provide not only a quick language arts activity for her sixth graders, but also a nice segue to an art lesson in contrast. In this article, she describes a project, a simple saucer on a pedestal base, which required students to demonstrate…

In this article, the author shares an activity she introduced to her students. In this activity, students recognize the beauty of their own neighborhood and learn about cropping a photo for better composition. (Contains 1 online resource.)

Although every parent loves the annual school portrait taken of their child, artistically, not much can be said about the photo's diversity from year to year, or from child to child. Sure, one can order a softened halo around the edge or even a laser effect shooting distractingly around in the background, but basically, one portrait is similar to…

In this article, the author describes a gourd art project for her art club. Prior to students actually working on the gourds, the author and her art volunteer did a joint demonstration on the process students would go through to create their project. The volunteer brought in and explained her gourd art and shared information about the drying and…