Materials needed:
Washable paint
Construction paper
Yarn pieces, cut 6-12 inches
Clothespins (one for each piece of yarn)
Shallow paint dish
I liked the original idea of using black paint, so I kept it simple and only used one color. I have done this project before, but have never had any success because the kids tend not to want to stick their fingers into the paint dish to retrieve the paint-covered yarn. Even I don't like doing that. So I was very excited about using the idea of clothespins as yarn holders. It allowed the kids to be more successful and complete their creative process, rather than be "done" because their fingers are dirty.
We also noticed immediately that the weight of the string made a difference. The yarn really had to be saturated with paint in order to make contact with the paper and leave a print.
Some children waved the strings around and made strokes, some flopped it around the paper, and some flung it in the air before swatting the paper with it. It was fun watching how each child interacted with the materials.
They all turned out very unique!
If you do this project with your child at home (highly recommended! Might want to do it outside, though), I suggest you try string painting, too!
*Stephanie*
These are so great! I did a variation that was also cool. I had the students fold their paper and see what happens when you pull the string out. You have to hold the top with your hand. Don't know if that is too hard for a preschooler but it makes a variety of lines that are symmetrical!
ReplyDeleteThat sounds fun, too! We have "folders" in our group. Kids who like to fold and fold and fold until the painting becomes a compact little paint saturated block : )
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