The Little Kids Page of Big Ideas

Instead of handing your preschooler another coloring book (I enjoyed them too, but...) engage their innate creativity by trying some of these mother tested/approved ideas...

While it's nice to do canned artsy craftsy projects (the hand traced turkey for Thanksgiving), and that gives you a nice finished product (something recognizeable), kids need to explore their own creativity, figure out how brushes and paint work, and recreate the art history journey of humans from squiggles on rocks to cave paintings to Michelangelo.

For some of these I will post pics, or youtube links for how-tos.

Recycle:
styrofoam and pipe cleaners

Did we ever actually use those things to clean pipes? They're easy to work with and sculpt into lots of cool stuff. Add stuff like Styrofoam balls to make great snowmen. Add random things from the recycling bin (kind of like Mr Potato Head).

http://www.thealphaparent.com/2014/08/100-things-to-do-with-just-pipe-cleaner.html

Flour Salt Clay

2 Parts flour, 1 part salt, 1 part water.
Safe for little kids (if they try to eat it they'll just go "bleah!" because it's so salty), cheap, and you can color it with food coloring. Or paint it later. you can air dry it, bake it in your oven (about 350F), or air dry then bake. Works easiest as a flat cookie, but you can make an armature out of wire (try the farm store for fence wire) and aluminum foil, then build the clay over that. And bake. Encourages kids to look at the whole shape of an animal rather than drawing an outline (which gets the drawing out of proportion), or focusing on a detail like a claw (which also creates proportion issues).

Snow!

It's more than just snowmen. With the right kind of slightly soft, wet snow, you can sculpt it very nicely. Take some recyclables and see what you can construct. Some recyclables would make good armatures (frames, skeletons) for snow sculptures.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Snow-Sculpture/


and for serious snow scupltors... a whole facebook page!
https://www.facebook.com/snowsculptors

Turn anything into a permanent snow sculpture: 
Modpodge and white and silver glitter. Paint object (old plastic toy fer instance) with ModPodge, sprinkle on glitter. Dry. Repeat until it looks like a snow sculpture.

http://www.swordwhale.com/do-you-wanna-build-a-snow-pony.html

Sand!

Who doesn't love a trip to the beach... or a backyard sandbox. Try the dribble castle.

These guys have some good tips for making traditional sandcasltes: http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/aug/01/how-to-build-perfect-sandcastle

Make your own permanent sand sculptures:
Get some ModPodge. Take a bowl of sand. Mix a couple tablespoons of ModPodge into it till it looks like what bricklayers call "mud"... aka wet cement... aka... wet sand. Not runny, not crumbly. Now apply it to any surface, like a picture frame, a piece of wood, a shadowbox. Press in those shells you picked up at the shore. Or round river rocks. Or random loose objects. Like all those toys from happy meals. In about a day it will be dry and permanent.

​

Experiment with different gloppiness of mud. Thicker mud can be applied with a plastic spoon and a wet paintbrush (I like a little pointy nylon or taklon brush). 

I use this technique to make faerie houses out of old bottles.
http://www.swordwhale.com/faerie-gardens.html

You can also turn any object into a sand sculpture (old toys, that awful badly painted dolphin someone gave you)... paint with ModPodge, sprinkle sand, dry, paint again with ModPodge, sprinkle sand, repeat two or three times until it looks like a sand sculpture.

Build a permanent sand castle with shapes from the recycling bin (cardboard boxes, plastic bottles). Cover with ModPodge sand.

http://familycrafts.about.com/od/oceancrafts/ss/Sand-Castle-Craft.htm

Recycle, in 3D:

Old Christmas cards, magazine pics. Create illustrated stories by cutting out and building dioramas with the pictures. Make paper springs, or use poster putty (the blobby stuff you can stick posters on walls with), or foam tape etc... to make your picture 3D. Those styrofoam inserts that kept your computer from disintegrating while shipping make nice backgrounds/environments to build stuff on (like the inside of a spaceship). ModPodge is your friend  (like high tech white glue, non-toxic, works as glue and clear coat).

Draw on the Walls:

You can see more on the murals page. When I began working on Gabriel's life sized orca, drawing in chalk on the sea colored walls, Gabe picked up a piece of chalk and began doing what I was doing. he drew several very nice fish, which we recorded digitally for posterity. (We washed them off.) I asked his mom, "How are you gonna explain he can't just always do this?" It was a special occasion to be able to draw on the walls. Chalk washes off nicely. Doing what an adult is doing is a classic way to learn. Of course, a sidewalk or driveway can be substituted for a wall. The chance to draw larger than the restrictive edges of 8.5 x 11" paper is important.

For long term fun, use chalkboard paint on a wall or two (either black, or clear-over-a-color): http://www.benjaminmoore.com/en-us/for-your-home/how-to-use-chalkboard-paint

You can buy extra large paper too and roll it out on a floor.

Or try plain white sheets as a canvas for a mural. Rollers, sponges and sponge brushes are helpful. Also a plastic dropcloth to put it on.

Above: a class at Nixon Park where we created murals for reptile week.

Jello in a Squirt Bottle:

Or liquid food coloring. And a bathtub or kiddie pool or snow. Let'em go nutz, hose'em down later.

Bathtub Rainbow Soap:

A chance to go crazy with "paint" in an environment which is easy to clean. 

http://www.funathomewithkids.com/2013/08/rainbow-soap-foam-bubbles-sensory-play.html

Rainbow Balloons Kaboom Paint

Put paint in balloons (a funnel is helpful). Attach balloons to stretched canvas. Preferably in backyard where hose reaches later. Attach pointy thing to stick. Poke balloon with pointy thing.

KABOOM.

Instant abstract art. The creativity is in choosing what colors go together, and where to place the balloons. 

Toilet Paper Rolls:

Can be turned into a whole zoo. Pipe cleaner legs make bugs. Clever cutting creates four legged critters (add "wool" for a sheep, spots for a cow, a saddle for a horse). Bracelets and bracers are easy (decorate, cut, add yarn tie, wear)

Paper Plate Dreamcatchers

The dreamcatcher was created by the Ojibway of southeastern Canada. It was hung over a child's bed, the legend says to catch the bad dreams (which are then destroyed by the first rays of the sun), the hole in the center let the good dreams through. A feather in the center symbolized the Creator. 

For younger kids try a paper plate with holes around the edge (or notches) to thread the yarn through. This may be a bit much for very small kids, but an older kid can help. Use one long strand of yarn, and eight holes around the edge. They can try to do the real weave or just go with the flow and do their own thing.

Real Dreamcatchers:

... use a hoop of twig or grapevine, feathers from a craft store or farm (you can paint chicken feathers to look like bird of prey feathers... wild bird feathers are protected by game laws and can't be used).

​My Pinterest board on dreamcatchers here: https://www.pinterest.com/swordwhale/dreamcatchers-and-other-natural-wonders/  Some of these are traditional styles, some are...ah...very creative and don't much resemble the original design.

good page on weaving a real dreamcatcher (with pictires and videos): http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Dreamcatcher