Autumn Leaves Art for Preschoolers

Autumn in my yard

I heard a desperate scream when I walked past our storage area this morning. "I'm suffocating! Does anybody care?!"

I went to investigate.

It was the art storage drawers - bursting at their seams from the mighty stacks of art work done by Cookie since the time she was able to sit up. In numerical terms, it's three years' worth of doodling, finger painting, paintings with various objects, crafts and so on. Extrapolate that by a frequency of about two to three times a week of art activities both at home and at her playgroups and playschool.

I've been holding on to every single piece like a forlorn lover refusing to let go of her beau's hand. No wonder even the drawers are screaming. I clearly need to detox the storage spaces. Like, pronto.

 

Until then, here's to more art work.

If you live in a tropical climate, don't let the absence of autumn be a show stopper to try out this art project with your little one. It is one of my favourites for Cookie. It teaches her about colour combination and to colour within boundaries, as well trains her in fine motor skills and dexterity. It is so simple to do and looks stunning in the end. The best part is, it is rather hassle-free to put together and uses a piece of scrap which would otherwise end up in the bin.

THIS. Yes, this.

The humble toilet paper roll tube.

Grab a few of these tubes. Simply cut out rings of about 3cm each. Gently bend each ring into an oblong-like shape. Other things you would need: glue, a coloured paper (I used yellow), a white drawing paper, paints (in autumn colours eg red, orange, green) and paint brushes.

By looking at the following photo, I'm sure you will be able to figure out the steps to assemble the items for your little artist. So, I won't bore you with the details. Just remember to glue the petals (the oblong shaped pieces) onto the paper and give them some time to dry before painting.

TA-DA! The result of Cookie's hard work. From a humble beginning to a frame-worthy autumn art masterpiece :)

I would love to see the outcome of your little one's effort. Send me your photos via email at lovepgblog@gmail.com. I'll be delighted to put up their masterpieces in a future post.

Have fun!