Celebrate St. Patrick's Day with your child by painting the rolling green fields of Ireland! He'll immerse himself in the artistic process as he creates his landscape, and will learn about the color wheel and hone his fine motor skills, too. Looking to sneak in a little more learning? Try talking to him about texture and pattern for a quick lesson on art and design.
What You Need:
- White or light colored paper
- Tempera paints in white, blue, and yellow
- Thick and thin paint brushes
- Paint palette or washable tray
What You Do:
- Have your child mix the blue and yellow tempera paints together to make green. Encourage him to experiment with different proportions of each color and to try adding white to create different shades of green. As he mixes, talk about the color wheel with your child. Which colors make purple? How about orange?
- Before he begins painting, explain to your child that he will be creating a landscape painting inspired by the Irish countryside. Talk about what a landscape painting is, and look at examples of landscape paintings and photos of Ireland online for inspiration.
- Now it's time to paint. Taking cues from the photos of Ireland you looked at online, have your child paint his own interpretation of an Irish landscape, complete with rolling green hills, wildflowers, and maybe a fence or two.
- Once he's done painting, set aside his artwork to dry.
Now that it's dry, frame your landscape painting and hang it for all to admire!
By Erica Loop
Erica Loop has a MS in Applied Developmental Psychology from the University of Pittsburgh's School of Education. She has many years of teaching experience working in early childhood education, and as an arts educator at the Carnegie Museum of Art in Pittsburgh.
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