Colorful creativity

Hello. Hope everyone has had an awesome summer. Now it's time to get back to school, back to work, and back to every day routines. For families with little ones still at home and still too young for preschool or kindergarten, make your every day a little more fun by throwing in some creativity.

Find a shade tree outside or, on those scorching hot days, lay an old sheet on the floor. Sit down with your child. Fill squeeze bottles with acrylic paints of various bright colors and get some clay pots. Turn the pots upside down, take a bottle in each hand and squeeze on the colors. They'll mix together as they drip down the pot creating a brightly colored design all your own. You may start by showing your child how to do this and then let him or her try it out on their own.

For older infants and toddlers, tape paper to a picnic table or toddler table, etc. and pour some paint into a container. Make sure your little guy is stripped down to his diaper or in clothes that you don't care to get messy. Allow your child to explore the paint puddles with his hands. Show him how to make a handprint on the paper by guiding his hand onto it. If he rubs his hand all over the paper, that's ok too. He'll have so much fun playing and exploring.

Another idea is to use your wading pool for outdoor paint projects. Put large pieces of paper in the pool. Drop a ball into a bowl of tempera paint and then have your child(ren) place the ball into the pool as you help him pick up the sides of the pool in order to roll the ball around. You can also put on old swim suits and get into the pool. Roll the ball back and forth to one another as you sit in the paint. Very messy but very fun and remember, you're making memories while creating a love of art. When you're all finished, rinse the pool, fill it with soapy water and dive back in to clean off.

As you explore these activities with your child, engage the senses. Ask him what the paint smells or feels like as you create. Ask what your children are making when necessary or what colors they are using. Or you can say, "I like the way you used green in your work. Why did you pick it?" This will encourage their self esteem and get them thinking. Of course if your child is an infant or toddler, the activity itself is enough to engage the senses but you can still talk to him by stating what color is on his hand for example or describing the paint as squishy or slimy or cold. This will add to his enjoyment and guide him in early learning.

If you have ideas to add for colorful creativity, please comment here.

Hope you enjoy mine. They've lent my daughter many enjoyable hours in her childhood and I'm sure they will yours. Happy end of summer!