Teach Your Students to Paint on the iPad

Pam Dalton

Art Educator and iPadArtist

  1. Create Common Language
  1. Build on Prior Knowledge
  1. Starting a Painting

Create Common Language

Since students’experience with mobile devices is varied, I start with the basics for the entire group. Teaching iPad vocabulary as an introduction gives all students the confidence that we are learning together.

Power Button: I tell them to “find the eyeball” (the camera) and have that eyeball at the top looking at them. The power button is easy to click because their finger is already in the upper right hand corner

Home Button: it is directly below the camera and is indented

Slide to Unlock: located at the bottom of the screen once the iPad is turned on. Students must use the pads of their fingers to swipe to the right to unlock.

Home Screen: I call this the “app menu”. Instruct students to identify the painting app called Brushes (it has a blue background and a palette as the logo). This is a free app in the app store.

Icons: the square tiles on the Home Screen

Build on Prior Knowledge

What YOU Bring to THIS

One of the most valuable things to remember about teaching iPainting is the word Painting.

As art teachers we are teaching painting and drawing techniques through the projects we teach everyday in our art curriculums.

We all know that teaching something we are just learning ourselves can be challenging. My philosophy on iPad painting is that we need to build on to the established projects we already teach. We need to think of digital painting as a media in which toapplythe power standards, skills, vocabulary and concepts of the current projects students just mastered in art class. I refer to the original project as traditional media. This is another iPad vocabulary word for all students to know.

Starting A Painting

Before Students Arrive:

  1. Make sure all iPads have the Brushes app uploaded and I have it located on the bottom bar
  1. Make sure all iPads are fully charged
  1. Make anassignment sheet and attach it to the outside of the case.

When Students Arrive:

  1. Introduce ipainting vocabulary to create common language *see previous page
  1. Tap on Brushes icon
  1. Tap on plus (+) sign in the upper right hand corner to add a blank piece of paper
  1. New painting menu will drop down. Select horizontal or vertical orientation by tapping blue squiggle and then hit (create) button at top right of the menu.
  1. Finger tools: introduce and add these to common iPadpainting vocabulary:
  • Pads: always use the pad of your fingers. You should never hear fingernails tapping.
  • Pincher: I ask students to find their pincher (thumb and forefinger) and make a (U) and then turn the (U) upside down
  • Upside down U is the tool for the following techniques:
  • Zoom-in: open pincher, drag together using equal weight on both thumb and forefinger
  • Zoom-out: close pincher, push apart using equal weight
  • Dragging: the paper can be dragged around (similar to a magnet dragging metal) the U stay in place and just drags around paper to different places on the screen

Painting Tools

One of the reasons I am developing an app specifically for art educators is that there are too many features on some of the best painting apps. So I modify, select and rename the essential features.

Lightening Bolt: it looks like one to me so that is what I call it. It is located to the right of the size bar. Tap this to select bush quality.

Brushes: You will find brush selection once hit the lightening bolt. I equal brushes I need on my iPad to media I use in the classroom.

The two main media tools in the brushes menu

I call:

Magic Marker – the solid looking line

Chalk Pastel – the smudgy line

Make sure hardness and intensity are at 100%

Dynamic Angle,DynamicWeight and DynamicIntensity should be midrange for an even line

Opacity Bar

The two main value indicators I call:

Watercolor – translucent, can build up layer with brush strokes, anywhere on the left up to middle

Magic Marker–solid the far right end of the bar

Brush Size Bar

This bar in determines brush size. Have student make squiggles on paper to determine their brush selection

Color Tablet

  • Rectangle tile located on the far left side of the tool bar I call the color tablet.
  • Tap on the color tablet to bring up color menu
  • Tap on Rainbow Circle to choose a pure color
  • Tap around the Big Square to choose a tint, tone or shade of the color.

GOOD TO KNOW about the Big Square:

  • Pure Color – located on upper right corner
  • White – located on the upper left corner
  • Black – located on the lower right and left corner
  • Neutrals – grays and browns can be found by tapping within the square

Picking Up a Color

Sometimes you need quick access to existing colors in a painting. I refer to this as picking up a color. To do so press the pad of your forefinger gently on the color for two seconds until you see a ring of that color directly under you finger. Pick up your finger immediately at this time and that color is “on your finger”. Don’t drag your finger because the ring will pick up whatever color in below it.

Teach What You Know

Now that all of the basic tools and techniques have been introduced you can start your lesson using the same steps you used in your original project. Remember to remind students of the qualities of the traditional media that they are trying to replicate.

Labeling Your Painting

  • Tap gallery in the the upper left corner
  • Tap the word “painting” on the painting thumbnail
  • Tap the x in a bubble
  • Write your name

iPad Painting Vocabulary Review

Power Button

Home Button

Slide to Unlock

Home Screen

Icons

traditional media

plus (+)

(create)

Finger tools

Pads

Pincher

Upside down U

Zoom-in

Zoom-out

Dragging

Lightening Bolt

Brushes

Magic Marker

Chalk Pastel

Hardness

Intensity

Dynamic Angle

Dynamic Weight

Dynamic Intensity

Opacity Bar

Watercolor Opacity

Magic Marker Opacity

Brush Size Bar

Color Tablet

Big Square

Pure Color

Rainbow Circle