Matisse fishbowl paintings

I love doing this project.  I repeat it every few years with my sixth grade students.  It's pretty involved with the many different mediums we use.  What's so much fun about this lesson is the variety of results I get from the students.
We begin the lesson with a large 12" x 18" sheet of white drawing paper.  We divide the paper into three sections to resemble the walls and the floor.  The three areas are then painted with the primary colors using tempera paint.  While the paint is drying the students use pencils to draw their fish bowl on a roughly 6" x 6" sheet of paper.  Watercolor paint is taken out and the students paint the water in the bowl.  The following week pattern is added to the walls and floor with tempera paint.  The scrap box is taken out so that the students can begin cutting the leaves and flowers which surround the fish bowl.  At this point I also hand out small pieces of brown construction paper for the students to create a table.  The various elements are then arranged in a pleasing composition and glued in place.  This lesson took three to four forty minute art classes.
Enjoy!