Kindergarten Back to School About Me Art Lesson Portrait Favorite Things Art

In this Kindergarten About Me Art Lesson, students make an About Me Favorite Things Mobile: a self-portrait with drawings of their favorite things hanging below. They draw things like a favorite food, color, animal, toy, place or activity, and combine everything into an artwork that shows who they are.

Students learn that "about me" means sharing what makes them special, such as their name, what they look like, what they like and what makes them happy. Along the way they explore identity, portrait drawing, fine motor skills and self-expression. It is sweet, meaningful and very Kindergarten in the best possible way.

WHAT'S INCLUDED (NON-EDITABLE PDF AND PPT)

• Lesson plan, suggested visual art standards, teacher directions and critical-thinking questions
• About Me anchor chart
• Drawing pages and templates: My Favorite Things drawing handout, Favorite Things template, portrait templates, Build-a-Portrait creative choice page and About Me artwork page
• Fine motor pages: Trace Lines portrait practice and Trace, Cut & Glue portrait practice
• About Self-Portraits student reading page
• Visual step-by-step tutorial page
• Fast-finisher portrait coloring activity
• Art rubric and bulletin-board display sign
• Literacy: KWL chart for favorite things, Read & Respond passage, questions and answer key, sight word tracking list, tricky word bank, spelling word list and spelling test
• Art extensions: gray scale exploration, Make Line Art, Shapes and Forms, About Me Write & Draw, Favorite Food writing and a postcard extension activity
• Reflection: reflection pages, Art Talk, The Message, artwork reflection and artist statement pages
• Finished artwork example
• Introductory slides about About Me, self-portraits and favorite things
• Step-by-step slideshow for creating the project
• Bonus link/QR code to a video demonstration

WHAT STUDENTS LEARN

Students learn that About Me art is a way to share who they are through pictures, portraits, colors and favorite things, and that everyone's differences make them special. They also learn what a self-portrait is and how artists draw a face, hair, eyes, clothes and special details, looking closely at shapes, lines and colors.

The project gives students a supported way to make art about themselves without the dreaded "I don't know what to draw!" moment. They can choose features on the Build-a-Portrait page or use the portrait templates for extra support. The finished mobiles make a fun display for Back to School, classroom community building or an All About Me unit.

FAQ

What grade level is this resource designed for?

Kindergarten. It may also work for Pre-K or early Grade 1, depending on student ability and the support provided.

Are templates included?

Yes. Portrait templates, favorite things templates, a trace-cut-glue portrait page and a Build-a-Portrait choice page are included.

Is there a slideshow or video?

Yes. Slides introduce About Me, self-portraits, favorite things and the step-by-step art project, and a bonus link/QR code to a video demonstration is included.

Is this suitable for homeschool Kindergarten?

Yes. The lesson plan, templates, slideshow, reading pages and video support make it easy to use at home. It also works for elementary art classes and substitute art plans.

Get free, classroom-ready art lessons and printables in my Free Art Lesson Library.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kathleen McGiveron (Ms Artastic) is an artist who has been featured on NBC LX News and designs art lessons for kids and educational resources for teachers. She is the founder of Ms Artastic and hosts the Ms Artastic YouTube Channel and Podcast.

TERMS OF USE

Images and lessons are copyright products.

YOU MAY: use this in creative ways and have as much fun with it as you like. For clip art, you may use the images as clip art, website graphics, binder covers or bulletin board decorations. Additional licenses are available for school use.

YOU MAY NOT: use this on OutSchool, put it on your blog, share it with other teachers, administration or districts (admin can buy additional licenses), sell it, give it out for free or photocopy it for others.

Sincerely,

Ms Artastic