Click here to view this article in Arts and Activities Magazine Paper is a staple material used by art educators of all age levels, and with it comes a multitude of ideas for projects, planning, and exploration.  Depending on the grade levels you teach, there are plenty of ways to use your imagination when creating paper-based projects and collage. When purchasing paper for your class projects, you have many size options, the most common being 9 x 12 or 12 x 18.  Many art teachers trim down their paper for project sizes or templates, which creates extra paper trimmings. These t ..read more

Every art teacher has an absolute favorite art supply they LOVE to use with their students, and they can tell by how enthusiastic we are to introduce it!  For this school year, I changed a few things up with my 5th grade students and they've been loving their projects so far!  From photography to needle felt to mask making, I'm enjoying their reflections on their lessons so far. I'd like to list off a top 5 of my favorite art supplies to use in my classroom.  This is a fresh list for this school year, plus I'll list off the pros and cons of each (because not everything is 10 ..read more

It's July, and the last thing many of us want to think about is going back to school.  But, summer is for planning out our next year ahead of time, and even I've been chilling on the couch gathering my plans for the first week of August. For this month's Art Ed Blogger's Network theme, we're all discussing how to plan the first week of school.  For September's Arts & Activities Stepping Stones column, I will also be sharing a few more tidbits of advice for starting fresh. So let's say your first day back at work is mid-August.  When is a good time to start setting up? I ..read more

Hello teachers!  For many of you, we are on summer break!  Most of us take the time to chill out and catch up on our PDs and make time for our own art.  Some, like me, continue to teach summer classes.  For the past few years, I've offered summer classes at a local art studio.  Some have been successful, while others were low attendance.  If you're interested in offering classes over the summer, I would like to offer some advice with planning and prepping. 1. Plan your projects in advance.  I find that picking and choosing classes can be very tricky while ..read more

Click here to view the article in Arts & Activities Magazine This month, teachers are closing up their classrooms, or already enjoying the beginning of summer break. If you’re still in session or out of the classroom, June is a wonderful time to begin reconnecting with the natural elements and be re-inspired to design lessons for the next school year. Summer break is my time to recharge, and the best way to do that is by being outdoors and enjoying nature as often as possible. This month’s theme is natural environments and I’d like to focus on how to use nature to reconnect and be insp ..read more

Click here to view the article in Arts and Activities Magazine Three-dimensional artworks are some of the most fun, yet challenging projects to make in an art class. No matter what material you work with, there are many factors to consider when planning your lessons and creating products that are more than paper or canvas. For this month’s Stepping Stones, I’d like to focus on planning sculpture projects in your classes. If you are a first year teacher or in a new teaching environment, there are factors to consider when planning your lessons and creating successful projects. 1. Know y ..read more

Please check out my previous article, "Ideas for Early Finishers" from Arts & Activities Magazine Your students are in the middle of a project, but some of them are starting to approach you with finished artworks.  There are quite a few options you have for your early finishers that would work for you and your students. Encourage students to enhance their pieces.  If your students followed all the objectives and finished far ahead, encourage your student to add more. Sometimes those extra finishing touches can make your student’s piece stand out! This is a ..read more

Click here to view the article in Arts and Activities Magazine Earth Day is celebrated on April 22nd, which marks the anniversary of the start of the environmental movement in 1970. On that day, we find ways to take care of and replenish our planet. Earth Day is now the largest secular observance in the world, celebrated by more than a billion people every year. There are many ways to recognize Earth Day within your classroom, as well as ways to conserve your materials and give your part in helping the earth. No matter how to try to help the planet, you can be an advocate for Earth Day ..read more

(Image provided by Sciencecosmos.com) For my Spring break, I'm investigating on how to build a stronger foundation for the "A" in "STEAM"  for my school district.  For the past few years, I've researched how art teachers have already integrated core subjects within our curriculum.  With the rise of STEM learning and the explosion of makerspaces, I want to jump on that bandwagon and assist in supporting the STEAM approach.  After presenting for Education Closet's STEAM conference back in 2014, writing for Arts & Activities and multiple blog posts, I'm more than ready t ..read more

A few years back, I wrote an article about STEAM for Arts and Activities magazine. I would like to revisit a few points from the article and share some awesome things our school has done that reflects the STEAM approach. I'm also very excited that our school is in the process of creating a maker's space connected to our new STEAM supply room, which we've been using quite a bit! Many educators have been pushing for changing STEM to STEAM (including the A for arts) to truly meet the standards of 21st century skills. According to Susan Riley from Education Closet*, “STEM alone misses several k ..read more