Light Table Activities

Here's what was on the light table in the art room:

transparent shapes and art patterns from Mr. Printables

Fun, colorful materials to sort, stack, and explore

plexiglass samples

transparent shapes and letters

stencils

shapes and colors

cardboard stackers

plastic melted bead shapes and letters

Infant Activities

Infant art is all about the senses.  At this age, they are exploring with all of their senses.  I look at art class for infants as a way to allow them to explore in their own way. As they become more comfortable with materials, the infants and young toddlers aren't afraid to touch things that are messy, sticky, or cold because they've been exposed many times in different ways and at their own pace. 

Small trinkets in bubble wrap on the light table

Sticky, shiny paper and textured paper squares

Paint in between contact paper

Unflavored gelatin

Random art materials gathered together

Corn starch paint

metal objects

colored instant mashed potatoes

giant texture board made with carpet samples, paint samples, fabrics, and textured papers

paint and sponges on the light table

Hair Gel Painting

We had fun with this project.  The Pre-K children added color to hair gel to create colorful, clear, wonderful smelling paint. 

We also added glitter and sequins to add texture and dimension to our paint.  When it dries, the paint evaporates a bit and is lighter than when it went on but makes some really cool effects.  

Claude Monet

Claude Monet has always been one of my favorite artists.  

For this lesson, the Pre-K children added liquid watercolor and glue to a large piece of paper.  We added tissue paper to create our own impressionist painting. 

Photography

I have been wanting to do this multi-week lesson forever and the spring is the perfect time. I asked families to bring in digital cameras for the Pre-K children to use.  I wanted them to use real cameras as many of them had never used them before. We got a few.  With those, we talked about photography. 

During this lesson, we tried light painting.  I wish we could have spent more time on this.  They loved it! I learned a lot from this lesson, too.  We eventually got some great photographs. 

We also tried photographing still life.  We found items around the classroom, arranged them on a table, and took pictures from a distance and close up.  

In this lesson, we explored photographing nature.  We took landscapes and close ups.  We have a beautiful campus around the center with lots of photo opportunities.

In addition, we also did photo booth photography however I didn't post any pictures because their faces were in them.  Basically, I got some photo booth props-glasses, mustaches, bow ties, frames, hats, etc and the children took pictures of each other.  They were able to choose their models and photograph them using the props.  It was so much fun!

We made photo albums with all of their work so they could take it home as an end of year gift. 

Object Rubbings using Chalk Pastels

Chalk Pastels is one of those materials that we rarely use in the art studio.  I don't know why and I definitely should bring them out more often because the kids love them. 

For this lesson, I taped these metal grid samples to the table and covered them with butcher paper.  Some had very small grids while others were large and the pattern on each is different. Running the pastels over the paper left cool grid patterns. 

For this lesson, I put a bunch of objects I found in the art studio that were flat-crafts sticks, stencils, shape buttons, doilies, Lego boards, etc. The children enjoyed discovering what was on the table by rubbing the pastels against the whole surface. 

It's always fun to let them guess what is under the paper and at the very end, we lift up the paper for the big reveal.  We discuss what we found and what we didn't find and why

Crayon Resist

This week in the art studio, we explored crayon resist.  I explained to the children what materials we would be using- white crayons, watercolor paper, and liquid watercolor.  

They were asked to draw a picture on the white paper using white crayon.  Some of them were very disappointed that they could not see their pictures on the paper but I asked them to keep drawing.  A surprise would be revealed during the next step.  

Once they had finished drawing, I put out the watercolor paint,  As they painted, they began to see where the crayon wax was resisting the paint and an image was beginning to appear.  As they added more and more paint, the children were thrilled to see the surprises on their paper as their pictures were revealed.  

Printmaking

I have these thick glass panels that I got at the recycle center and have been trying to figure out how to use them in the art room. 

I decided to try printmaking.  I used tempera paint and spread it out evenly with a brayer.  The children were able to use tools such as combs, sponges, and brushes to create lines and patterns in the paint.  We then put a piece of paper over the paint and lightly pressed down allowing the image to be transferred onto the paper.  It was an interesting first try however, I don't think tempera paint might be right for the job.  It's too slippery and not tacky enough. 

Alberto Giacometti

In an effort to do a lesson on Giacometti, I showed the children some of his sculptures, gave them pipe cleaners, and tin foil, and a poseable figure. 

I thought the lesson would go one way with the children bending the pipe cleaners into a figure and wrapping it with foil but class went a different way when they began decorating the poseable figure instead.  This was fun, too.  

Sewing

The Pre-K children and I tried something new and different this week. 

Some of them knew a little bit about sewing from family members but most had never tried it before.  Not being one who sews myself, this was a simple project that I could get into.  I offered the children fabric squares, plastic needles threaded with yarn, and large buttons.  We practiced sewing the buttons on the fabric. 

Tissue Paper Tiles

I have a bunch of small tiles from the recycle center and I thought they would make great little works of art. 

I gave the children tissue squares and glue and we began ripping and cutting the tissue and creating designs on the tiles.  Every one is unique and cool.  I attached magnets to the back so they could put them on the fridge.  

Canvas Work-mini canvases, oil, rock salt, and liquid watercolor

We love doing canvas work in the art studio.  Today, I offered the Pre-K children mini canvases, liquid watercolors, cooking oil, and rock salt.  We talked about how these materials would react together and to use the oil and salt sparingly as to not add too much to the mini canvases. 

The children experimented with the colors and were excited to add the oil and salt.  We watched as the salt soaked up the paint and the oil created some interesting textures as it spread and mixed the paints together. 

After the paintings dried and the effects from the oil and salt were visible, we rubbed off the excess salt to reveal some cool mini masterpieces. 

Paper Mosiacs

As an introduction to mosaics, I offered the children small pieces of graph paper and paper mosaic tiles knowing that filling it would probably be all the attention span they would have for this project.  

The children spent a good amount of time finding the colors they wanted and mapping out a pattern or, in some cases, making a random pattern.  This was also a great fine motor activity since the mosaic tiles are so small and require some dexterity.