Teaching clay in an elementary art classroom…some art teachers love it, some hate it. It can be be overwhelming and stressful. A lot of prep work is needed and clean up also. Because it can get sooooo messy! I want to share some tips with you about how I conquer teaching clay in elementary art in hopes that it helps someone out there figure out how they can make clay work for them!
Plan one day projects
In elementary art, you typically see your students once a week. If you don’t have have very much storage space for 3D things, this could be the route you want to take. I do one day clay projects because I don’t like having to try to keep clay leather hard and ready to go for a whole week until the students get back to their projects again. It is possible and I’ve done it before. But it takes work. If you really enjoy doing clay projects and your students need more time, do it! You can wrap projects up in plastic, put them in Ziploc bags with a spray of water or wet paper towels and they will be fine for the next week. But it definitely takes more work. I find it easier to plan projects where we create the entire artwork out of clay on day one and the following days we paint or glaze them. With a week in between seeing a class, the clay has time to dry and be fired before they come back and add color. The trick with this though it to make sure your students don’t make anything too thick that it takes longer than a week to dry properly.
Make demonstration videos
I like to create demonstration videos of how to create projects to show my students for a variety of reasons. You can actually read more about that in my post here. For clay projects, it is really helpful to have a video showing them how to create the artwork and work with the clay. I record looking down on my hands and I tell my students that it is showing them exactly what it should look like looking down at their own. Showing a video also allows me time to pass out or prep the clay materials and tools while the video is playing. Students watch the video and I stand at my back counter getting the clay ready. Or I’ll walk around and out the tools on the tables, making sure they know not to touch anything yet. Once the video is over, I review the steps quickly and then they get to work right away! It helps make sure they have the most time to create. With a demonstration video, I can also show it the class before getting the clay out. They watch it one week and maybe practice with play doh or sketch and plan their ideas. Then the next week, we just review, maybe watch just parts of the video or skip through quickly before they get the clay out.
Prep clay ahead of time
This is a tip that is really good for any type of project. Be prepared with all the materials before class starts. I go as far as to count out how many pieces of clay I need for the students in each class. I will form the right amount of clay into a rough ball and place them in Ziploc bags with some sprays of water. I can seal those bags and have them sit overnight or even for a few days until I need them. Then they are all ready to go! Easy to pass out one piece per student. Sometimes students get one large piece to start with and then ask they start working, I pass out a small piece, that I’ve also prepped, for the extra details.
Use simple tools
You don’t need the fancy tools. Currently for a working surface, I use boards with canvas on one side that have been cut and prepared for students by a local clay supply store. However, in the past I have also used plastic blue tarps cut into pieces and laminated papers as placemats. For slipping and scoring, I do not use actual slip in cups. I also do not use any special scoring tool. I have students use plastic forks and a cup of water. And yes, the clay stays together! I teach students to dip the fork in water, scratch the clay different directions like tic tac toe, dip the fork in water again and scratch the other piece. Then push them together to stick. I actually learned this from the teacher I student taught with back in the day! Thanks, Mr. B! 🙂
Don’t be afraid of glaze
I know some teachers a get overwhelmed or nervous when thinking about glazing the projects. Don’t let all the special glazes and techniques scare you away! There are so many choices of easy to use glazes and glazes made especially for elementary students! Show them how to paint it on one layer at a time. If using gloss glaze, I stress how they should NOT paint the bottom because it will get stuck to the shelf in the kiln! But of course, I still wipe off the bottoms myself before I load them. Students do a good job of painting them and painting them with enough layers as long as you teach them. I use low fire clay and low fire glazes so my settings on my kiln are always the same! Easy peasy. And the students will LOVE the glossiness when their projects come out of the kiln. But it you are still hesitant to use glazes (or just want stone variety), add color with something else! I’ve used bother acrylic and tempera paint. I really like using neon paint when I do clay monsters with 3rd grade. You can use oil pastels and an ink wash or dip, you can even use watercolors! There are so many ways to add color if you do a little search online.
Whether you are a new art teacher, new to clay, or a fellow veteran, my hope is these tips help you out when it comes to teaching clay in your own elementary art classroom!
What other tips do you have for teaching clay? What do you still struggle with?
Keep blending,
Laura