Whether you’re a first-year art teacher, a veteran looking for ideas to add to your classroom, or someone with 30 years of experience wanting to add some final touches to a legacy of excellent teaching tools and strategies, we’ve all experienced the draw to find resources to build our classrooms. As a teacher myself, I understand what it means to create curricula for art classes starting from wherever your students are and aiding them until they leave your classroom for the final time. Below, you’ll find four art tools for teaching you shouldn’t live without.

1. Post- and Pre-Break Activities

If you haven’t experienced the first break from school yet, you’ve almost certainly had your first day after the break and may have noticed that your students are restless and full of energy. I’ve been there, and believe me, getting students (especially the young ones) to settle in and get engaged can take additional time and energy even when you have classroom management down. That’s why it’s essential to have activities for the first day back from breaks and the day leading up to them. Two strategies I keep in mind for these activities are:

• Keeping the activities short
• Celebrating accomplishments

2. Art Rubrics and Measures of Progress

Tracking progress throughout a student’s time with you is crucial, especially if you’re teaching classes where grades matter. For that, I recommend creating and maintaining rubrics for each different curriculum you teach. A well-crafted rubric can ensure you’re monitoring your students’ growth in a fair and effective way for each student. After all, art is a creative expression and absolutely varies from student to student, and the assumptions we make affect student outcomes.

3. Your Own Set of Materials for Demonstrations

Demonstrations are a daily occurrence in the art classroom, and having your own tools and materials can ensure they go right every time. This saves you the time of hunting down materials and ensures your students have their own sets as applicable to the lesson. I also recommend keeping your materials separate from student materials, so you always know where they are, as an impromptu demonstration of a technique, skill, or design could come up at any time. You may even keep them with you in a bag, pocket, or pouch. I also recommend keeping a set of materials for substitute teachers for when life happens. Looking for No-Prep Art Sub Plans? Check out the Art Sub Plans Section of my shop.

4. Art Class Games

Classroom games can range from activities that get your students moving around the classroom to actual board games that your students can set up on the tables. Some favorites include:

• Classroom scavenger hunts are great for helping students find materials, tools, and other items in the classroom.
• Art-based trivia can help students learn important terminology for their specific art course.

Find Art Teacher Resources and Courses from MrsTFox Resources

Every art teacher deserves to have the tools to help their students learn and grow through art. As an educator, it’s my goal to help you find exactly what you need. For additional resources, visit My Shop. To find complete online professional development courses for art teachers with ready-to-use classroom resources and Certificates of Completion, see my Thinkific.

Looking for a Classroom Management Strategy that is absolutely foolproof? I have developed a series of free and easy-to-implement procedures that will have your art classes running themselves…for real, no joke. Check out my online Classroom Management Art Educator Workshop and change the way you see productivity in your art room!