Let's Get Creating
Here are some age-specific art activities, all are collage based & are simply guidelines, fee free to alter them as you need to. All include links to the Early Years Learning Framework (EYLF). Enjoy!
Flower Fairies Collage (0-2 yrs)Note: This activity is best for 12-24 months, due to potentially small materials being used.
Links to the Early Years Learning Framework: Outcome One: Children have a strong sense of identity
Outcome Two: Children are connected with & contribute to their world
Outcome Three: Children have a strong sense of wellbeing
Duration: 15-20 minutes collecting materials outside (approx.), 10-15 minutes creating the fairies (approx.), times may vary depending on how interesting the children find the activity Size of Group: This activity works best with groups of four children Materials Needed:
Background to Learning: From this activity children can learn about how the seasons affect plants/nature (eg. Flowers in spring), sustainability & art (collage). Additionally numeracy & literacy could be incorporated by asking children, ‘what plant is that?,’ or counting each of their scavenged materials with them. Content of Activity: Take the children outside & look for natural materials to use for the activity, flowers, leaves & gum nuts are perfect but other bits found (that you think are suitable can be used too). Allow the children to search for these items themselves, offer praise when children find suitable items. Help the children to understand that things should only be collected if they are already on the ground, that plants need to be respected & not to pick flowers or leaves off plants. If any insects are found, take a little time to talk to the children about the insect & allow them to observe it (however briefly). Instructions: Sit with the a small group of children at a table & allow the children to show what natural materials they have collected from outside, if one children has something unusual be sure to talk about it with the others. Then encourage the children to draw on the card stock with a pencil, their fairy design (any other creatures can be drawn if the child wants to draw something else). When they have drawn their fairy/creature ask them about the different characteristics (How many legs does your creatures have? Does it have wings? What does it eat?). Then using craft glue, secure the petals or leaves to accentuate their creatures, if the child wants to cut or trim any materials ask them in detail what they want so you can cut it with the scissors. When finished you can ask the children further questions about their piece, such as how many petals on your picture? Where did you find this? Allow the fairies/creatures to dry, when dry they can be decorated in the room (at a level where the child can see it) or turned into a card or shared with parents.
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Watercolour Animal Collage (3-5 yrs)Links to the Early Years Learning Framework:
Outcome Four: Children are confident & involved learners
Outcome Five: Children are effective communicators
Duration: 10 minutes reading book (approx.) & 15-10 minutes mixing colours (allow to dry completely, may take an hour or two), then 20-30 minutes constructing the collages (approx.), times may vary on how interesting the children find the activity Size of Group: This activity works best with groups of six children Materials Needed:
Background to Learning: From this activity children can learn about mixing colours, specifically what colours are a result or mixing certain colours, fine motor skills & collage art Instructions: Begin by taking some time to read the book ‘Monsters Love Colours’ to the children, then sit the children down & allow them to use eyedroppers full of watercolour to drop onto the card stock, allow them to explore mixing the colours on the paper, comment on the result, ‘look blue and red together make purple.’ Then allow the paper to dry completely. When the paper is dry, ask each of the children what animals they want to create, then ask them what part they want to be from the watercolour page they created earlier (eg. Cut a circle from the page for a head or body of an animal). Cut the shape the child specifies, allow them to glue the shape to an additional sheet of card stock, then allow them to draw the rest of the animal, using the coloured pencils or textas. When they have finished engage in conversation, ask them about what the have created & its characteristics, how many legs? Where does it live? What does it do? What does it eat? This wonderful creations can then be displayed (at a level where the child can view them, they can be turned into a card or shared with parents.
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Découpage Cup Collage (6-8 yrs)Links to the Early Years Learning Framework:
Outcome One: Children have a strong sense of identity
Outcome Two: Children are connected with & contribute to their world
Outcome Three: Children have a strong sense of wellbeing
Outcome Four: Children are confident & involved learners
Duration: 30 mins to 1 hour to complete the collage (approx.), times may vary depending on how interested the children find the activity or how much time you have to spare, this activity can be stopped & picked back up if needed. Size of Group: This activity works best with groups of six to ten children Materials Needed:
Background to Learning: From this activity children can learn about a different collage technique/style, as well as recycling/sustainability. Content of Activity: This activity should require adult supervision however the idea is to allow the children to explore on their own, they can learn a lot from self discovery, like how to tear the paper in different ways, how to glue it so the paper sticks down on curved objects. Instructions: Sit with a small group of children at a table & explain how they will cover the cup with little pieces of paper, they can either tear or cut the paper & glue it to the outside cup in any design they want. Then stand back & watch them explore the materials for themselves. Go around to each child & ask about which materials they are choosing & why. If they need assistance of course provide it but allow them to completely design & assemble it themselves. When they have finished set the cups upside down on paper to dry, while they are drying perhaps talk about recycling, why we all need to recycle & what things can & cannot be recycled. When the cups are dry, instruct the children to paint over a coat of lacquer or varnish, set the cups aside once more (if you wan to do more then one layer of varnish you can). When the cups have dried allow the children to have them on their desks to put their pencils, textas & pens in, or it could go on display (in a place where the children can easily view it) or make it into a gift (for Mothers or Fathers day).
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