Kindergarten Self-Portraits

I think these are the cutest portraits ever. I've tried many different lessons to get little five and six year old kids to create a self-portrait, and this one is my favorite.

Step One:
I start with an oval template and instruct the children to trace onto skin tone colored construction paper. Then, we trace the neck template and glue both onto a piece of 12" x 18" sheet of colored paper.

Step Two:
Once the "faces" are glued on (tip: use a glue stick not white glue), the children cut out oval shapes of white paper for the eyes.
Note: The combination of step 1 and 2 takes a full 30 minutes!

Step Three:
For the next class, we work on coloring in the eyes, adding eyelashes, nose and a mouth. Then we add the hair. I cut strings of yarn in different shades of black, brown, yellows and oranges. The kids paint on a mixture of glue and water (easier to control) and pat on their "hair".

Step Four:
For the next class, the kids add decorations. With tempera paint, the children paint shirts, bows, flowers, etc. I give them a tin of buttons and if they wish, they glue buttons to their shirts.

This lesson took three, 30-minute class sessions, but I think it was worth it. The children were very proud!





The beautiful faces you see are children in Mrs. Moore's and Mrs. MacCabe's Kinder class at Mountain View School.

For more detailed photo tutorials, templates, student handouts for this and other portrait lessons, check out Deep Space Sparkle's "Fun With Portraits" PDF booklet. Click here for more details.