Birdcages - Art Sub Lessons

Art Sub Plans for Elementary and Middle School 

This is a preview of a lesson I created for my TPT shop, Art Sub Lessons. While it was written with a sub in mind, it can be taught by anyone.

Go here to take a look:  Art Lesson: Birdcages

This elementary and middle school art lesson may be used for distance learning or in person. Also perfect for sick leave, maternity leave, and homeschooling. It is fully scripted, with visuals, so that it may be taught by subs, teachers, or parents. Students are shown many examples of fancy birdcages from history to the present. They then create imaginative drawings of their own, though if distance-learning or homeschooling, teachers may choose to let their students create the birdcage using media they have available. This might include crayons, pencils, markers, collages, digital media, or 3D materials.

What you get: 

15 slides featuring birdcages by artists throughout history

27 slides that are a fully scripted art lesson

7 pages of directed drawing

5 images of student examples

7 full pages of  images of birds and student samples that may be printed out and hung up

1-page birdcage template of the birdcage in case you want to skip drawing the shape of the birdcage

1 page of directions for how to teach the lesson

1 page of how to finish the lesson

This PowerPoint is non-editable, however, you may change the text by adding text boxes and text over what is provided.

More Open-Ended Art Sub Plans

Fully Written Art Sub Plans for Purple People Eater

Beyond the Gingerbread Man

Chinese New Year - Dragon Dance

Videos for Distance Art Learning

Videos for Art Sub Lessons and Distance Learning

If your students have access to the web and YouTube, there are some sites that they can access easily. 

Here are some you might check out.

The Kennedy Center
Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems

Mr. Pstudios is an art teacher. His YouTube channel includes drawing activities for kids.

The blog, Art Room Videos, has links to lots of individual art videos that have been previewed for kids.

The Dad Lab has lots of videos. Your students may have access to lots of materials, so check out his entire channel. For those whose students may have limited supplies, here are some videos that might work for you.
Crayon Rubbing with Legos 
Shadow Drawing
Draw with Your Feet 
Tree Bark Rubbing

Young Rembrandts They have some directed drawings. They also have an online course that you can pay for that is off of YouTube

Art for Kids Hub  They do a lot of directed, step-by-step drawing.  

Mark Kistler is a long time favorite for kids wanting to draw better. I would suggest these for upper elementary and middle school.  Many of his videos are hour long, which I suspect will not work for most kids.  Finding the shorter videos, I sorted by "most popular." I saw a lot that were around ten minutes long.

The Art Project has lots of videos you might like for older kids. His drawing prompt videos are the perfect length for kids drawing at home.

Art Activities That Students Can Do At Home

Elementary Art Sub Activities to do at Home

If you are looking for easy options for teaching art at a distance, here are some suggestions.

I found this drawing prompt generator. artprompts.org  You select a category and then a prompt appears for that. There are ads at the top but look down at the bottom to see your prompt. Get a new prompt by clicking on "refresh." You can make your own template and then insert drawing prompts for each week.





Crayola has art worksheets that you can download.


If your students have access to the web and YouTube, there are some sites that they can access easily.  

Here are some you might check out.

The Kennedy Center
Lunch Doodles with Mo Willems

Mr. Pstudios is an art teacher. His YouTube channel includes drawing activities for kids.

The blog, Art Room Videos, has links to lots of individual art videos that have been previewed for kids.

The Dad Lab has lots of videos. Your students may have access to lots of materials, so check out his entire channel. For those whose students may have limited supplies, here are some videos that might work for you.
Crayon Rubbing with Legos 
Shadow Drawing
Draw with Your Feet
Tree Bark Rubbing

Young Rembrandts They have some directed drawings. They also have an online course that you can pay for that is off of YouTube

Art for Kids Hub  They do a lot of directed, step-by-step drawing.  

Mark Kistler is a long-time favorite for kids wanting to draw better. I would suggest these for upper elementary and middle school.  Many of his videos are hour-long, which I suspect will not work for most kids.  Finding the shorter videos, I sorted by "most popular." I saw a lot that was around ten minutes long.

The Art Project has lots of videos you might like for older kids. His drawing prompt videos are the perfect length for kids drawing at home.

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In case you need some art lesson ideas to print and send home with your students for a few days, these would work great. Written as early finishers activities, they are worksheets with directions and lots of details that kids can draw from on their own.

"Create a Leprechaun in Disguise"

"Create a Silly Monster" Worksheet

"Create a New Character" Worksheet

"Create a Silly Troll" Worksheet

"Create a Turkey in Disguise" Worksheet

"Fill a Claw Machine" 

"Create a Penguin in Disguise"

"Doodle Birds"

"Create a Monkey in Disguise"

"Create a Bunny in Disguise"

"Coloring Sheet - Monarch Butterfly"

"Create a Panda in Disguise" Worksheet

"Create a Yeti in Disguise"

"Create a Turtle in Disguise" 

"Create a Frog in Disguise"

"Create a Little Red Riding Hood in Disguise"

Art Sub Plans Worksheet - How to Draw a Penguin

Art Sub Plan Worksheet | How to Draw a Penguin

Free Directed Drawing Worksheet - Penguins

Do your kids like to do directed drawings?  The blog, Tinkerlab, has a free downloadable sheet showing how to draw a penguin, step by step. Add some details and you have a fun art sub lesson. Write up a few directions for your sub and doodle some finished penguins and you are ready to go. 

Find this directed drawing by Rochelle Doorley here:  https://tinkerlab.com/how-to-draw-a-cute-penguin/

If you would like another penguin activity, I have a doodle worksheet where kids design their own penguin disguised as something else. You will find it over at my TPT Shop.  You can check it out here:  Create A Penguin In Disguise

Free Art Worksheets - Directed Drawings of Owls

Directed Drawing Art Sub Lesson for Owls

This lesson and drawing are by Art Projects for Kids. This is a directed drawing that would be perfect for kindergarten and first grade. 

Since you have come here to see some directed drawings of owls, I went and found some other ones for you.

If you go to Denette Fritz’s blog, you can find a free worksheet with step-by-step instructions on how to draw an owl.

Here’s another take on the same thing. Check out this directed drawing by Thaneeya McArdle @ the blog, Art Is Fun.

This one is in the public domain since it has been around for so long.  You can find the full-size pdf on the blog, The Graphics Fairy.

Directed Drawing of Owls as Art Sub Plan

This is from the blog Art Lessons for Kids. The blogger taught this as a sub during her time off from full time teaching.