Crafty Lesson Plans - Integrating Art & Learning

Written By Penny Warner.

As an instructor, there are so many ways you can teach classroom subjects using arts and crafts. When you provide hands-on materials for the students to use, you make the topics fun, as well as educational. Here are some ways you can integrate art and learning to make your lessons creative, exciting and memorable.

Materials To Have On Hand

Collect a good supply of basic craft and craft-making materials for your projects. Sort the materials into containers and label the containers for storage in the classroom until needed. Here's a suggested list of materials to get you started:

Cording - stretch cording, lacing, wire, twine and yarn
Embellishments - wiggly eyes, buttons, jewels and flowers
Feathers - colored feathers, natural feathers, turkey feathers and marabou
Glitter - glitter shake bottles and assorted glitter
Glue - glue sticks, glue dots, bottle glue, glitter glue and a safe glue gun
Letters & Numbers - felt, foam and wooden letters and numbers
Pens - glitter pens, paint pens, colored pens and markers
Paint - fabric paint pens, poster paints, acrylic paints and water colors
Paper - craft sheets, foam sheets and decorated sheets
Chenille Stems - assorted colors and sizes of stems
Rocks - polished stones and flat rocks
Sand - colored sand and natural sand
Scissors - craft scissors and scissors with decorative cutting edges
Stickers & Transfers - variety of themes, shapes and colors
Tape - invisible tape, double-sided tape and colored masking tape
Trimmings - fringe, pompoms and lace
Tiles - mosaic tiles, ceramic tiles and wooden tiles

Learning Activities In The Classroom

Here are some suggestions for craft activities to coordinate with your teaching subjects:

Science & Nature

• Animals: Create paper bag animals, wear animal masks and set up a zoo or jungle display.
• Birds: Create bird gliders, birdcages and birdhouses or go birdwatching.
• Bugs: Create your own bug catcher boxes, string ladybug necklaces or set up butterfly displays.
• Plants: Create tissue flowers, decorate flowerpots or grow flowers.
• Sand: Collect sand in sand pails, color the sand and make sand art bottles.
• Weather: Create themed thermometers and record the temperature each day, create and fly kites in the wind or create wind chimes and sun catchers.

Social Studies & History

• Airplanes: Create, decorate and test-fly foam airplanes and gliders.
• Flags: Create American flags, flags of different countries or create your own classroom flag.
• Human Body: Create and decorate growth charts and check them throughout the school year.
• Native Americans: Create headdresses, totem poles or dream catchers.
• Masks: Create and decorate multicultural masks.
• Pirates: Dress as pirates, create a treasure chest, pirate flag or a pirate ship.

Language Arts

• All About You: Have students keep daily journals and decorate the journal covers with stickers, pictures and other embellishments.
• Alphabet Letters: Use bubble letter stickers or foam letters for vocabulary tests, creating name signs or stringing letter beads to create fun phrases.
• Greeting Cards: Create your own greeting cards for special occasions and decorate the cards with a theme.
• Photo Frames: Create themed photo frames for sports, school, nature, animals or family and write or tell a story about the picture.
• Puppets: Create your own paper bag puppets or cloth puppets and write a script to put on a puppet show.

Mathematics

• Counting: Use sets of small toys for counting, grouping, etc.
• Numbers: Use foam numbers for creating their own arithmetic problems, playing number games or use the numbers for labeling.

Organizational Skills

• Bookmarks: Create your own bookmarks using colored paper, foam, scratch-off paper and themed stickers such as math whiz, school days or reading.
• Containers: Decorate and personalize baskets, backpacks, tote bags and other containers to store supplies.
• Pencils: Use fun pens, pencils, and pencil toppers or decorate your own pencil cases.
• Snack Time: Color cups and placemats or decorate aprons to wear while preparing their snacks.

Physical Education

• Games: Play catch games, ball games or have yo-yo contests.
• Music and Motion: Provide the kids with musical instruments to decorate such as tambourines, clappers or whistles.