When a colleague shared this amazing October art, it reminded me we haven’t had any art activities recently, so how about some October art fun for kids?
Fall announces itself with bright, warm colors. For inspiration, maybe take a walk with kids just to notice the red, yellow, orange, and brown. Check out trees, flowers, berries, and plants. If you are at the store, there could be shining orange pumpkins, red apples, golden pears, and various colored squash. So much to see.
After eyes have had a chance to look at these colors, kids can sort thru the crayons, chalk, paint, and markers they have at home. This is a thinking challenge for brains that have to remember the colors and then match them. It involves more than memory as kids compare a crayon in the hand to one in the head. Then, they have to come to a decision do they match or not. Not only is the brain visualizing, but it’s evaluating too. That’s a great deal of thinking to find some fall colors.
Once kids have picked out some colors to use, they can draw with them. If might only be some scribbly lines, or it might be a detailed picture. Whatever it is, kids are sharing their impressions. The creation may have nothing to do with fall. Kids may have come up with something entirely different.
Sometimes, as adults we say we can’t draw. Really, we can all draw, but some people are better at it than others. Do we ever say we can’t run? We may not all be Olympic or marathon runners, but we can still ran. The same is true for drawing. When we compare what we cook to chefs, we may not be able to create what they can, but we can still cook. Kids can all draw too. Not all children will have the same interest in drawing, but it’s an activity they can certainly all enjoy. Think of crayons, paints, markers, and chalk as toys. Instead of expecting art work, the marks kids make on paper or sidewalks are art play. Kids are exploring and creating, engaged in another way to interact and make their mark on the world. What might your child do for some October art fun and play?
P.S. Thank you Roberta Malasomma for your art and inspiration!
P. P.S. You are invited to share your child’ art work play too on 123kindergarten’s Facebook page.
Sidewalks are like arenas for chalk art. Kids can draw in a much larger scale than with paper. When playing with chalk in driveways, be very careful of cars.
Outside or indoors, kids can paint. Did you see how artistically the walls are painted in Olympic facilities? A backyard fence makes a good wall and the paint can be plain water. Fill a bucket, give kids a wide brush and let them 
Besides paper, kids may enjoy painting on a large box. Several paper towel and tissue rolls dipped into different colors make an entire page of Olympic rings.
Art happens in 2-d and 3-d. The recycling basket often holds some great items for re-created art. So do kitchen cupboards. The wheels and the bottle cap on this picture are round like Olympic medals and make great art.
