This article describes a ceramic arts research project that provided children with opportunities for meaning making using bone china clay, a medium with strong cultural and historical links to the city where the research took place. The children were positioned as artists and their work was curated and presented for exhibition by an international…

The classroom offers a unique and effective venue for community engagement and an opportunity for teaching artists to dive into a topic on both practical and theoretical levels, resulting in well-informed input. That well-informed input is then translated into thoughtful action. It is exciting to engage students early on in shaping their community…

The earliest teapots are known for their fine clay texture and thin walls. They were made from purple clay that had a natural color anywhere from light buff to deep maroon once fired. In the 1970s, novelty teapots were being made, with the vessels resembling animals and people. In these humorous designs, the tea was poured from the animals' noses…

In this article, the author describes how her fourth graders made ceramic heart maps. The impetus for this project came from reading "My Map Book" by Sara Fanelli. This book is a collection of quirky, hand-drawn and collaged maps that diagram a child's world. There are maps of her stomach, her day, her family, and her heart, among others. The…

Ceramics is one of the author's passions, so she is always thinking about things elementary students can do successfully with clay. Clay is a medium that everybody loves. When students can actually use what they make, they really get excited. Plus, parents will treasure the work for years. In this article, the author describes a project with her…

In this article, the author describes a project designed for fourth-graders that involves making clay relief sculptures of houses. Knowing the clay houses will become a family heirloom makes this lesson even more worth the time. It takes three classes to plan and form the clay, and another two to underglaze and glaze the final products.

For this author, one of the most enjoyable aspects of teaching elementary art is the willingness of students to embrace the different styles of art introduced to them. In this article, she describes a project that allows upper-elementary students to learn about abstract art and the lives of some of the master abstract artists, implement the idea…

What began as a review lesson in clay construction quickly became a fun learning experience filled with inspiring conversations and creatively painted birds. This lesson was successful from beginning to end, with a final reward when the artwork was displayed. The author describes the process of working on this project and shares how the students…

In science class, fourth graders investigate the structure of plants and leaves from trees and how the process of photosynthesis turns sunlight into sugar proteins. In this article, the author fuses art and science for a creative and successful clay slab project in her elementary art classroom. (Contains 1 online resource.)

Russia is a very large country, spanning across the two continents of Asia and Europe. It has a rich folk-art tradition. In old Russia, among peasants, "Matryona" or "Matriosha" was a very popular female name. The Latin root "mater" means "mother." This name was associated with the image of a large,…

Clay is one of the most satisfying mediums for children to work with. It's relatively inexpensive, and the texture and changes that take place with the clay during firing make it irresistible. Molding clay from rolled-out slabs of clay is an easy way to make simple, shallow vessels or display pots. In this article, the author describes how her…

"Proceedings of International Conference on Studies in Education and Social Sciences" includes full papers presented at the International Conference on Studies in Education and Social Sciences (ICSES) which took place on November 11-14, 2021 in Antalya, Turkey. The aim of the conference is to offer opportunities to share ideas, to…

"Proceedings of International Conference on Studies in Education and Social Sciences" includes full papers presented at the International Conference on Studies in Education and Social Sciences (ICSES) which took place on November 11-14, 2021 in Antalya, Turkey. The aim of the conference is to offer opportunities to share ideas, to…

This article describes an art project developed by the author which provides a way to further the children's understanding of Picasso's Cubism style in 3-D. Through this project, upper-elementary students learn a bit about the life and art of Picasso as they gain a firm understanding of the style of art known as Cubism, and apply clay techniques…

Anytime an art teacher mentions clay projects to elementary students, they immediately get excited. The problem is doing a clay project can oftentimes be expensive and time consuming. This article describes an art project that provides an interesting way to apply the concept of crayon resist to ceramics. This project is fun, easy and inexpensive.…