• Art lets children create.
• Children express themselves through art.
• Art benefits all parts of the child's development.
• Children experiment with colors, shapes, and sizes.
• Children may practice making choices when choosing what they will create.
• Art helps develop small motor skills as the children learn to hold and use art items.
• Art is fun for young children.

Examples of Good Art for Young Children

• Activities that promote imagination.
• Activites that promote the different areas of the child's development.
• Activities that teach children to be proud of their work.
• Activities that allow children to choose their own materials and then decide what to crate with those materials.

Materials for the Art Center

Painting Materials

• Something to paint on: easel, paper, low table
• Something to paint with: brushes, fingers, tempera paint, water-based paint, finger paint
• Smocks - These can be old t-shirts that a child can put on to protect clothes.

Drawing materials

• Markers, crayons, chalk, colored pencils
• Chalkboards, paper, newspaper, construction paper

Cutting and Pasting Materials

• Scissors, glue, glue sticks, magazines, paper

Extra art materials

• Buttons, ribbon, yarn, feathers, glitter
• Stamps, stamp pads, shoe boxes, popsicle sticks, bottle tops, juice or milk container
• Pinecones, seeds, other nature materials

Recipes

Fingerpaint

3 cups starch
1 tablespoon powdered tempera paint

Mix ingredients together and stir. Pour in a squeezable bottle.

Scribble Wafers

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Sort crayons by color.
3. Take paper off crayons.
4. Place crayons by color in separate sections of a muffin tin.
5. Place muffin tin in oven.
6. When wax is completely melted, remove pan from oven and let cool.
7. Release shiny, waxed wafers.

Silly Putty

1 cup liquid starch
2 cups glue

Add starch to glue a little at a time. Mix well and add more starch if necessary. The mixture will be elastic and stretchable. Refrigerate overnight in a closed container.

Traditional Playdough

3 cups flour
1 1/2 cups salt
1/4 cup oil
1 cup water
1 tablespoon food coloring

Mix all ingredients together and knead the dough. Store in a plastic bag.

References

Cryer, D., Harms, T., & Bourland, B. (1987) Active learning for infants. Parsippany, NJ. Dale Seymour Publications. 92-93, 97-99.

Cryer, D., Harms, T., & Bourland, B. (1987) Active learning for ones. Parsippany, NJ. Dale Seymour Publications. 104-105, 108, 110, 116-117.

Cryer, D., Harms, T., & Bourland, B. (1988) Active learning for twos. Parsippany, NJ. Dale Seymour Publications. 158-159, 163.

Cryer, D., Harms, T., & Bourland, B. (1988) Active learning for threes. Parsippany, NJ. Dale Seymour Publications. 150-161, 169.

Cryer, D., Harms, T., & Ray, A.R. (1996) Active learning for fours. Parsippany, NJ. Dale Seymour Publications. 194-195, 208.

Cryer, D., Harms, T., & Bourland, B. (1996) Active learning for infants. Parsippany, NJ. Dale Seymour Publications. 210-211, 221.

Art Activities for Infants

• small muscles in the hands and fingers are developed
• sense of touch, color, and textures is developed
• eye-to-hand coordination is developed
• language is developed through adult-child interaction

Tearing Paper

Materials needed:

• Paper of different colors and textures

Steps to follow:

• Give the infant pieces of paper to tear and crumble.
• Talk with the infant about the paper's color and texture.

Colored Socks

Materials needed:

• Clean socks of different colors, sizes, textures, and patterns

Steps to follow:

• Cover the infant's hands and feet with different colored socks.
• Move the infant's hands and feet in front of her face to draw attention to the socks.
• Talk with the infant about the colors, textures, and patterns on the socks.

Colored Water

Materials needed:

• Highchair
• Non-toxic food coloring
• Water

Steps to follow:

• Place infant securely in highchair.
• Pour a little water on the tray.
• Add two drops of food coloring to the water.
• Take the infant's hand and gently use her fingers to pat the food coloring and water mixture.
• Talk with the infant about the color(s) of the water.

Colorful Pictures

Materials needed:

• Old magazines
• Family photos

Steps to Follow:

• An adult cuts colorful pictures from magazines to show to the infant
• Display colorful pictures and family photos in areas the infant can see.
• Change pictures and photos often.

What does the child learn through these activities?

• small muscles in the hands and fingers are developed
• muscles in hands and arms are developed
• sense of touch and color is developed
• eye-to-hand coordination is developed
• language is developed through adult-child interaction

Lick It and Stick It

Materials needed:

• Sheets of stamps that arrive in the mail from charitable organizations or book and music clubs
• A variety of paper
• Clean, damp sponge

Steps to follow:

• An adult cuts or tears sheets of stamps into individual pieces
• Show the one-year-old how to lick and stick stamps on paper.
• If the one-year-old does not want to lick the stamps, show her how to moisten the back of the stamp with a damp sponge.

Paint with Water

Materials needed:

• Plastic cups filled with water
• Paintbrushes of different sizes and shapes

Steps to follow:

• Show the one-year-old how to use a paintbrush by dipping the brush into the water and painting on things such as a sidewalk, toy, trees, or fences.

Fingerpainting

Materials needed:

• Fingerpaint
• Paper
• Old newspaper
• Soap, water, and paper towels

Steps to follow:

• Find a low surface to be the fingerpainting area and cover with old newspapers.
• Have clean up materials (soap, water, and paper towels) nearby, but out of the child's reach.
• Use smocks to protect your clothes and the child's clothes from paint.
• Give each child two or three tablespoons of finger paint.
• Demonstrate how to make circles, lines, and designs in the paint.
• Do not force a child to use her fingers when painting. Provide brushes for use.
• Talk with the one-year-old about the colors and designs.
• After the paintings are dry, display them at the child's eye level.

Art Activities for Two and Three Year Olds

What does the child learn through these activities?

Marshmallow Printing

Materials needed:

• Large and small marshmallows
• Non-toxic food coloring
• Water
• Paper

Steps to follow:

• An adult mixes a few drops of food coloring with water.
• The child dips a marshmallow into the water and "stamps" it on paper.
• Talk with the child about the colors and designs in their finished artwork.
• Share the finished artwork with the child's family by sending it home.

Stringing Necklaces

Materials needed:

• Yarn pieces and tape
• A variety of things that can be strung

Steps to follow:

• An adult cuts pieces of yarn, knots one end, and wraps tape around the other end of the yarn.
• The child selects and strings items.

Stained Glass Windows

Materials needed:

• Clear contact paper
• Tissue paper shapes of different colors and sizes

Steps to Follow:

• An adult cuts 2 six-inch squares of contact paper for each child.
• The child selects shapes and places them on the sticky side of the contact paper.
• When the child is done, an adult covers the sticky side with another piece of contact paper.
• Talk with the child about the colors and shapes in their design.

Sewing Designs

Materials needed:

• Plastic or foam placemats
• Hole punch
• Blunt knitting needles
• Yarn

Steps to follow:

• An adult cuts designs and shapes from placemats and punches holes along the outside of each design.
• An adult ties yarn through one of the punched holes and ties a blunt knitting needle to the other end.
• Show the child how to push the needle through the holes.

Art Activities for Four and Five Year Olds

What does the child learn through these activities?

• small muscles in the hands and fingers are developed
• muscles in hands and arms are developed
• sense of touch and color is developed
• eye-to-hand coordination is developed
• language is developed through adult-child interaction

Texture Collages

Materials needed:

• Colored paper
• Glue
• Rough collage material (sandpaper, tree bark)
• Smooth collage material (silky cloth, cellophane paper)

Steps to Follow:

• An adult cuts the collage materials into different sizes.
• The child selects and glues collage materials on colored paper.
• Use the collage to talk about rough and smooth things.

Masking Tape Painting

Materials needed:

• Masking tape
• Paper
• Paint and brushes

Steps to follow:

• The child tears pieces of masking tape and arranges them on paper.
• Paint over the entire page with paint.
• When the paint dries, an adult helps the child remove the tape.

Pizza Collage

Materials needed:

• Food seasonings such as oregano, thyme, bay leaves
• Glue
• Crayons
• Paper plate

Steps to follow:

• The child uses crayons to draw favorite pizza toppings on paper plate.
• Glue various food seasonings on the paper plate pizza.

Crayon Resist

Materials needed:

• Crayons
• Heavy paper
• Tempera paint
• Water

Steps to follow:

• The child draws a picture on the paper with crayons.
• An adult adds water to tempera paint (thinning the paint).
• Paint over the crayon drawing with the paint and water mixture.