Elementary Art Sub Plan - Desert Cactus Directed Drawing

 2 in 1 Art Sub Lesson

In my quest to try and make a teacher's life a little easier, I created a lesson that can be taught in kindergarten through 4th grade. It is a directed drawing but with plenty of room for personal expression.

The lesson starts out with step-by-step instructions for how to draw a patterned pot with a prickly pear cactus inside. That is for the kindergarten and first grade students. 

After they are led through how to draw that and color in neatly, the lesson for 2nd, 3rd, and 4th grade begins. Those grade will add a desert landscape to their drawing. 

By combining them all in one, your substitute teacher only has to attend to one lesson plan all day. (I subbed for a while after I retired, so I know how important it is to make the sub's life as uncomplicated as possible!!!)

The drawing uses the most simple materials: paper, pencil, and crayon.

It is no prep. All you have to do is print out the lesson or set it up to be projected. It can be taught either way. 

Check it out here at my TPT shop:  Desert Cactus Creations: Patterned Pots and Scenic Backgrounds for K-4

Art Sub Lessons for Elementary - Ugly Bug Ball

Ugly Bug Ball - Art Sub Plans

One easy path to take with an art sub lesson is to read a book or show a video and then have students draw their own interpretation from that.

Here is a vintage clip that I love.  "Ugly Bug Ball." It is fun to watch and uplifting.  Kids can watch and then proceed to draw their own ugly bug ball.

Pencils, paper, crayons and you are good to go.

TPT Art Sub Plan of Ugly Bug Ball - No Prep 

Don't just "wing it" with a sub. Give them a real art activity with substance. I have a no prep lesson in my TPT shop that goes along with that.  It gives your sub more of a structure with a fully prepared script and lots of examples.  There are even art history references! 

Check out the lesson plan here:  Ugly Bug Ball Lesson Plan

Elementary Art Sub Plans | Romero Britto

Romero Britto Inspired Elementary Art Activity

This lesson is from the Elements of the Artroom blog. Mrs. Stacey provides many examples from this second-grade art lesson. I believe an art sub could teach a lesson based on this. 

Here is another 2nd or 3rd-grade art lesson about Romero Britto.  This one is at The Talking Walls blog.  There are plenty of instructions so you could easily translate this to an art sub lesson.  

I could see this used for second through fifth grades.  

If you would like to see a fully formed, lesson you can just email to your school office when you are out, check out this blog post:  Romero Britto Figure Lesson for K and 1

Native American Art Project for Elementary Students - Native American Shields

Art Sub Plan - Native American Shields

Here’s an art sub plan the kids and teachers love. 


Native American Shields This elementary art lesson would work well as a Thanksgiving or fall art project. It presents art history information on Native American Indian shields as well as on the artist, George Catlin. The students are led, step by step, how to draw the shape of a shield. They then take that basic shield and embellish it with their own symbols and decorations.

As a retired art teacher turned art sub, I can attest to the fact that this is one of those lessons where every child can leave feeling successful about their work. I have found that my students stay fully engaged throughout the entire class period.  

Supplies Needed

The supplies needed for this lesson are simple: 12"x18" white paper; pencils; markers or crayons; circles, both large and small, for tracing the shape of the shield. (I had students trace around paper plates and paper bowls.)

Reviews of This Lesson

Here is feedback left by teachers who have used this lesson.

"On July 11, 2018, Jennifer L. said, "This is my favorite lesson I did this entire year! Thank you! So much fun to include with my Native Americans unit.”

“On March 6, 2018, Artsy Ivie (TpT Seller) said: "This was wonderful for my 5th graders!!!!! Our school mascot is the Indian and they loved doing this project! Thank you for the editable powerpoint and for covering EVERYTHING in this.“

Something for Early Finishers

Here's another fun Thanksgiving idea. This worksheet is great for those early finishers. Kids draw a disguise for the poor turkey who is trying to escape a Thanksgiving dinner. Yikes! Create a Turkey in Disguise

For a time saving and quality art sub plan, click here to visit my TeachersPayTeachers shop:  Art Sub Lessons @ TPT

Art Sub Plans - Silly Sundae Preview

Art Sub Lessons "Silly Sundae"

Find relief when you have an emergency absence. Writing lesson plans for a sub when you are in a rush, feels horrible. Don't stress out when you don't need to.  I have complete no-prep lesson plans already fully formed for you.

This is a preview of my art sub lesson called "Silly Sundae." I thought you would get more information from a preview of this lesson than just from one or two images. Find this fun elementary lesson at my TpT Shop: Art Sub Lessons. 














This lesson is no prep and can be taught by anyone.  All someone needs to do is to show each page; read the script, and follow the directions. Subs love my lessons because there is a lot of content and they will keep the students engaged for the entire class period.  

Landscape with Patterns - Art Sub Plans

Patterned Landscapes for Elementary Art Sub Plans

Here are some visuals for a landscape lesson that anyone could teach. It could be great for an art sub.

I have drawn 4 stages of a patterned landscape lesson that you are welcome to use in a lesson with your own students.

Here is a video that you could use with older students.  Patterns and Landscape Video.

Other Lessons Idea on my Blog about Pattern

Easy Art Lesson for Elementary and Middle School

Put a Pattern on It

Complete Lesson at My TPT Shop: Art Sub Lessons

The Colorful Art of Bruce Gray

***Originally I had linked to a lesson about patterned landscapes on a site called "Relief Teaching Ideas," but that site no longer exists.

STEAM Art Sub Lesson with Insects

This lesson was created with an art sub in mind. All of the directions have been included for their ease of use. There are multiple ways to use it. It may be printed out so that the sub may present it up close on paper or shown as a PowerPoint presentation.
It integrates science with art in an “ugly bug ball.” Including art history rounds this out even more!

]

The lesson begins with a discussion about masterpieces featuring insects by the artists Balthasar van der Ast, Nicolaes de Bruyn and then William Heath-Robinson. The lesson then leads the students to creating an imaginary scene of insects at a party. Each slide includes questions and statements for the students to think about including in their drawing.

I have taught this lesson to all levels, K through Fifth. My subs who have used this lesson have left feedback that they and the students thoroughly enjoyed the lesson.

I hope that this will be a well loved lesson for you and your students and that it helps you when you are in need of a sub lesson. 

The materials needed for this lesson are the most simple: paper, pencils and crayons or markers. Here's what another buyer had so say about that: "Great lesson to leave for a sub as everything needed was included and the prep was minimal and used things commonly found in the art room. "

Here's a comment from a buyer:  "The kids produced wonderful drawings and images. The sub used the plans for my intermediate groups grades 3-5 and she loved working with the kids as the plans were so meticulously laid out!"

You may find this lesson here:  TPT Shop: Art Sub Lessons

Bugs and Insects - STEAM Art Sub Plans

Bugs and Insects - STEAM Art Sub Lessons

Now that spring is here, people are interested in nature art lessons. Here are some related to bugs and insects.

Here is one on TPT that was written easy enough to be taught by anyone; art teacher, sub, classroom teacher, or random person off the street.  Ugly Bug Ball

This one is also on TPT.  It could also be taught by anyone. A multipurpose lesson, it could be used as a center activity, an early finishers activity, or an art sub lesson.  Create Insect Designs with Radial Symmetry - STEM/STEAM

This is a coloring/doodle/patterned Monarch Butterfly activity on TPT.

The images in this blog post are great.  As an upper elementart art sub lesson, you could do some step by steps of how to draw a simple insect and add a pattern chart.  Kids could do some beautiful drawings with crayons or markers. This is over at Laura Kelly's blog, Me and My Inklings.

Here's another good one with lots of visuals and instructions.  Still, for a sub, you might want to add a few more step by step visuals unless you have a person who is comfortable doing simple shape drawings.  I would also keep the lesson to just crayons or markers.  It is a nice lesson.  Visit the Laugh Paint Create blog.

KinderArt, always a good place to check out lessons, has a lesson called Bug In A Jar. It was written for middle school art, but could be adapted,  I'm sure.

Crayola is always a good place to get ideas. Often there are plans on their site  you could use as well. This one would need more detailed directions for a sub, but you could write up some step by step ones that would work with this. Crayola

Art Sub Lesson Plan - Silly Monsters

Halloween Art Lesson - Creating Silly Monsters

“Creating Silly Monsters” is a fun lesson about monsters that you could use in an art center; as a regular art lesson; or for an art sub. It is super easy to teach and kids will love it. Check it out at TPT Shop: Centers and Early Finishers  It would be timely around Halloween but could be taught any time.

Art Sub Lesson Plans About Monsters

Elementary Art Sub Plans about Monsters

Look no further for easy elementary art lessons about monsters. Here are lesson plans that would be fun to teach in October or at Halloween. They would all be perfect for art sub plans.


If you like leaving YouTube videos for subs, here is a sea monster lesson from Steve Harpster.  He shows kids how to draw creatures using letters of the alphabet. In this video, he uses the letter "A."

This "Name Alien" lesson is by We Heart Art.  This lesson ends up far from where it begins!

"There Be Monsters" is a lesson about sea monsters as they were drawn on  ancient maps.  

Students observe the old maps and monsters and create their own.

Here's a worksheet for early finishers at TPT.

"Create a Silly Monster"  This would be great for subs, art teachers, and classroom teachers.

This "Name Alien" lesson is by We Heart Art.  This lesson ends up far from where it begins!

"Clown and Poodle" originally wrote about this lesson. It is based on the old song, "The Purple People Eater." Originally, I linked to that blog, but it no longer seems to exist.  Here is my blog post about that lesson.

This sweet kindergarten lesson is by Artisan des Arts. 

"Her Dabbles" came up with this lesson called Silly Monsters. 

Ms. Pearce's Art Room has this lesson called "Circle Monsters." Kids lovetracing shapes. Here they can create original monsters just by starting with tracing circles.

This Scribble Monster lesson came from "Art  with Ms. B"

Easy Art Sub Lesson for Halloween

Easy Art Lesson - Yayoi Kusama

Looky! Another fun and easy art lesson you can teach for Halloween! An art sub plan based on an artist, can, of course, be taught anytime, but since it features pumpkins, it seems time appropriate. 

Based on the art of Yayoi Kusama, students design and pattern their own work.

Written as a creative center activity, it can also be used for an art sub.

Who was Yayoi Kusama?

A Japanese artist, born in 1929, she works mostly in sculpture, however, she is well known for her works in a wide array of other media and fields of art as well. 

Her art has the flavor of pop art and is heavily based on her life history. Much of her work has ties that deal with mental illness, for which she has struggled for most of her life.

What art pieces is she most known for?

There has been a resurgence of interest in her work. What people seem drawn to in her shows are her rooms covered in mirrors. These rooms reflect from wall to wall and give an illusion of infinity. 

Pattern is a big theme in her work. Part of that is her attempt to control patterns and ideas that repeat over and over again in her head obsessively. Her images and sculptures of patterned and polka-dotted pumpkins are very publicized these days.

Where can I find an art lesson or center activity based on this artist?

TPT store, Centers and Early Finishers, has a lesson called The Patterned Pumpkins of Yayoi Kusama. Click here to check it out:  Art Lesson on Yayoi Kusama.

This lesson includes: 

--two photos of art by Yayoi Kusama with a brief description of her work

--a sheet with three sets of directions you may use in a creative learning center. (Cut out the one that applies to what you want the students to do.)

--a line drawing of a pumpkin that you may copy for each student or you may use as a model for the students to draw on their own

--a line drawing of a pumpkin with patterns that you may copy for each student or use as a model for step 2 of their drawing

--an example of the finished work

As a center activity, if you want the students to create the entire drawing on their own, supply the station with plain paper, pencils, and crayons.

If you want the students to fill in the sheet with the pre-drawn pumpkin shape, make sure to include the copies of that drawing; pencils; and crayons.

If you only want the students to color the pre-drawn pumpkin that already has patterns, provide copies of that drawing and crayons.

If you want to teach this as an art lesson, you may print out the visuals to show the students up close, or you may project the images.

Back to School - Easy Art Sub Lessons

Easy Art Sub Lesson Plans for Back to School

Back to School time. What an awkward time to be absent from your classroom.  Here are some posts that would make great art sub plans. They are easy enough for a sub to teach and interesting enough to engage your kids. Click on the links to find out more about these fun and easy lessons.

Kindergarten and Preschool Art Lesson Plan
by ME!  Jan @ Art Sub Lessons blog

Free Art Sub Lesson - Lines, Lines and More Lines
by ME!  Jan @ Art Sub Lessons blog

Minions
by Miriam at Arte a Scuola

Collaborative Creatures
by Katie Weymouth at Briargrove Elementary Art Page

Dot Day
by Ms. O'Hanley at  Tales from the Traveling Art Teacher

Here's a post with multiple ideas for drawing things using circles: Back to School Art Activity: What Can You Make Out of a Circle Shape?

Leave a comment below if you know of more great ideas for kids for back to school art.