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20 Ways to Get Arty Outdoors

Art projects for kids_Taking art outdoors

Keeping with this month’s theme of heading outdoors with your kids here are 20 creative ways to take art outside!

Painting

bark_painting

1. Paint onto bark instead of paper.

2. Take the easel into the backyard and encourage your child to paint something they can see outside.

3. Paint with water! Just give your child a cup of water and a paintbrush.

4. Have a go at creating natural paints by grinding soft rocks to make a powder, then mixing with a little water.  Paint using only fingers either onto rock, or onto paper.

Creative-activities-for-kids-Paint-with-feathers

5. Use different natural elements as paintbrushes. Feathers, sticks and leaves of varying thicknesses can all work well.

Drawing

6. Sketch a tree, flower or insect with a lead pencil only.  Encourage your child to draw the features they see.


7. Make leaf rubbings by colouring over leaves placed under paper.  Remember to put the leaves vein-side-up for best results.

8. Draw with ice.  Ice cubes can be used as drawing implements on concrete paths and driveways in summer. Or add a little food colouring before freezing and use on paper.

9. Draw with chalk, pastels or charcoal.  These soft mediums are lovely to work with, but can be very messy so great to take outside.

10. Use a stick to draw or write in sand or soil.  A sandpit makes a great canvas, but a quiet stretch of beach is even better.

Sculpture

11. Collect natural elements (sticks, stones, shells, leaves, etc) and create a sculpture with playdough.  Older children may like to use a hot glue gun to make a more permanent sculpture.


12. Weave with long leaves, feathers, grasses or pieces of bark.  To make a simple weaving loom, wrap wool around a piece of cardboard spacing evenly, and attach at both ends.

13. Hang natural elements from a branch to form a mobile.  Some items may need a hole drilled into them for threading, others may be simply tied.


14. Create ground art by using natural elements directly on the ground. Take a photo of finished work.  This art work can be as big as your child likes!

15. Add eyes and other features to rocks to create imaginary creatures.

Other

16. Collect natural elements and use to create a collage.


17. Press leaves and flowers between heavy books.

18. Let your child use a digital camera outside! You might be surprised at what they capture and even frame one of their images.

19. Make prints with leaves.  Roll paint directly onto the leaves with a small roller and print on paper.

20. Just lie back and watch the clouds together. What pictures can you see in the clouds…?

I hope this list kick starts your creativity and encourages you to get arty outdoors with the kids this week.  As always with children’s art, remember that the process is far more important than the end product.  It is in the process of art-making that skills are developed, creativity is fostered and little imaginations take flight.  I can think of no better backdrop to inspire your kids than nature itself.

Have you already tried any of these suggestions?  What other ideas for creating art outdoors can you share?

For more fun creative art ideas for kids, check out Christie’s book, Time to Create: Hands On Explorations in Process Art

Time to Create by Christie Burnett

Catherine Oehlman (aka SquiggleMum) is a mother, teacher, writer, picture book lover, outdoor play advocate, coffee drinker and self confessed bird-nerd.  She still climbs trees and eats fairy bread – with or without her two young kids!  You can find Cath squiggling about topics close to her heart online and in print, or catch her weekly on Brisbane radio.

Filed Under: Art, Outdoor Fun Tagged With: kids art

Previous post: Get Outdoors: Fun in a Cardboard Box
Next post: Preventing Iron Deficiency in Toddlers

Read the comments or scroll down to add your own:

  1. Kylie says

    April 27, 2011 at 9:15 AM

    Oh wow Love these ideas!!!! Fantastic Blog!
    • SquiggleMum says

      April 27, 2011 at 6:53 PM

      Thanks Kylie. Hope you enjoy doing some of them!
  2. Debi says

    April 27, 2011 at 9:16 AM

    What fantastic ideas - I love having so many in one place! We're feeling inspired to create a butterfly or bug garden on the sidewalk with chalk.
    • SquiggleMum says

      April 27, 2011 at 6:54 PM

      You know I want to see a pic of the chalk bug garden Debi...
  3. sarah says

    April 27, 2011 at 1:53 PM

    Great ideas Cath. My kids really love drawing in the sand when we visit the beach, and creating gorgeous (and unexpected) designs from found objects - shells, seaweed, driftwood - in a similar manner as your #14. We've also had a bit of sketching from life happening here lately - a tree with autumn leaves, a purple iris bloom, a sunflower.
    • SquiggleMum says

      April 27, 2011 at 6:55 PM

      Sketching is so underrated, don't you think Sarah? We're so quick to put felt pens into kids' hands, but what they can do with a simple lead pencil can be amazing.
  4. Ali says

    April 27, 2011 at 3:05 PM

    I love these idea's and the collage is so beautiful, my two still love to bug hunt then draw all of the bugs they found which makes for a really pleasant few hours :)
  5. Amanda - Busy Brissy Mum says

    April 27, 2011 at 4:04 PM

    That is one great list, Cath!
  6. Trish says

    April 27, 2011 at 5:55 PM

    such great ideas to keep you busy every day !
  7. abbie says

    April 28, 2011 at 1:31 AM

    This is a great post with some awesome ideas! Thanks so much for sharing. We will be trying a lot of these out this summer.
  8. Todd @zerotofamily says

    April 28, 2011 at 8:32 AM

    I love #18. My 3 year old gets awesome pics now and then.
    • SquiggleMum says

      April 28, 2011 at 2:55 PM

      My 4yr old takes some awesome pics these days, and even my 2yr old gets the occasional good shot!
  9. Jason says

    August 14, 2012 at 7:26 PM

    Nice work Cath (Squigglemum). I have posted your link to my Pinterest page so our au pairs can see your fun activities. Keep up the great work :-) Jason & the team @ TheBestAupair
  10. Emma Baker says

    July 29, 2013 at 7:37 AM

    Hello Christie I am a landscape architect (Brisbane, Queensland) who is currently designing a children's experiential garden and would love to utilise one of your images (woven natural found objects) on an image board for my proposal. Would you please allow me to copy this beautiful image - I would be most grateful Kind Regards Emma
    • SquiggleMum says

      July 29, 2013 at 11:40 AM

      Hi Emma, If it's ok with Christie, you have my permission to use the photograph in your proposal. Great to hear of the work you're doing! Warmly, Cath (aka SquiggleMum).

Trackbacks

  1. Amazing Art Adventures | Not Just Cute says:
    April 29, 2011 at 4:28 PM
    [...] you get some natural science in, a little extra Vitamin D, and less clean up stress) there are 20 Ways to Get Artsy Outdoors over at Childhood 101.  And, speaking of Childhood 101, for those of you who still haven’t [...]
  2. This Week on Tot Thoughts (April 25 – 30) | Tot Thoughts says:
    April 30, 2011 at 10:18 PM
    [...] 20 ways to inspire children’s naturalist intelligence. [...]
  3. {Getting Artsy Outdoors} Lots of Great Projects! | MPM School Supplies Blog says:
    September 13, 2011 at 1:43 AM
    [...] upon this article by Catherine Oehlman, creator of the site, SquiggleMum, and guest blogger at Childhood 101. She offers tons of fantastic ideas for getting creative in the great outdoors! We especially [...]
  4. 30 Blogs with Creative Ways to Get Kids Away from the TV | Nanny Websites says:
    August 13, 2013 at 10:50 PM
    [...] Kids Art: 20 Ways to Get Arty Outdoors [...]
  5. How Do I Teach Nature Study? Day 2: Stop, Look, and Listen | Are We There Yet? says:
    August 20, 2013 at 10:13 PM
    [...] 20 ways to get arty outdoors [...]
  6. 5 fun games for the family to play at the park | Kidspot says:
    March 20, 2014 at 3:05 AM
    […] Race each other to explore the park and collect bits and pieces of nature, setting a different challenge for each race. For example, nine red leaves, five pine cones, three seed pods. You could also hunt for gum nuts, rocks, feathers – choose things that are very easy to find in your local park, and a few that are a bit trickier to discover. Use your collections to play and create. […]
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