C REATIVE A RT W ITH Y OUNG C HILDREN By Kristina Faudree and Jen Beakas

“I T ’ S THE P ROCESS, NOT THE P RODUCT !” It means NOT having bulletin boards covered with 24 identical penguins and you saying, “But I let them glue the eyes wherever they wanted.” It means not “making” the kids do art It means having HUGE sheets of paper available It means seeing the possibility of painting with things other than brushes It means no more dittos, patterns and cut out art It means that a copy machine is NOT required It means it doesn’t have to look like anything. Ever. Even if it is “fish week” It means being aware of the stages of scribbling It means not making models or examples for the children It means not drawing for the child It means refraining from over commenting

If it takes you longer to get it ready than it takes them to do it… chances are it is not process oriented art! If the parents come in, look at the bulletin board and whisper in your ear, “What is it?”, you are on the right track! Their art will not and should not “look like something”.

T IPS FOR “P LAYING ” WITH A RT Set up a creation station Have an easel to be available at all times Children must have on “play clothes”

C REATIVE A RT A CTIVITIES Bath puffs Bubble wrap prints Car tracks Colored glue designs Crayon melting Fish prints Glitter and glue Golf ball painting Lego prints Lipstick kisses Nose painting Nylons filled with popcorn Plungers prints Q-tip painting Roller brushes Shaving cream Shoe painting Straw blowing designs Toothbrushes Swinging on your tummy

S HOPPING ON THE S IDE OF THE R OAD Milk Crates Cones Construction Hats PVC pipe and connectors (big and little) 5-Gallon Water Bottles Ladders Painter Pails Tires Hubcaps Big Wire/Cable Spools Hose Clothing Bottles filled with mysterious colored liquid Shoes Plastic bags that are full and bundled on the side of the road Things to Keep Things to Leave Alone

I TEMS F OR Y OUR C UPBOARD Baking Soda Beans Bingo Dots Bird Seed Blocks Books Blankets Borax Cars Corn Meal Cornstarch Crayons Cream of Tartar Dawn Soap Dolls/Dollhouse Dress Up Clothes Flax Seed Flour Food Colors Gelatin & Knox Glue Ivory Soap Loose Parts for the yard Markers Masking Tape Mud Oil Paper Pillows Rice Rock Salt Salt Sand Sand Toys Shaving Cream Sheets Spaghetti Tempra Paint Trucks Various Brushes Vinegar Water Watercolor Paint

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