Welcome to our Creative Ideas Blog – quick simple low-budget art ideas for teaching art to kids.

THESE FUN SIMPLE ART PROJECTS ARE DESIGNED FOR BOTH TEACHERS AND PARENTS TO TRY OUT IN THE CLASSROOM OR AT HOME WITH YOUR CHILDREN. USE SIMPLE RESOURCES – ACHIEVE AMAZING RESULTS – LEARN ALL ABOUT UPCYCLING – CREATE WITH THINGS WHICH YOU ALREADY HAVE AT YOUR FINGERTIPS. NO FANCY ART EQUIPMENT NECESSARY!

CHEAP LOW-BUDGET IDEAS PERFECT FOR GROWING MINDS, AND FOR KEEPING KIDS CREATIVELY ENGAGED. 

This blog is a fantastic FREE educational resource for teachers – learn how to teach kids art, and discover a range of fun 30 minute art lessons perfect for filling in a spare block of time, or to support other key learning areas. The perfect Visual Art resource for teachers.

RAW art is a team of art specialists who run art incursions in schools and kindys throughout SEQ and Sydney/ Newcastle. We also have a fabulous range of DIY art kits which we send to schools and kids throughout Australia.

Be sure to leave us a comment below – we would love to know your thoughts about these ideas and projects. Or – even better – have a go!! – and share with us your results – tag us on Insta @rawartworkshops. We would LOVE to see your projects too.

Playing with inks – 6 x ideas for you to try!

Drawing Inks are a great medium to use with kids. It paints really easily with brushes of all sizes, or with a sponge, its colours are really rich and vibrant, and you can work nice and fast! It also goes a loooong way – if you invest in a bottle, it will take you years to use it all up!! You can buy ink from your local art shop or Officeworks also has a range. A definite great addition to any art room, or art supply stash!!

So – what can you do with it?? We have a few super simple ideas for you to try…..

(please note – inks do stain – so you need to line tables with newspaper, and only put out very small amounts at a time – that are easily accessible to all using it. )

1. FACES – I love this idea with using just the one colour only – and using fine brushes. Set up small containers of the ink – easily accessible for everyone to dip their brushes in easily. start by painting a border, and then create a large oval shape in the centre – create simple features.

Fill in the background with other heads – different sizes and shapes – try a couple profiles too! Just keep it all simple and fun. Big eyes, big lips, cheeks. Talk about the different shapes of each feature as you add them in.

2. MOTHS – the shape and patterns of moths are a great reference point for kids. learn about insects, while learning about shape, line, symmetry and pattern. Brilliant!

Work with 2-3 colours in this process. Start by filling your card with a bunch of random triangle shapes – fill some in, make some wider, some taller and skinny. then add in antennae. With your second colour fill in areas, add in patterns, and maybe paint in a few extra smaller moths.

3. INTERIORS – this is a great activity with older children – draw a simple interior – look at the shapes and objects that imght be in a lounge, or a living space. Draw them all in with black markers first – keep it fairly simple. Think about the walls (windows/ door/ painting) and the floor (rugs/ table / chair). 

Look at artists like David Hockney for some inspiration. Then simply start painting it all in. Be sure to keep some areas left white for dramatic effect.

4. POP Art – go big and bold – create symbols. letters, big shapes, and paint in with different coloured inks. One for the older kids also – needing a steady neat hand. You could also incorporate extra pen work once the ink has dried, especially Posca Pens for real POP colour effects.

5. INK TREES – this one is great for all ages. Simply just paint a piece of card or paper with a range of colours – fill it all in, and let it dry. Perhaps look at doing one piece with WARM tones ( red/ yellow/ orange) and the other with COOL tones ( blue/ green/ purple) – a nice way to look at the colour wheel at the same time.

Once dry cut out a series of circles/ ovals and triangles. Glue onto a background card – black or brown is best – and then use a pen to mark in the trunks and branches. 

6. CRAYON BATIK – an oldie but a goodie – draw with oil pastels a series of lines/ shapes/ patterns onto card, and then simply sponge or paint over with inks. kIds are always amazed with this technique. Make sure you press hard and firm with the oil pastel, and include lots of LIGHT colours, especially white, for best results.

Ahhh yes – the simple joy of making marks. Perhaps you could try using other things to draw with? A stick from the garden, a feather tip (go all ‘olde worlde’) , a calligraphy pen with a range of nibs, a sponge, a piece of string……………

Time to get inking folks.

Until next week.

Tracy x