Thanks for joining us again for another free lesson demonstrating how to create art at home. If you missed our last three-part series, you can check it out here – Landscape Painting With Erik Sandgren – Part 3.
Best Creative Art Projects for Preschoolers
Children from 3–5 are the perfect age to be encouraged to create art. During this preschool period, kids start to engage with the art process, building a foundation that will last a lifetime. Here are some of our favorite preschool art projects for some creative, hands-on fun.
1. Footprint Art
Footprint art is a great way to encourage creativity in young children without needing finely-tuned motor skills. Simply apply water-based paint to a sponge and press it against your child’s foot. Next, your child steps firmly onto the canvas or paper, leaving behind a footprint. If you want to go further, use a paintbrush to decorate the footprint in the style of a butterfly, dinosaur, monster or penguin. This technique can also be done using the hand, with the handprint styled to be a turkey, for instance.
2. Play-Doh Shapes
Kids love playing with Play-Doh, and it offers a chance to expand learning and stimulate their creativity. You may use a piece of paper that shows various shapes, then encourage the children to mold the Play-Doh and become familiar with the shapes. A Play-Doh art project is also one of the most popular types of art for kids to learn about colors. You can create shapes using different colors, and then test the child’s memory.
3. Stamp Art
Stamp art helps kids understand printmaking principles and develop fine motor skills. You can use pre-packaged stamps, or design your own by cutting shapes into a sponge. Next, your child places a stamp into the paint, then presses it down firmly onto art paper. Through this process, children become familiar with inventiveness and hands-on art (without the messiness of many other preschool projects).
4. Art With Food
Creating art with food is a way to learn about texture, shapes and creativity. Using materials like macaroni noodles, sugar cubes, graham crackers, frosting and marshmallows, children can experiment with different art styles. Applying paint to different types of food works as an engaging introduction to printmaking. (You may also want to use glue and paper plates for this type of art project.)
Benefits of an Early Introduction to Art
Each of these art projects is easy enough for a preschooler to complete, and delivers multiple benefits. A love for art can start in the early years and grow from there. In addition, the chance to develop fine motor skills, improve problem solving, stimulate the imagination – and nurture a creative spirit – is exactly why kids need art in their lives from a young age. When children are introduced to art at preschool age, the benefits are truly endless.
Start Creating Art at Home or in the Classroom
Golden Road Arts creates art literacy lessons and instructional guides for preschoolers and elementary and middle school kids. If you want to access a wide range of high-quality videos, watch our free art lessons now. You can also support us further by making a donation or buying art from our online art gallery.
