Painting with Nature

Now that fall is upon us, it’s no longer uncomfortable to be outside, so we can now start enjoying the outdoors!  This is the perfect time to engage in family walks – not only is it great excercise and a great way to bond as a family, but it’s also an opportunity for ART!  Painting with nature is fun, easy and very educational for the kiddos! So how exactly do you paint with nature?

Perhaps enjoy a fall picnic with your kiddos, and then take a walk with your kids and start looking around (make sure you take a bag or bucket with you to carry your items) for items that have a different texture. Look everywhere and keep your mind open because anything goes when painting with nature! Make sure you talk about the texture and color with your kids! There are so many ways to learn during this activity. Here are a few ideas to get you started.

Ideas for Painting with Nature

• Corn Cob (there are 3 ways you can paint with corn cobs: the husk, the cob with corn on it and the cob with the corn taken off)
• Acorns
• Wildflowers
• Leaves
• Walnuts (These work well in a bin with your child holding the bin and rolling them around in the paint)
• Pine Needles
• Pine Cones
• Rocks
• Sticks

Get your work station ready and your supplies out. It may be better to have this activity outside if you are able to otherwise just cover your table with a trash bag or some other kind of covering to try to contain the mess. Washable kids paint is always best that way they can paint their masterpiece and not worry about messing up their clothes!

Set out different colors of paint for them to choose from. I find that small bowls work well but if you have a muffin tin that actually works best. You can put many different colors in the tin and you only have one thing to wash….. not counting your child. 🙂

Set out all their nature “paintbrushes” that you collected and let them start painting. Refrain from showing your kids how to do it… instead let them figure out how it works. All kids will work differently when painting with nature. Some will dip and drag the items and some will dip and roll. Some will even paint their hands instead! There are no right or wrong ways with this activity so just let them have fun and enjoy it.

Painting with nature can be a really fun activity and what better way to spend time with your child than by taking a fun walk and creating something from it! Make sure you let your kids create their project all by themselves without instructions from you. It will teach them independence and they will sure be proud of something that they created themselves. Try joining them and making your own masterpiece it really is a lot of fun!

Let me know what items you end up using when painting with nature!