Plan some art activities that will also help to develop children's understanding of scientific concepts.
Finger painting.
Resources and ingredients
* Cornflour * water * colouring * flour * glycerine * starch granules * soap flakes * powder paint * paste * scented oils * sand * saucepan * bowl * mixer * boards * spoons * heavy paper
Preparation
* Homemade paste - mix one part flour, one part water and colouring.
* As above, but add one part salt.
* Whipped soap flakes - two cups warm water, one cup flakes, whisk and add colour (this mixture can clog drains!).
* Cornflour paste - three parts water, one part cornflour and colouring.
Boil water, mix cornflour with a little cold water, add to hot water, stirring all the time. Boil until thick and clear. Add colour. Cool before using.
* You can also paint with wallpaper paste. Try adding paint, sand or glitter.
The activity
* Use a formica-topped table or board and aprons.
* Pour any of the mixtures on a board (ideally outdoors) and get painting!
* Talk to children as they work.
* Make prints by covering pictures with paper and peeling off.
Roller ball.
Resources and ingredients
* Old bottles from roller deodorant * paper * paint
Preparation
* An adult should remove the ball from the top of each bottle with a knife.
* Wash the bottles and the balls thoroughly.
* Help the children to mix some paint (not too thick).
The activity
* Talk about the roller bottles and how they work.
* Pour the paint carefully into the bottles and replace the ball in the top of each.
* Use the bottles to paint patterns or pictures.
* Talk about how it feels when children draw with the roller and how the paint gets out of the bottles.
* Wash the bottles when you have finished and keep them to use again.
Brush painting.
Resources and ingredients
* Paint * paper * sticks or rulers * different types of brushes (paint, pastry, hair, nail, tooth, blusher, dustpan and decorating)
The activity
* Talk about the different sorts of brushes and their uses. Compare bristles by touch. Talk about the length and size of the bristles, and the different handles.
* Dip the brushes in the paint and use them to print and paint.
* Talk about the different marks.
* Now try using a stick or ruler to spatter paint by passing the stick across the bristles. (Always pull the stick towards you, or else you will get sprayed!)
* Talk about what happens.
String prints.
Resources and ingredients
* String or wool * paper * scissors * thick paint in saucers, plates or bowls
The activity
* Put a piece of paper (flattened out) on the table.
* Help children to choose a piece of string or wool and a paint colour.
* Put the string into the paint, leaving one end out of the paint.
* Lift the string out of the paint and put it on one half of the paper with the clean end off the edge of the paper.
* Fold the paper carefully in half over the string.
* Smooth the paper all over.
* Put a hand on top of the paper and gently pull the string out.
* Unfold the paper to reveal a symmetrical pattern.
* Talk about what has happened.
Mesh pad printing.
Resources and ingredients
* Nets from fruit and vegetables, old tights, net curtain etc *scissors * cotton wool * elastic bands * paint
The activity
* Feel different sorts of net. Talk about their uses and the purposes of net.
* Talk about the sorts of patterns they might make.
* Help the children to wrap net pieces round the cotton wool and fasten them with an elastic band or peg.
* Dip the pads in paint and print with them on the paper.
* Talk about what happens and the different prints made by the nets.
* Display the pictures with some examples of the nets you used to print them with.
Reader offer
* This is an extract from the activity book The Little Book of Science through Art (Featherstone Education, 5.99), compiled by the nursery staff at Wyvern Primary School in Leicester, with additional materials by Sally Featherstone. We have ten copies to give away to Nursery World readers. Send your name and address on a post card or envelope, marked 'Science through Art', to the address on page 3. The first ten names drawn on 26 September will win.
To order a copy of this book or others in the series, phone 0185 888 1212 (fax: 0185 8881360).
