Paint Brushes Recalled

I know when I was responsible for buying for my centers or family child care, Discount School Supply often saved the day with their low prices. And I loved the BioColor line of art supplies. Some of you out there are probably like me, and if so be aware that some of their paint brushes have been recalled because of high lead paint content.

Three Men in a Tub Art

For nursery rhyme week, one of the art projects that you can complete goes with the nursery rhyme "Three Men in a Tub."

First you're going to want either white construction paper or light blue construction paper. If you choose white then you can use other pieces of construction paper to represent the ocean and the sky or you can have the children use crayons or colored pencils or markers to add these touches.

Second you're going to want to either cut some brown "tubs." You may not know this, but the tub that is in the rhyme is actually more like half a whiskey barrel rather than an actual bathtub.

Now, you can have each child place their hand on the larger piece of construction paper and you can trace around it or if they're older they can trace around themselves -- but don't trace around the whole hand. You only want to trace around the three middle fingers.

The children can then glue the boat on top of the fingers, letting the top stick out just a bit since these represent each of the three men. They can then decorate their fingers with happy faces and hats or hair if they wish. And of course, they can add bits of construction paper or drawing to represent the ocean and sky.

Here's my 5 second sketch of horrendousness, but it should look something like this:

Spider Webs

These spider webs look great when hung in random corners around the room. What I like to do is let them dry and then attach a white string with a construction paper spider cut-out that has the child's face mounted on. I'll wait until all the children are gone to hang these in various places and they love going and looking for their own the next day when they arrive.

You'll need:

• A round cake pan



• Black construction paper



• White paint



• Marbles

Use the cake pan as a template and trace around the outside. Cut enough off the edges so that the paper fits inside the pan. You'll need one paper for each child.

When it's time for the activity, place the paper inside the pan, then add a small spoonful of white paint right in the middle of the paper. Put the marble in the pan and allow the child to tilt and move the pan around to make the web.

Do not hang these to dry as there can still be a big clump of paint in the middle that will run. Lay these flat. Also, I use a white colored pencil to mark names or initials on the backs of the papers before they begin painting.

Sponge Painting a Jack-o-Lantern

You can sponge paint a Jack-o-Lantern by using the sponge painting tips here.

You'll need:

• Orange Paint



• Black Paint



• Paper Plates



• Sponges



• Clothespins

Have the children first sponge paint a paper plate orange. This serves as the pumpkin base. Then use the black paint to sponge paint eyes, nose and mouth. Hang to dry.

For younger children, if you want to offer some guidance about where eyes and mouths go, you can draw a face with a Sharpie before painting begins or you can hang pictures of real Jack-o-Lanterns in the area where art is being done that day. Some children will never have seen one before, so an example can be nice, but you don't want to provide so much guidance that it's not a free activity or that it drains all the creativity out of their art. :)

Easy, Almost Mess-Free Sponge Painting

If you like the look of sponge painting, but not always the mess, try this tip: Cut the sponges into small squares, about 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 inches. Then place the sponge pieces in the jaws of a clothespin. The clothespin acts sort of like a paintbrush handle.

This is a great way to use multiple colors. Just make several clothespins and then use small cups or bowls with a little paint in them. It's also a way to conserve sponges and use up the random bits of a sponge that you've cut for another activity.

Making Colored Sand or Salt

Here's a movie of my kid and I making some colored salt...



As you can see, these are pretty easy to make. I know the big name guys like Discount School Supply sell this stuff inexpensively, but really, you can make it yourself and use the money you'd save on some colored butcher rolls. (Always seems like there's never enough of that...)