Modulo

Art Tango

Recommended Ages

K–5th grades

Art Tango is a free online art curriculum created for elementary classrooms that many homeschoolers also use. The site offers printable lesson plans, project instructions, and simple artist studies that build foundational skills like drawing, color mixing, and composition. Developed by an experienced art teacher, the lessons are designed to work with basic supplies and fit into short class periods. Parents appreciate how easy it is to grab a complete project with clear steps and examples, especially if they don’t feel confident teaching art themselves. It’s a good fit for roughly grades K–5 and works well as a weekly art block at home. The website design is straightforward rather than flashy, but the content is solid and budget-friendly. For added value, keep a basic art bin ready and display finished work, helping kids see art as an essential part of their learning, not an afterthought.

Best for elementary‑age kids who enjoy drawing and crafting and for parents who want a straightforward, low‑prep way to cover basic art skills once a week; particularly helpful for non‑artsy caregivers who feel more confident with a scripted project in front of them.

Pros

Free K–5 art curriculum created by an experienced art teacher that provides 30 step‑by‑step lessons per grade, using simple supplies and explicitly teaching elements of art like color, line, pattern and texture; secular homeschoolers frequently recommend it as an easy way to add real art instruction without buying a full program, and appreciate that lessons include artist studies and clear project directions. 

Cons

Website design is dated and navigation can feel a bit clunky on mobile devices; lessons are PDF or web‑based instructions without video modeling, which may be harder for very young or highly visual learners; assessment and art history connections are lighter than in some paid programs; and because it’s free, there’s limited built‑in community or support if you get stuck.

Because Art Tango’s lessons are freely accessible online, there is no need for ESA or charter funds to use them; schools may occasionally include printed materials or extra supplies in art budgets, but individual families simply access the website at no cost.

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Art Tango
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Skills

What kids will learn
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Art
Art
Arts and Crafts
Arts and Crafts
Creativity
Creativity

Art Tango Mission

Art Tango’s mission is to make elementary art instruction simple, organized, and enjoyable for teachers and students, even when the adult leading the lesson doesn’t have a formal art background. By offering grade-by-grade lessons with step-by-step instructions, visual examples, and supply lists, Art Tango helps schools and homeschool families teach drawing, painting, collage, and design while introducing children to key concepts in line, color, shape, and texture. The goal is to give every child the chance to experiment with a variety of media and discover the satisfaction of creating art.

Art Tango Story

Art Tango was created by an experienced elementary art teacher who wanted to share her classroom-tested lessons with other educators who often found themselves “teaching art” without much training or prep time. She organized her favorite projects into a website of grade-level units, each with printable instructions and student examples that could be followed by classroom teachers, substitutes, or homeschooling parents. Over time, Art Tango became a go-to resource for simple, low-prep art lessons that still feel substantial and creative. Today, countless teachers use its plans to add regular, skill-building art experiences to their week, even in schools where there is no dedicated art specialist.

About Modular Learning

FAQ: Additional Details about Art Tango

A typical Art Tango session might start with looking at a sample artwork on the screen and talking briefly about lines or warm and cool colors, then kids dive into drawing self-portraits, weaving paper mats, painting leaves, or creating simple collages. You’ll hear the scratch of crayons, the swish of paintbrushes, and excited chatter as children compare their interpretations. Finished pieces can be hung on a wall or collected in a portfolio at the end of the year.

Art Tango is a free online art curriculum for roughly grades K–5 that provides 30 step-by-step lessons per grade level, each with printable plans, supply lists, and visual examples. Parents or teachers select the appropriate grade, print or view the lesson, gather simple supplies like crayons, markers, paint, and paper, and then guide students through projects that teach elements of art such as line, color, pattern, symmetry, texture, and basic art appreciation. Lessons can be used once a week as a full-year art program or picked individually as occasional projects.

An adult introduces the lesson, demonstrates techniques as needed, manages materials, and encourages students as they work. Kids can make creative choices within the project, but the structure and pacing come from the grown-up.

No formal prerequisites—just a child who can follow simple directions and is ready to experiment with basic art materials. Younger children may need more hands-on help with cutting, gluing, or managing paint.

Art Tango offers simple, project‑based lessons that break skills into manageable steps, which can support children with ADHD, autism, or mild fine‑motor challenges. Because it’s not heavily text‑dependent, families can easily scaffold instructions with demonstrations or picture schedules for emergent readers and dyslexic learners.

Art Tango’s free K-5 lessons use basic, familiar art supplies to explore color, texture, and pattern, giving sensory-seeking kids lots of hands-on creative input without overwhelming them.

Art Tango is free to use, so there is no purchase and no refund policy; if you buy optional supplemental materials or supplies from another vendor, returns would be handled according to that vendor’s policies.

Not ideal if you’re looking for deep fine‑arts study, portfolio development or high‑school credit; teens seeking advanced drawing, painting or digital art will likely need a more specialized course; families who dislike mess or don’t have space for regular art projects may also struggle to use it consistently.

Families sometimes pair or replace Art Tango with programs like Artistic Pursuits, Waldorfish, Drawing with Children, Art for Kids Hub videos, or local community‑center art classes for more technique or live feedback.

Although Art Tango is a mature site, it continues to be maintained as a free resource and is frequently highlighted by homeschool bloggers and reviewers as a reliable, classroom-tested K–5 art curriculum.

Keep an inexpensive “art box” stocked with the recommended basics—paper, crayons, markers, oil pastels, basic paints—so when you open an Art Tango lesson you can start immediately instead of hunting for supplies, and hang finished work on a dedicated gallery wall to celebrate progress.

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Meet Art Tango Team

Art Tango is maintained by a small team centered around the site’s original creator, an elementary art teacher who has spent many years teaching K–5 students in school settings. Drawing on her classroom experience, she designed Art Tango’s lessons to be realistic with limited time and materials while still giving children room to explore and make each project their own. Although she prefers to keep a low public profile, her work reflects a clear philosophy: every teacher can facilitate meaningful art, and every child deserves regular opportunities to draw, paint, and create.