making monochromatic collages...

mouse paint: color mixing

A little clear hair gel and two primary splashes of liquid water color into a zip bag taped to a tabletop create a fun exploration as the children used the mice (tied to the table) to mix the paint.

mouse paint: paint with mice

cat toy mice, paper plates, and primary colors 

a big mouse painty mess

and then we painted with cars...

Sometimes we set this up as an invitation to paint, sometimes we do it as a group. This time, we set it up as a group and used our primary colors to see if mixing would happen. We pulled all of the chairs away from the table and gave each kiddo a piece of paper that they began with and carried with them as they moved around the table to the next tray of paint. There is a lot of language when we do this as the children laugh and communicate what the cars are doing on their paper. I love our group projects, I feel they serve a position in our classroom community. That said, we do not always do large group projects like this. In the beginning of the year we do more of them to help guide the children in how to use the materials. Once the children begin to engage with the materials on their own, we step back and watch to see where we can next guide their creativity.

mixing paint...tinting things up

When it comes to paint, for most kiddos, the more there is, the happier they are. We like to use paper plates for color mixing as they are both inexpensive and sturdy enough to hold the massive globs of paint the kiddos add to them. Here, we've given a short lesson on tints...adding white to other colors...we've given the kiddos paint palettes with primary colors (there was a discussion as to which blue we should use) and white, and then they were let loose to mix it all up!

classroom canvases

One of the ways I build community in the classroom is through our classroom canvases. Each child gets a flat canvas to create art on but with a twist. The owner of the canvas gets to choose the colors and paints the base however they wish.

We use acrylic paints for our canvases which elevate the process for the children. I keep the acrylics in a cardboard suitcase so they know something fun is afloat when it makes an appearance. Once the original coat is dry, the owner of the canvas selects a new color or two for a classmate to use on their canvas. For me, the fun part is switching out the tools the children use. I place a variety of tools on a tray and the painter selects which one they wish to use. This helps to keep the canvas from getting muddy while alerting the child that this is mindful work.

Some of the tools we've used are strawberry baskets, q-tips, pieces of cardboard, dollar store massage rollers, tp tubes, cups, sponges, toys, the bottoms of cups, toothbrushes, and our fingers.

The evolution of each canvas is pretty magical. We paint on them throughout the year so some may have layers and layers on them, while others might not.

paper plate lions

How cute are these lions? Our paper plate lions are a preschool craft project that gathers the kiddos into a group to work on skills such as cutting, glueing, and following instructions. I want to add that this is not an everyday deal that I do in my classroom. Most of the time we are mixing paint and creating our own art experiences. Sometimes we gather around so I can quickly assess who may need encouragment or who may need a new challenge. We never push and if a child has other plans or really does not want to do the project then that's okay. There a multitude of other ways to see where they are at. A craft such as this is cute and is a fun take home for parents to display. I mean, who wouldn't want a three-eyed lion on their fridge?

Paper plates are a fun and inexpensive resource for kiddo to create with. They are sturdy enough to hold ALL the paint, and have an interesting texture to them. Childre ncan cut them to create other tings, and they are happy to have paint, glue, crayon, marker, pencil, and even play dough spread over them.

Here we have a blue lion, a pink lions, a four-eyed lion, and a classic one or two in the mix. Once the paint dried, the kiddos added mouths or mustaches or design using the much coveted sharpie.

Sometimes though, I have to admit, it;s the paint messy brushes I swoon over.

paint with veggies

veggies, and blossoms...chive blossoms... 

I tried my best to match paint to veggie colors but couldn't bear to add brown for the mushroom 

which seemed to be a favorite non-brush brush...

wayne thiebaud inspired ice cream cones

I've been doing these since my early bookstore days and they always come out so happy! This year, the children drew their own ice cream cones onto cardboard (box flaps work great for this). I had a parent cut these out as cardboard is super tricky to cut. Don't worry though, we give the kiddos plenty of opportunities to use scissors in the classroom. 

 

The first step in the process is for the kiddos to paint the cone part of their ice cream cone. This time around we used a tan acrylic paint but next year, the kiddos will be mixing up their own brown tint. After they paint their cone (or entire piece), they use a piece of cardboard to stamp criss-cross hatch marks to emulate a waffle cone. The idea behind this is two-fold. I'm assessing their development and listening skills. I do not police how they approach this part of the project. Some will make criss-cross marks, some with make lines, while others will dip and drag the carboard across the surface. It's all good.

Once their cone is finished, it's time to paint the ice cream part. We work a lot on the concept of tints and pastels in the classroom so the children will have had a discussion on their favorite flavors of ice cream and what colors they are. We will also get silly and make up flavors. They will select a color and squeeze the paint into a small container (I love my thrifted melmac bowls here) along with white paint, shaving cream, and then glue. They do al lthe squeezing here. Next, they get a spoon to mix it all up and spread it atop the ice cream part of their art. It's tricky but they love the fluffiness of the paint.

Once their ice cream is on their cone, they get to add sprinkles. For the sprinkles, we have an assortment of scrap paper, beads, glitter, and other bits of fun. Some kiddos can get very heavy handed with the sprinkles, so if you are on a tight budget, have a parent demolish a magazine with a pair of scissors. There is a lot of color to be had this way.

What do you think? I love them so! Lookie all those sprinkles on the left there! Wheeeee! 

painting on a canvas

In the classroom, we give the children their own canvas for their birthday to create a classroom painitng. These are displayed in the classroom until the end of the year and are a classroom collaboration. One way to control the painting without controlling it is to designate tools for specific colors. The birthday kiddo picks the paleete and does the basework. The next kiddo picks a color and a tool and adds to it, and so on. Once a tool is used, we remove it from the mix. We've usd paintbrushes of all sizes, rollers, tubes, bowls, q-tips, sponges, spray bottles and more. The end results are really fun and colorful without being muddy. Now, mind you, outside of the birthday canvas, the children have access to all the colors and materials they wish to use so there are plenty of painting opportunies that are truly process oriented. I have had children grab an ENORMOUS sheet of paper only to add three tiny brushstrokes in one corner, others will begin by painting an awesome picture of stripes and dots only to paint all over it with all the colors until it's a big brown mess. It's cool, it's their art and they love it. I love it too!

painting with shaving cream paint

three bears smoosh painting

Every year when we read The Three Bears, we pull out the honey bears for some painting fun. This year, I added a slight twist to the usual suspects...

The children selected a square of construction paper in either red, white, blue, or yellow. They would then place their paper into the cookie sheet and get ready to engage those squeeze muscles. It isn't easy to squeeze paint out of a honey bear!

The children added paint to their heart's content then placed a sheet of plastic wrap on top of the happy mess. Once the plastic was placed, it was time to smoosh away.

Their favorite part was the magic of not getting their hands covered in paint (and this is a class that LOVES to cover their hands in paint!)

Minds may have been blown!

I wish I had thought to take photos of the final art...I may have but I cannot find them...we also taped up some of the pieces of plastic into our windows...all sorts of colorful pretty!

Enjoy!