drawing project assignment

Best Ed Lessons

The Best Free Educational Lessons for Homeschool, Primary, Middle and High School Students and Teachers – we are non-profit, no fees, no ads

22 Drawing and Painting Lessons & Activities for High School

22 drawing and painting lessons & activities for high school.

These art related lessons and activities teach and demonstrate drawing and painting, along with some tips and instructions, targeted for high school students. This 58-page Water Color Painting Tips and Tricks guide is particularly helpful and instructive. Also included at the end of this list, are two documents on wood carving. You can also check out all of our Art related pages here .

A Fork in the Road Painting Project Agamograph Challenge Art Nouveau Botanical Drawing, Art Lesson Color Mixing – Some General Guidelines Color Pencil Tips Drawing Tools Drawing Value Scales Drawing Warm up Drawing with Colored Pencils Egg Shading Fauvism How to Hold a Pencil Light Capturing Paper Designs Scratch Art Project Sets of Lines Sketchbook Assignments The History of Cubism Two Point Perspective Water Color Painting Tips and Tricks, 58 pages Woodcarving Tips and Tricks Woodcarving Totem Pole Project

– love learning -your best ed lessons guide, Scott

Related Posts:

A link to this video might help students understand use of sketchbooks.

South Dakota Public Broadcasting did a short video focusing on my sketchbooks. It was released on YOUTUBE and can be viewed with this link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T6S8JGlrWE

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Enjoying BestEdLessons.org? Please spread the word :)

Art Projects for Kids

Stop searching. get no-prep, step-by-step elementary art lessons delivered daily (it’s free).

Drawing for Kids

Crafts for Kids

Painting for Kids

Coloring for Kids

Stop the Sunday Search

For teachers who are tired of having their Sundays swallowed up by lesson planning, Art Projects for Kids has a free daily email that serves up easy-to-use art projects your students will love — without ever opening Pinterest.  

Quality lessons ready to use!

I love the step-by-step directions, meaningful and easy to do, fun, meaningful art activities with 90% less planning time, see all >.

The only options most teachers have for how to find art lessons is by spending hours weeding through the millions of ideas that come up on Google and Pinterest. Or to scour Teachers Pay Teachers for expensive supplements to your local curriculum. Or to try to force-fit the overwhelming school art program that requires all kinds of fancy materials (all in your “free” time, right?).

But even after giving up most of Sunday afternoon searching for ideas, all you turn up is one or two puny lesson plans with instructions that are about as easy to follow as IRS Form 13909. You need a faster way to find fun art projects with user-friendly directions that will engage your kids. But… how? Enter: Art Projects for Kids.

Leaf Pattern Drawing for Kids | Leaf Pattern Painting Fall Art Project

How to Draw 3D Letters: Alphabet Drawing Lesson

12 Easy Halloween Drawing Ideas for Kids

Easy Halloween Cat Project Tutorial Video and Halloween Cat Project Coloring Page

Art projects for kids creator, kathy barbro.

Prep Your Art Lesson Plans, Effortlessly

The Art Projects for Kids step-by-step method of elementary art instruction breaks the often anxiety-inducing subject of art down into a simple, fun process (for students AND teachers) that boosts your students’ confidence and allows them to create with joy.

Each of your kids can set their own pace to create artwork they can be proud of. And you can feel empowered to instill your kids with the delight of creativity (even if you tend to be a left-brained, “in the box” thinker yourself). 

But after 20 years in the classroom as an art teacher, I also know what it’s like to give up every Sunday afternoon (and most evenings) to plan the week’s lessons. You shouldn’t have to give up all your free time to bring your students meaningful art instruction. That’s why at Art Projects for Kids , you’ll find a variety of easy, step-by-step lessons your kids will love all in one place . The result is an instant extra 90 minutes minutes back in your weekend — just by signing up for our emails (and it’s free!).

Integrated Art History Projects

See all >.

How to Draw a Self Portrait with “Big Eyes” Tutorial and Self Portrait Coloring Page

Nate Williams Self Portrait Art Lesson for Elementary Students

Gee’s Bend Quilt Art Lesson: How to Make a Paper Quilt Project Tutorial Video

A Charles Demuth Art Project and Coloring Page

How to Draw Frida Kahlo Easy Step by Step Art Project for Kids

Easy Matisse Art Project Tutorial and Matisse Coloring Page

How to Draw a Paul Klee Castle: Easy Step-by-Step Art Tutorial Video for Kids

Easy How to Draw a Balloon Dog Tutorial and Balloon Dog Tutorial

Easy How to Draw a Klee Cat Video and Klee Cat Coloring Page

Thanksgiving projects.

Easy How to Draw a Cornucopia Tutorial Video and Cornucopia Coloring Page

Easy How to Draw a Turkey Tutorial Video and Turkey Coloring Pages

Easy How to Draw Pumpkin Pie Tutorial and Pumpkin Pie Coloring Page

Easy How to Draw Corn Tutorial Video and Corn Coloring Page

Easy How to Draw a Ship Tutorial Video and Ship Coloring Page

Easy How to Draw a Cute Turkey Tutorial and Cute Turkey Coloring Page

Relax, knowing no-prep art lessons are en route to your inbox.

No more feeling guilty for not having the bandwidth to thoughtfully integrate more art projects into your lessons. No more cringing at not coming up with more “creative” ideas and projects to put on your bulletin boards. No more doubting your ability to teach art. No more feeling helpless when your kids are too afraid to create.

Instead, enjoy a classroom brimming with perseverance and playfulness . Wake up looking forward to walking into your classroom armed with your easy lesson plans and even videos you can play for your class. Smile as you watch your creative kids discover that, yes, they CAN have fun doing art. Feel truly prepared (maybe for the first time ever) . Treat yourself to a relaxing Sunday with your feet up. Maybe even reading a book that didn’t come out of the kids section of the library. And know that your (free) email membership to Art Projects for Kids is powering all of this, like your magical teaching fairy godmother. And even when you rest? It won’t. 

Really boosts their drawing confidence!

Nice art work that is kid friendly, find literally any picture your students want to draw, all in one place, view project ideas by grade level.

You Don’t Need as Much Time as You Think to Integrate Art into Your Classroom

You won’t have to spend all day searching Pinterest for ideas. You won’t have to spend hours prepping or studying the art lessons. You won’t need to beg your administration or parents for high-end supplies or purchase expensive curriculum.

All you have to do is say “yes” to the Art Projects for Kids daily email and watch as the 3,152 minutes you’re losing each year to searching for art activities slowly come dripping back into your life. Because what busy teacher doesn’t want another 3,152 minutes per year without doing anything differently at all? Get the Art Projects for Kids daily email, and let us do the heavy lifting for you.

Find More Easy, Step-by-Step Art Lessons in our Shop

21 Integrated Art Lessons for Elementary with Social Studies, Math, English & Science

12 Art History Self Portrait Lessons for Elementary

Leap Year Spring Art Projects Pack

“Hang on ’til Christmas Break” Art Project Pack

Latest from the shop.

William H. Johnson Mural

Pierre Maxo Mural

Haiti Market Day Mural

Collaborative mural templates for kids.

Ode to Matisse Mural

Fall Art Project Pack

Mini Blue Planet Murals

Mini Impressionists

• Free Resources
• Register for Free

10 Art Sub Lessons that only need a Pencil

No teacher wants to be off school.  You know your students make more progress when you are there and no-one takes care of your materials and room like you do.  In reality, I like to lock everything away and leave work that only needs a pencil.  Having said that, with art being trimmed and trimmed from the curriculum in recent years, every second counts and I still want my students to make progress.  Hopefully, these 10 art sub lessons will help to reduce your workload and be prepared. The art worksheets below all:

• Come with a lesson plan.
• Link to commonly taught themes
• Are tried and tested.
• Teach valuable skills.
• Only need a pencil.
• Are only $3 or £3
• (Or are much, much less when you subscribe ).

Click on the image to purchase the resource.

Converse Grid Drawing

Encourage beautiful drawing with this converse grid drawing. Ideal as part of any drawing module or this would make an excellent homework or cover lesson to improve drawing skills. There are two versions of this grid drawing.  One where the grid lines are already in place, and one where your students draw the lines using the little marks on the edge as a guide.

The Circle Game

A great art cover or sub lesson.  Students think creatively and turn the circles into different drawings on this one-page resource.

Copy the Pattern

A popular, one page, cover/sub lessons that required all students to copy the pattern accurately. Includes lesson plan.

Inspiring Hogarth

Your students will be inspired by the characterful faces in Hogarth’s engravings!  This worksheet and lesson plan asks students to create a page of detailed drawings inspired by the faces they can see on the worksheet.  This is an excellent resource to encourage detailed observational work and will link to many portrait projects.

Drawing Dreams

The drawing dreams art lesson below is great for encouraging creative, imaginative drawing. You could also use this lesson to link to Surrealist projects as the Surrealists were sometimes inspired by their dreams.

Drawing Fruit

This drawing fruit worksheet is a must-have for natural forms projects.  High-resolution images work well in colour and when photocopied into black and white.  Use it as a sub lesson or integrate it into fruit or natural forms projects.  The accompanying lesson plan is written as a sub lesson and includes a scripted paragraph for a non-specialist.

It’s all in the Eyes!

We all teach portrait drawing units of work, so it’s good to have a portrait sub/cover lesson in your bank of resources.  This drawing eyes sub lesson is ideal.

Cross Hatching Burger

This one-page resource with lesson plan asks students to practise creating tones/values with cross hatching and then to draw the burger using cross hatching.  This has been created as a sub/cover lesson but could also be used as part of a food project. The instructions suggest using a pen but these could also be completed in pencil.

Draw the Butterfly

Draw the Butterfly sub/cover lesson is a super-useful download and will link to lots of projects you already teach.  Perhaps you already have an insect project or natural forms project? There is a worksheet that suggests pencil and another that suggests coloured pencil.

The Knot Challenge

Students love a challenge and ‘The Knot Challenge’ is certainly that!  The lesson plan comes with a script for non-art-specialists so you can use it as a sub/cover lesson too.

10 art sub lessons is a blog post about sub lessons but you can find many, many more art sub lessons on The Arty Teacher website.

Check out the Zentangle Resouces on The Arty Teacher!

Enjoy this article, Drop it a like

Or share it.

The Arty Teacher

Sarah Crowther is The Arty Teacher. She is a high school art teacher in the North West of England. She strives to share her enthusiasm for art by providing art teachers around the globe with high-quality resources and by sharing her expertise through this blog.

13 responses to “10 Art Sub Lessons that only need a Pencil”

Hello, These lessons are amazing. Unfortunately neither any sub of mine nor my students could ever make any of these projects without my direction. They are simply too detailed, involved and require the student to have been studying in a class with students that are attentive and a strong art teacher for years to be able to do these successfully. They are simply not realistic for a sub to do. And you are not alone, I see very FEW sub lessons online that a sub can do with my students. I teach in a school where many of the kids have not had an art class with a regular teacher for years. And the subs are often random people in the school who cover the class. Thank you for the wonderful ideas though. I’ll work them into my curriculum when I am able to teach them. 🙂

Hi Lydia, Thank you for your comment. I’d be interested to know what age group and what sort of school you teach in. It sounds like you are facing a challenge if many of your kids have not had an art class with a regular teacher for years. That would be very unusual here in the UK. Poor kids! I’ve used these sub lessons successfully in high school with mixed ability classes. Please do email me if you can thinks of ways that I can broaden what I offer.

Great ideas

I’m glad you like these ideas Audrie!

Do you have any sub plans that might be a little bit less detailed? I teach 5 year olds to 11 year olds (grades kindergarten to 5th) in the states. Thanks..Cindy

Hi Cindy, I have many more sub lessons here: https://theartyteacher.com/downloads/category/sub-cover-lessons/ I teach 11-18 year olds so they may be too difficult for your younger students. Some will definitely be ok for your oldest students.

Once I purchase a lesson, how does it come? A hard copy in the mail or digital and I print it?

Hi Piper, If you purchase a lesson it’s a digital download and you would need to print it. Sarah

These look so helpful! Thanks

Thank you, that’s good to hear.

Thanks, these are terrific!

Thank you, Janet. I’m glad you find them useful.

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Sign me up for the newsletter!

Blog Categories

• Art Careers 46
• Art Lesson Resources 23
• Arty Students 6
• Inspiration 68
• Pedagogy 41
• Running an Art Department 21
• Techniques & Processes 47

More Resources you might like...

Subscribe & save in any currency! I WANT TO PAY IN Australian Dollars ($) Canadian Dollars ($) Euros (€) Pound Sterling (£) New Zealand Dollar ($) US Dollars ($) South African rand Change Currency

Free subscription, for one teacher, premium subscription, premium plus subscription, for one or more teachers, privacy overview.

7 Easy Art Lessons For When You’re in a Pinch

Sometimes lesson planning comes down to the wire. Maybe your students went through a project much faster than expected, or you simply did not have the time to get ahead of things. We’ve all been there. It’s not unheard of to scour the internet and social media for ideas, but sometimes we still come up short. No art teacher is perfect, and we all need a lesson idea in a pinch from time to time! We don’t want these activities to be fluff or busywork. Instead, we want them to help our students build skills and scaffold learning.

The next time you find yourself in need of a last-minute activity or lesson, look no further. The following seven activities are easily adaptable for various grade levels. They also require minimal material prep and use supplies you likely have in your art room.

1. Personal Soda Can Label

We live in a consumer world where new beverages, food, candy, and snacks are constantly introduced to the market. Teachers and students experience product and brand design —often without even realizing it. Looking at the typography and imagery of different products can spark interesting conversations with both elementary and secondary students.

One way for students to explore the idea of consumerism through product design and advertising is by creating a personal beverage label. This will require students to brainstorm a brand and identity for their product by picking the flavor, color, and overall look. Use the handout below  to get your students started planning their designs.

Once students have designed their labels, you can take this activity a step further by attaching the design to an aluminum can. Have students participate in a reflection or critique activity. Ending the activity here might be appropriate for your elementary students, but you could take it a step further for your middle and high schoolers. Have students use their aluminum can with a custom label for observational drawing. Beginning students often struggle with matching the text and typography on traditional soda cans. Using the label they initially created will help them build confidence in their drawing skills. After practicing observational drawing skills, students add shading to create the illusion of form. High school students can also explore more package design and advertising elements.

Suggested materials: Paper, drawing materials, aluminum cans (optional) Suggested grade levels: Elementary, middle school, high school

2. Crushed Soda Can Drawing

Another simple yet effective way to recycle aluminum cans in your classroom is to crush them and use them for observational drawing. When students learn to draw, they eagerly want to draw things as realistically as they can. Students often feel frustrated and disappointed when they aren’t able to draw things perfectly. One way to reduce the pressure of realistic drawing is to begin with an imperfect object. Crushing cans and spray painting them white can serve as a beautiful and cost-effective way to teach basic drawing skills.

Students can draw the cans from life or use a reference photo. If they use a reference photo, you could introduce your students to the traditional grid method or provide them with alternative ways of making a grid.

Cover the cans with white paint so students can focus on the simplified shapes without worrying about labels or text. Strong lighting can also help students to identify values easily. If you don’t have aluminum cans on hand but still want to try this activity, use these images as references .

To adapt this lesson and take it even further for your secondary students, explore new and advanced techniques to create a background with contrast and emphasis. Students research and experiment with a technique they have wanted to try. Provide them with a demonstration and sampling of some ideas to get them started.

Here are some exciting advanced techniques:

• Monoprinting
• Painted Paper Weaving FLEX Lesson (can be found in FLEX Curriculum )
• Paper marbling

Suggested materials: Paper, drawing materials, aluminum cans Suggested grade levels: Upper elementary, middle school, high school

3. Ashley Mary-Inspired Organic Shape Painting

Exploring abstract and non-objective art can be an empowering experience for students. However, sometimes the freedom to create can leave them paralyzed or push them to overwork their pieces. One way to introduce students to proper painting techniques while exploring color, pattern, and shape is to learn about the contemporary artist Ashley Mary . Mary’s playful paintings are reminiscent of the free-form collages of Matisse. Comparing Mary, a contemporary artist, with Matisse, a classical artist, can provide a foundation for inspiration and discussion. To learn more about Ashley Mary, download our complimentary FLEX Curriculum Artist Bio . Find this and many more artist bios in FLEX Curriculum .

Before students begin painting, have them choose a color scheme. Encourage students to work with a limited palette to push them to make more intentional color decisions. Students create shapes and patterns one paint layer at a time. If using watercolor, this can be a wonderful exploration of how transparent and translucent colors mix and layer. The free-form nature of this painting style also fosters intuitive thinking.

Suggested materials: Paper, acrylic or tempera paint, watercolor Suggested grade levels: Elementary, middle school

4. Water Droplet Drawing

If you are looking for a skill-building activity to boost your students’ confidence, this is it! Inspired by art teacher Jennifer Sell , this water droplet drawing activity is the perfect way to introduce students to shading and form at any age level. For best results, use a material that blends easily, like graphite, charcoal, chalk, or oil pastel. Use these videos to help guide your students as they navigate through the activity.

To adapt this for your advanced learners, students create the same drawing with two different media. Compare and contrast the process, medium characteristics, and end results.

Suggested materials: Paper, chalk, graphite, charcoal, or oil pastel Suggested grade levels: Upper elementary, middle school, high school

5. Textured Slump Mold Slab Bowl

Are you in need of a one-day clay activity that requires minimal materials? Creating slump molds is a great way to introduce or review making slabs with students. All you need is clay and a mold, like a bowl, to press the clay inside. This idea also can introduce surface texture on clay. Students roll a slab, add texture, then press into the slump mold. If you plan on doing more clay lessons with your students, this is a quick project for students to practice the glazing process.

Suggested materials: Clay, bowls for molds Suggested grade levels: Elementary, middle school

6. Op Art Drawing

Optical illusions are always exciting for students, and learning how to make them is even better! Some op art designs require more math and complexity, while others are on the simpler side. These op art sphere and cube designs are perfect as an introduction to your younger artists. Check out this video for a step-by-step guide to create them.

If you plan on doing more complex op art activities with your advanced or high school students, these simple drawings will make great bellringer prompts. Connect several spheres and cubes to create more elaborate patterns and compositions. For more op art lesson ideas, check out the Connecting Op Art and Math in FLEX Collection.

For a brief introduction to op art that you can share with your students, check out the FLEX video below:

Suggested materials: Pencil, markers, ruler, paper Suggested grade levels: Elementary, middle school, high school

7. Color Mixing Lines

The process of color mixing never ceases to amaze students, no matter how many times they have experienced it. This activity allows students to observe color mixing and explore creative drawing processes.

To start this project, students use a water-based marker or watercolor paint. If students use markers, create shapes of color right next to or slightly overlapping each other. Prep an eyedropper filled with water or a paintbrush dipped in clean water. Stand the painting up vertically and carefully drop water on the paper. Watch as the water mixes with the color and drips down the page together.

Use the same method with watercolor paint with a wet-on-wet technique by painting the paper with water first. Add color with the paper held vertically.

Once the paint drips are dry, students identify the positive and negative shapes created by the drips. Students can trace the shapes and fill in designated areas with line patterns.

Suggested materials: Water, watercolor, markers, paper Suggested grade levels: Elementary, middle school

Alexander Graham Bell said, “Before anything else, preparation is the key to success.” With all that art teachers have to do daily, we understand the importance of preparation. However, there are only so many hours in the day, and sometimes we don’t have enough time to get it all done! If you find yourself behind, overwhelmed, or stuck, try one of these activities. They are sure to engage students from start to finish, adaptable for all grade levels, and you can easily tie them into your existing curriculum when you’re in a pinch.

What’s your go-to lesson when you are in a pinch?

How do you prep in advance for a last-minute activity?

Magazine articles and podcasts are opinions of professional education contributors and do not necessarily represent the position of the Art of Education University (AOEU) or its academic offerings. Contributors use terms in the way they are most often talked about in the scope of their educational experiences.

Abby Schukei

Abby Schukei, a middle school art educator and AOEU’s Social Media Manager, is a former AOEU Writer. She focuses on creating meaningful experiences for her students through technology integration, innovation, and creativity.

How to Train Your Robot: AI Prompt Engineering for Art Teachers

Ways AI Can Make Your Art Teacher Job Easier for Planning and Assessment

Art and Appetite: 7 Ways to Explore the Significance of Food in the Art Room

7 Engaging Ways to Teach the Elements and Principles of Art and 3 Fun Ways to Review Them