Make an Oil Sun Catcher

What You Need:

• Construction paper in various colors
• Medium bowl
• Marker
• Scissors
• Baby oil
• Water
• Small plastic container
• Cotton swabs

What You Do:

1. Get started by having your child use a marker to trace around the medium bowl on a sheet of construction paper to create a circle. Have him cut out the circle (boost those fine motor skills!).
2. Before constructing the sun catcher, let him experiment making lines and designs on a sheet of white paper with crayons. Don't forget to encourage him with lots of positive praise.
3. Trade the paper and crayons for the construction paper circle. Explain to him that he won't be drawing with crayons—he'll use a cotton swab instead!
4. Pour a small amount of baby oil into the plastic container. Have him dip the cotton swab in the baby oil and draw lots of lines and scribbles on the construction paper circle. What does he think the baby oil will do to the paper?
5. Watch as the oil changes the construction paper! Did it change in the way he thought it would? For comparison, ask him to dip a cotton swab in water and see if it changes the construction paper the same way the baby oil did. Why does he think the baby oil makes interesting lines and water doesn't?
6. Encourage him to continue drawing designs on the sun catcher with the cotton swab.
7. When he's done painting, hang the finished sun catcher in a window and watch at it glows in the sunlight.