Color Mixing Ice
The project is a great visual introduction to color mixing – suitable for even younger kids.
Pom Pom Caterpillars
These cute caterpillars will certainly capture the imagination of your kids!
Butterfly Footprint
These butterflies are a beautiful way to turn a child’s footprint into a work of art. They make beautiful gifts if you do them on high quality paper and frame them – or if you make them directly onto canvas boards. They also make wonderful gift cards! Or, just do them for fun – what child doesn’t love painting their feet and stomping on paper!
Melted Crayon Earth
Melted crayons provide particularly vibrant colors to images. In this activity melted blue and green crayons are used to create a picture of planet earth. This makes a great earth day project - as you can talk about caring for the earths resources by recycling. In this case using old crayon stubs to create art!
Salt Ice Sculptures
These incredible salt-ice sculptures combine science, art and a big dose of fun! Simply take a large block of ice, salt and watered down paint – and combine! The salt and paint make the ice melt with interesting caves and crevasses which act as tunnels and lakes for the paint. The effect is stunning.
Laminate Finger Painting
A piece of laminate shelving is an indispensable item in our craft supplies. It makes an excellent surface on which to do craft activities - it is easy to wipe clean, easy to move etc. Usually we place ours on top of the kitchen table to make craft clean up easy. However, it also makes an excellent surface on which to do finger painting. Fingers glide easily over the surface - so much fun for little ones! And super easy to wipe clean. You can't keep the art work - but you can take plenty of photos!
Coffee Filter Art
Take a coffee filter, make dots using washable markers, add water and watch as the ink travels and merges and makes pretty patterns.
Sharpie Coffee Filters
We discovered this project by accident whilst doing a different activity. Simple scribbles of markers can be turned into the most beautiful abstract art.
Paper Skateboards
These super cool paper skateboards will get even the most reluctant boy excited about art. They also make fantastic greetings cards for the boys in your life - simply stick them to a folded piece of card!
Glow Stick Art
This is a favorite for our family camping trips. Super fun and produces amazing pictures, but also an opportunity to learn a bit of science: light, motion & photography!
Nuts n Bolts Car
Ever since my son was able to walk he has picked up every shiny thing he has passed on the sidewalk. This project puts that collection to good use (helped by a raid of the trash and Dad's toolbox!). This would be a great project to do for Fathers Day
Scratch Art
I was so excited to try this project with my kids, I remember seeing it demonstrated on the TV when I was a kid wishing I could try it.
Salad Spinner Art
You can create a spin art painting using a kitchen salad spinner: and if you use washable paints, you shouldn't have any trouble continuing to use it for your salads too!
Shiny Art: Embossed Foil Pics
Using Sharpies to color on foil makes shiny art. You can also create embossed edges to your pictures by using glue to trace an outline underneath the foil. This is an especially cool effect for pictures of fish as they glimmer as if they were rushing through the water!
Sun Prints
Sun Prints are fantastic fun. All you need is a pack of light sensitive paper and your imagination! This is a great project for young and old alike. Younger kids will be fascinated by the magic of this project. Older kids will be able to use their imaginations to create pictures from objects - and a great opportunity to talk about the science of light and photography too!
Homemade Sidewalk Chalk
Sidewalk Chalk is so much fun any time of year, but particularly in the summer. Making your own is super easy, way cheaper than the store bought options and kids of any age will enjoy helping out.
Popped Bubble Art
I've done this activity with my kids a few times now and it never fails to fascinate them - and me! Simply color bubble mix with food coloring and blow bubbles onto paper - as the bubbles land and pop, they create beautiful works of art. It goes without saying that this project is best done outdoors. A great one for those lazy summer afternoons.
Handprint Sun
Summery art for those tiny hands! This cheerful sun project will bring smiles to any home or classroom as children transform their hand prints into bright rays of summer light.
Mini Framed Art
These tiny works of art are adorable. Popsicle sticks are used to create a reusable picture frame, which is then filled with tiny works of art. You could put a photograph in the frame instead. Either way - they make great gifts.
Milk Art Science!
This project is incredible. The results are not only dramatic but are beautiful too - you'll be making art whilst learning about science. Your kids (whatever their age) will want to do this over and over so make sure that you have plenty of milk!
Blown Bubble Prints
What child with a drink and a straw doesn't love blowing bubbles? Not exactly behavior that we're generally encouraging (it doesn't exactly go down well at the dinner table). Which is why toddlers and preschoolers will love this activity: using straws to blow LOTS of bubbles in soapy water colored with food coloring - and then making art by placing paper on top of the bubbles.
Tissue Paper Painted Fall Leaves
Toddlers and Preschoolers will love this autumn project. Simply pile small pieces of torn tissue paper onto a sheet of paper and spray with water. The colors from the tissue paper will bleed onto the paper and will merge, mingle and blend to make beautiful subtle patterns. Using fall colored tissue paper (reds oranges and yellows) and cutting out the finished art work into leaf shapes makes beautiful fall leaves. Mount the leaves onto a paper branch for a beautiful fall picture.
Splatter Paintings - Pollock Style
Jackson Pollock was made famous for producing art from splatter's of paint. It's not uncommon to hear people viewing his art say - "my kids could do that". In this project, you let your kids try to do just that - and you will be amazed by the results. The finished artwork will be probably be worthy of a space on your living room wall. But, the best part of this project is the process - it is truly a means for self expression. There is something incredibly therapeutic about watching the art emerge as you splash the paint onto the canvas. Just be sure to do it outside with where the mess is ok, and wear clothes you don't mind being covered in paint!
White crayon surprise picture
This is great for pre-school kids and is so quick and easy
Painting in the Rain
This project is the perfect way to brighten up a grey and gloomy rainy day by using the rain itself to create beautiful artwork. What better excuse to don those raincoats and rainboots and combine making art with some puddle stomping! No rain? Just use a watering can with a fine nozzle, or a spray water bottle to create the same effect.
Mondrian by Kids
These incredibly simple paintings in the style of Dutch Painter Piet Mondrian are a great way to get kids involved in learning about abstract art and the beauty of simple geometric images. The creation of the series of squares and rectangles is surprisingly satisfying and the creative process very rewarding. This project is ideal for elementary age kids and even older preschoolers can easily have a go. Older children may prefer to create their black outlines using rulers and black pen. That way the width of the lines can be varied.