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Organizing Classroom Art Supplies | How to – Year End Pack, 5 Best Tips

5 Art Tips | Packing Up Your Montessori Classroom – Year End

Are you ready to pack up your classroom because the school year has come to the end? I have the best art packing tips to get you organized for next school year! I understand many of you have finished the school year and are excited about summer. You might feel like tossing all your classroom art supplies into a box. But taking the time to pack up properly will set you up for a well-organized art space when the new school year begins. Here are my top 5 golden art tips for year end organizing and packing up your Montessori classroom and getting ready for fall.

I have years of experience organizing classroom art supplies, which has honed my skills in being intentional and organized year-round. Whether I’m at a museum in Seattle, a school in Poland, or a local school, I can efficiently set up and dismantle art “classrooms” in minutes—it’s become second nature to me!

Create List Of The Most Used

Review your art albums and art curriculum you follow to identify the most frequently made art projects. This list will serve as a reference for the materials you commonly use throughout the school year. Create a list of these art supplies, then assess your current inventory. This supply list will help you remember what supplies you need to purchase before school begins and prepare you for my next tip.

5 Art Tips | Packing Up Your Montessori Classroom

Organize While Packing

When preparing to organize your art supplies, consider categorizing them by different subjects or domains, as outlined in my book. Packing materials according to specific areas makes it simpler to access them when needed. Younger students often find it less overwhelming to focus on one subject at a time.

By packing with intention, you’ll be well-prepared to deliver art lessons by subject or domain efficiently at the start of the new school year. For example, I love painting with kids. That’s why I organize all my painting supplies (paints, brushes, palettes, wash jars, napkins, smocks, etc.) packed up in one container. I know that any time I reach for that container, I’m set and ready to teach any painting lesson I can dream up.

Use Clear Containers For Art Supplies

Opt for clear containers and reusable plastic bags to easily see the contents of each storage unit. While maintaining a list of art supplies is beneficial (referencing tip #1), having transparent containers allows for quick identification of art supplies. For instance, by grabbing a plastic bag of colored pencils, I can promptly see if I have the necessary colors for a specific project. This type of classroom organizing will help you in the long run as the new school starts up again.

5 Art Tips | Packing Up Your Montessori Classroom – Year End, storage

Avoid Hoarding Art Supplies!

If you’re holding onto small, miscellaneous items for potential future art projects that may or may not happen, it’s best to let them go. If you’re uncertain about how to use certain supplies that are limited to specific projects, consider discarding them. If feasible, consider donating them instead of storing them for the new school year.

Removing unnecessary items will streamline your setup for future art projects, making the process quicker and more efficient. While I admit to being a bit of a hoarder myself, I’ve learned that being intentional, efficient, and organized is key to effective teaching.

Montessori art albums

Create Yearly Art Albums In A Snap!

Yearly art albums are a great way to wrap up projects before summer break. If you find yourself at the end of the year with a stack of art projects to sort through, this tip can be a lifesaver. Simply take photos of all the artwork created in your classroom to quickly create an art album. This method helps you recall past lessons and understand why certain projects were successful.

It’s a space-saving way to preserve your students’ work without the bulk. After taking the picture, consider discarding or recycling the physical project to reduce clutter. You can even jot down notes on the photo for future reference. For more organizational tips, lesson ideas, and teaching strategies for your Montessori classroom, don’t forget to subscribe to my newsletter for free!

Have a great break!

By embracing these valuable tips to carefully organize and pack your classroom’s art supplies as the school year draws to a close, you’ll find yourself saving precious time when classes start up again. Rather than hastily stashing items away, dedicating time now to thoughtful organization will undoubtedly yield positive results down the road. I hope you find some value in these five essential tips for sorting and packing your Montessori classroom at year-end. Have a great break, you deserve it!

3 to 6 Art – Early Childhood Montessori Teaching Resources

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The Phases of Art Development is a quick digital course that explains how art making can help students develop their creativity, fine-motor skills, and focus. More importantly, I share what types of projects students at every age are capable of completing safely, and without making a mess.

Best of all—it’s free! To sign up for the course, click here.

Montessori early childhood

Early Childhood Art Guide

Visual Arts Teaching Guide
for 13 Months – 6 Years Old

This book includes:
✅ My proprietary art teaching method
✅ The proper and complete list of art materials
✅ A guide for staging and setting up a successful art environment
✅ Tips and art lesson ideas for early childhood
✅ A convenient three-ring binder presentation

Buy Guide Now!

All rights reserved © 2024, Nature of Art®

No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.

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Start Teaching Montessori Art In The Classroom

Have you ever considered how to introduce Montessori art lessons in your classroom? Perhaps you tried an art project before, only to face chaos and a mess. Maybe you felt overwhelmed by the amount of work you thought was required. Or it’s possible you avoided teaching art altogether due to uncertainty on where to begin.

Firstly, kudos if you tried to teach an art lesson. This step is significant, and with some good direction you can tackle an art lesson with better results. With three decades of experience in visual arts, I’ve crafted a unique approach to teaching children art lessons.

While I go much deeper into the development and functionality of my art teaching method, more blogs, books and my curriculum, today I want to just, highlight the key element you need to know—regardless of your prior knowledge. These are important ideas to being successful in teaching Montessori children in the classroom.

Naturally, adding some structure or purpose to art projects is important. Also it’s beneficial to find ways to link the Montessori art lessons to the Great Lessons.

I know getting your students to work independently and creativity is key, but most important is knowing where to start and whats truly important in a quality art literacy program.

Teaching Montessori Art In The Classroom

Art Education

When starting out teaching art in the Montessori Classroom, having a clear roadmap is essential. There are key areas to familiarize yourself with initially. Firstly, grasp the concepts taught in art literacy, such as the Elements of Art. Secondly, understanding the areas of visual arts to tach, like painting and drawing. Thirdly, learn about the art materials to and stage. Fourthly, creating an art-friendly environment is necessary. Lastly, identifying the primary Montessori art key lessons to introduce first is crucial.

Getting familiar with these foundations will get started on the right path for teaching art lessons. I’ve dedicated countless hours to developing art teaching resources for you through books, blogs, curricula, video tutorials, and even art certification programs if you’re interested in professional development.

Teaching Montessori Art In The Classroom, books, training and curriculum

Fostering Independence Through Art Creation

One common belief among Montessori educators is the value of fostering children’s independence. Therefore, it’s crucial to start off on the right foot when incorporating art lessons into your school. Once you grasp art literacy, you can move into other important concepts. Like learning how to set up for art demonstrations. Or how to stage art material presentations. And art teaching tactics that allow students the freedom to explore creativity. And lastly, you can get good at integrating all art lessons with The Great Lessons with ease.

Art Teaching First Steps

Get acquainted with art standards by exploring a user-friendly book that outlines visual arts for Montessori education. This resource will help you grasp the significance of teaching visual arts and what specific areas to concentrate on. Consider ordering these three Montessori books to access all the necessary knowledge to kickstart your journey into art education.

Defining Visual Arts

Montessori Art Guide – Early Childhood

Montessori art Guide – Elementary

Free Video Art Training

Montessori Art Certification

Ultimate Montessori Art Lesson Guide

Montessori Art Resources

1. 5 Ways to Integrate Art Activities into Montessori Great Lessons

When you combine the concepts of art and the Great Lessons, you can seamlessly support your students learning without any disconnection!

2. Building a Montessori Art Lesson Calendar to Keep Students Busy Every Month

If you take some time to plan out your calendar, presenting art lessons will be so much easier for you during the school year. The best part of all this? There’s a simple, stress-free way to break it down, this blog shares how.

3. 5 NEW Ways to Tackle Montessori Art Projects

This article is a little inspiration for tackling art lessons, activities, and projects. Because, sometimes, you need a different way of looking at things to come up with fun, creative art lessons for your students. 

4. Montessori Art Lesson Planning How-To

Without the proper art training, it’s difficult to know what a great art lesson should actually cover and include. This post sets the foundation to help you choose lessons, set up for activities, and create a schedule for the year.

5. Montessori Art Activities | Big Bang Art Lessons

There are so many different art activities you can present to your students that incorporate the lessons about the Big Bang. Combining art activities with science is the perfect way for students to explore their imaginations and support traditional learning methods.

6. Montessori Art Lesson Planning: My Beautiful (Disastrous) Trip to Bali

Teaching art in Bali was, hands down, the most beautiful art trip I’ve taken this year, but that doesn’t mean everything went exactly as planned. Hopefully you will read about my experience and understand a few ways to work through difficult lessons—and maybe even learn from my mistakes! 

7. Montessori Art Lesson Plan Cheat Sheet

One of the most important factors when it comes to lesson planning is staying organized. Download this FREE, handy, three-step cheat sheet and refer to it when you start planning your next art lesson.

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Watercolor Play | Montessori Art Lesson

If you’re looking for a hands-off project that’s fun for kids, I have the perfect art lesson for you! Watercolor Play introduces young children to the basics of color and lets them explore their creativity. Because this project is process-based—meaning it’s about experimenting and experiencing the process of making art—it’s a perfect Montessori art lesson, since students can work independently.

Watercolor Play is a simple, natural way for kids to learn the basis of color. Students in Plane 1 or younger can’t really be sat down and taught color theory, so this activity is a way for them to be introduced to color in a way that meets their level of understanding. It teaches them how color behaves and mixes, which are things all artists need to learn, without getting into technical details and overwhelming them.

This lesson provides the building blocks of color theory so students are ready for more advanced work as they get more experience. This foundation will help them be more willing to experiment when they’re older, because they already have an introduction to art and the knowledge of how colors work together.

Watercolor Play is Ideal for Early Childhood

While this activity is ideal for early childhood, you can adapt aspects of it to work for older children too. You’ll see that I try to keep this art lesson very simple to start off with, but you can add in primary and secondary color concepts once students have a better understanding.

Early childhood montessori art

No matter how old your students are, mixing colors can be therapeutic. It’s soothing, relaxing, and can relieve stress. Giving children the opportunity to play like this also helps them develop the wiring in their minds.

I recommend setting up this art lesson on a regular basis—maybe once a month, or even once a week—so their understanding consistently grows and deepens.

Watercolor Play from Spramani Elaun on Vimeo.

Supplies

  • Kid-safe, non-toxic liquid paint (acrylic, tempera, or watercolor) that’s been watered down to be transparent
  • Bottles with adjustable caps OR clear plastic tubs
  • Bowls
  • Paintbrushes, sponges, stampers, drippers
  • Watercolor paper or thick/butcher paper (optional)
  • Aprons or old clothes

Steps:

  1. Put all your materials out on a table
  2. Let kids explore and play

That’s it! Watercolor Play is such a simple activity. You don’t want to direct it or try to teach anything if your students are at a young age. Let them play with the colors and mix things naturally, they’ll create their own colors and see things for themselves. If they’re old enough to ask about colors, then you can go ahead and start naming the general hues, and hint at what adding other colors might do to change the original color (i.e. make it lighter).

Watercolor Paints

You can start with whatever colors you want. You can start with primary colors, or set out just one color at a time, then add new or different colors the next time. I recommend sticking with limited color options to start out with, especially for children 24 months or younger. Once they’re older and have had more exposure to colors and the activity, they’ll be able to start experimenting more, and getting more excited about their experimentation.

With this art lesson, you’re not focusing on the outcome; do not expect kids to create an actual finished work. The watercolor paper is optional because older students may want to make their own artwork, if the choose to do so, make sure there’s a place to keep the paper out to dry. Seeing how the paint and color changes once their work is done is part of the experience as well.

You may also want to consider starting with lighter colors before introducing darker ones, since dark colors can “stain” the other ones by eventually turning everything a murky gray—which is less exciting.

While this project is relatively hands off, you may need to take the lead initially by squirting and mixing the paint in your own bowl or tub. Kids are so used to us telling them to be careful, and not to make messes, so this is a new experience for them.

NOTE: This project should be set up outdoors or somewhere that water can be splashed (i.e., not rugs or carpet). This project can get messy with younger children, since most toddlers and lower elementary students don’t yet have very developed fine motor skills to control what they’re doing.

For more activities and lessons on color theory, check out my book Kids Color Theory.

montessori art early childhood


arts and craft book by Spramani Elaun

Spramani’s Books

Teach children visual arts

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Curriculum For Children

Get step-by-step art curriculum to teach visual arts. Check out our 4 art curriculums:
Painting
Drawing
Color Theory
Clay Modeling

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All rights reserved © 2024, Nature of Art®

No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.

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Cosmic Rock Painting | Montessori Art Lesson

In my years of working with students, I’ve developed a few go-to art projects that are easy to put together and that kids LOVE. Cosmic Rock Painting is one of my favorite art projects for students. I think this project works especially well as a Montessori art project because it can be incorporated with the Great Lessons and cosmos. I find it a perfect fit for Lower L Montessori students, but with a few tweaks, it can be adapted for students at any age.

Cosmic Rock Painting | Montessori Art Lesson
Use any type of rocks!

I actually got my inspiration for this project from the book Born with a Bang: The Universe Tells Our Cosmic Story by Jennifer Morgan. It’s a very common book in the Montessori world—you may even already have it in your classroom! While you don’t need to read this story with your students, it makes a great foundation for jumping into this art activity.

Cosmic Rock Painting | Montessori Art Lesson
Born With a Bang –Book

Before you start this Cosmic Rock Painting project, make sure you go over the big bang, even if it’s only briefly. Show students photos of stars, constellations, and galaxies to serve as inspiration and give them ideas of what they can create.

Supplies:

  • Paintbrush
  • Paint (acrylic paint works best, tempera paint can also be used but may wash off)
  • Palette (egg cartons, paper plates, and small bowls also work)
  • Wash jar
  • Napkin
  • Rocks or stones (any will work, but river rocks are preferred)

Steps:

  1. Paint the surface of the rock black, let dry
  2. Using a variety of colors, paint on cosmic images (allow students to reference books and photos for inspiration)

Watch Cosmic Rock Painting Video

[In the video, I mention a tinting tutorial and brush stroke tutorial; to access these videos for free, register for my FREE online mini-course, Phases of Art Development. Each of these topics can be done as completely separate art lessons to help kids understand color tones and brush strokes.]

Montessori cosmic rock painting art lesson

Notes: Depending on how you want to introduce this lesson, you can have students complete the whole project in one day or break it up over the course of several days. You can teach this lesson in chronological order, starting with the big bang, then how galaxies develop, and then go into mini lessons on the milky way, super novas, the sun, Earth, and other planets. Students can paint individual rocks to represent each of these cosmic ideas.

acrylic rock painting art kids

This is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to easy art activities for Montessori students! After working in the art industry for more than three decades, I’ve amassed a TON of art project ideas for kids. I’ve also developed and created my very own art teaching method that introduces art literacy to students in a way that’s fun and that makes sense to them.

To explore some of the ways students learn art at each age level, and to fun and easy art project ideas, make sure you register for my FREE online mini-course, Phases of Art Development!

3 to 6 Art – Early Childhood Montessori Teaching Resources

Sign-up to receive video

The Phases of Art Development is a quick digital course that explains how art making can help students develop their creativity, fine-motor skills, and focus. More importantly, I share what types of projects students at every age are capable of completing safely, and without making a mess.

Best of all—it’s free! To sign up for the course, click here.

arts and craft book by Spramani Elaun

Spramani’s Books

Teach children visual arts

Art Book Shop

Curriculum For Children

Get step-by-step art curriculum to teach visual arts. Check out our 4 art curriculums:
Painting
Drawing
Color Theory
Clay Modeling

Buy Art Curriculum

All rights reserved © 2024, Nature of Art®

No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.

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How Art Helps Develop Kids’ Fine Motor Skills

montessori art curriculum

Teaching art has so many benefits for children. It helps them cultivate their creativity, sharpen their ability to problem solve, strengthen their ability to focus, and develop kids’ fine motor skills.

I’ve spent years observing how young students learn art, and in my experience I’ve seen how sensory art projects and art-making actions can help students achieve better control of their fine motor skills. When I teach my own classes or go into Montessori classrooms, I often teach clay play modeling and sensory painting, I’ve found that these types of activities—as well as others—can help students develop their skills quickly over a short period of time.

How Art Helps Develop Kids' Fine Motor Skills

Importance of Fine Motor Skills for Kids

It’s important to understand how fine motor development plays a role in a child’s daily life, both inside and outside of school.

They give kids the strength to press, push, pull, and squeeze so they can learn and be able to dress themselves, tie their own shoes, eat without assistance, and play outdoors safely. In the classroom, this translates to holding a pencil to write, using scissors safely, handling papers, opening lunch and supply boxes, and using art supplies (like glue) without a mess.

Fine motor development also helps with healthy cognitive processing at early ages.

Increasingly, over the years, preschoolers and kindergarteners are coming to my classes and workshops with little to no finger or hand-strength capabilities. Many Montessori teachers have also shared with me that students are entering their classrooms without the capabilities of completing simple tasks.

Because these basic skills are lacking, it’s slowing down student progression in the classrooms.

Importance of Fine Motor Skills for Kids

I’ve discovered, when working with upper elementary students who lack art making experience, 1 out of 5 of those students usually has sensory issues that prevent them from successfully manipulating art materials. They’re also deficient in spatial experience knowledge, which affects their ability to imagine conceptual ideas for planning. In other words, if a child has not physically built or created something using their own sensory system, they cannot understand how ideas come together and resist taking risks in exploring their creativity.

There hasn’t been any official research or studies into the causes of this decrease in motor development, but there are a number of reasons why it might be happening. For instance, students are spending more time indoors on tablet screens; infants are encouraged to lie on their backs more, rather than on their tummies to help lower the risk of SIDS, and parents simply doing more for their toddlers because they worry about safety or messes.

How Art Helps Develop Kids' Fine Motor Skill, montessori

Using Art to Develop Fine Motor Skills

Whatever the reasons, art activities are an excellent way to build those small fine motor muscles. Introducing art to students at a young age leads to healthy cognitive sensory development and developed fine motor muscles that they can use and create with as they age.

Some teachers might be worried that their students aren’t mature enough for independent art activities, like using scissors safely and painting, but there are several ways to help students strengthen their muscles without mess or injury.

Typically, I start my students out with clay modeling, paint brush stroking, and safety scissor activities which all help develop fine motor strength quickly.

Here are some great art projects that can be adapted for early childhood, lower elementary, and upper elementary students. These types of art making activities will help students develop fine motor control and small muscles in their fingers and hands.

Develop Fine Motor Skills, montessori

Fine Motor Art Projects:

  • Beading and stringing
  • Beeswax forming
  • Bubble wrap stamping
  • Clay cookie cutter shapes
  • Clay modeling
  • Clay pressing sculptures
  • Crafting with string
  • Crayon rubbing
  • Cutting foam fabric
  • Dropper painting
  • Glue bottle art
  • Gluing sticks and recycled paper scraps
  • Lego building
  • Origami
  • Painting
  • Paper airplane making
  • Paper crafting
  • Popsicle structures
  • Potato stamping
  • Printmaking
  • Snowflake paper cutting
  • Sponge painting
  • Sponge stamping
  • Squeeze bottle painting
  • Stamping
  • Sticker collaging

If you would like to learn more about my natural art teaching methods, register for my FREE mini digital course, Phases of Art Development Video.

3 to 6 Art – Early Childhood Montessori Teaching Resources

Sign-up to receive video

The Phases of Art Development is a quick digital course that explains how art making can help students develop their creativity, fine-motor skills, and focus. More importantly, I share what types of projects students at every age are capable of completing safely, and without making a mess.

Best of all—it’s free! To sign up for the course, click here.

arts and craft book by Spramani Elaun

Spramani’s Books

Teach children visual arts

Art Book Shop

Curriculum For Children

Get step-by-step art curriculum to teach visual arts. Check out our 4 art curriculums:
Painting
Drawing
Color Theory
Clay Modeling

Buy Art Curriculum

All rights reserved © 2024, Nature of Art®

No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.

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Ultimate Montessori Art Teaching Method Guide

Ultimate Montessori Art Teaching Method Guide

I’ve worked with so many Montessori teachers who have never been taught art curriculum and have no idea how kids learn art. I’ve been in that boat before; it took me many years of working with children of all ages to really understand exactly how they learn art and what are skills they’re capable of at each age. I’m saving you from years of research and observation by creating and sharing the Ultimate Montessori Art Teaching Method Guide.

I designed this guide specifically for Montessori teachers. It covers the two Montessori planes, and each section in this guide is linked to a more detailed posts for each age.

This guide is the cumulation of more than three decades of experience working in the visual arts! I’m an artist turned mom, turned homeschool mom, turned art teacher and art manufacturer, and now I’m a Montessori art teacher trainer. My art teaching method has been taught to tens of thousands of children internationally, and now, I’m bringing the best of my knowledge and experience into the classroom of Montessori teachers.

Ultimate Montessori Art Teaching Method Guide

My Art Teaching Method

I spent ten years observing children of all ages creating artworks so that I could understand recognizable cognitive patterns that revealed how children develop their skill sets. I’ve put this research on sensory art methods into studio-based practice and have seen success in many different environments.

This method is unlike any other way of teaching art. It’s designed to give children art skills that are aligned with their cognitive milestones—cognitive processing, visual perception, and fine-motor development. The goal is to wire implicit memory through all phases of development from early childhood through adolescence.

My art teaching method is extremely complementary to the Montessori way; it’s a natural progression for Montessori teachers and schools to enrich their programs and the enjoyment of the children they work with. This method connects visual art skill sets with creative thinking through sensorial experiences. Once you have an understanding of this Montessori art teaching method, you’ll be able to adapt your Montessori art curriculum to children’s three-part cognitive system (cognitive processing, visual perception, and fine-motor development), and help your students develop the necessary artistic high-order thinking needed to become artful.

Ultimate Montessori Art Teaching Method Guide

How to Use This Guide

I invite you to read through this post to gain a high-level view of how this teaching method adapts to each Montessori plane. Then, click on each specific age range to find out how to effectively teach children based on their cognitive capabilities. As always, if you have questions, leave a comment, send me an email, or jump onto my exclusive Facebook page and let me know!

Ultimate Montessori Art Teaching Method Guide

Early Childhood (Toddler)

Many people mistakenly think that toddlers cannot yet learn art, but that’s not the case. In early childhood, toddlers see art making as exploratory and a discovery-based experience. Young students in the Montessori art first plane do not yet understand the placement of visual arts, and are in a very curious state about mediums. At this age, children should explore art mediums without any expected outcome.

The best way to teach early childhood students is through process-based art. This means the focus on is on the experience and the process, not on the child’s final piece of artwork.

Teaching art to early childhood toddler students helps tremendously in improving their fine motor skills, which are essential to everyday tasks. To learn more about art teaching methods for this age group, read this blog.

Ultimate Montessori Art Teaching Method Guide

Early Childhood (3-6 Years)

Students in early childhood should continue to learn primarily through process-based art. Children who are 3-6 years of age are quick learners and curious about art, so give them room to explore and experiment.

You want to allow students to make art in creative mode, using their own own imaginations, thoughts, and ideas for inspiration. At this age you can begin to introduce copy-mode, but limit your instruction to movement rather than copying an image.

For more information on exactly how to balance creative mode and copy mode for early childhood students, check out this post.

Montessori Art Teaching Ideas

Lower Elementary

Children at the lower L age are able to come up with their own imaginative creations, plan with intention, and think their ideas through to completion, going through the four steps of the artistic process.

At this age, lower elementary students approach art making with lots of curiosity and enthusiasm for trying different techniques and mediums. You can start introducing line, shape, form, texture, color, and symmetrical balance ideas.

Art can be taught to students through process-based art, a continuation of creative mode, and very simplistic copy mode.

If you want a more detailed explanation of how to art teaching methods for lower L students, read this post.

How to Montessori Art Teaching Guide

Upper Elementary

Students in upper L can go through the artistic process, conjure up their own ideas, and see them through to completion. They’re able to do reflective work, bringing meaning to their creations and making connections to artworks in their community.

You can teach students Montessori art lessons through a combination of process-based art, creative mode, and copy mode.

By the time students are in upper elementary, they’re extremely competent when it comes to their fine-motor skills. Allow them to experiment with different mediums, techniques, and perspectives.

For more information on upper elementary art teaching methods, read this post.

Montessori Art Teaching Methods Resources

If you would like to understand more about which types of art projects children can work on, register for my free video course, Phases of Arts Development, which discusses teaching methods for Montessori students.

Montessori art book for teaching students

You can learn about Art Literacy Standards and the benefits of visual arts by reading Defining Visual Arts Paperback (paperback book).

3 to 6 Art – Early Childhood Montessori Teaching Resources

Sign-up to receive video

The Phases of Art Development is a quick digital course that explains how art making can help students develop their creativity, fine-motor skills, and focus. More importantly, I share what types of projects students at every age are capable of completing safely, and without making a mess.

Best of all—it’s free! To sign up for the course, click here.

arts and craft book by Spramani Elaun

Spramani’s Books

Teach children visual arts

Art Book Shop

Curriculum For Children

Get step-by-step art curriculum to teach visual arts. Check out our 4 art curriculums:
Painting
Drawing
Color Theory
Clay Modeling

Buy Art Curriculum

All rights reserved © 2024, Nature of Art®

No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.

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Earth Day Activities for Montessori Students

Earth Day is one of my favorite holidays! Not only do I encourage teachers and schools to use eco-friendly art materials and supplies whenever possible, but I love incorporating natural elements into the art projects I share with children. That’s why Earth Day activities that involve art are my favorite to do with children and young artists.

Earth Day—held annually on April 22—marks the anniversary of the birth of the modern environmental movement that started in 1970. Every year, nearly 1 billion people in more than 190 countries come together to protect our environment and celebrate everything Mother Nature provides us.

In honor of Earth Day, I’ve decided to share 5 earth-friendly art projects that Montessori students of all ages can do. These are some Earth Day activities I’ve done with children at some of the largest Earth Day celebrations on the West Coast.

Earth Day Activities for Montessori Students
The City of Trash up-cycled project below was on display for the community to view at the EarthWorks Earth Day Festival in San Diego.

Project 1: City of Trash

“City of Trash” is a collaborative recycle project that I designed for one of the largest annual Earth Day events held in Balboa Park in San Diego, Calif. It’s a way to show children how much trash and waste one household (or classroom) can produce in a week and to start instilling eco-friendly shopping habits.

This project should be planned a few days to a week in advance. Start by challenging students to save their trash throughout the week—everything that would normally go into the trash or recycle bin, minus perishable items. They can bring in a bag of trash from home, or you can set up a collection bin in your classroom.

Earth Day art teacher, spramani

Supplies:

  • Collected trash (i.e., cardboard, boxes, and anything that is non-biodegradable or that commonly goes into the recycle bin)
  • Strong scissors
  • Hot glue gun, set at a low temperature
  • Non-toxic paints
  • Paint brushes
  • Duct tape or a strong clear tape

How to:

  1. After collecting a week’s worth of garbage, your class will be ready to start constructing City of Trash. Keep on the lookout for an extra-large cardboard box, you’ll recycle this to be a flat canvas to build onto. If you prefer, each student can use a smaller cardboard to create their own scene, rather than a large, collaborative, classroom-effort cityscape.
  2. Guide students and offer simple ideas of building features usually found around city landscapes.
  3. Allow them to construct the elements of their city using the collected materials.
  4. Once everything is glued down to the cardboard, have students paint in details to finish the cityscape.
Earth Day Activities for Montessori Students, rock painting

Project 2: Sticks n’ Stones

This is my signature earth-friendly art activity; it made waves around San Diego communities and has traveled to major Green Festivals, Earth Day events, museums, and educational venues all over the world.

I was looking to create Earth Day activities that kids would enjoy and were also 100% sustainable for the environment. I searched for the most earth-friendly surfaces to paint, found natural elements like rocks and sticks, then searched for the most earth-friendly paints to paint them with. This art project was actually very instrumental in the founding of my non-toxic, kid-safe, earth-friendly art supply company, Nature of Art for Kids!

The idea for this earth-friendly art project is simple—use earth’s natural resources as a canvas for creating beautiful art!

Earth Day Painting Activities for Montessori Students

Supplies:

  • Kid-safe acrylic paint
  • Paint palette (paper plates or a cardboard egg carton will also work)
  • Paint brushes
  • Napkins
  • Water jar
  • Rocks (I prefer river rocks because they seem to have the flattest surface to paint an image on, but any shape will work)
  • Sticks

How to:

  1. Brush dirt off sticks and wipe rocks clean by washing them in water (completely dry rock before painting).
  2. Prepare a palette with a variety of paint colors.
  3. Let students paint their rocks and sticks; remind them that painting one layer at a time will give them best results. Set aside their “canvas” for a few minutes to dry before they add a new layer of color.
  4. Let their rocks and sticks dry overnight or until the end of class. They’ll dry best when left in direct sunlight.
Earth Day Activities for Montessori Students

Project 3: Paper Roll Shark

A simple recycled paper roll can transform into a shark art project kids can’t wait to sink their teeth into! It is a inexpensive Montessori art project that is easily manageable for students in both Plane 1 and Plane 2.

Best yet, this project meets all of my earth-friendly art criteria: recycled paper rolls are re-used, the project is easy for young kids to create, and many species of sharks are on the endangered animal list (which makes it a great topic to study).

Supplies:

  • Recycled Paper Rolls
  • Kid-safe paints (acrylic works best on paper rolls, giving a nice opaque coverage)
  • Googly eyes, fabric scraps, or buttons
  • Wide paint brush or sponge brush
  • Writing utensils for tracing (pencils, pens, markers, etc.)
  • Paint palette (paper plates or a cardboard egg carton will also work)
  • Water jar
  • Napkins
  • Scissors
  • Glue
  • Shark template

How to:

  1. Cut out shark template pattern.
  2. Place template on top of flattened paper roll and trace.
  3. Cut along the tracing lines and unflatten the paper roll, popping it back into a roll shape.
  4. Use scraps from the roll to make a fin shape.
  5. Glue fins on with glue or a glue gun. (I’ve found that it’s easier and I get sturdier results if  I cut a slit in the roll, place the fin inside, and glue around it to secure it in place.)
  6. Paint and embellish the shapes to look like a shark or other swimming creature.
  7. Cut small triangle shapes out of scraps from the roll or white paper for the teeth. Students can also paint or draw these onto their roll using white paint.
  8. Glue buttons, fabric scraps, or googly eyes onto the roll for the eyes.

Note: If younger students will be completing this project, cut rolls out ahead of time.

Earth Day Activities for Montessori Students, art lessons ideas

Project 4: Recycle Cardboard Canvas

Did you know that one ton of recycled cardboard saves 390 kWh hours of electricity, 46 gallons of oil, 6.6 million Btu’s of energy, and 9 cubic yards of landfill space!?

Cardboard and paper waste make up 41% of the municipal solid waste stream. Recycling cardboard takes 24% less energy and produces 50% less sulfur dioxide than making cardboard from raw materials.

Painting on cardboard is earth-friendly and kids love it! I’ve hosted many community collaborative painting projects with large TV cardboard boxes with great creative results.

Besides using it as a canvas for flat painting, cardboard can be used for mixed media projects (like City of Trash) and dioramas.

Earth Day Activities for Montessori Students in the classroom

Supplies:

  • Cardboard (from paper rolls, egg cartons, any-sized boxes, etc.)
  • Kid-safe acrylic paint (tempera paint also works, but will not have an opaque finish)
  • Paint brushes (all sizes)
  • Paint palette (paper plates or a cardboard egg carton will also work)
  • Water jar
  • Napkins
  • Scissors
  • Decorative objects (glitter, fabric scraps, straws, string, bubble wrap, buttons, etc.)
  • Glue

How to:

  1. Allow kids to experiment with how they want to use their cardboard as a canvas. Some may want to paint it as a 3D object others may want to cut open the boxes so that they can create their art on a flat canvas.
  2. Fill the palette with different color paints.
  3. Paint, cut out, and decorate the cardboard.
  4. Because cardboard is so sturdy, students can revisit these art projects and paint over them or add to them at later dates.
Earth Day Activities for Montessori Students, natural organic paints

Project 5: Veggie Paint

Over the years of creating Montessori activities, many teachers and parents have asked me what the safest paint is for their young students. I always tell them the absolute safest is homemade veggie paint! It’s made straight from the vegetables found in your garden—or grocery store. This type of paint is especially safe for toddlers who are still in a phase of putting everything into their mouths.

Natural veggie paints are generally made with ingredients like fruits, vegetables, flowers, seeds, and leaves. Usually this means natural pigments are extracted from these types of vegetable plants. Natural, organic pigments have been used for thousands of years—even in cave drawings!

Supplies:

  • Bunch of dark, pigment-rich veggies (e.g. kale, beets, carrots, etc.)
  • Food processor, juicer, or blender
  • Water
  • Strainer
  • Cornstarch (optional)
  • Jar or paint container
  • Paint brushes
  • Paper (watercolor paper works best for paint with a thin consistency)
Earth Day Activities for Montessori Students

How to:

  1. Blend your choice of vegetable with water in a food processor or blender—three parts water, to one part vegetables. If you’re using a juicer, you can skip adding water.
  2. Strain the juice so you have only liquid, removing thick lumpy parts.
  3. If you want a thicker paint, add cornstarch until it reaches your desired consistency.
  4. Paint away!

Note: Veggie paint can be stored in the refrigerator for up to two weeks.

3 to 6 Art – Early Childhood Montessori Teaching Resources

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The Phases of Art Development is a quick digital course that explains how art making can help students develop their creativity, fine-motor skills, and focus. More importantly, I share what types of projects students at every age are capable of completing safely, and without making a mess.

Best of all—it’s free! To sign up for the course, click here.

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Curriculum For Children

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Color Theory
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No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.

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Teach Process Based Activities | Early Childhood

Teach Process Based Activities | Early Childhood, girls making clay modeling art

I’ve noticed how children explore their creativity and expand their imagination through art activities. Art plays a important role in the holistic development of a creative child, with the cornerstone being process based art.

Upon my initial visits to Montessori schools and interactions with teachers, particularly those in Plane 1 and early childhood education, many tend to overlook the idea of teaching art to young children. They are both right and wrong in their approach. While this may seem contradictory, let’s delve deeper into this concept together.

Teach Process Based Activities | Early Childhood, boy with clay

When it comes to instructing art to toddlers and students aged 3-6, the actual act of teaching them specific art concepts is not always necessary. Why is that? Children need to engage in the process of creating art before delving into formal art instruction.

Understanding and recognizing process based art can be challenging. The objective of this blog post is to provide you with clarity on what process art is for early childhood education. Let’s explore what process-focused art encounters should entails.

Understanding Process Based Art

Process art revolves around the experience itself; the emphasis is solely on engaging in art activities. In process art, there’s no concern about the final appearance of the artwork. Young learners are not expected to produce realistic or visually appealing pieces at this stage; they will delve into more intricate skills as they grow older. Currently, they are in a phase of exploration.

Teach Process Based Activities | Early Childhood

Exploration and experimentation play pivotal roles in process art for toddlers and young children. Their problem-solving abilities evolve through their involvement in process based activities.

By allowing youngsters to explore, experiment, and learn from mistakes, a stream of unique and imaginative artworks emerges. When children have the freedom to play and express themselves, they develop creative thinking skills. Additionally, process art enhances their fine motor skills, spatial intelligence, and cognitive reasoning.

For early childhood learners, engaging in the artistic process through process-based projects holds greater significance—it is the fundamental way in which children truly grasp art concepts.

Teach Process Based Activities | Early Childhood

Teaching Process Based Art

Process-based art is all about giving students room to explore their own art-making techniques. However, there should be a light, very simplistic introductory instructions on how mediums can work or be used. (This helps mitigate any messes and empowers children with the confidence to create.) I recommend showing early childhood students how mediums might turn out and the different techniques that can be achieved with each.

When teaching process art making, encourage students to experiment. Inspire them to be unique and original. Make sure they know that any type of exploration is great, and there is no wrong way to use mediums and attempt whatever they choose to create.

With process-based art, time is irrelevant, meaning they can go back and add to an older project during a different art-making session.

Process-Based Art, pictures of kids artworks, watercolor

Common Mistakes in Process Art

When it comes to teaching process-based art, educators, despite their good intentions, can sometimes make errors. Here are some dos and don’ts to enhance your students’ process art experiences:

  • Don’t: Present art lessons as step-by-step instructions (reserve this for older students);
  • Do: Allow children the freedom to create without strict guidelines.
  • Don’t: Impose a right or wrong way to create a project;
  • Do: Encourage exploration and validate all creative outputs.
  • Don’t: Expect children’s artwork to mirror samples or be recognizable images;
  • Do: Appreciate that young learners are still developing their artistic skills, resulting in unique creations.
  • Don’t: Discourage students from experimenting with unfamiliar mediums;
  • Do: Provide space for creativity and individuality.
  • Don’t: Correct or push children to replicate examples;
  • Do: Embrace the idea that process art values the journey over the final outcome.

Free Mini Digital Video Course!

I hope this help gives you a understanding of how process-based art can work in the Montessori classroom. If you would like to learn more how to nurture children in the visual arts, register for my FREE mini digital course, Phases of Art Development Video.

3 to 6 Art – Early Childhood Montessori Teaching Resources

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The Phases of Art Development is a quick digital course that explains how art making can help students develop their creativity, fine-motor skills, and focus. More importantly, I share what types of projects students at every age are capable of completing safely, and without making a mess.

Best of all—it’s free! To sign up for the course, click here.

Buy Process Based Art Teaching Books
process based art guide, by spramani good for Montessori, book cover

arts and craft book by Spramani Elaun

Spramani’s Books

Teach children visual arts

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Curriculum For Children

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Painting
Drawing
Color Theory
Clay Modeling

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All rights reserved © 2024, Nature of Art®

No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.

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Upper Elementary Montessori Art Teach Method

Upper Elementary Montessori Art Teach Method

I’ve spent years and years researching and observing how children learn art, and what I’ve found is that children are able to grasp different artistic skills at different planes. In this new blog series, I’ll be sharing my insight on the art teaching methods that work for each age group of Montessori students.

Children of all ages can be taught visual arts and be guided through the artistic process. Each developmental phase requires different teaching styles and approaches.

Below you’ll find a general arts literacy guide for Montessori Early Childhood ages following the International Standards for the Arts Education & Sensory Visual Arts method that aligns with a child’s growth.

Montessori Upper Elementary Art Teaching Methods Resources

If you would like to understand more about which types of art projects children can work on, register for my free video course, Phases of Arts Development, which discusses teaching methods for Lower Elementary Montessori students (ages 7-9).

You can learn about Art Literacy Standards and the benefits of visual arts by reading Defining Visual Arts (paperback book).

If you would like to understand more about the phases of art development, register for this free mini digital course

Upper Elementary Montessori Art Teach Method

Upper Elementary, Ages 10-12, Montessori Visual Arts Teaching Curriculum

Students in upper L can go through the artistic process, conjure up their own ideas and see them through to completion. They’re able to do reflective work, bringing meaning to their creations and making connections to artworks in their community.

Children in this phase of art development should have different opportunities to explore different artist techniques. They can now work independently and follow guided instructions. Projects can be spread out over the course of a few days and should include a variety of concepts, such as line, shape, value, form, texture, color, symmetry, 3D and composition.

Continue to help students develop their art literacy by using art language in the classroom.

You can also continue to teach student Montessori art lessons through a combination of process-based art, creative mode, and simple copy mode.

Upper Elementary Montessori Art

Strengthen and Develop Upper Elementary Students’ Art Skills

By the time students are in upper elementary, they’re extremely competent when it comes to their fine-motor skills; in large part, this is due to the day-to-day activities they’re completing as part of their Montessori curriculum. Their muscles—both large and small—have been developed through school work and art creating, which gives them improved control over their movements. This means drawing and painting can be done in more detail.

At this age, students still need lots of exploratory sessions and opportunities to experiment with different mediums and techniques. Children are now drawing and painting with a 2D perspective, and can be introduced to simple 3D concepts—like value, shading, and basic three-point perspective ideas—as well. Again, keep lessons simple, easy to follow, and easy to understand.

Some upper elementary students might also be interested in learning realistic drawing and painting skills. However, not all children at this level will be developmentally ready for these types of advanced concepts.

Provide connections to The Elements and Principles of Design, introduction to three dimension 1 point perspective ideas, value shading, and composition relationships.

Upper Elementary Montessori Art Activities & Mediums

Here are some great Montessori Upper Elementary art projects for your students who are 10 – 12 ages in the elementary grades. These types of art activities will help develop their fine motor control and small muscles in fingers and hands while teaching the Elements & Principles of Design. (You can find non-toxic, kid-friendly art supplies needed for these art activities at Nature of Art for Kids.)

  • Drawing: crayons, color pencils, graphite pencil, and oil pastels, soft pastels etc.
  • Painting: watercolor paints, acrylic paints, watercolor crayons, watercolor pencils etc.
  • Color Theory: primary to secondary color mixing, tints & Shades, dropper color mixing, etc.
  • Clay Modeling: earth clay, non-harden plasticine clay, air-dry modeling clay, polymer bake clay
  • Crafts: Paper folding, origami, nature and paper collage, mosaic arrangement, sewing, wool felting, string weaving, nature crafting, 3D constructing etc.

Learn more about how to teach a in a Montessori curriculum by registering for my FREE mini digital course, Phases of Art Development Video. I get more into detail on upper elementary Montessori art lessons and provide fun and exciting art project ideas.

3 to 6 Art – Early Childhood Montessori Teaching Resources

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The Phases of Art Development is a quick digital course that explains how art making can help students develop their creativity, fine-motor skills, and focus. More importantly, I share what types of projects students at every age are capable of completing safely, and without making a mess.

Best of all—it’s free! To sign up for the course, click here.

All rights reserved © 2024, Nature of Art®

No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.

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Lower Elementary Montessori Art Teach Method

Sensory Cognitive Child Art Method

I’ve spent years and years researching and observing how children learn art, and what I’ve found is that children are able to grasp different artistic skills at different planes. In this new blog series, I’ll be sharing my insight on the art teaching methods that work for each age group of Montessori students.

Children of all ages can be taught visual arts and be guided through the artistic process. Each developmental phase requires different teaching styles and approaches.

Below you’ll find a general arts literacy guide for Montessori Lower Elementary ages following the International Standards for the Arts Education & Sensory Visual Arts method that aligns with a child’s growth – Nature of Art®.

Montessori Lower Elementary Art Teaching Methods Resources

If you would like to understand more about which types of art projects children can work on, register for my free video course, Phases of Arts Development, which discusses teaching methods for Lower Elementary Montessori students (ages 7-9).

You can learn about Art Literacy Standards and the benefits of visual arts by reading Defining Visual Arts (paperback book).

Get more information on how to bring art lessons into the Montessori classroom by reading Introducing Visual Arts into the Montessori Classroom (paperback book).

montessori art how to

If you would like to understand more about the phases of art development, register for this free mini digital course.

Lower Elementary, Ages 7-9, Montessori Visual Arts Teaching Curriculum

Children at the lower L, age can do a number of different types of art projects. They can conjure up their own ideas and imaginative creations. Montessori lower elementary students can now plan with intention and think their ideas through to completion, going through the four steps of the artistic process.

At this age, students love to explore and discover what results different art mediums can produce. They encounter visual arts and Montessori art projects with lots of curiosity and a willingness to try different techniques.

Stretching Students’ Art Skills

Children can follow simple guided-art instructions and remain focused on their work for up to 1.5 hours. However, it’s still important to keep projects simple, with just a few un-complicated steps. Montessori art projects should start to introduce line, shape, form, texture, color, and symmetrical balance ideas.

You can also start introducing your lower elementary Montessori students to art language and the Elements & Principles of Design. For more information, reference Defining Visual Arts to better understand art language for young children.

Students’ fine-motor skills are becoming more controlled due to all the activities in their day-to-day Montessori curriculum and academic studies. Drawing and painting can be done with higher levels of control. The most important thing to focus on is giving children tasks that will continue to develop their fine-motor skills.

Children in lower elementary also need lots of exploratory sessions that allow them to experiment with varied mediums and techniques. Children are now drawing and painting with a 2D perspective and can be introduced to texture.

Art-Teaching Methods for Lower Elementary

Based on my proprietary sensory art method, I recommend teaching Montessori art through a combination of three methods: process-based art, creative-mode, and simple copy-mode.

  • Process-based art is about exploring and using their own imagination; it’s not necessarily focused on the child’s final piece of artwork.
  • Creative mode gives children the opportunity to explore mediums and conjure up creative images based on their own imaginations, thoughts, and ideas.
  • Copy mode refers to a systematic, step-by-step art instruction. Copy-mode should not be copy what you see in the image type lessons.

Lower Elementary Montessori Art Activities & Mediums

Here are some great Montessori Lower Elementary art projects for your students who are 7-9 years old, in the elementary grades. These types of art activities will help develop their fine motor control and small muscles in fingers and hands while teaching the Elements & Principles of Design. (You can find non-toxic, kid-friendly art supplies needed for these art activities at Nature of Art for Kids.)

  • Drawing: crayons, color pencils, graphite pencil, oil pastels, etc.
  • Painting: watercolor paints, tempera paints, acrylic paints, watercolor crayons, watercolor pencils etc.
  • Color Theory: primary color mixing, dropper color mixing, etc.
  • Clay Modeling: earth clay, non-harden plasticine clay, air-dry modeling clay, beeswax forming, etc.
  • Crafts: paper folding, nature and paper collage, mosaic arrangements, sewing basics, wool felting, string weaving, nature crafting, 3D constructing, etc.

Learn more about Montessori art teaching methods for lower elementary and get some Montessori art projects ideas by registering for my FREE mini digital course, Phases of Art Development Video.

3 to 6 Art – Early Childhood Montessori Teaching Resources

Sign-up to receive video

The Phases of Art Development is a quick digital course that explains how art making can help students develop their creativity, fine-motor skills, and focus. More importantly, I share what types of projects students at every age are capable of completing safely, and without making a mess.

Best of all—it’s free! To sign up for the course, click here.

All rights reserved © 2024, Nature of Art®

No part of this blog may be used or be reproduced in any manner whatsoever including reproducing, publishing, performing, and making any adaptions of the work – including translation into another foreign language without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Nature of Art® Publishing P.O. Box 443 Solana Beach, California 92075.