Abstract Winter Trees

Would you like to make sure your students know how to mix a color, in this case green? Then give them one ofCrayola’s Watercolor Mixing Sets(which only has primary colors) and tell them their job is to figure out how to make green. I asked my students to make at least three different shades of green for a simple but colorful abstract landscape. 1. To begin, I asked the students to draw at least three triangles trees, with simple trunks, and a wavy ground line.
2. When the pencil drawing was complete, they had the option of tracing their trees and coloring their trunks with brown or black crayons.
3. Next, the fun part, making green. Once the students figured out that the cyan + yellow made a pretty turquoise green, some realized that yellow + the dark blue included in the tray made a nice mossy green. From there, proportions of color could change, or white could be added to make a tint of a color. I encouraged students to leave the ground white, but it was optional. They sky could be painted any color as I hate to make too many rules.
4. To finish, small white paper circles made with a hole punch were glued on top to make a sprinkle of snow.