Spring is in the air, and it’s the perfect time to get creative with the little learners in your care. As flowers bloom and the weather warms up, there are so many fun ways to bring the season into your early learning program. Process art projects, with their emphasis on hands-on exploration and creativity, are a particularly good playful learning activity for enjoying the colors and textures of Spring. In this article, we share spring-themed process art activities for preschoolers that are easy to set up, and rich in learning opportunities.
Process art offers rich developmental benefits for preschoolers. Here are just a few examples:
Process art projects give little ones a chance to practice and develop a variety of skills, while expressing their creativity and having fun!
This activity is a great way to use any extra scrap paper you might have in your classroom. To prepare, you’ll need construction or craft paper (printed or plain), glue sticks, and something to glue the paper onto (this could be recycled pieces of cardboard or thick card stock paper).
Start by cutting the paper into flower petal shapes. If you work with toddlers or younger preschoolers, you will likely have to prepare this step for them. Older children will enjoy making their flower petals themselves. As you cut out the pieces, ensure that there are also a few circle pieces that children can use for the flower centers. Then, invite the children to glue the petals onto the paper to create flowers, encouraging them to be creative and to make their flower entirely their own. Once they’re done, display their works of art in your classroom to be admired!
This simple activity encourages children to spend time outside and connect with nature. To set up this sensory experience, you’ll need the following items: clear tape, craft sticks (glued together into a frame shape), flower and leaf trimmings, glue, markers, sticky paper, and twine to hang the frames (you can also use ribbon, string, pipe cleaners, etc.). You’ll start by preparing the frames and contact paper that will become the canvas for your suncatchers. To make each frame, glue 4 popsicle sticks together into a square. Once the glue has dried, stick sheets of contact paper onto each one, leaving one sticky side for little ones to stick their items onto. Finally, create a way to hang up the suncatcher by taping a piece of string, twine, ribbon (or whatever you have available) to the top of the frame.
Once you are ready to get started, take the children into your yard and help them find fallen leaves, flower petals, and small twigs. Give each child a frame and encourage them to stick their nature findings onto the contact paper. Then, invite them to decorate the frames by coloring them with markers. If you’d like to add to this part of the project, you might also offer stickers, paints, or other materials to the children so they can decorate the frames. Once they’re done, hang them in the window of your classroom so that the sun can shine through!
This simple activity is easy to set up and requires only a few items – many of which you probably already have in your classroom! You’ll need paper plates, popsicle sticks, glue, and tissue paper cut into small pieces.
To prepare for the activity, cut the paper plates in half and make sure that the tissue paper is cut into small pieces. Offer the activity to little ones, encouraging them to glue the tissue paper pieces onto the paper plate to create a colorful umbrella. For this step, you might offer paintbrushes along with the glue so that the glue can be spread into a thin layer onto the plate. Once the children have decorated the umbrella, add an umbrella handle to each by helping the children glue a popsicle stick onto the back of their decorated plates.
The best part about this activity is that you can make it your own based on what you have available in your classroom. For example, if you don’t have tissue paper you might use watercolors, tempera paint, stickers, glitter glue, do-a-dot markers, or anything else you have on hand – the possibilities are endless!
