On Monday, my son’s 7th grade class began work on their Ancient Feast museum artifact projects. The Ancient Feast has been a tradition at F. A. Day Middle School for 36 years.
While it has changed a great deal since its original inception, the Feast is a celebratory moment. Students work on their own or in pairs. They get the opportunity to learn more about a topic covered during the year. Some students take the opportunity to learn about an ancient civilization not covered in class.
Thus far, students have created project proposals, researched information, and wrote paragraphs. Students were asked to think about how projects would be created and what materials were needed.
My son and his friend Chris decided to create a cave with prehistoric paintings. They used newspaper, plaster wrap, spray paint and acrylic paint for this project. In all, the parents took three trips to the craft/art store for supplies. It took them a week to make this.
The prehistoric people used their handprints as a way to “sign” their paintings which they demonstrated on their project.
My son and Chris hope to win the Prehistoric Category Prize!
Children’s Books on Ancient Cave Paintings
What Marcel Found: The Incredible Discovery of the Lascaux Cave Paintings by Cedar Pruitt and David Litchfield
Learn about this remarkable discovery from the eyes of the boy who found it. Set against the backdrop of WWII, readers will learn about Marcel Ravidat and the secret underground tunnel he finds in the woods. At first, he keeps this a secret for himself, but then recruits friends to explore the cave. Soon, they charge admission fees to other schoolchildren until a teacher takes their tour and the cave paintings become public. Cedar Pruitt brings the excitement and significance of the Lascaux Cave Paintings to life. [nonfiction picture book, ages 4 and up]
Images from Lascaux II
The First Drawing by Mordicai Gerstein
Imagine life more than 30 thousand years ago, before drawing was invented! Using a burnt stick (charcoal), imagine the first human to see shapes on a wall that resemble animals and draw them. It would feel like magic! This is one version speculating why early humans created cave paintings and this story is inspired by cave paintings in Chauvet-Pont-d’Arc cave in Southern France. [picture book, ages 4 and up]
The Secret Cave: Discovering Lascaux by Emily McCully Arnold
Images from Lascaux II
In the middle of WWII, the Lascaux cave containing prehistoric cave art was discovered by boys. Sealed for about 17,000 years, it was the only cave painting where the colors had not faded. The animal shapes often followed the contours of the walls, and the paintings are believed to have been used as part of trance rituals more than 35,000 years ago.
This picture book tells the story of the four young men from Montignac, France who discovered Lascaux in 1940. The cave is now closed to all but a few scholars. Lascaux II, a meticulous replica, opened to the public in 1983. [picture book, ages 6 and up]
p.s. PickyKidPix’s 7th grade project is here. She built a Mesopotamian throne out of wood.
I never saw Grasshopper and Sensei’s 7th grade project. She and two friends sewed a Roman Toga dress which one of them modeled.
p.p.s. My son and his friend won the Prehistoric Category with their Cave Art Project!
Follow PragmaticMom’s board Art with Kids on Pinterest.
Follow PragmaticMom’s board Children’s Book Activities on Pinterest.
My books:
Bookshop.org / Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Barbed Wire Between Us by Mia Wenjen, illustrated by Violeta Encarnación
- ⭐ Starred review from Kirkus
- ⭐ Starred review from Publishers Weekly
- ⭐ Starred review from School Library Journal
- Kirkus: The Most Anticipated Children’s Books of Spring 2026
Free and downloadable guide:
Barbed Wire Between Us Teacher’s Guide
Bookshop.org / Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Bookshop.org / Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
- California Eureka Non-Fiction Gold Award
- Junior Library Guild Gold Selection
- Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People Winner (from National Council for the Social Studies and Children’s Book Council)
The Traveling Taco:
- California Eureka Non-Fiction Silver Award
- Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People Winner (from National Council for the Social Studies and Children’s Book Council)
- Reading Rockets’ Summer Reading Guide 2025
Bookshop.org / Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Bookshop.org / Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
We Sing from the Heart: How the Slants® Took Their Fight for Free Speech to the Supreme Court
- ALSC Notable Children’s Book
- 2025 Carter G. Woodson Book Award Middle Level Honoree
- Orbis Pictus Recommended Book for Outstanding Nonfiction for Children
- 2024 Julia Ward Howe Prize for Children’s Literature Winner
- California Eureka Non-Fiction Award Honor Book
- Notable Social Studies Trade Books for Young People Winner (from National Council for the Social Studies and Children’s Book Council)
- Bank Street Best Children’s Books of the Year 2025
- Recommended Reading for the Social Justice Literature Award 2025 (International Literacy Association)
- Pennsylvania Mountain Laurel Book Award Nominee 2026-27
- Junior Library Guild Gold Selection
Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Bookshop.org / Amazon / Barefoot Books / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Food for the Future: Sustainable Farms Around the World
- ⭐ Starred review from School Library Journal!
- Junior Library Guild Gold selection
- Massachusetts Book Award Long List
- dPICTUS 100 Outstanding Picture Books of 2023
- Chicago Library’s Best of the Best
- 2023 INDIES Book of the Year Awards Finalist
- Green Earth Book Award Long List
- Nautilus Silver Winner, Nonfiction Children’s Picture Book
- Sunshine State Young Readers Award Orange Blossom List for Nonfiction
- Imagination Soup’s 35 Best Nonfiction Books of 2023 for Kids
Bookshop.org / Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Bank Street College’s The Best Children’s Books of the Year
Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Amazon / Signed or Inscribed by Me
Loved your son’s cave. Very creative idea! Congrats to him!
Thanks so much Pat!! I never saw his project so I made him take photos for me. They did a good job planning out their project to get it done on time.
I loved your son’s Cave Project! What kind of material did he use to make the rock? What kind of paint did he use for the hand and animal drawings?
Hi Kelly,
I think he just used newspaper & plaster wrap (to create the cave), spray paint (for the cave decoration), and acrylic paint (for the hand and animal drawings) for this project.