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Indigenous Artists

Recycle Old Art Projects 9 Fantastic Ways

by BrainNinjasWP

What do you do with old art projects that aren't really framing-worthy? There are lots of ways you can recycle and repurpose art in your classroom. This is a great way to get rid of practice work or those projects that just don't work out. Come read through these ideas and see what you can do in your upper elementary classroom today.

If you have a bunch of completed art projects or partially completed ones, we came up with a whole bunch of ways to recycle them into new things. Recycling art projects not only helps reduce waste but also encourages creativity and resourcefulness.

Before we recycle any piece of art, we encourage students to take a picture so it can be remembered but won’t take up space. This is so that students can see how they grow and change as artists as opposed to keeping it as a memory.

We hate wasting materials, so whenever possible, we recycle pieces of art projects and craft materials so they can be used again in the future. The last thing we want is for art projects to be thrown into the landfill. Sometimes we do art projects that are not meant for display because we are practicing skills. These are the ones we recycle first.

[Read more…] about Recycle Old Art Projects 9 Fantastic Ways

Filed Under: Classroom Tips, Engaging Lessons Tagged With: Art, Art Class, Art Lessons, artists of canada, Earth Day, halloween art lessons, Indigenous Artists, Indigenous Artists in Canada, recycled art lessons, recycled materials, Recycling, Teachers Pay Teachers, Upcycled Art Lessons

How to Bring Indigenous Culture into Art Lessons

by BrainNinjasWP

One way to show appreciation for Indigenous artists is to study their work as you would any great artist. We put together some of the ways we incorporate learning about Indigenous artists and other aspects of culture in Canada in one post. Come read more.

Incorporating the stories and culture of Indigenous people is important to us. It’s woven throughout our subject areas, but we often look for other places to provide opportunities to bring cultures together. We’ve had several students who share their Cree and Dene cultures with us. Other years we’ve had no one in our classroom with a direct connection to our Indigenous People. We want all of our students to feel connected to the history of our country and the people who were here first. One way we do this is by exploring the works of Indigenous artists in Canada.

[Read more…] about How to Bring Indigenous Culture into Art Lessons

Filed Under: Classroom Tips, Engaging Lessons Tagged With: Art, Art Class, Art Lessons, Drama Circles, Indigenous Artists, Indigenous Artists in Canada, Indigenous Cultures, Indigenous People in Canada, Professional Learning, Teachers Pay Teachers

Resources to Learn About Indigenous People in Canada

by BrainNinjasWP

It can be tricky finding books and resources that are good for students to use for research about Indigenous People in Canada. Come read about some of the Indigenous resources we use.

It can be tricky finding books and resources that are good for students to use for research about Indigenous People in Canada. Most are not at the right reading level. Often, they are either outdated. Old resources are inaccurate. Many depict stereotypes of Indigenous cultures. More resources written by Indigenous authors are starting to become available. Books are thoroughly checked for historical accuracy. New books highlight current events and issues. We have been collecting some of the Indigenous resources we find most helpful. Come read about some of the Indigenous resources we use.

[Read more…] about Resources to Learn About Indigenous People in Canada

Filed Under: Classroom Tips, Engaging Lessons Tagged With: Classroom Resources, Indigenous Artists, Indigenous Artists of Canada, Indigenous Authors, Indigenous Cultures, Indigenous People of Canada, National Indigenous History Month, Online Resources, research, research skills, Residential Schools

Learn the Truth With Books by Indigenous Authors

by BrainNinjasWP

We have collected some of our favourite books written by Indigenous authors. It's part of our commitment to raising the voices of Indigenous People across Canada. Canada is filled with so many wonderful creators, that it only seemed fitting to highlight some of the best. Come take a look at this book list of books for kids.

We have collected some of our favourite books written by Indigenous authors. It’s part of our commitment to raising the voices of Indigenous People across Canada. Canada is filled with so many wonderful creators that it only seemed fitting to highlight some of the best.

You will notice there are no affiliate links in this post. We ask that you support local businesses and authors by shopping at your local book stores. Teachers in our school purchased most of these books so we could have them in our school library and classrooms. Please be sure to comment below if you know of more books we should add.

[Read more…] about Learn the Truth With Books by Indigenous Authors

Filed Under: Classroom Tips Tagged With: Book Recommendations, books, Canadian Authors, Canadian History, Indigenous Artists, Indigenous Cultures, Indigenous People of Canada

Art Projects That Will Last All Year

by BrainNinjasWP

If you are an elementary teacher who has to teach their own art lessons, this is the post for you. It comes with a big list of things you need in your elementary classroom along with several free art lessons that don't require special materials. Come take a read to get your art lessons organized for the whole year. Best of all, these are art lessons designed for Canadian students.

Most Canadian elementary teachers teach their own art lessons and most do not have any formal training outside of what they learned while earning their Bachelor of Education. That training can vary from a semester of learning to techniques to an afternoon painting one watercolour painting. Don’t worry, ninjas, we got a collection of art projects that will last all year. No planning needed!

[Read more…] about Art Projects That Will Last All Year

Filed Under: Classroom Tips, Engaging Lessons Tagged With: Art, Art Lessons, artists of canada, Classroom Set Up, Holidays and Seasonal, Indigenous Artists, Indigenous Artists of Canada

Are You Avoiding Teaching Art? How to Fix That

by BrainNinjasWP

Do you avoid teaching art because you can't handle the mess? Check out this list of ways to manage the mess and get some art lessons for your upper elementary students in the process.

If you are an elementary generalist in Canada, chances are, you are teaching art. That can be challenging if you don’t consider yourself an artist. Here are some tried and true routines we’ve put in place with our classes over the years that have saved our sanity.

Maybe you’ll start enjoying teaching art again!

[Read more…] about Are You Avoiding Teaching Art? How to Fix That

Filed Under: Classroom Tips, Engaging Lessons Tagged With: Art, Art Class, Art Lessons, artists of canada, Classroom Organization, Classroom Set Up, Earth Day, fingerprint art, halloween art, halloween art lessons, Indigenous Artists, Lesson Plans, Winter

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