We had our first snow day here at the farm! It may not seem like much to some, but this shut North Carolina down for three days! We had so much fun sledding, throwing snowballs, taking nature walks and sliding on all the icy puddles.
It was fun playing outside, until the wind began to blow hard, the sky turned grey and sleet began coming down sideways, making it impossible for two little ones to have fun in.
In between going outside to play, these littles needed something to focus on while we warmed up inside, so I thought that this would be a perfect time for a winter art project! I found this on Pinterest a while back and thought both of my kiddos would enjoy it. It’s a process art project, which means there’s no specific outcome, which makes it great for all ages.
All you’ll need is thick art paper, winter color paints (we used blue, white & silver), brushes, something to hold your paints, squeezable school glue & Epsom salt.
I invited the kids to explore their colors anyway they liked. They could use the brushes or fingers, or like Oakland, their entire hands! Olivia especially enjoyed watching her colors mix. Remember, it’s more about the process so let your kids just be creative!
Next, let the paint dry just a bit and then invite your kids to squeeze their glue in designs all over their paper. My kids absolutely loved this part because, seriously, I DO NOT invite to just freely squeeze glue everywhere. But hey, it’s also a pre-writing skill since it works those little hand muscles, so it’s a win-win! After you spread your glue, start sprinkling your Epsom salt on top.
I was surprised by how well my “almost two” year old understood “sprinkling” the salt onto the glue!
Here’s a close up of the finished projects. They turned out so pretty and my kids really enjoyed themselves during this. It took up a good chunk of time, without becoming too much for short attention spans, and also made some beautiful & unique pieces to display.
We went back out and played some more while our pictures dried. We ended this beautiful snow day by hanging up our sparkling winter artwork and warming up with hot chocolates! Give this art project a try and enjoy a winter wonderland inside no matter what the weather is outside!