Start the new year with creativity, reflection, and joyful learning using this New Years Mouse Art Lesson—a fully planned winter art resource designed for Grades 2–5. This engaging lesson combines a step-by-step New Year’s Mouse art project with reading comprehension, writing activities, critical thinking, and art reflections, making it a meaningful cross-curricular experience for classrooms and homeschool settings.

Students will create an adorable countdown mouse holding a clock at midnight, symbolizing new beginnings and fresh starts. Through guided drawing, painting, and mixed-media techniques, students explore line, shape, pattern, texture, color, and balance, while also connecting the artwork to global New Year traditions and personal reflection. This resource is intentionally structured to be low-prep, easy to teach, and highly engaging, even for educators without an art background.

WHY TEACHERS LOVE THIS NEW YEARS ART RESOURCE

This New Years art lesson is more than a cute project—it’s a complete winter art and literacy unit. The familiar theme of New Year celebrations captures student interest instantly, while the structured steps ensure success for all learners. Students build confidence through guided instruction and then extend their thinking through reading, writing, and reflection activities.

Teachers and homeschoolers love this resource because it:

• Requires minimal preparation

• Works beautifully for general classroom teachers

• Integrates art, reading, writing, and critical thinking

• Encourages reflection on change, hope, and new beginnings

• Creates display-worthy artwork for January bulletin boards

• Keeps students calm and focused after winter break

THIS RESOURCE INCLUDES (Non-Editable)

This New Years Mouse Art Lesson is a comprehensive, print-and-teach resource that includes:

• Complete lesson plan with materials, hooks, participation strategies, and assessment guidance

• Critical thinking discussion questions to guide class conversations

• Informational reading: About the New Year Around the World

• Directed drawing page: How to Draw a Mouse

• Step-by-step photo demonstration (18 clear steps from sketch to finished artwork)

• Art rubric for student-friendly assessment

• Bulletin board display sign: Countdown Mice – The New Year Artworks

• Draw & Design creativity warm-up page

• KWL chart to activate prior knowledge

• Fiction reading comprehension: The Mouse Who Counted the New Year

• Reading comprehension questions with answer key

• Sight word tracking list (pulled directly from the story)

• Tricky word vocabulary bank

• Spelling word list and spelling test

• Opinion writing prompt about New Year traditions vs. new beginnings

• Narrative write & draw prompt

• Art reflections: message, feelings, materials, learning, and goals

• Compare & contrast: Old Year vs. New Year (with answer key)

• Artist statement pages

• 3 Stars & a Wish reflection

• Principles of Design extension: Radial Symmetry Mandala

• Elements of Art extensions: shape, form, and line exploration

• Student example artwork

All pages are non-editable to preserve instructional clarity and artwork quality.

HOW THIS RESOURCE CAN BE USED

• New Years art lesson for January

• Winter art project with literacy integration

• Cross-curricular art and ELA activity

• Sub plans

• Homeschool winter unit

• Reflection activity after winter break

• Bulletin board or hallway art display