An Afternoon in the Sun

An afternoon in the Sun
Bringing Art Outside with stuff in and around the house and yard

1.) Decorate the garden with branch trimmings and wool, string, ribbon, cloth, keys, shiny paper, feathers; anything that you can find that will shine, shimmer, or tie.
Add on long strings or pieces of cloth to catch the wind.

2.) Help kids create their own garden – let them choose the flowers and colors, add other outside art projects to brighten up their garden. Paint a garden sign, paint flower pots, paint rocks – create rock animals, paint bark, wood, old chairs. This can be an ongoing summer project.

3.) Make wind chimes with sticks (chop sticks make a great frame), shells, old nuts and bolts, keys, whatever you can find in the garage / shed.

4.) Make your own personalized hula hoop with colored ribbon and colored tape
Add beans or rice to the inside to make a musical hula hoop
The poly tubing usually used for irrigation is ideal for making hula hoops. Most hoopers use either 160 psi 3/4" diameter pipe (my favorite) or 100 psi 1" diameter. If you want a lighter hoop, or are making them for kids, use 100 psi 3/4" tubing. (Note: 160 psi 1" will make a very heavy hoop.) Tubing usually comes in 100 foot coils, and can be found at irrigation supply stores, and at some Home Depot and Lowe's-type retailers. (Prices range from $15-25 per 100' -- enough for 8 hoops)
Choose your hoop size - and cut. (My hoops are usually between 11'6" and 13' in circumference, but instead of measuring you could just make a loop that stands somewhere between navel and shoulder height.) You could use a hacksaw or a sturdy blade, but to make a safe, clean & easy cut, I've invested in a $12 ratcheting PVC cutter. It works beautifully.

5.) Chalk on driveway. Get the 3D chalk or the paintable chalk for some added fun. Chalk washes away with rain so let the kids go crazy!
Try making a chalk city with roads for toy cars, practice shapes, numbers, and letters.

6.) Paintbrushes and water on driveway, side of the house, a board. Great for young kids that loved to stuff things in their mouth!!!!!!

7.) Make a set of binoculars out of toilet tubes or egg cartons. Bring the camera (digital or their own disposable) on a nature walk with your binoculars and take pictures of what you discover. Get them to collect things along the walk. They can create a photo album or collage for their wall.

8.) Create a treasure map of your backyard. Follow along with your binoculars and find the hidden treasure. You can even make the ‘treasure’ together and bury it to find later.

9.) Make a kite. It is as simple as a sheet of paper and string. If you already have a kite, design a tail for better flying.

1.) Lay your paper down horizontally. Place the long sides of the paper on
top and bottom. This will help you get ready to make your own paper kite.
2.) Fold the paper in half and leave it folded. Do not unfold or your kite
will not be a success.
3.) Mark a point on the top edge 1/2-inch (12mm) in from the center fold.
4.) Mark a point on the bottom edge 3 inches (7.5 cm) in from the other side.
5.) Draw a line between the two points. Fold along this angled line.
6.) Pinch the first fold (the one straight down the center) to hold it closed,
as you fold back the wings along the second, angled fold line. You now have
the basic shape of the kite.
7.) Secure it together with a line of tape down the seam between the wings.
8.) Tape your stick across the top of the wings, horizontally, in line with
the side points.
9.) Use a hole-puncher to make a hole in the bottom flap, about one third of
the length from the narrower end of the flap (top of kite).
10.) Tie your kite string through the hole. Secure with a firm but gentle knot.
11.) Make a tail. This can easily be achieved by taping a length of ribbon,
plastic tape, strips of newspaper, etc. to the bottom end of the kite.
12.) Decorate your kite. Add sparkles, glitter; etc. Use pencils, pens and
paints to decorate. Do not attach anything extra or you will have an
unbalanced kite.

10.) Something on the messier and high energy side is squirt guns filled with watered down paint, shot at paper or an old sheet.

11.) Buckets of watered down paint with tennis balls. Kids can throw these paint filled balls at paper or a sheet up against a fence, side of the shed. The impact creates a splatter effect.

Bring out the sprinkler on days like these.

12.) Recycled Box designs – from small orange boxes to large fridge boxes. Make bird houses, playhouses, and insect collection boxes, make car garages for you chalk city. Or just give them some paint and a box and come up with the use later.

13.) Collect plastic containers wash them out and decorate them for storage. Puzzle pieces, jewels, or create buckets out of them by adding a handle for bugs, worms, or shells at the beach.

14.) Take beads outside. For younger ages, use larger beads and pipe cleaner. You will be amazed watching your 2 year old thread beads onto a pipe cleaner. For older kids, use beads and fishing line.

You can really bring all sorts of fun art stuff outside. Just set them up in a nice shady spot and get the imaginations soaring. From laying on your backs and finding shapes in the clouds to detailed treasure maps your limits are endless.

If you have a fun, outside art idea to share, please make a comment or post it on our facebook page. Search ‘Creative Exploration’ to join our group.

Spring Program details 2010

Spring Calendar

May 13th Explore the world of stamping. Use and create your own stamps and take home ideas to make stamps with things around the house.
-stamps and ink, sticky back foam and TP rolls, matte board cut outs, potatoes, paint and egg beaters

May 27th Dive into your senses with textures. Children will explore different textures through finger paint to buckets of goop.
-play dough with different textures, salt and paint, foam paint and combs, bucket of cornmeal goop, mixing and making your own goop, finger painting on sand paper, flour tray with toys

June 10th The Crazy world of PAINT! This fun class will teach children that there is more to painting then a paint brush and paint! They will paint with marbles, cars and trucks, spaghetti, salad spinners…and more!

June 24th Get Sticky and Build!!! Glues, tapes, stickers, what kinds of creation can you make from your recycling? This class will have no boundaries on how much tape or glue you need. Have fun taping and piling boxes watch them get higher and fall over. How high can you build your tower? There will be tin foil and crayons available to decorate these amazing towers.