Japanese Landscape Art Project Art History Lesson Middle School Art Japanese Art

This Japanese Landscape Art Project is an art history lesson for older students, a good fit for grades 6 to 9, middle school art and homeschool art. Students explore space, composition, line, color and peaceful natural scenery while creating a landscape inspired by Japanese art.

Using colored pencils or pencil crayons and watercolor paint, students build layered mountains, flowing landforms, delicate trees, a small structure, water and carefully placed natural details into a calm, balanced composition. The lesson focuses on depth, foreground, middle ground and background, and expressive but controlled mark making.

WHAT'S INCLUDED (NON-EDITABLE PDF)

• About the Resource page
• Critical Thinking Questions page
• 3 lesson plan pages
• Japanese Landscape Art poem hook page
• Student reading page: About Japanese Art and Traditional Landscapes
• Rubric
• How to Draw the Landscape page
• KWL chart
• The Message reflection pages
• Analyze: Elements and Principles reflection page
• Compare and Contrast page
• Questions and Wonders page
• Goal Setting page
• Artwork Reflection pages
• Peer Feedback page
• Artist's Statement pages
• Full-page example artwork
• Step-by-step tutorial pages for mountains, foreground trees, middle ground details, water, buildings and layered coloring with watercolor and colored pencil

HOW TO USE IT

Open with the poem hook and the reading, which introduce Japanese art, traditional landscapes, balance, simplicity, nature and the connection between art and contemplation. Then guide students through the step pages as they build a full scene, not just one object, thinking about depth and how each part of the landscape works together.

The step-by-step process helps older students slow down and observe their work as they go. The finished landscapes look polished on bulletin boards, in hallways or in an art show.

FAQ

How long will this lesson take?

Most classes finish in about 2 to 3 art classes, depending on student age and skill level, class behavior, teaching style and class length.

What materials are used?

Colored pencils or pencil crayons, a fine tip permanent marker or black colored pencil, watercolor paint, card stock or thicker paper, paint brushes and water.

Does it include reflection or assessment pages?

Yes. It includes a rubric, KWL chart, reflection pages, compare and contrast, peer feedback, goal setting and artist statement pages.

Is it editable?

No. It is a non-editable PDF.

TEACHER REVIEWS

★★★ “super engaging and easy to implement into lesson good” Miss SB

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kathleen McGiveron (Ms Artastic) creates visual art resources for teachers, art teachers and homeschoolers who want meaningful, easy-to-teach art lessons for kids. She was the featured cover educator in OCO Magazine for October 2025 and has been featured on NBC LX.

TERMS OF USE

Images and lessons are copyright products.

YOU MAY: use this resource as a single educator. Please purchase additional licenses if more than one teacher will use it.

YOU MAY NOT: share, copy, upload, post online, distribute or resell this resource in any form.

Thank you for respecting the time, creativity and care that go into creating original art lessons.

Sincerely,

Ms Artastic