Whether your kids homeschool year-round or attend public school, there’s always something shiny and exciting about early fall. It’s a time of fresh starts and crisp, new books, and a season of jumpstarted growth and learning! At Sparketh, we want to support our families who are getting back into the swing of school (or shaking things up for a new grade level), so our team has put together some free art resources and content to help your kids incorporate some creativity into their back-to-school routines!
Creativity is such a vital part of learning. When kids are being creative, they take ownership over whatever they are learning. Creating is about so much more than memorizing information. Instead, it requires understanding at a complex level. Creative endeavors necessitate hands-on learning until enough confidence is gained to problem-solve, make decisions, and innovate! Regular engagement in art can help your child develop creatively and even create more positive associations with other types of learning.
The resources in this post reflect our desire to bring creativity and art education to kids – anywhere and everywhere! Art education and creative endeavors play a big role part of learning. In fact, we think that creativity is one of the best tools a young person can have! We hope you enjoy exploring these creative resources as you help your student(s) move forward into an exciting new school year. There’s a little something for everyone: from wearable art, to art tips, to a back-to-school art competition!
The Sparketh Community
If your child is looking to find an art tribe, there’s no better time to connect with one than the start of a new school year! The Sparketh Community is free and safe (it’s monitored by one of our professional art instructors). It’s also “positive vibes” only: just a genuinely uplifting place for artsy kids and teens to connect and encourage one another!
The Sparketh Community is sponsored/powered by Sparketh, which makes it totally free to you. Art-loving kids and teens from all around the world are welcome to join in to participate in art discussions and prompts. Each month, the community features an art competition that challenges students to create and submit something new! The winner receives art-themed prizes!
This month, in honor of back-to-school season, the Sparketh Community has an art challenge that is all about creating an original character. Specifically, they get to create an alter ego/Variant version of themselves (because kids tend to explore new things and redefine their interests in a new grade!) This “alter ego/Variant” challenge is also inspired by the Disney+ series, Loki, because a lot of our Sparketh Community kids are big Marvel fans! This month’s contest winner will win $400 in art supplies! Your child can participate simply by joining the community at this link and uploading a picture of their challenge submission.
The Sparketh TikTok and Instagram Channel:
One of Sparketh‘s awesome art instructors, Amy, shares seriously useful art tips and ideas on our TikTok channel on a daily basis. Amy is a fantastic artist and she’ll make you laugh, too. Definitely head over to the TikTok channel and subscribe to get daily, bite-sized art motivation that will inspire artists of all ages. You won’t be sorry!
Recently, Amy has also created several back-to-school art tips, like impressive bubble lettering and things you can sketch in the margins of your notes (and more). It’s everything you need for those all important scholastic doodles!
(Not on TikTok? You can find Amy’s daily art content over our on Instagram page, too!)
Signing up for daily art prompts and inspiration is a great way to support more creativity in the schoolyear ahead!
The Sparketh Youtube Channel:
Another great, free art resource that you may not know about is the Sparketh Youtube Channel. Talented artist, Maria, shares art thoughts, ideas and demos for kids on our Youtube channel twice a week! Maria loves to help get kids inspired with ideas that they will want to recreate at home. Currently, in honor of a new school year, she has been putting together a few special videos that your kids will love.
One of them is a how-to for creating this pretty and trendy Tie Dye shirt!
In another video, Maria also shows creative kids a way that they can make their backpacks stand out from the rest this year with a cool, art-centric idea! You can watch that video here (or by clicking below).
Lastly, Maria is also prompting some fun art ideas in conjunction with the current challenge over in the Sparketh Community–she’s created videos where she draws herself in different cartoon art styles! Check these out and drop her a comment to let her know which one is your favorite!
(Also, you know what to do…don’t forget to subscribe!)
The Sparketh Blog:
Our blog (which you’re on right now) also has a ton of helpful resources on homeschooling, art education, and helping your child with his or her art endeavors! Feel free to explore the blog anytime, but here are some that we suggest starting out with (especially if you’re wanting to inject some extra creativity into your child’s daily routine!)
- How Art Supports Good Mental Health in Kids and Teens
- Students Need Art: Here are 10 Reasons Why
- 3 Simple Strategies to Spark Creativity Everyday (In Your Homeschool and Beyond)
Sparketh Online Art Classes for Kids and Teens:
Of course, Sparketh is all about offering kids the best art education–from home (or from anywhere, really!) Our mission comes from a desire to make sure that all kids have access to professional, creative instruction that fits their needs and schedule. If you are interested in making online art classes a part of your child’s routine, click here to learn more!
Our team had so much fun putting these tips, challenges, and ideas together to support your child in a creative start to this new school year. We hope your student(s) enjoy some of the these ideas, whether they end up doing portraits in cartoon styles, creating tie dye at home, and/or coming up with an original alter ego character! As always, keep learning and stay creative!