Fingerprint Fish

What You Need:

• Black drawing paper, 8.5” x 11”
• Brightly colored tempera paint
• Paint dishes, or a paper plate
• Paintbrushes
• Crayons
• Newspaper

What You Do:

1. Ask your child what type of fish live in the ocean and what they look like.
2. Set out some paint in dishes and have your child practice dipping different parts of their fingertips, entire fingers, thumbprints and the sides of their hands into the paint and then pressing a print onto the newspaper. This will help guide them as to what shapes different parts of their hands can create.
3. Let them make as many prints of fish as they like using all different colors directly onto the black paper. They can test print shapes on newspaper to make sure the consistency of the paint is correct for the outcome they want.
4. Use the length of fingers to create jellyfish. Or, use multiple pinkie fingertip prints to create a school of fish.
5. Allow the paint to completely dry.
6. Go back in with wax crayons to add in fins, eyes, gills and any other information that creates a beautiful, brilliant habitat for deep sea fish.