Preschool Art Program

With COVID numbers on the rise, my library focused on providing a lot of programming this summer to be virtual. But, in order to make it a little more special once in a while, we also create kits to pick up to supplement what we could do online. The most recent program we offered for our PreK kids, was a Preschool Art Program. This was a difficult one to create. It’s hard to find creative art activities that could be all-inclusive in a kit to pick up. Typically, we’d have things that can be done by a group but may need to be shared, like sensory tables, paints, playdough, etc.

This program definitely required a parent/guardian to be on hand to help. And after doing the program with our preschoolers, it may have worked better with elementary school kids. But, in the end, it was something a little different from our typical storytimes and I think families are appreciative of special activities for their kids.

Program Plan

Chromatography Butterflies – Buggy and Buddy

I started with these beautiful chromatography butterflies. In each kit, the kids received three coffee filters with the colors already on them. Each child received one that was black or brown (the best colors to view) and then two other colors. They also received three 1/2 pipe cleaners in shades of brown to create the body and antennae.

Stripes, Spots or Diamonds by Patricia Stockland

While we were waiting for our butterfly colors to bleed, we read this fun book about animal patterns. I didn’t read all the pages, but the kids loved yelling out the different animals and I tried to share a fact or two about each animal. What I loved is that this book includes a lot of great back matter which I explained to the families. Nonfiction is often overlooked in storytime and this is a perfect example of great nonfiction for storytime.

Tissue Paper Painting – Kitchen Table Classroom

If you’ve got the right type of tissue paper, this is a really cool color bleeding activity! Once the paper dries, kids can then use it to write a letter or draw a picture over the top of the color! For each kit, the kids received a white piece of cardstock, a paintbrush, and about 20 squares of tissue paper. We found some tissue paper online already cut into small squares, which worked perfectly for this project.

Max the Brave by Ed Vere

I love this sweet story about a brave little kitty searching for a mouse to chase. Ed Vere’s artistic style is full of bright, bold colors and works perfectly to complement an art program. If you haven’t heard Emily Arrow’s song version of this book, you need to check it out too!

Bendy Snakes – I Heart Crafty Things

This was a pretty simple activity that needs only limited supplies. Cut up straws, a pipe cleaner or two, and a few cut-outs for the snake head and tongue. The hardest part was to knot the top and bottom of the snake body to prevent the straws from sliding off.

Conclusion

Overall, this was a fun preschool art program, probably a little easier if we could have done it in person, but I’m glad we’re keeping our youngest patrons safe!