Canvas Work with Toddlers and Preschool

Frequently, we will do classroom canvas pieces that we display around the center and then have an auction to raise money over the summer with all the pieces we made all year.  Here are some of the pieces we worked on recently.

In the preschool room, we used recycled materials as well as plaster gauze to create this 3D piece. 

Our next step was to drip paint down the canvas and let the paint  mix and fall on its own.  It was very tempting to want to touch the paint as it dripped but the children used very good restraint.

Also in the preschool room, we added these mini tiles that we had previously decorated with tissue squares and glue.  

In the toddler room, we added pasta, lots of pasta and glue to a canvas.  After it dried, we practiced fine motor skills as we used eye droppers to drop liquid watercolor onto the pasta. 

Also in the toddler room, our first step was to paint our canvas with brightly colored paint.  After it dried, we painted again with round objects for stamping such as cups, cardboard tubes, and caps. 

On of my favorite things is using clear glue that I've colored with liquid watercolor.  The colors are so vibrant and layer well.  We used this glue in the toddler room as well as scissors to cut yarn and added it all to this canvas. 

Study of Frank Lloyd Wright

Recently, we did a lesson on architecture and discussed the work of Frank Lloyd Wright.  We looked at blue prints of various buildings as well as images of buildings built by Wright and other architects.  We drew our own blue prints and built our own buildings with recycled materials found around the art studio.  We continued our lesson by discussing Wright's stained glass work.  We looked at images of his windows.  With the preschoolers and Pre-K, we discussed form, shape, color, transparency, and line.  

The children worked together to create "stained glass" work of their own using construction paper, file folder dividers, tissue paper, cellophane sheets, and contact paper.  The older classes cut out the shapes and worked together to create a piece like this one.  So beautiful and creative!

For the toddlers and infants, I cut out simple shapes for them using a variety of papers.  They added the pieces to the sticky paper and we displayed these in the classrooms.  

Study of Eric Carle

I've been looking forward to doing a study of Eric Carle for a while and was just waiting for the right lesson to come to me.  I have a huge roll of window cling that I got from the recycle center and have used on several occasions.  This seemed like a fun and new way to use it. 

For the Preschool and Pre-K classes, I offered them a variety of images from books illustrated by Carle.  I placed the image under a piece of clear window cling.  The children used activity paint to paint on top of the image. (I found that tempera paint does not work on the plastic.  When it dries, it flakes off.  Activity and finger paint work best.)   Some took the image literally and painted what they saw while others used the image as an inspiration and created their own beautiful art.  As this was an open ended project, there was very little direction given on what they were to do.  I was interested to see what they would come up with.   

When the pictures dried, we hung them in the art studio and in the classroom windows.  They make beautiful window art pieces.  They are all unique and super colorful!

I also did this project with the toddlers which ended up being an abstract project but very fun nonetheless.  The toddlers enjoyed painting on a new surface and color mixing as they went. 

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.