Anti-Racist Art Activities for Kids

Harness the power of creativity to celebrate your community and change the world with Anti-Racist Art Activities for Kids.

Do you think, “I’m just a kid. What can I do to make a difference?” Be an anti-racist artist! Have fun with 38 creative projects that empower you to use your art, actions, and words to create meaningful change.

Start your anti-racist art-making journey by defining ideas like race, racism, and anti-racism. Dive into six sections, beginning with self-reflection before seeking justice and taking action! Each section’s theme includes an array of activity choices, including:
 

• Identity – Who you are and what makes you unique.
  • Explore your identity and create a symbol that represents you.
  
  
• Culture – Your way of life and honoring what others value about theirs.
  • Make a textile design inspired by your home and culture.
  
  
• Community – Connecting to people and places.
  • Challenge your implicit biases and discover how to draw diverse people.
  
  
• Empathy – Understanding others and having compassion.
  • Learn the meaning of equity by solving real-world math problems with art.
  
  
• Justice – Making a society that is fair for all.
  • Create a miniature billboard that comments on a social issue.
  
  
• Activism – Creating change and transforming our communities.
  • Mail a postcard to a politician that informs them of what you would like to see change.
  
  

Other activities include designing a community mural and organizing people to make a positive change. As you work through the pages and explore the many parts of being an anti-racist artist, you will learn various art-making skills and engage with different materials such as paint, clay, textiles, and recycled materials. At the back, a helpful glossary defines terms that come up in anti-racist discussions, from “activism” to “white supremacy.”

This book is just a starting point, and the possibilities are endless. There is no limit to your imagination and your impact!

Contributors include: Abigail Birhanu, Khadesia Latimer, Paula Liz, Lori Santos, Tamara Slade and Anjali Wells.<

Anti-Racist Art Teachers Anti-Racist Art Teachers is a collective of educators residing across the United States who promote inclusive thinking, celebrate diversity, and inspire transformative action through art education. We seek to provide educators and caregivers resources to explore anti-bias and anti-racist concepts through art-making that engages youth in critical conversations about voice, power, bias, race, equity, diversity, inclusion, and justice. Learn more at antiracistartteachers.org.

Paula Liz is an artist, activist, educator, and author. She was born in Puerto Rico and attended the Maryland Institute of Art, receiving a BFA in Painting and an MAT in Art Education. She has taught K–12 art in New York; Texas; Washington, DC; and Maryland, where she was named Art Educator of the Year in 2022. Her passion for justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion are at the center of her lessons and expand beyond the classroom. Learn more at paulalizart.com.

Abigail Birhanu is an artist and art educator who teaches secondary level. She was born in Ethiopia and grew up with an appreciation not only for her culture but a diversity of cultures and experiences. Abby is a Fulbrighter who taught in England. She loves traveling and has visited 21 countries so far. She is committed to anti-racist, anti-bias, culturally responsive teaching that cultivates understanding and value for our diverse world community.

Khadesia Latimer Khadesia is an art educator and artist from South Carolina. She is passionate about art making that encourages empathy, critical thinking skills, anti-racist, and anti-bias practices. She believes that art education is the perfect outlet for spiking creativity while helping develop culturally responsive children. In the future, Khadesia hopes to expand her creativity by writing and illustrating children’s books. Follow @thebusybrushes on IG.

Dr. Lori Santos has a scholarly focus on Indigenous art and cultures and works directly with Indigenous artists and communities throughout the Americas. She is the founder of the Puzzle Peace Pledge Project (4PEACE), a cross-cultural art initiative for sustainable social and ecological amity. Lori teaches art as social justice and nurtures human stories of awareness, transformation, and empowerment.

Tamara (tuh-mar-uh) Slade is a social justice educator and author from California. She obtained her Masters in Education from UCLA. For the last seven years, Tamara has taught students of color at the elementary school level. In her spare time, she coaches teachers, creates social justice curriculum, and facilitates professional development related to ethnic studies, CGI math, and more. She hopes to one day publish a children’s book of her own.

Anjali Wells Anjali is an art educator from Maryland who is passionate about teaching others to use art as an outlet. She believes everyone’s voice is powerful, deserves to be heard, and can do so creatively. To share this mission, she created the nonprofit Creative Outlets Arts Center. Learn more about how you can use art as an outlet for wellness at CreativeOutletsAC.com.