There’s lots of research about the importance of play in early childhood and I dare say that it is always important with play – no matter what age you are.

Whether doing an art project with kids or nurturing our own painting practice – it doesn’t have to be more than a few minutes to make an impact on our wellbeing.

It doesn’t have to look a certain way or take a long time either.

If we become an example, children will embrace their creative energy too.

7 Easy Art Projects for Pre-School Kids

I’m grateful that my children see me in the studio and often join me in painting. They love to be creative – in fact our large kitchen table is covered in drawings every day.

To help myself parent, I draw upon the spirit of play and use art as a simple way to build connection, skills and move through stressful times with my children. The key word is ‘easy’ and using materials we already have at home.

Want to easily tap into your own creativity with just 20 minutes a day? Check out my 8-Day Painting Challenge.

I’ve put together 7 easy art projects for pre-school children that I use all the time so you can do playful play without the overwhelm. I invite you to bookmark this page and return to it as much as you need it, whenever you need that extra support as a parent, or share it with a friend ahead of the upcoming pre-school break.

Color Mixology:

What two colors make a new color? If you combine two primary colors with each other, you get a secondary color. My three year old especially enjoys this one, and to my surprise, knows the answers better than I did.

Use the kids’ watercolors (make sure they are clean for true color mixing), then let the kids mix two colors together to see what new color it becomes. If you want to guide them along, how about asking:

• If you mix red and blue, what do you get? (violet).
• If you mix, yellow and red, what do you get? (orange)
• How about blue and yellow? (green)
• What happens when you mix two secondary colors, like green and orange?

The point is not to teach primary or secondary (that’s just for your knowledge), but to be curious about colors.

Paint a Portrait:

Pick a favorite animal to paint or paint portraits of all the family members. We have two cats in our family and Mason likes drawing them (now with his Tombow markers but as a pre-schooler these washable markers), while Elise painted all of the family members in the photo below. I love this developmental stage where it’s one head and lines for arms and legs. This is the only time that happens so make sure you save these!

Remember to have fun with it – it can be any animal, fictional character or Aunt Betty. It makes for great frameable art!

Draw a map for a backyard treasure hunt:

We enjoy drawing a map of our backyard for a treasure hunt and mark the spot where the treasure is hidden. If Mason is in charge of drawing the map, he is also the one who hides the “treasure” for us to find. The treasure can be anything – the main thing is the drawing of the map and the thrill of the hunt. I’ve used old toys, popcorn filled easter eggs (yup, they work year around) or a wrapped surprise to share. A tip is for the grownup to hide the treasure in a brown paper bag so it’s a surprise for even the child who drew the map. Ask the kid who drew the map for two clues as you’re treasure hunting for some extra fun.

The map doesn’t have to be accurate or even resemble your garden. When Elise was a toddler, she just scribbled something on a paper and out we went to find our treasure! I didn’t even have time to hide a treasure! It’s all in the imagination. Allow it to be whatever it will.

Paint clay pots:

For Elise’s 3rd birthday party, all the children painted clay pots. Then we filled the clay pots with dirt and planted sunflower seeds grown in our garden. This became their gift to take home. I bought the pots and brushes in bulk.

Spring time is especially lovely for this activity. We paint the pots outside with outdoor acrylic paint, then sow some flowers, or simply add them to the vegetable garden as decorations. It makes for sentimental gift to the grandparents.

Draw a movie ticket:

We enjoy watching movies together at home and sometimes we make it extra exciting (and it gives me a few extra minutes to finishing something) by drawing movie tickets for everyone. Then we line up outside the living room to have our tickets taken by one of the kids. You can do tickets for anything really. They’ve drawn their own tickets for bath time for example (I even got a shower ticket – score!), but how about a ticket to the playground? Or to play with the train set?

Art hunt in the garden: 

Go outside and hunt for 5 things from the backyard (or wherever you are) and bring them inside to either paint (i.e. paint the leaf you found) or try and copy it onto your paper. This is a great activity in the fall when all the fall leaves have such rich colors. Rocks, leaves, sticks, flowers, berries, bark, seedpods, nuts, shells… list is long and children are so resourceful they’ll have no problem finding 5 things.

Paint an abstract painting:

My children have dipped into my Liquitex acrylic paints since they were old enough to sit (see this 4th generation highlight on my instagram). Once in a while I let them use a gallery wrapped canvas I have on hand, and the results have been my most treasured possessions. I have this canvas paper pad on hand for the other times.

Using a stretch canvas instantly elevates the art and can make it more fun for the child to play with ‘grown up’ art. We hand up a lot of the kids’ art. Some of the gallery wrapped canvases hang by the front entrance, others are covering the walls in the playroom.

Pre-packaged art projects

Sometimes when I’m at the art store they have kids painting kits and art projects on clearance so I pick up a few. It’s a great seasonal activity too (I picked up some Christmas related art activities recently and store them in the attic until I need them). These art kits are great gift from grandparents. Sometimes an art project comes with enough material to share too, and sometimes it’s a full hour or focus for one. 

We love giving away art projects as gifts and often make the birthday cards to the cousins. Mason has done a painting for his baby sister which now hangs in her room. He painted a wonderful acrylic painting for his dad for Father’s Day as a 2 year old, and gave his grandmother a Valentine’s Day painting. Why not draw a portrait of a family member for their next birthday and frame it, and give that as a gift? Or do portraits of the family pet at different ages (of the kid) to see how their skills and imagination evolves. Group the paintings together for a fun and gallery wall.

If I need a bit of inspiration and fun (or break), we join the free art activities at our local public library. I look through their program for the season and add them to our family google calendar.

Some tips for embracing the mess and big feelings

With art often comes a bit of a mess. If messes feel overwhelming to you, make sure you’re in a good mental state first, then think about what will make the art more enjoyable for you before you start. How about some protective clothing for the children or some old tea towels? Maybe have a canvas dropcloth handy to avoid marks on the kitchen table? I’ve used this one for over a decade.

To keep the mess contained when using acrylic paints, use individual paint tubs and fill them with very little paint, or use a paper plate and drop a dollop of paint onto each. That way if the child accidentally mixes the paint or spills, it won’t be a waste or big mess. Always provide a piece of paper towel and encourage them to help clean up.

Handling big feelings and mistakes

Sometimes big feelings happen because we’re asking our children to do things they don’t have the skills to do. For example, it can be challenging for a toddler to hold a paint brush like a grownup without having mastered the pincer grip (the coordination of your index finger and thumb), or sharing ones watercolors. How can you help your child paint using all fingers instead? These watercolors are affordable so each child be responsible for their own colors.

If the child is older, big feelings can also happen if they feel they’ve made a mistake. I know my son is like that. I try to remind Mason that there are no mistakes in art… or how we can use it into our art piece. Try to make art open-ended without ‘right’ or ‘wrong’. Ask them how can we transform it into something you like?

While I encourage big feelings in our household, sometimes I make it easier for myself and have them on opposite sides of the table and give individual placemats or trays as clear boundaries. It avoids one child “accidentally” drawing on another child’s art piece, and to share markers and paints.

BOOK RECOMMENDATION: We’ve really enjoyed Ellie by Mike Wu to share the magic of painting, and Beautiful Oops by Barney Saltzberg to share how there are no mistakes in art.

Inspiring kids art social media accounts to follow

For extra inspiration, we have a few favorite kids art social media accounts I follow:

• We love watching Kylee Makes It on YouTube. She does all sorts of crafts and educates while she creates. It’s a calm and enriching program.
• Cassie Stewens, an elementary school teacher, gives me some easy ideas to incorporate while we create.
• Mason will be home for the summer and filling up a list with some fun ideas, including art projects from Art for Kids Hub and Lets Make Art Kids.

That’s it for now. I hope these has given you lots of ideas to fill up your Spring break, summer holiday or the next time the kids are sick. Help a parent out and share this – we can always use easy activities.

If you’re looking for an easy art project for yourself, check out my 8-Day Painting Challenge so you can gently tap into your own creativity, joy and wellbeing. This challenge helps you tune into the whispers of inspiration in your daily life. It’s the perfect place to unwind and be inspired, plus you’re only recommended to paint for 15-30 minutes each day.

xo,

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