Impressionism for Kids - Teach Kids to Paint Like an Impressionist

Teaching kids to paint like an impressionist is all about encouraging them to explore light, color, and brushstroke techniques. In this choice based art lesson plan, we’ll kick off with a fun matching game, dive into a slideshow with a cool video, practice brushstrokes, and finish off with a painting session where your students can create their very own impressionistic masterpiece!

How To Teach Kids to Paint Like an Impressionist

Step 1: Impressionism Matching Game

Start by sparking your students’ curiosity with a fun matching game using five famous impressionist paintings. This lesson includes a set of cards featuring artwork and corresponding titles, along with rhyming clues to make it extra fun for the kids.

After the kids match the paintings to their titles and solve the clues, you’ll have their attention and get them thinking about what makes impressionist art so unique. This sets the stage for learning all about how impressionists painted and what they focused on!

Step 2: Slideshow and Video Exploration

impressionist painting Slideshow and Video Exploration screenshot

Now that everyone is intrigued, it’s time to dive into a short, engaging slideshow about Impressionism, accompanied by a video that explains the basics of Impressionism in a kid-friendly way.

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Step 3: Practicing Brushstrokes

After the video, it’s time to let the kids try out some impressionist brushstrokes for themselves. Hand out the Brushstroke Practice worksheet (free download here) that shows different types of brushstrokes commonly used in impressionism, such as:

Short Strokes: Make quick, short dashes with your brush to create texture and movement.
Lots of Dots: Use your brush to create tiny, colorful dots, building up texture and blending colors.
Flip Flop Strokes: Alternate your brush direction back and forth to create a playful, dynamic motion.
Double Load: Dip your brush in two colors and paint to create a blended effect with both colors showing on the brush

impressionist brushstrokes practice sheet

Have the kids practice these different strokes on a separate piece of paper. Encourage them to experiment with varying the pressure on the brush to see how the strokes change and feel the difference between loose and controlled brush movements. This is their chance to really get the hang of the techniques before moving on to the big project!

Step 4: Create an Impressionist Landscape Painting

Now for the fun part: painting their very own impressionist masterpiece! Give the kids a few options:

Choose a Landscape: Have a selection of photos of outdoor scenes for the students to choose from or simple landscape outlines to inspire them. They can also draw one from their imagination, but be sure to remind them not to make small details.

Once they’ve selected or drawn their scene, it’s time to paint! Remind them to focus on using the brushstrokes they practiced earlier. Encourage them to experiment with different colors and strokes, just like the impressionists did, to capture the essence of the scene.

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Final Thoughts

By the end of this lesson (full lesson available inside the membership), your students will have experienced what it’s like to paint like an impressionist, and they’ll have their very own impressionist-style painting to take home! Whether they choose to recreate a classic landscape or invent their own, the process will encourage creativity, exploration, and confidence in their artistic abilities.

So, gather those supplies, fire up the video, and let your students paint the world with the colorful, light-filled techniques of the impressionists!

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impressionism for kids - teach kids to paint like an impressionist in 4 simple steps

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Paint like an Impressionist!