35 Unique Fifth Grade Art Projects To Tap Into Kids’ Creativity

Fifth grade art students are starting to master more advanced skills and techniques, and the work they create is really something to be proud of. These project ideas will expose them to new artists and concepts and help them find the creative artist within!

In Art We Trust

1. Illustrate your name

This is a perfect project to kick off the school year. Kids illustrate their names with items that fit their style and personality. It will help you get to know them and assess their art skills at the same time.

Learn more: Fifth Grade Name Illustrations

Slice of pizza illustrated in six different colors, in the src of Andy Warhol
Elements of the Art Room

2. Take inspiration from Andy Warhol

Warhol’s pop art is so much fun to explore and emulate. Your fifth grade art students can pick any object they like for this colorful activity.

Learn more: Andy Warhol–Inspired Pop Art

Colorful blocky portraits of fifth grade art students drawn in the src of LEGO minifigures
Art. Eat. Tie Dye. Repeat.

3. Craft LEGO minifig portraits

We all know kids (and adults!) love LEGO. That’s what makes these portraits so cool! Kids draw themselves as minifigs, starting with basic shapes and adding details as they go.

Learn more: LEGO Self-Portraits

Numeral three with various shapes and patterns in the src of Jasper Johns
Art Room Blog

4. Design Jasper Johns numbers

This is one of those activities with such impressive results that you’ll be amazed it can be done by fifth grade art students! Take a look at Jasper Johns’ number paintings, then use stencils and rulers to create your own incredible designs.

Learn more: Jasper Johns Number Project

Collage of paper plates colored, folded, and glued to make 3D balls (Fifth Grade Art Projects)
Art Room 104

5. Hang 3D color wheels

The color wheel is a basic art concept your students have probably mastered by now, so take things a step further by crafting 3D color wheel spheres instead. This is an easy project that requires nothing more than paper plates, paint, and paper clips.

Learn more: 3D Color Wheels

Picasso-style portrait of a girl made with pieces of colorful cardboard
Tiny Art Room

6. Assemble Picasso relief portraits

Picasso’s mind-bending works stimulate students to look at the world in a whole new way. This cardboard relief portrait is all about deconstructing and reassembling to find a new perspective.

Learn more: Picasso Relief Portraits

Rectangular paper lanterns illustrated with Japanese-style art
What’s Happening in the Art Room?

7. Create pretty paper lanterns

Hokusai’s woodblock prints are the inspiration for these paper lanterns. Use watercolors to create soft images, then fold the paper into lanterns to hang from the ceiling.

Learn more: 5th Grade Asian Lanterns

Series of cones emanating from a central perspective, sketched and shaded in black and white (Fifth Grade Art)
Art With Mrs. Filmore

8. Sketch 3D cone drawings

It may look complicated, but this fifth grade art idea starts with basic concentric curved lines that any student can draw. The magic comes when you fill in with Sharpies, then shade with colored pencils.

Learn more: 3D Paper Cone Drawings

Fifth grade art students holding illustrations of the words Sam, Crack, and Zap
Jamestown Elementary Art Blog

9. Illustrate onomatopoeia words

Calling all comic book lovers! Students will get a real kick out of illustrating action words inspired by Roy Lichtenstein.

Learn more: Roy Lichtenstein Pop Art Words

Purple paper eye folded out of paper and colored
Elements of the Art Room

10. Fold origami dragon eyes

Teach students to illustrate an eye, then fold a simple origami shape and add dragon scales for a paper craft that’s like no other.

Learn more: Origami Dragon Eyes

Clay art pieces sculpted from coils in bright colors (Fifth Grade Art)
Nic Hahn

11. Fashion clay coils

The coiling method of ceramics is really accessible for everyone. Though it’s often used to make pots, we love how it works for these colorful coil sculptures too.

Learn more: Clay Coil Design

Abstract black shapes on purple paper
Zilker Elementary Art Class

12. Piece together positive-negative collages

Explore the concepts of positive and negative space with this cool paper craft. Kids will have to be very careful as they cut so their reflections will be exact.

Learn more: Positive-Negative Collages

Pastel colored mountain range with bare trees, created with watercolor resist method (Fifth Grade Art)
Primary Art

13. Paint snowy pastel mountains

The watercolor resist method is an eternal art room favorite. It’s terrific for creating a snowy winter scene with dreamy watercolors and stark bare trees.

Learn more: Fifth Grade Snowy Mountains

White letter T surrounded by a variety of black and white patterns
Miss Young’s Art Room

14. Draw Zentangle initials

Zentangles have become popular in recent years as a way to relax and de-stress. Teach students how they work, building designs around the negative space of their initial.

Learn more: Zentangle Initials

Colorful paper letters cut out and stacked
Mrs. Yang’s Art Room

15. Create 3D paper name sculptures

This sculpture project requires your fifth grade art students to tap into their engineering skills too. They’ll have to figure out how to balance their letters in a way that’s pleasing to the eye but also stable enough to stay in place.

Learn more: 3D Name Sculptures

Collage of drawings parodying the painting American Gothic (Fifth Grade Art)
Jamestown Elementary Art Blog

16. Parody American Gothic

Grant Wood’s American Gothic is one of those iconic paintings everyone knows. That’s what makes this parody project a real hoot! Kids re-create the painting with a new pair of main characters, showing that art definitely has room for humor.

Learn more: Grant Wood Parodies

Bird nest painted on paper, accented with twigs and clay eggs (Fifth Grade Art)
Art With Mrs. Filmore

17. Construct mixed-media bird nests

There are so many details in these cool bird nests that you’ll just want to stare at them for hours. Start with a painting, then add 3D elements like twigs and clay bird eggs.

Learn more: Mixed-Media Birds Nests

Drawing of various types of paintbrushes, splattered with paint drops (Fifth Grade Art)
Elements of the Art Room

18. Try direct drawing with Jim Dine paintbrushes

This pop art project starts with a directed drawing lesson, as kids learn to create the various paintbrushes. Then they add color and paint speckles to bring the piece to life.

Learn more: Jim Dine–Inspired Paintbrushes

Black and white lighthouse standing on a beach with a watercolor pastel sky
Primary Art

19. Study form and paint lighthouses

Review terms like horizon and background with these soft lighthouse landscapes. Use white crayon on black construction paper to add depth to the lighthouse itself.

Learn more: Fifth Grade Lighthouses

Collage of planets drawn and shaded in chalk pastels on black paper (Fifth Grade Art)
Art With Mrs. Nguyen

20. Shade spheres to make planets

Chalk pastels are wonderful for helping students work on blending and shading. Use photographs of planets to inspire their work.

Learn more: Oil Pastel Planets

Wilting sunflower drawn with oil pastels on black paper (Fifth Grade Art Projects)
Expression of Imagination

21. Blend oil pastels into sunflowers

Here’s another awesome blending activity, this time with oil pastels. Kids can draw sunflowers with true-to-life colors or use their imaginations to create any color scheme they like.

Learn more: Wilting Colorful Sunflowers

Paper cat looking out a window at a castle and other items (Fifth Grade Art)
Education.com

22. Layer a window scene

Build this piece from the background up, layering window frame and sill over the landscape and finishing with a cat enjoying the view.

Learn more: Layered Art

Student weaving together two pages painted in different patterns (Fifth Grade Art)
Ms. Amsler’s Art Room

23. Weave paste-paper patterns

Start by mixing paint and paste to create a thick mixture to spread on paper. Then create patterns with your fingers, a fork, or any other object. Finish by cutting one page into strips and weaving it into the other.

Learn more: Paste-Paper Masterpieces

Painting of a cat divided into three parts, realistic, abstract, and non-objective
The Art of Learning

24. Explore one subject in three styles

Combine multiple art styles in one awesome project. In the center, students draw their subject realistically. On either side, they draw the same object in abstract and non-objective forms.

Learn more: Three Styles of Art

Clay flowers sculpted in the src of Georgia O'Keeffe
Jamestown Elementary Art Blog

25. Sculpt Georgia O’Keeffe flowers

Georgia O’Keeffe’s huge brilliant flower paintings seem to practically leap off the page, so they’re ideal as inspiration for this fun clay project.

Learn more: Georgia O’Keeffe Clay Flowers

Photo of a dog with a superimposed grid, next to a drawing of the dog using a grid (Fifth Grade Art Projects)
Art With Mrs. Filmore

26. Use a grid to help you draw

For kids who feel overwhelmed by drawing, try the grid method. Break a drawing into grid sections, copying each section one at a time. It makes a big project seem much more manageable.

Learn more: Grid Drawing

Folded paper squash books hung along the wall (Fifth Grade Art)
Art Is Basic

27. Write “All About Me” squash books

This is part fifth grade art project, part writing project. Kids fold paper using a bookmaking technique called “squash books,” then write and illustrate the sections to tell all about themselves.

Learn more: Foldable Squash Books

Colorful banyan tree reflected in water made using oil pastels
ARTipelago

28. Reflect beautiful banyan trees

Banyan trees are works of art in themselves, so they’re sure to inspire your students to create beautiful pieces. They can show the trailing roots reflected in water or imagine them underground.

Learn more: Beautiful Banyan Trees

Collage of colorful stick figures dancing in the src of Keith Haring (Fifth Grade Art Project)
Deep Space Sparkle

29. Color graffiti break dancers

Keith Haring’s vivid graffiti style is instantly appealing to kids, so they’ll enjoy creating their own breakdancing scenes. All you really need is paper and markers for this quick project.

Learn more: Keith Haring Art Project

Collage of paper pumpkins in dot patterns in the src of Kusama
Art Room Britt

30. Dot Kusama–style pumpkins

Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama made incredible art using only dots of different sizes. Challenge your students to do the same with these clever pumpkin prints mounted on stencil-rolled backgrounds.

Learn more: Kusama Dot Pumpkins

31. Illustrate an Elements of Art poster

Elements of art are stylistic features that are included within an art piece to help the artist communicate. This creative project demonstrates all seven.

Learn more: Danielle Frid via YouTube

A colorful wall decoration made from squares of spin art
ARTBAR

32. Whirl up some spin art for your walls

Borrow a supply of salad spinners, add paint, and voilà! Super-cool, colorful art for your walls.

Learn more: Spin Art for Your Walls

A squirrel sculpture made from folded paper
Jo Nakashima

33. Fold up an origami squirrel sculpture

Although there are many steps, each fold is clearly illustrated with this easy-to-follow tutorial.

Learn more: Origami Squirrel

A beautiful abstract painting is created by blotting paint on a piece of paper then folding it in half
Mary Wagner Art Blog

34. Get abstract with ink blot painting

It’s amazing what beautiful images come from a simple fold of the paper.

Learn more: Ink Blot Painting

Colorful houses are drawn into a hilly background
Artful Artsy Amy

35. Freehand-doodle a few houses

Inspired by the folk art of Jeanette Carlstrom, these doodle houses are fueled by your students’ creative juices.

Learn more: Doodle Houses

Now that you’ve sparked their creativity, keep things going with these Fifth Grade Creative Writing Prompts.

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