“Bubble Painting”

This activity is appropriate for ages 5 and up

Time from start to finish = 15-30 minutes

You will need the following materials:

• Small bowls

• Water

• Dish soap

• Paper

• Straws

• Spoons

• Paint (tempera, acrylic, liquid watercolor, or even food coloring)

Brief project description: Create whimsical, multicolor bubble prints with just regular dish soap!

Steps

• #1: Set out a small bowl for each paint color. In each bowl add some paint and water, mix

thoroughly, and then add a few drops of dish soap. Mix all ingredients together well. For brighter,

more saturated prints, add more paint to the water.

• #2: Place the tip of your straw inside one of the bowls. Blow into the straw to create a pile of

bubbles on the paint mixture surface. Small children will be familiar with this technique (It’s like

making bubbles inside your chocolate milk!) Be careful not to suck on the straw, as you don’t want to

ingest the mixture. Continue to blow bubbles until they slightly overflow the brim of the bowl.

• #3: Take a sheet of paper and gently place it over the bubbles. Remove the paper immediately and

set aside.

• #4: Repeat this process with each of the different bowls of soapy paint water. Use the same sheet

of paper on each different bowl to get a layered effect; this will create multiple colors of bubble

design on your paper.

• #5: To change up the technique, set your paper down on your workspace right beside the paint

bowl and blow bubbles until your bowl overflows, allowing the bubbles to gently spread onto the

paper. This is fun for little kids, as they can watch the bubbles pop on their own!

“Shaving Cream Prints”

This activity is appropriate for ages 3 and up

Time from start to finish = 10-30 minutes depending on difficulty level or variation

You will need the following materials:

• A rectangular baking pan (or other deep container made of plastic or metal)

• Shaving cream

• Food dye

• A pencil or other long narrow object (I use a chopstick!)

• Blank paper smaller than the pan

• A small piece of cardboard or other stiff material

***This project can get messy, so either lay down something to protect your work

space or do this outside

Brief project description:

• For this project, children will use shaving cream and food dye to marble their own papers.

Using the shaving cream as a base, children can create unique, one-of-a-kind prints with

intricate swirled designs.

Steps

• #1: Prepare your work area by covering any surfaces you want to remain clean. Spray the shaving

cream into the baking pan or container. Make sure you add enough to have 2 inches of shaving

cream. Use the small piece of cardboard to smooth out the shaving cream until it is flat and even

within the baking pan.

• #2: Have your child use the food dye to add small drops of color all over the surface of the shaving

cream. A little goes a long way, so don’t squeeze the food dye too hard. Next, have your child use the

pencil (or chop stick!) by inserting it into the shaving cream and swirling it through all of the food

coloring drops. The goal is to disperse the dye across the shaving cream and remove any big globs of

color. But careful not to over mix it! You want the colors to show in a distinct swirl, not all blend

together.

• #3: Have your child choose a piece of paper and carefully lay it onto the surface of the now colorful

shaving cream. Once the paper is lying flat, gently smooth every part of the paper so that it all makes

contact with the shaving cream surface.

• #4: Carefully lift up the paper by the corner. It may look messy at first but don’t fret. Take the small

piece of cardboard again and use it to firmly scrape off the remaining shaving cream from the paper.

You should now have a colorful marbled design!

• #5: To do a second print, simply scrape off the uppermost portion of the shaving cream and re-

smooth it. Now you can start the whole process over again and make another print! You can repeat

this as much as you want by simply adding more shaving cream if it gets low. For older children, try

creating intricate patterns and careful designs with the food dye and swirling motions!

“Plastic Bag Butterflies”

This activity is appropriate for ages 3 and up

Time from start to finish = 10-20 minutes depending on difficulty level or variation

You will need the following materials:

• A plastic sandwich or snack bag

• Various beads or other small objects (try kitchen items such as rice and beans, or small

colorful paper)

• A clothespin (a twist tie or rubberband can work as well)

Brief project description

• For this project, small children will use various fine motor skills to create simple 3-D

‘butterflies’.

Steps

• #1: Have your child help gather small interesting objects from around the house. Beads, sequins,

small paper, and other objects work well. If you don’t have a supply of objects, try looking through

kitchen cabinets for rice, beans, and small dry pasta.

• #2: Put objects out in a bowl or other container alongside the plastic bag and the clothespin.

• #3: Have your child open the bag (this can be a challenging motor skill for younger children and is

good for them to practice!) and place the objects they like and find interesting into the bag. For older

children, try having them put a certain number of objects in the bag and count them. You can also

have them put only red objects, round objects, or any other variation that helps them find patterns and

matching shapes/colors. Try not to overstuff the bag!

• #4: Have your child close the bag by pinching and sliding their fingers along the closure (younger

children will likely need help with this). After closing the bag have your child pinch the middle of the

bag and twist it around to make 2 ‘wings’.

• #5: After creating the 2 ‘wings’ by pinching and twisting the middle, have your child use the

clothespin to secure the middle and create the ‘body’ of the butterfly. I like to demonstrate the use of

clothespins by relating the ‘open/close’ motion of the pin to the snapping of an alligator’s mouth.

• To extend this activity, vary the objects you put in the bag by specific category (only red objects, only round objects, etc.) or in the second go round ask your child to ‘teach’ you the activity by listing and demonstrating the steps themselves.