What to do in your Art Room in October

October art ideas for elementary teachers, including seasonal projects, cultural celebrations, children’s book recommendations and a free downloadable project guide.

October is one of our favorite months in the art room.

By now, your students are settling into routines, you have a better sense of how each class works together and there’s still a little breathing room before the holiday season starts shaking up the school calendar.

So if you’re wondering what to teach in your art room this October, here are our favorite ideas and resources to help you plan the month ahead.

Explore Texture, Printmaking & Color

Outside the art room, fall is handing us some pretty wonderful inspiration that’s just waiting to become part of an art lesson.

It’s a natural time to bring a little more experimentation into the art room through printmaking, texture and process-based techniques.

And you don’t need a printing press or a cabinet full of specialty supplies. Leaves, cardboard, simple stamps, bubble wrap and tempera paint can all give children the chance to experiment with repetition, pattern and texture.

What are some good October art projects for elementary students?

If you’re looking for a fall project that puts texture front and center, start with Textured Fall Leaves.

For a lesson in implied texture, Kitten’s First Full Moon shows students how simple wiggly lines can make a flat tree trunk look rough and bumpy. Plus the book is a perfect fall read-aloud.

New to printmaking? Start here:

→ Prepping for Printmaking

→ 3 Simple Ways to Incorporate  Printmaking in your Art Room

And with the leaves changing outside, fall gives you a ready-made palette of reds, oranges and golds that’s perfect for experimenting with color mixing.

→ Falling Leaves

→ 4 Watercolor Techniques Every Student Should Know

Give Your Art Room an October Check-In

By October, routines have had time to be practiced and you probably have a better sense of what’s working and what could use a little tweaking.

This is a good month to revisit:

Cleanup and transition routines: Are there any parts of class that consistently eat up too much time?

You don’t have to overhaul your entire classroom system. Sometimes one little adjustment can make everything run more smoothly.

Student portfolios: If you haven’t already, now is a good time to get those portfolios going so student artwork has an easy place to land throughout the year.

→ How to Manage Artwork with Student Portfolios

Curriculum pacing: Take a quick look at what you’ve covered so far and decide what you want to introduce next.

You don’t need to be perfectly “on schedule”. This is simply a chance to notice where you are and decide what would make sense to teach next.

If you’re following an Elements of Art & Principles of Design based curriculum you may be about to introduce shape, color or pattern:

→ How to Teach Shape

→ How to Teach Pattern

→ How to Teach Color

Try projects that take more prep: October is one of the more uninterrupted teaching months, so it can be a good time to tackle printmaking, painting or other processes that are harder to squeeze into shortened holiday weeks.

And of course… pumpkins!

If wouldn’t be October in the art room without a few pumpkins.

Students can practive drawing and observation, experiment with line and shape, explore warm and cool color palettes or turn a familiar pumpkin into something completely unexpected.

Check out:

→ Britto Pumpkin

→ Starlight Pumpkin

→ How to Draw an Easy Guided Pumpkin

Or visit 8 Pumpkin Projects for Kids for more ideas.

And remember, a guided drawing doesn’t mean every pumpkin needs to look the same.

Once children understand the basic shapes, invite them to change the color, pattern, setting or details and make the drawing their own.

Notable Dates to Inspire Your Art Room

Hispanic Heritage Month | September 15th – October 15th

Consider introducing students to Hispanic and Latino artists, incorporating books and artist studies or exploring cultural traditions through art.

Try → Making Papel Picado to decorate your classroom

Are you a member of The Sparklers’ Club? The Hispanic Artists Bundle inside The Sparklers’ Club includes engaging, ready-to-teach lessons that introduce students to influential artists and their work.

National Bullying Prevention Month

October is also a natural time to make space for conversations around kindness, belonging and how students can help create a classroom where everyone feels safe and welcome.

World Day of Bullying Prevention falls on October 5th: A perfect occasion for a project focused on Social Emotional Learning, collaboration or community.

Help students explore empathy, emotions and the power of self-expression for World Bullying Prevention Day. Inside The Sparklers’ Club, the My Feelings and Emotions & Self-Expression bundles offer thoughtful, ready-to-teach art lessons that encourage meaningful classroom conversations.

Fire Prevention Week | October 4-10th

Fire Prevention Week can be a simple opportunity to connect art with a school-wide theme.

Fire trucks, firefighter gear, safety posters or collaborative classroom displays all make great projects while reinforcing the messages students may already be hearing elsewhere at school.

Indigenous Peoples’ Day | Monday, October 12th

Use the opportunity to introduce students to Indigenous artists, stories and contemporary voices. Literature is a great way to amplify Indigenous voices in your own art room.

Check out these Indigenous Peoples’ Day Book Recommendations

Red Ribbon Week | October 23-31st

Many schools recognize Red Ribbon Week toward the end of October.

If your school participates, look for opportunities to connect art-making with your school’s larger themes around healthy choices and community.

Halloween | October 31st

Halloween art doesn’t have to be complicated. Ghosts, monsters and silly characters can become opportunities to practice drawing, expression, shape, cutting, composition and more.

Here are some of our favorites:

→ Funny Ghost Face

→ Halloween Sparktacular

→ Monsters Love School

Sparklers’ Club members, the brand-new Magic, Monsters & Make-Believe bundle is now available inside the membership, with even more imaginative projects for the season.

Artists to Explore in October

Need an artist study to add to the month? October has a few notable artist birthdays that can give you an easy jumping-off point.

Faith Ringgold | Oct. 8th

Faith Ringgold was known for her colorful story quilts, which combined painting, fabric and written stories to explore family, identity, history and the Black American experience.

For younger students, her book Tar Beach is a beautiful way to introduce her work and connect visual art with storytelling.

Pablo Picasso | Oct. 25th

As a pioneer of the Cubism movement, Pablo Picasso is a great artist to introduce when talking about shape. Picasso’s work is a great way to show students that artists don’t always draw what they see exactly as it is.

Check out this post for ideas for Celebrating Pablo Picasso in your Art Room

Roy Lichtenstein | Oct. 27th

Roy Lichtenstein was known for turning the look of comic books and commercial printing into fine art. His bold outlines, bright colors and Ben-Day dots make his work a fun way to explore Pop Art with students.

Here’s how to create Roy Lichtenstein Dots in your art room.

Start Looking Ahead to November

Before October disappears completely, take a quick peek at what’s coming next. This is also a good time to look at your school calendar for conference weeks, days off and shortened class periods.

November has a way of making a perfectly organized lesson schedule suddenly look a little…optimistic.

Here’s a peek at what’s ahead:

Native American Heritage Month

Resource Suggestion: Book Suggestion & Project Pairings

Dia de los Muertos | November 1st & 2nd 

Resource Suggestion: How to Draw and Paint a Sugar Skull

Remembrance Day | November 11th 

Resource Suggestion: Remembrance Day Poppies

Veterans Day | November 11th
Resource Suggestion: Liberty Bell Art Project

Thanksgiving Day | November 26th
Resource Suggestion: How to Make a Color Wheel Thanksgiving Turkey

October inside The Sparklers’ Club

On October 1st, Sparklers’ Club members got access to a brand-new lesson bundle:

Magic, Monsters & Make-Believe Bundle 

From potion bottles and gargoyles to dragons and castles, this bundle has something for everyone.

Projects range from sculpting air-dry clay monsters inspired by Fugglers to drawing crystal-filled potion bottles with elevated drawing and watercolor techniques.

Each lesson blends foundational art skills with playful, imaginative art-making, making the bundle perfect for Halloween or any time your students are ready for a little magic.

Not a member? Join the Waitlist HERE for an invitation to join the club when enrollment opens.

Download our October Project Guides by clicking the yellow button below! 

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