art
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Friday Freebie – Art Activities
Yay for Friday! Thank goodness, I am so ready for the weekend! I have the best freebie for you today, This Art Lesson Plan book from Pink and Green Mama includes 20 different art activities for little ones. The ages range from preschool to second grade, so you may have to make some adaptations to make sure that the activities are completely appropriate for you preschoolers, but they look like tons of fun. Hopefully this will help you in the lesson planning departments and spark some creativity in the classroom!
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Great big list of things to paint on
If you’re looking for a way to spark your students’ interest in painting, consider giving them something a little unusual to paint on. This is a great way to learn about new materials; children can explore absorption, experiment with using different amounts of water, and see how different brushes work on different backgrounds. Painting on a specific kind of material can also encourage children to explore the texture and detail of the material because the paint will intensify these details. Here is a great big list of things that you can paint on: Aluminum foil Waxed paper Saran wrap Press and Seal wrap Bubble wrap Canvas Velvet Leather Flannel Denim…
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Tips and tricks for keeping things neat while painting
I honestly have no problem with a little bit of a mess, and I think it’s inevitable when you’re painting with preschoolers. That doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t use strategies to make cleaning up easier. Here are some great tricks for prepping your painting space so that clean up is a breeze. Store your paint in disposable containers with lids like baby food containers. If you need to clean up before the kids are finished you can just snap the lids on the paints, and then once they are done you can toss the containers. This is also a great way to make sure that you aren’t wasting paint. Cover tables…
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Products for painting activities
I’m going to share some fun painting ideas this week, but before we get to those I wanted to share a few of my favorite paint-related products. These are all my personal favorite paints, supplies, and clean up helpers! This post includes Amazon affiliate links. When it comes to watercolors, Crayola is hands down the best brand. The colors are bright and the packaging is easy for little ones to use independently. Crayola 8 Count Watercolors Are my favorite because half the fun of watercolors is mixing new colors, but they also have an 16 count set. I am personally not a fan of liquid watercolor simply because they are so…
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Community art projects
I love to do community art projects! When children work on the same project they learn to value others’ ideas and perspectives, they have to share materials and work space, and they practice communicating with each other. On top of all of these wonderful lessons, community art projects are also better for the classroom logistically. You don’t have to worry about having the same amount of materials for everyone, you can hang one large piece of finished art work instead of 20 little ones, and cubbies don’t fill up with excessive amount of artwork to send home. Plus they require far less drying space! Here are some amazing ideas for…
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Melted Crayon Activities
Melting crayons is pretty trendy right now, and while it can be a little messy for the classroom, there are still some really amazing activities that you can do with melted crayons. PLUS, these activities are a great way to explore liquids, solids, color mixing, and temperature concepts. Here are some perfect ideas for melted crayon activities; Ice Cube Tray Crayons Make your own crayons! Children are always more likely to use something that they made themselves, and it’s a well known fact that no child wants to use a broken crayon. Melting all of your broken crayons into new crayons is the perfect way to get rid of those…
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Crayon Art for Preschool
I think that crayons are one of those art supplies that we take for granted. They are always available, so we don’t necessarily use them to their fullest. There are SO MANY different things that you can do with crayons, so here are some great drawing activities for little ones to explore: Crayon resist with watercolors Draw on sandpaper Use hot glue to make rubbing plates Use multiple crayons at one time Give them plenty of space to draw Try a batik-type resist Make your own scratch art Tomorrow I’m sharing activities to try with melted crayons, so be sure to check back for more ideas!
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Fun Crayon Products
While I fully understand that preschool budgets can be tight, sometimes it’s fun to splurge (or window shop). Since this week is all about crayons I thought I’d share some fun crayon products for you all to drool over. All links are affiliates, but I really love these items and I may have already purchased a few for myself! Twistables Fun Effect Crayons Some are metallic, some are neon, some are multi-colored! Crayola Triangular Crayons 8ct Yes, they promote proper grip, but let’s be honest – the best thing about these is that they won’t roll off the table! Color Appeel Crayon How fun are these?! Not only are they…
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Crayon Storage
I’m starting something new for my little blog; the last week of each month I’m going to focus on a different art supply, and how you can use that supply with your kiddos. This week will be all about crayons, which seems really simple, but I have a promise I have a lot to say about crayons! First and foremost, it’s important to recognize that you don’t have to use a specific type of crayon when you’re working with little ones. While it may be easier for your youngest students, or those with fine motor delays, to hold on to chubby crayons we also want to make sure that we…
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Personalizing our playground with Oriental Trading
I’ve loved Oriental Trading for as long as I can remember, so when they offered to send me some products to review, I jumped at the opportunity! Since my focus has been on creating an engaging playground, I chose Oriental Trading Products that would add value and color to this space. I was like a little kid on Christmas when the box arrived, it included unfinished wood bird houses, bird feeders, wind chimes, blank plastic sun catchers and paint pens, and blank kites. I love all of the unfinished wood because it really gives my students the opportunity to be creative. Before introducing all of the materials to the children…
