Art Bridge with Shellie Olsen's Class: Lesson 4: Spooky Halloween Watercolor Wash Scene

For this fun Halloween lesson I decided to focus on the mood the artist creates in their work through use of color and painting techniques. I read the children a classic Halloween picture book called “Pumpkin Pie” and asked the children to pay attention to how the pictures made them feel emotion (spooky, scared, mysterious, etc,.). The kids then drew with crayons their own spooky Halloween scene on paper. I emphasized the importance of shading deeply and the effect bold color use has on an art piece. Mrs. Olsen is always so great when things slip my mind! She is more than ready to help these kids become the best artists they can be! The kids then used a washable black paint wash and coated their entire paper. Some of the pieces really popped while others still seemed a bit dull. If I had to do it over, I would have done a few more test runs myself for optimum color and would have focused on teaching the children better brushstrokes. As usual, I am always amazed with these kids and their creativity!