For many years, my first grade clay project has been the pinch pot turtle. It was simple, fun, and turned out pretty well every year. It just had one problem. Those turtle legs/heads/tails broke off so easily that I felt like I was running a turtle vet clinic toward the end of the project.
This year, I was contemplating doing something a little different and found this little project on Pinterest. The concept is the same as with the turtles. Kids start with a pinch pot, invert it, then add details on the pot to turn it into a ladybug. I had each student poke six holes into the clay on the bottom to later use for the legs. After the work has been bisque fired, I hot glue little bits of wire into the holes to make the legs. Finally, the bugs are painted with watercolor paints. This is a pretty successful and simple two day project for 1st grade.
I really enjoy checking out a lot of the other art teacher blogs that are out there. There are a ton of really talented and dedicated teachers who post some amazing projects. I'll see a project I really like and I'll drag the link into a folder I keep on my computer labeled "Project Ideas." Unfortunately, I get so busy sometimes that I don't go back to check that folder often enough. Another art teacher in my district told me about Pinterest earlier this fall. My wife, a graphic designer, had been using Pinterest for several months, so I was familiar with how it worked. What I didn't realize is how many cool art projects are on there!
If you aren't familiar with how Pinterest works, here is a quick rundown of the site. Anyone can "pin" images on the internet. If I find a really cool project on somebody's blog, I can pin it on a board in Pinterest. The image is saved in a visual file essentially. It is super easy to scroll through and find particular images which are also linked back to the original web page they were found on. People can also "re-pin" images already on Pinterest. There are quite a few art teachers already pinning, so I am able to search for art lessons and re-pin them to my elementary art board. I highly recommend checking out the site.