Art Book Page 1: Primary Hands

Children will learn about the primary colors as they make primary color handprints.

By Maryanne Messier

What You Need:

• Black Marker
• Crayons (red, yellow, and blue) [paint, pencil crayons or markers could be used as well]
• White Drawing paper 8 1/2 x 11
• Primary Hands Handout
• Scissors
• Glue

What You Do:

1. Begin by talking about how there are only three main colors that make up all the other colors in the world. Without them there would be no colors. These three colors are red, yellow and blue. We also call these colors the Primary Colors.
2. After talking about these colors have students get their materials for the lesson.
3. Once the students are ready, hand out the white paper. The teacher then goes around and traces both of the students hands on the white paper. Then instructs the students that they can color their hands, using only the primary colors. They need to color the whole paper.
4. When they are completed coloring the teacher then instructs the children to glue the white paper to a large piece of construction paper. It can be any color (I use red paper for all the pages, this way the students can identify the red paper is for the book and stays at school). You can use any color you want. Once they have glued their hands on the construction paper (leaving enough space on the right side for the handout) you can give them the handout.
5. They need to cut out the handout and then glue it to the right hand side of the paper. While reading the handout the children will color in the dots with the correct colors.
6. The teacher then stamps the date on the back, the children write their names on the back, and you are finished with page one.

► Go to Page Two (Blotter Bugs)

Related Lessons and Resources:

► Primary Hands Handout
► The Art Book – Index

The Art Book is a special series of lessons from Maryanne Messier, a teacher from Janesville Wisconsin. “This Art Book theme was created to help art educators by giving them another form of assessment. So many times we as art educators find it difficult to assess a child’s progress when projects are sent home. By using portfolio assessment it is easier to judge a child’s progress because you can see it from beginning to end. The idea of the art book came from a colleague of mine, Mary Jo Paup. She developed the “book” idea while working towards her masters. When she told me about the idea I decided to use it with my kindergartners. I used the Janesville School District’s Art Curriculum as a basis for each project page. It was a challenge but well worth it. The beauty of portfolio assessment is that it starts in kindergarten and can follow them through their elementary career. As the child grows so do the books and the lessons. If you decide to use this form of assessment in your class, I hope your class enjoys these lessons as much as mine did. -Maryanne Messier