This paper presents a micro-cycle of design, detailing an experiential art workshop conducted with first to third-grade students in an elementary school in Iran. The four-session educational program aimed to prompt children to explore the school environment through leveraging visual and sound arts as investigative tools. Drawing on a Design-Based…

The purpose of this action research was to evaluate the impact of technology integrated gamification strategies on third-grade students' engagement in an art classroom at an elementary school with a Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (STEAM) based curriculum. To increase student engagement, educators and evaluators not only need to…

The data featured in this article were collected during a classroom-based study with seven- and eight-year-old children in British Columbia, Canada. The multiple purposes of the research included exploring how the development of the students' understanding of elements of visual art and design would affect their subsequent application of these same…

A total of 114 3rd- and 6th-graders from a suburban elementary school participated in a study examining the influence of implicit self-theories on rated creativity in the domains of art and literature in a quasi-experiment. Creativity was measured via the Consensual Assessment Technique. Participants were divided into two groups and received…

It's easy to see the connections between science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics (STEAM) in daily life, but they may not be so obvious in the classroom. This month's lessons allow students to explore the components of STEAM through a favorite art supply, the crayon, and a beloved American tradition, the Macy's Thanksgiving Day…

In this article, the author describes how her third-grade students made self-portraits that are simpler and less frustrating using paper collage. The variety of work from this project is amazing and captures personality and style. (Contains 1 online resource.)

In this brief article, elementary Spanish teacher, Dorie Perugini describes a classroom project that not only enabled students to explore their own culture and cultures around the world, but motivated them to create a beautiful piece of art. Like most elementary language teachers, Perugini needed to teach her class about food. While planning her…

When an unlimited amount of free 8 x 10" (20 x 25 cm) canvas was offered to all of the schools in their community to participate in the city's the Color of Friendship art competition, the author saw a wonderful opportunity for her students at Cedarcreek Elementary. After some thought, the idea of combining poetry with the contest's rich theme…

Tyree Guyton is a popular local hero in Detroit, although it's taken years for him to reach the elite status he now occupies. He's taken inner-city houses and fields--previously rundown and littered with trash--and created controversial art installations, each with deep meaning beyond the visual. Guyton grew up on Heidelberg and Ellery Streets in…

During the author's undergraduate experience at the University of Georgia, the author discovered a local artist named Beverly Buchanan. She creates beautiful pastel drawings of shacks. Her shacks are not sad houses, but rich, vibrant dwellings filled with memories of people who once lived there. Buchanan also creates sculptures of shacks made from…

The purpose of this study was to examine the relationships between the qualities of creativity, drawing ability, and visual/spatial intelligence of selected third-grade students in the Hsinchu area of Taiwan, Republic of China. The population for this study included approximately 11,653 third-grade students from 99 public elementary schools.…

The statement "Learning Is Both an Active and Reflective Practice" is very relevant to the authors elementary artroom, where students are encouraged to think about what they are making, to experiment with ideas, and to ask questions of themselves. Art students in grades three through five use digital cameras, computers, PowerPoint, and reflective…

Have you ever thought of using music as a subject for art? When the author discovered that her third graders studied jazz in music class every February, it seemed an opportune time for her to simultaneously focus on music in art, specifically through the work of African-American artist Romare Bearden. To familiarize her third-grade students with…

In this article, the author discusses the combined artistry of third, fourth, and fifth graders as they illuminate a formerly dark corner of their school's entry plaza with a sparkling mosaic mural. The students worked in small groups to form the letters of the alphabet on 12" x 15" (30.5 x 38 cm) panels of cement board decorated with flat-backed…