December Directed Drawing Projects Kids Love: Easy Weeklong Watercolor Art Lessons for the Classroom

From Page to Paint: A Week-Long Watercolor Art Project for Your Classroom

There’s something truly magical about watching a classroom transform into a mini art gallery—especially during the holiday season. One of my favorite traditions was guiding students through a directed drawing + watercolor painting project that builds across an entire week. The results? Stunning bulletin board displays, proud little artists, and treasured artwork that students can take home or tuck into their growing art portfolios.

December-Directed-Drawing-Winter-Bear-Art-Project

These projects aren’t just about creating something cute (although they definitely do that!). They’re about connecting literacy, language, and visual art in a meaningful, manageable way that fits into a busy classroom schedule.

Here’s how I like to break the process up across the week to keep it engaging and stress-free for everyone.

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A Simple 5-Day Breakdown for Classroom Art Success

Day 1: Set the Context with Stories & Language

Start by anchoring the art project in literacy. Read a seasonal story, explore nonfiction text, or have a class discussion around your chosen theme.

Then, model the drawing step-by-step and create an anchor chart with:

Key vocabulary words
Descriptive language
Connections to the text or topic

This helps students link language, meaning, and drawing right from the start.

Candy-Cane-Directed-Drawing-Watercolor-Project

Day 2: Practice + Final Drawing

Before heading straight to the “good” paper, give students time to:

Practice key lines or tricky parts on scrap paper

Experiment with shapes and proportions

Once they feel confident, they move on to their large art paper for the final drawing. Even though the project is guided, this step still allows lots of room for individual expression—no two drawings ever look the same!

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Day 3: Light Watercolor Wash

This is the calm, quiet, meditative day 😊

Students begin painting with:

Light shades
A focus on the main sections of the artwork
The goal is to lay down color without over-saturating the paper.

Kids-Watercolor-Art-Project-December-Classroom-Display

Day 4: Depth, Shading & Background

Now the magic really happens:

Add deeper colors
Build shadows and texture
Finish with the background

Students love seeing how much their artwork changes with just a little extra layering.

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Day 5: Share, Display & Reflect

This is the most joyful part of the whole process:

Students share their artwork
Practice art appreciation
Talk about class effort, details, and creativity

Display the projects for at least a week so students can revisit and admire each other’s work. I also love adding:

Extra drawing paper
Crayons or markers

right beside the display so students can refine ideas or springboard into new creations during free time.

Holiday-Art-Projects-for-Kids-Watercolor-Drawing

Why These Projects Are So Meaningful

They turn into beautiful classroom bulletin boards
Students LOVE taking them home during the holiday season
They become part of a growing art portfolio saved in a big art folder and sent home at the end of the school year
They naturally blend art, language, and confidence-building

It’s one of those activities that checks every box: creative, academic, reflective, and joyful.

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December-Ready Directed Drawing Projects from My TPT Store

If you’re looking for easy, classroom-tested projects to plug right into this weekly routine, here are a few seasonal favorites that students absolutely adore:

From the Pond