Tempera Paint Archives - Page 4 of 10

June 6, 2011 by Megan Schiller

Collaborative Canvas

As one of our final projects of the spring session, we created a collaborative canvas art piece. The children worked on the canvas in 7 phases, beginning with this picture of the canvas on the floor. To preserve each phase of the work, I used painters tape to cover up some of the areas on the canvas each time a new group worked on it.

For the second phase, I brought the canvas to a block party in my neighborhood. The kids had a blast going at it with long brushes, rollers, and child-sized mops and brooms.

For our final week of spring classes, each group contributed to the canvas in different ways. Some classes worked on the floor with bouncy bean bags and long tools, while other groups worked on it vertically, attached to an easel.

Each day when the canvas was dry, I added more tape (often with help from Karuna and Aaron). For this project, the tape was placed randomly (except for the small heart at the top), but next time I want to try doing a more planned out design!

The tempera paints don’t keep their true color when painted over, but often turn muddy after many layers. So I decided to let the oldest class use non-toxic acrylic paint to get back to some brighter colors add more texture.

After some painting, the kids decided to stick collage materials onto the canvas… brilliant!

The next day, I wanted to preserve the collage materials from the previous class, so I taped up a large piece of paper over that section of the painting.

I realized that the kids enjoyed having one area that was a blank canvas, so I taped up another piece of paper for the final class.

After 7 phases painting and taping, I spent about 2 hours peeling off all of the tape (much of which was hidden under all those layers!) And here is the final piece…

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May 26, 2011 by Megan Schiller

Foam Scratch Prints

This week the 3s/4s class worked on printmaking using styrofoam scratch boards. This foam is similar to the type that often comes with pre-packaged meat. If you have any at home, you can give this a try!
The children first used ball point pens to draw a design in the foam. I had to encourage them to press hard so their drawing would be indented into the foam.

After drawing, they rolled paint onto their foam, flipped it over onto a piece of paper, then peeled it up to reveal their print.

They tried this in a few different colors to see how they could create the same print in a different color using their foam drawing.

The children also worked on the second phase of their clay etching projects from last week. Now that their clay has dried, they painted it, making sure to get the paint deep into the scratched drawings. Next week they do the final step!

A couple of the painted projects…

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May 24, 2011 by Megan Schiller

Collage Treasure Hunt!

Before beginning our monochromatic collages, we began by going on a “treasure hunt” to find our collage materials. The children each chose a color, then searched around the yard for treasures in their specific color.

When the kids found a color other than their own, they immediately ran to give it to the person looking for that color. What great teamwork!

The 1s class also went on a treasure hunt, but it wasn’t limited by color. Most of them were just trying to understand the concept of collecting and keeping the treasure in their baskets!

After our treasure hunt, we returned to the studio to create a collage using glue and our new found materials. I think the treasure hunt helped to get the children excited about using only one color. After the hard work of hunting, they formed a special bond with their color!

The 1s class used colored glue to add to their colorful collages.

After making our collages, we worked on a variety of projects. Some children squeezed colored glue into plastic tops- which will dry and become translucent window hangings.

Other children worked at the easels…

painted the window…

and some got messy outside with gross motor tools: bouncy bean bags, child-sized mops and a broom!

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May 11, 2011 by Megan Schiller

So many kinds of Prints!

This week we worked on various print-making techniques. In the older classes we began with a scratch foam activity where the kids used toothpicks to scratch a design into a piece of foam. After making marks with the toothpicks, they rolled paint onto their foam and flipped it onto a piece of paper to make a print. We used basic craft foam that I had in the studio, but next time I’m going to try scratch foam boards that are softer and easier to scratch a design into.

After printing with foam, we moved on to try many other printing materials like leaves…

textured rolling pins…

woodblock stamps… and more!

The kids loved the wood block stamps, dipping them into the paint and banging them down onto the paper.

The 1s classes started off using cookie-cutters to make prints, then moved on to leaves, sponges, and rolling pins.

The kids began to combine all of the techniques and, of course, decided to add glitter as well!

The easels were popular with the 1s classes as they moved around the studio.

The weather was hot and beautiful this week so I decided to bring some of the print-making outside for the last half of class. We first tried out the techniques on a longer scale!

Then I brought out some warm weather fun like ice painting for the 1-yr-olds and water balloons for the older kids. We also tried out some nylon bean bags that make interesting prints when bounced like a yo-yo.

Outdoor messy exploration… so fun!

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May 4, 2011 by Megan Schiller

A new 1s Class!

We have a new group of 1-year-olds who are ready to start their art careers! For their first day of art class, we began with finger and texture painting, as I always do with newbies. On the table were bowls of paint (in the primary colors and white), scoopers, and finger paint paper. I encouraged them to touch the paint with their fingers, but also offered them tools to use when they were first reluctant to get messy.

With toddlers, I always start with tools such as combs, mardi gras beads, toy cars, etc. Not only do these objects create interesting textures, but they also allow young children to get their hands messy little by little (I used to think that all toddlers would dip their hands in paint right away, but many actually are very reluctant!) A standard brush is more removed from the paint, while mardi gras beads get completely painted which accidentally get children’s hands messy. This gives them more confidence to touch the paint.

As the kids began to move around and explore the studio, I offered them some brushes and rollers to use at the easels.

They were excited to check out the materials on the shelves!

After our messy introduction to painting, we went outside for some water play/clean up time.

Smiling painted children= a successful first day!

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May 3, 2011 by Megan Schiller

Flower Fabric Dying and Balloon Painting

It’s spring time and beautiful flowers are in bloom! Because flowers have so much color to offer us, I decided to try out a flower dying technique with the older classes. I gave each child a piece of muslin fabric and a mallet. They chose some flower petals and leaves, placed them on their fabric, folded the fabric over, and pounded away.

As they pounded, the dye began to show through the muslin. When they decided they were finished, they opened it up and peeled off the petals to find their fabric filled with color.

After our fabric dying, we moved on to bigger and messier things… balloon painting! We started off painting with small air-filled balloons (for safety it was important that if any balloons popped, they were thrown away immediately). The kids dipped the balloons in paint and dabbed them on the paper, which created circular swirls of color.

Soon I brought out balloons filled with water for the kids to try out. The water added weight and movement to the balloons and were really fun to squish around!

Things began to get messy and the kids moved around the studio painting at the easels and trying out their balloons in different places.

Some of the water balloons popped and the kids decided that they wanted more water to use in their work.

I recently got some new basters and was excited to have the kids test them out!

So much fun!

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April 27, 2011 by Megan Schiller

1s Oil Pastels, Bleeding Tissue… and Messy fun!

For the last week of the 1s class, we began with oil pastel drawing on watercolor paper. Drawing is still fairly new to these kids, they’re still learning how to scribble and press down at the same time. Oil pastels are great for little ones because they are rich in color and will show up even with the lightest touch.

After using the oil pastels, I offered the children small squares of bleeding tissue paper to place over their drawings. Then they soaked the tissue paper with water (trying hard to squeeze the spray bottle triggers). As the color from the tissues began to bleed onto the paper, the kids added glitter and found some tools to move the tissues around. Once the tissues dry, they will fall off and leave a beautiful painting in their place.

Soon, the kids were moving around the studio, painting at the easels and trying out the splat painting that the older classes were working on.

The 1s group wasn’t so interested in throwing the cotton balls for the splat painting, but they enjoyed working with the materials in other ways!

Towards the end of class a couple of kids saw a plate of paint on the floor and began to take off their shoes. I grabbed some paper and let them go at it!

Making footprints is really slippery, so I made sure to hold them steady as they squished their toes in the paint.

I can’t wait for hot summer days when we can do body painting outside on the grass!

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April 23, 2011 by Megan Schiller

Shrinky Dink Beading and Splat Painting!

As I mentioned last week, we began our final class of the session making “Shrinky Dinks”. The 2s classes drew with colored Sharpies on large sheets of shrinking plastic. Then I punched a hole in the top before baking them so the kids could make them into window hangings.

For the rest of the window hanging, the children beaded a string that will be tied to the finished Srinky Dink.

The 3s/4s kids made small Shrinky Dinks the week before to make jewelry. Once they had strung half of the beads for the necklace, I showed them how to add the Shrinky Dink on as a pendant.

Then they helped each other!

After Shrinky Dinks and beading, I brought out some materials to try a super fun throwing “splat” painting. The kids first began to do their own thing, excited to use the spray bottles and paint, but soon got really into the splat painting!

First they covered some cotton balls in watery paint…

Then grabbed a soaked cotton ball from the plate…

and threw it to make a splat!

The kids got really creative with it too!

So much Fun!

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April 11, 2011 by Megan Schiller

Ice Painting and Tape Resit Watercolor

Now that the weather is warming up, I decided to try out ice painting this week! To start, each child was given thick watercolor paper, powdered tempera paint, and an ice cube on a stick. They sprinkled the powered paint onto their paper, then moved it around with their ice cubes. As the ice began to melt, the powdered paint turned into a liquid paint.

After experimenting with the ice cubes, I gave each child a scoop of crushed ice to stir around their paper.

When the ice wasn’t melting fast enough, the children used water and a sponge to get the process going faster.

Of course glitter was a necessary addition to their painting!

Some of the kids added coarse salt, which soaks up the water and makes interesting designs in the paint.

After ice paining, the children worked on tape resist paintings. They stuck tape and contact paper (cut into shapes) onto their paper, then they sprayed it with watercolor paint. When the paper dries, they can peel off the tape-which resisted the paint- and find their design!

In the oldest class, we worked on “Shrinky Dinks” that we’ll be using for our project next week. Here’s a sneek peek of what’s to come for our final class of the session!

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April 5, 2011 by Megan Schiller

Mixing Paste for Collage, Painting with Cars and Balls

We began this week by mixing our own colored paste of flour, water, tempera, and sand. The flour, water, and sand mixture creates a thick bonding paste that can be used as a base for a collage (and the tempera adds color for fun!).

After mixing their paste, I offered the children scraping tools to move the paste around their tagboard. They used small rakes, plastic putty knives, scrub brushes, combs, and plastic notched scrapers for tiling. This is a great introduction to making mosaics! The kids learn how to spread out the adhesive, and lay down materials into a design. After they master this technique, we can try grouting!

After plenty of spreading and scraping, the children added collage materials to their paste.

The oldest class did this project last session, so I took it to the next level and offered them cardboard frames (that I cut out of a large box) as a base for their collage.

Although I explained that the paste would work as glue, some kids weren’t convinced and used white glue to make sure their items would stay put.

Towards the end of class I rolled out a large paper onto the floor and showed the kids how to have “zooming car races.” Two of the cars are the kind that wind up and drive by themselves. They dipped the wheels in paint, and raced them down the paper to see which cars went the fastest and how far the tracks would go.