Presents an art lesson for elementary students using painter Claude Monet as an introduction to Impressionism. Discusses Monet and his artwork. Explains that the students copy Monet's painting "The House of Parliament, Sunset" in order to draw the contour or outline of the buildings. (CMK)

Discusses the use of wheels in children's art. Focuses on collecting wheels, ideas for decorating different artworks with wheels, and objects that can move on wheels. Sees wheels as an inspiration for children's art, reflecting on the use of this object in the art classroom. (CMK)

Discusses the use of the chalkboard as a surface for creating art and enabling young students to express their creativity. Explores different ways that art teachers can use chalkboards, such as for taking attendance, for use during a child's time-out, or a place to rehearse an artwork. (CMK)

Presents an activity in which elementary students reproduce the artwork, "The Goldfish Bowl," that was originally created by Henri Matisse. Explains that the students utilize the same art technique that Matisse used: decoupage. Discusses the process of creating the artwork in detail. (CMK)

Focuses on a second grade art lesson (two 40-minute class periods) in which students use stencils, oil pastels, and watercolors to create an impressionistic landscape. Discusses how to create the stencils, using oaktags, and how to create the picture. (CMK)

Explores the use of the random-weave basketry technique, addressing the supplies and equipment needed, getting started on the random-weave form, two different projects (organic birdhouses and theme baskets), project evaluation, and additional ways to integrate random-weave basketry into the art curriculum. (CMK)

Explores children's fascination with creating their own unique games as an art form. Focuses on different games, such as chess, checkers, pogs, and monopoly. States that observing children playing games offers a firsthand lesson in how children create. Discusses what it means to be an art teacher who promotes creative play with games. (CMK)

Discusses how experiences with water provide children with opportunities to be artists. Describes different types of water play for children. Believes that experiences with water introduce children to the principles of painting. (CMK)

Discusses an activity in which students in an after-school art class drew one another on pieces of 2-by-4 scrap lumber in order to create a class portrait in three dimensions. Stresses that the portraits on the wood blocks were done in-the-round, or each side was covered. (CMK)

States that paying attention to the mail children receive, the items that are contained, and how children prepare and send mail is an excellent lesson for art teachers interested in advancing the "mail arts" as an authentic form of child's art. Describes mail art as created by children. (CMK)

Describes a unit on lighthouses, originally a social studies unit, in which students participate in two art projects: (1) a lighthouse printmaking activity and (2) a scratch-etch activity using lighthouses. Describes the steps for printmaking and the process of creating scratch-etch drawings. (CMK)

Discusses the importance of designing settings for children that encourage hands-on creativity through play. Suggests the designs are art forms requiring a participatory art teaching style. Describes the technique and provides proven design ideas. (CMK)

Presents an art project, used in a culturally diverse curriculum, in which second grade students create Chinese New Year dragons. Describes the process of creating the dragons, from the two-week construction of the head to the accordion-folded bodies. (CMK)

Discusses an art activity where fourth-grade students created backgrounds using melted paraffin and a variety of paints for their cat batik/collage. Explains that after the students created their backgrounds, they assembled their paper cats for the collage using smaller shapes glued together and wax to add texture for fur. (CMK)

Focuses on children as "wrapping artists," stating that a child's wrapping art includes elements of ritual: finding a special object, selecting and customizing the wrapper, and participating in the unwrapping event. Discusses surface decorating, the exploration of form through wrapping, and collecting wrapping-art. (CMK)