There are so many new art mediums and tools on the market this year, and I’m excited to share some of the products I’m currently exploring in my art camps, workshops, and classroom presentations this year. These are all items I found for teaching basic art literacy principles to young students. And, so far, the kids are responding extremely positively and really seem to love these Montessori art materials!
Bringing a new product into your regular art lessons will excite your students and hold their attention. Think about how you cook in your kitchen; when you get a new gadget to do the same old task, it suddenly becomes so much fun again! Bringing one or two new products into your art lessons this year inspire your students and help them come up with beautiful new creations.
I make a list like this every year, reviewing some of the most popular products that kids, teachers, and parents loved at my events throughout the year. Sometimes these mediums are so good that they replace old ones and help me teach better. So, here are six hot, new items—that worked best for me—on my art shelf and in my online sales kits this year!
- Primary Watercolor pencils- water soluble
- Petite Pentora™ Wood Color Mixing Tray
- Watercolor Crayons water soluble
- Sumi-e Ink & Pointed paintbrush
- Tempera Paint Sticks
- Yarn Weaving Sheets
1. Primary Watercolor Pencils – Water-soluble
Learning to mix primary colors into an array of color combinations is the study of color theory. I like to think of it as an opportunity for scientific exploring for young students; it gives them a chance to see colors evolve and transform. And I usually start them with red, yellow, and blue pigments for mixing primary into secondary colors.
I know so many teachers who struggle with maintaining messes. Well, guess what? These water-soluble primary watercolor pencils are a great way to let students explore without needing to worry about paint creating a mess. These simple three colors can make a full color spectrum color wheel. Definitely a hot product for teachers!
Tip: Keep the pencils sharpened for precision drawings, and crisp, clean lines.
2. Petite Pintora™ – Color Mixing Station
My new favorite product is also for color mixing! It’s this fabulous wooden Color Mixing Station by Petite Pintora™. This item was my most popular at the AMS education conference among teachers!
After understanding how specific pedagogy teachers need materials to function in the classroom and on their art shelves, and as an art teacher who knows what needs to be learned for advance painting skill sets, I decided to bring this product to market this year. I’ve found that it really helps children to securely carry their work station from the shelf to a table without knocking things over or creating a mess.
This beautiful wooden color mixing station is handcrafted in Turkey and designed for 3-12 year-old students. It comes with glass droppers, and non-toxic primary paints for mixing the perfect 12-step color spectrum wheel, which helps students properly learn about secondary color mixing. The set also comes with a wash jar, paintbrush, and laminated visual color wheel chart.
3. Watercolor Crayons – Water-soluble
Watercolor crayons were so popular this year among my upper elementary students because they are simple to use, easily glide across paper, and are super rich in pigment. When you wash over them with a wet paintbrush it instantly turns into paint—making them two mediums in one! Even the teachers I demonstrated these mediums to during training fell in love with them.
Drawing lines then adding color is a dominant activity kids regularly do while creating art. I love these crayons because students can draw or doodle with them, then use a wet paintbrush to turn their drawings into paintings. It makes these crayons a mess-free alternative to keeping wet paints in palettes during art presentations.
If you’re struggling on what Montessori art materials to invest in for the 2021 school year, I recommend opting for these, since they do the job of two products in one (drawing and painting), and last a really long time.
4. Sumi-e Ink & Pointed Paint Brush
My last visit to China gave me the opportunity to investigate the art of sumi-e ink painting and learn all about the materials and methods ink-painting artists use. This year, I took what I learned and now I’m so thrilled to be offering a new curriculum for teaching kids how to make proper brushstrokes, Level 1. Painting for Montessori Children, which will be available this fall!
I found that teaching kids these basic skills and brushstroke lessons with sumi-e ink is easier than traditional paints. Sumi-e ink is perfect for isolating brushstroke movements and last long on the paintbrush. I love this product and highly recommend using it when you’re starting your students with basic brushstroke lessons.
Tip: Sumi-e ink can create messes so be sure to check out the painting presentation method I introduce in my books and trainings for how to set children up for working with this product.
Oh my, to say my early childhood kids loved these would be an understatement… they loved loved loved these! Tempera Paint Sticks are a great addition to your students’ process-based painting experiences. (But don’t replace traditional painting experiences; young students still need to be exposed to both types of tactile painting.) The paints glide smoothly across paper, offer bright pigmentation, and are safe and non-toxic without leaving behind any large messes.
The smooth paint sticks are actually in a solid form and no paintbrush is required. They’re super easy set-up and use—just open caps and doodle the paint on paper. I’ve observed hundreds of kids this use these and have noticed the instant gratification they get seeing bold colors appear even when they’re still developing their gross to fine-motor control and hand strength. These tempera paint sticks are great for making basic line shapes like zig zags, and straight and curved lines.
The best part (at least, for teachers) is that these tempera sticks are not messy; as soon as they’re applied to paper, the pigment won’t smudge as long as they’re used on smooth, uncoated paper. I don’t recommend using these on other surfaces like canvas or wood.
Tip: These paint sticks have caps that may be a choking hazard for children under 3 years of age. I usually remove all caps while arts in session, then replace them and store the paint sticks away from my young artists until next time.
6. Yarn Weaving Sheets
I’m always on the hunt for creative ideas that help young students build and refine their fine-motor mastery. I found these fun yarn weaving sheets for kids to learn the basics of weaving yarn with their hands. Hand-crafts are important for helping students develop their fine-motor skills, and these sheets are like blank canvas waiting for kids to come up with creative ways to weave colors or designs into them. They can be used with a cross-stitch needle or yarn needle. I found these to be a great calming tactile experience.
One Step Further: Learn How to Use These Montessori Art Materials 2019
The majority of these art mediums might be self-explanatory, but I think it’s important to see them in action. I spent some time earlier this week gathering up all the items in my round up so I could demo them for you.
Click here to watch my video demonstration and review. Once you have access to the video, you’ll be able to watch it as many times as you’d like. That way, you can choose the 2019 Montessori art materials you want to bring into your classroom, then rewatch my demo for it so you can easily present the medium to your students and get them started!
A Short Cut Just for You
These cool art materials are just the tip of the iceberg! While new mediums come out every year, having a foundation of art materials as well as an understanding of their general purpose, is crucial. I’ve developed an online teacher training, Art Teaching Blueprint, that gives you everything you need to bring art lessons into your Montessori classroom.
The course is an accumulation of everything I’ve learned and observed while teaching art for the last almost 30 years! In seven lectures, I show you how to use a wide variety of art materials, plus how to set up an art shelf and how to teach lessons that actually help Montessori students learn and appreciate art.
I’m currently doing a special summer enrollment for my online course, Art Teaching Blueprint, and offering it at a discounted price! But not for long! Click here to learn more and register.
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