Kindergarten Lessons about Famous Artists
We started an Art unit with some exciting lessons about Famous Artists. By showing a wide range of styles and pieces of art, the goal was to allow students to expand their ideas about art. Scroll to the bottom for my Google Slides resource on 10 famous artists.
Here, we studied Piet Mondrian, who uses primary colours and black and white.
We also read about Jackson Pollock who uses movement and atypical tools for painting. We used sponges and cutlery with blue and yellow paint.
This art and literacy resource contains information in simple language about:
- Artists
- Leonardo da Vinci
- Vincent Van Gogh
- Wassily Kandinsky
- Hilma af Klint
- Piet Mondrian
- Emily Carr
- Jackson Pollock
- Henry Moore
- Jean-Michel Basquiat
- Banksy
- Inspiration
Terms such as abstract art, impressionism, and neo-expressionism are introduced and defined simply for young learners.
One of the things teachers love about this resource is how easy to use it is. The lessons are ready to go and you can read one or more artist profiles in each lesson as part of an artist study. You could even weave it into social studies by exploring the historical and cultural context of each artist. Because the language is simple and accessible, it works beautifully for read-alouds or small group lessons. Whether you have five minutes to introduce a quick fact or a full period for a deeper dive, you’ll find plenty of ways to fit it into your day.
This resource also naturally supports cross-curricular learning. Students are building background knowledge that will serve them in future art, history, and even language arts classes. Plus, introducing concepts like impressionism and abstract art at an early age helps students begin to think critically about different styles of communication — not just in visual arts, but in writing and media, too. It’s an easy and authentic way to blend creativity with academic skill-building. Because every classroom is different, I designed the text to be easy to differentiate. For emerging readers, you can read the information aloud and discuss it together.
If you’re looking to extend the learning even further, you might consider having students create their own mini art galleries based on what they’ve learned. After reading about the different artists, students can choose a style they love and create original artwork to display. They could even write a short “artist statement” explaining which artist inspired them and why. It’s a wonderful way to make learning visible, celebrate students’ creativity, and build real-world literacy and presentation skills.
