Ready-to-go lessons that inspire kids to love art

The Kids Art Projects 101 membership program is designed for parents and teachers who want to tap into art experiences that encourage creativity, support problem solving and skill development, and inspire self-confidence in young artists.

You already know kids benefit in so many ways from authentic art experiences

  You hear it everywhere… Business leaders are saying they value creativity as one of the leading skills they look for in new employees. Leading early childhood organizations are saying that the art of creating is essential to early childhood development. Research shows the mental health benefits of art experiences in children and adults of all ages.  And you know in your heart engaging, well-developed art experiences:

• foster creativity, 
• inspire kids to take artistic risks, 
• provide an outlet for reducing stress and anxiety that are currently on the rise in children,
• encourage self-discovery and self-confidence, and more!

But for some reason you’re still not weaving enough art into your regular routine

For starters you’re busy! I mean, seriously busy. You don’t have time to search endlessly for perfectly crafted art projects. You want them in your face (or at least in your inbox!) and you want someone to hold you accountable for doing these art projects with your kids each week so they actually get all the benefits you want them to gain from said art experiences. Not to mention… Even when you’re not busy (umm, okay let’s pretend that actually happens) you aren’t sure exactly which activities are best for your kids, what materials you need, or how to set things up for success so nobody ends up frustrated. It would be so much easier if you had all the insider tips from an experienced art teacher and mom, someone to show you art activities that are just right for your kids, someone to tell you different ways to make the art projects easier or more intricate if needed, and someone to help you get back on track you if things don’t seem to go as planned. 

Meet Cara

Hi, I’m Cara! I am an elementary art teacher. I’ve been teaching K-5 art for more than 15 years. I believe beautiful things happen when you invite children to engage in authentic, age-appropriate, art experiences. I have a BFA (I majored in Painting/minored in Art History), an MA in Art Education, and a doctoral degree (Ed.D.) in Instructional Leadership. I am a mom to two boys, ages 9 and 12. Helping children understand and enjoy the visual arts is my passion. I created Kids Art Projects 101 because to share my approach with you. I hope my work saves you time and inspires the kids in your life!  

So what exactly is the Kids Art Projects 101 membership?

The Kids Art Projects 101 membership is a collaborative community where parents and teachers get access to engaging art lessons, implementation tips, and ongoing support as they make authentic art experiences a regular part of children’s lives.

As a Kids Art Projects 101 member, you will immediately get access to our library of over $250 worth of resources to help you teach art to children in grades PreK-2. 

Fostering Creativity Through Process Art

In this series there are  48 simple and fun process art activities to try with your kids. The lessons are available online and in a printable PDF format. Each lesson offers strategies for simplifying, enriching, and extending each activity so you can adjust to suit your kids’ needs.

Members also get access to 4 bonus process art projects! That means you have one weekly process art project for an entire year of playful exploration as you introduce children ages 3 to 6 to a wide variety of art experiences. 

The Fostering Creativity Through Art Series Delivers:

• Open-ended art activities designed to inspire creative art exploration
• Printable PDFs with clear directions, supply lists, work-sample photos, and tips for getting the most out of each activity
• Differentiated strategies for simplifying, enriching, and extending each activity so you can adjust to suit your needs. 

Famous Artist Series

Introduce children to famous artworks and details about famous artists through an ongoing series of detailed unit plans for K-2 art teachers and homeschool families.

Art Song Posters to Help with Transitions and Mini-Lessons

Help students cheerfully absorb and reinforce procedural and art-specific knowledge! There are songs for key transitions and routines that we do regularly in the art room!

Doodle Prompt Calendars

Inspire artists of all ages to create art daily with a fun doodle prompts in a printable monthly format. These are great for early arrivers, early finishers, and sub plans!

Organizational Tools

Get organized and tackle all the extras that come your way as an art teacher with our growing library of organizational resources.

But that’s only the beginning! New content added monthly!

In the 2022-2023 school year our monthly features will be:

1) Continued Monthly Scripted Slideshows and Project Guides for the Famous Artist Series!

We will continue rolling out new units from our Famous Artist Series as we work toward a full PreK-5 art curriculum. These units are full of facilitator tips and practical suggestions. You can expect to see names like:

• George Rodrigue
• MC Escher
• Yayoi Kusama
• Naoki Hayashi
• Louis Comfort Tiffany
• Georgia O’Keefe

2) Continued Video Trainings!

Every time we release a scripted slideshow, we’ll continue to follow up with a video training to unpack the unit. These videos are full of actionable tips to help you implement the unit with ease and make the most of the content with your students.

3) Narrated digital storybooks!

I’m making it even easier for you to do these units with your students and buying you a bit of time in the process. Throughout the year I’ll be sharing recorded digital storybooks where I’ll narrate the digital storybook portion of each unit so you can share it directly with your students (or just take a listen to gather your own notes if you’d like!). Use these extra couple of minutes to take attendance, put out supplies, or just take a few deep breaths!

4) Video Updates!

Each month I’ll share what’s going on in my classroom, which units I’m using during the month ahead, and share tips to help you have a smooth school year with your young artists.

5) Special Bonuses!

Along the way we’ll weave in some special bonuses like our brand new art teacher planner.

Get more details in this video overview.

Click here for a printable PDF version of the resource guide.

Why Join?

Results! Watch your children deeply engage with authentic, age-appropriate, art experiences! It’s good for the soul! (Theirs and yours!)

Community! Membership includes the immeasurable bonus of sharing the highs and lows of this creative adventure with people in the same boat!

Convenience! You are perfectly capable of planning this all out yourself, but let’s face it, who has the time? Why not let an experienced art teacher save you the trouble?

Entertainment! The activities and community will keep you laughing and inspired!

What ages?

Children of all ages can benefit from participation in the Kids Art Projects 101 Program, and we are ultimately building toward a complete PreK through 5th Grade art curriculum.

Our current resource library is most closely aligned with the skills and interests of those in preschool through grade 2.

While we designed the Fostering Creativity Through Process Art series with preschoolers in mind, the truth is process art activities are open-ended and can be done by kids (and adults!) of all ages. Generally process art experiences can be introduced to kids as young as 2 or 3 who are beyond the “put everything in your mouth” phase. Older kids will interact with the art projects in a different way and make different discoveries. All ages will benefit from the experience!

The projects in the new Famous Art Series were originally developed for use in a public school art room with kindergarten students, but have been adapted into a scripted PowerPoint format so that they can be easily utilized in a variety of settings and with a slightly broader age-range.

In the coming years of the program, we will be adding a new series each year so that the entire program will include a comprehensive art curriculum for preschool through grade 5. As a member you will get access to these new resources as they are released in the coming years.  

Ooh, sounds interesting! Can I see a sample art project?

Of course! Click the button below to download a sample art project from the Fostering Creativity through Process Art series.

And remember! Every week there will be a brand new resource ready for you with new projects, tips, and ideas to try with your little artists.

It All Started at the Beach

Wondering why I started this program? I want to introduce you to my friend. Her name is Shaunna, and it is because of her and her crazy ideas that we are all here today about to embark on this exciting new art adventure together. 

Shaunna’s Story, the Beginning of Kids Art Projects 101

One summer day as I sat on the beach with my dear friend, Cara, I told her I had long dreamed of an art program that focused on process art projects and project-based activities instead of crafts,  an art program that would inspire kids of all ages to take risks and trust their own artistic impulses instead of always seeking out the “right” way to do an art project,  a program that would balance out all the academic pressure kids face these days and push the pendulum back toward a more balanced childhood experience that values the arts as much as academics. I realized this was a tall order.  I also realized I was not technically skilled enough to pull off such a program on my own.  While I do have a masters degree in early childhood education and I have been doing process art with kids for decades now, I’m not officially trained in art and I am certainly not an artist. Lucky for me, Cara does have all of that training and more. She’s an experienced K-5 art teacher. She has a doctoral degree in education. She’s an artist. And as if that isn’t enough, she’s also a mom and one of the most creative and awesome people I’m lucky to know in person.    And what’s even better is that Cara eagerly agreed that this dream needed to become a reality, and we put this project in motion!  Through these months of preparation, research, and web design I have been continually impressed by all the thought and attention to detail Cara has put into designing a program that is what I envisioned and so much more.  I am confident that parents and teachers alike will find this to be an invaluable resource, and I am equally confident that kids will benefit from these art experiences in ways that we never even fully anticipated. I am so excited to be part of the  Kids Art Projects 101 journey, and I am looking forward to seeing how this program inspires creativity in kids and makes it easier for art teachers and parents to provide meaningful art experiences for their children. Will you be joining us? 

Sounds too good to be true! How much does it cost?

I know it sounds dreamy! And we’ve asked quite a few people how much they would pay for a well-designed art program like this one.

Jaws literally drop when I tell them that I am currently offering this version of the Kids Art Projects 101 membership at the… 

incredibly low rate of $99 per year.

And even though that price does actually sound too good to be true, that is indeed all it costs to access an engaging art curriculum meticulously designed and tested by an educator with over twenty years experience teaching art. 

Because this program is just getting started I am offering enrollment at a very low cost, the lowest it will ever be. I want you to join in and take advantage of the benefits without cost being a factor, but I will definitely be increasing the price in the future to better reflect the true value of the program.

Joining now locks you into the current pricing structure even when I increase prices in the future.

If you’re ready to save time, weave more art into your kids’ lives, and have fun along the way, click the button below and join me in the Kids Art Projects 101 program today.

Need more info? Visit our FAQ page here to learn more.

Not ready? If you still have questions about this program, email me at help@kidsartprojects101.com.