Leaf Paintings

First graders enjoyed making their first painting in art class last month.  We learned about leaves through the story Leaf Man.  Then I taught students how to draw leaves.  I actually did two different kinds of projects with different classes: one with radial symmetry (like the painting above) and one where students could draw leaves wherever they wanted to.  I thought there would be clear results as to which method I liked better, but there isn't!  I love the results of both lessons.

First, students drew leaves with crayons or oil pastels.

 Then they painted the leaves and the background.  They even learned to mix colors when painting the leaves.  Analogous colors look beautiful when mixed with watercolor paint.