Kids Art Projects Using Leaves, Crayons, Clay, Painting, Video

One of the easiest ways to come up with art project ideas is to do it through themes and seasons. If you’re lucky enough to live in a region that actually has an autumn—living in San Diego, we don’t quite get the beautiful fall trees that can be found in other places—then you’re probably surrounded by fall leaves. Studying leaves helps children learn about seasons and why they happen year after year. Using leaves in your projects is also a great way to integrate science and bring the subject into your visual arts. Because leaves exist in so many sizes—from tiny to large—and so many colors—from green, to brown, to orange—they can provide an inspiring platform for students to jump off and come up with interesting creations.    

Leaf Field Collecting

Give kids a basket or a reusable plastic bag (such as Ziploc) and head outdoors so they can gather their own leaves in the sizes and colors that catch their eyes. This part is so much fun and sparks up great botany conversations. In my book art education books,  I discuss the benefits of connecting students’ senses to the topics your teaching in the classroom or at home. By integrating them into your art projects, you’re helping to strengthen their ability to understand and recall learned ideas from their memory.  

Collecting Tip: Leaves are fragile so the first thing you want to tell kids is to handle them with care.

Leaves collected from the ground are much more fragile than freshly picked leaves off trees.

 

There are so many creative possibilities when it comes to using leaves as art projects, here are just a few ideas to get you started.  

Idea #1: Leaf Crayon Rubbing

Check out the video above for full details, or follow the instructions below.

Simple Steps:

1. Place leaf facing down, vein side up.
2. Place white paper on top of leaf.
3. Hold paper and leaf firmly so they don’t move.
4. Take crayon and start rubbing over the leaf area.
5. The impression of your leaf should show up!

Idea #2: Leaf Pressing

Pressing leaves is a wonderful way to teach children how botanists preserve specimens. This activity can lead to many different types of art projects can down the road, such as leaf painting (see Idea #3, below). You can also let children come up with their own ideas of what to do with their pressed leaves once they’re done.

Simple Steps:

1. Gently wipe off any dirt from the leaf.
2. Place the leaf between newspaper sheets or in pages of a book.
3. Place a note card with the date collected and any information gathered about the leaf, in a safe place so that you can retrieve it once the leaf is pressed.
4. Pile a small stack of heavy books on top of the pages and press for 1 to 24 hours.

 

Idea #3: Leaf Painting

Allow your students to use leaves as a canvas and get creative with paint.

Simple Steps:

1. Press leaves first—they are easier to paint when flattened.
2. Select bright paint colors—acrylic, tempera, gauche, or craft paint will work best.
3. Paint leaf with paintbrush as desired.
4. Set aside to dry, then decorate note cards or other art projects with them.

Idea #4: Clay Leaf Fossils

A great way to show children how fossils are created is by compressing leaves into wet clay!

Simple Steps:

1. Roll out a flat slab of clay with a rolling pin. Use air dry model clay (which dries overnight), or white polymer clay (bakes to harden).
2. Place leaf, with veins facing down, onto the clay and firmly but gently press the compression by hand or with a rolling pin.
3. Carefully remove the leaf by pulling it by the stem.
4. Bake or leave to air dry.

Optional: paint fossil

The key to coming up with more engaging and exciting projects is understanding how kids learn and what would interest them.

 

http://www.ecokidsart.com/kids-art-project-rainforest-inspiration/