Winter

Old buildings are the stuff of storytelling, so this Old Fashioned Winter House is a perfect for young students this time of year. This painting was made by a kinder student named … Read More

This negative space tree project can really look like stained glass if you use really bright colors. I love the combo of black Sharpie trees and then soft oil pastels to fill … Read More

I’ve been on the lookout for a new way to draw a cardinal. This one, inspired by a stock art illustration is built on some very simple shapes that I think young … Read More

I am still struck by how bright these winter silhouette paintings came out, this one by a third grader. I honestly think it comes from upgrading my tempera paint to something better … Read More

I came up with this Craft Stick Snowflake to help students make a special gift for their parents that is inexpensive, non-denominational, and pretty quick to make. My sample measures about 10″ … Read More

Here’s a simple snowflake painting project that was inspired by an illustration on a stock art website. I’ve found some amazing ideas at istockphoto.com and shutterstock.com, and gettyimages.com, just to name a … Read More

Quilling is an art form that involves rolling, and gluing strips of paper together to create decorative designs. If you use bread ties instead, the curl stays and thus easier to glue … Read More

Here’s a super easy way to draw a frame on your artwork with this fun, precut paper. Add a few swirly black lines and you have a wood grain look that adds … Read More

This watercolor resist snowflake art is easy to create with laser-cut wood decorations that are found at craft stores. They make perfect crayon rubbing material because they are so decorative, yet perfectly … Read More

Making scratch art with oil pastels can be rather basic, but have you tried making different color combos on one piece of art? Or coloring three layers to see what happens? Many … Read More

This clay snowman is made with holes in his body so real twigs can be inserted when he (or she) is finished. I’ve learned to really appreciate white ceramic projects as they … Read More

Looking for an easy way to draw Santa’s face? If so, here’s a simple approach drawing just his head. And if you work on brown kraft paper, you will get a nice … Read More

For this snowy winter tree painting, students have the chance to just focus on the branches without any worries about leaves. Studying their basic structure will help them draw more realistically. I’ve … Read More

Here is a Sharpie Winter Landscape project that works well for a wide range of students. The black permanent marker allows for liberal painting over the trees, and the white marker creates … Read More

Here is a very simple but very cute way to draw a polar bear. He is made of just a few simple, symmetrical shapes, but if you arrange them the way I … Read More

Here is one way to make easy snowflake art with paint and paper. Try blending several shades of blue on good watercolor paper and sprinkle salt to add more texture. Brush it … Read More

This winter tree art landscape makes use of a simple idea, namely that torn paper looks a lot like the bark edges of a tree, but needs to be done neatly for … Read More

Students can learn how to make their sticker snowmen card come to “life” by altering where the face and buttons are placed on the body. The fact that they can easily do … Read More

This old-fashioned Victorian House is the stuff of storytelling. It’s tall shape and old windows are fun for children to draw. MATERIALS • Multimedia Paper • Sharpie, black • Liquid watercolor paint … Read More

Here’s a lesson in how to draw a Victorian town. If you are going to practice drawing buildings, why not have some fun with these old fashioned architecture features? I’ve found it … Read More

This was such a fun bleeding tissue paper discovery. Turns out if you cut small squares, and apply them with water to watercolor paper, they leave behind the most amazing swirly winter … Read More

This winter tree landscape makes use of a simple idea, namely that torn paper looks a lot like the bark edges of a tree. I first did this with a mixed class … Read More

Here’s a very kid-friendly way to make a snowman snow globe. All you need is a plastic cup with attached lid, and some Model Magic. Form a snowman, add a colorful hat … Read More

These Pom Pom ornaments were inspired by some fabric ones I saw at Anthropologie. I decided I like mine even better as Michaels has pom poms that come in really pretty shades … Read More

I’ve found that drawing fancy nutcrackers are a great body proportion lesson, not to mention practice in symmetry, but I’d like to offer my older students some more creative ideas on how … Read More

This snowy city night painting uses of the less talked about watercolor techniques for shading color. This Starry Night inspired painting has some added depth in the sky because the swirl lines … Read More

This cardinal painting was a favorite with parents when it was used for a art fundraiser project this year. The red and blue colors just can’t help but make a pretty image. … Read More

I’ve been on the lookout for a new way to draw a winter cardinal. This one, inspired by a stock art illustration is built on some very simple shapes that I think … Read More

If you paint a winter tree, you have the chance to study and draw them without any worries about leaves. I’ve posted my favorite method of drawing “Y Trees” before but this … Read More

Here is a really simple way to add texture to a watercolor painting. Just sprinkle salt while it’s still wet and let sit for a few minutes. All kinds of cool shapes … Read More

Here’s an idea for a painting, a good old-fashioned winter townhouse. Architectural drawing is so much different than drawing faces and other organic shapes. I like to show students that art covers … Read More

I often see students use oil pastels like crayons, as in lightly coloring and shading with them. Unfortunately, that doesn’t let pastels show their “true colors” (sorry!) which come about with pressure … Read More

This abstract watercolor tree project will help students just concentrate on keeping paint inside simple shapes. If they start with some cardboard triangles to arrange and trace as desired, it will keep … Read More

Here’s one of my recent favorites, a Snowman Matchbox project that I think I enjoyed watching as much as the students did making. I’m so happy I stumbled across this type of … Read More

This is a kinder snowman and book match is about as good as you can get. “The Biggest, Best Snowman” by Margery Cuyler not only tells a great story, it involves the … Read More

This Geometric Winter Landscape project will help students focus on making lots of shades of green. I asked mine to make at least three different ones for a simple but colorful abstract … Read More

Old-fashioned buildings are the stuff of storytelling, so this Victorian Winter House is a perfect for young students this time of year. This painting was made by a kinder student named Ruby … Read More

If you learn how to draw a layered landscape, your art with naturally have more depth to it. Follow this formula to make a simple winter drawing that creates all three layers … Read More

This Geometric Winter Trees project will help students focus on making lots of shades of green. I asked mine to make at least three different ones for a simple but colorful abstract … Read More

This lesson was designed to show students how pretty layered colors can be when using opaque paints, such as acrylic or tempera. Some very painterly effects can happen when you just lightly … Read More

This Winter Birch Tree project uses tape to block off the tree shapes, and watercolor paint and salt to make the textured midnight sky. MATERIALS • Watercolor paper • Masking tape • … Read More

This lesson on how to draw a winter town is fun for those that enjoy drawing buildings. I’ve found it helpful for students to use grid paper, so I made a custom … Read More

I’ve been on the lookout for a new way to draw a simple cardinal. This one, inspired by a stock art illustration is built on some very simple shapes that I think … Read More

This can really look like a stained glass tree if you use bright colors in the negative space around the tree. I love the combo of black Sharpie trees and then soft … Read More

This lesson on how to draw an old fashioned town is fun for those that enjoy drawing buildings. I’ve found it helpful for students to use grid paper, so I made a … Read More

These Color Mixing Winter Trees will help students focus on making lots of shades of green. I asked mine to make at least three different ones for a simple but colorful abstract … Read More

If you learn how to draw a landscape with layers, your art with naturally have more depth to it. Follow this formula to make a simple winter drawing that creates all three … Read More