Putting the Pretty In Preschool

Easy S’Mores Bars

November 28, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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This easy s’mores bars recipe comes from having forgotten to add wrapped round chocolates to October treat bags. Orange and purple don’t naturally transition into November activities, so I decided to use the chocolates in this melty dessert.

To add versatility to the recipe, I also feature chocolate coins and chocolates wrapped in Christmas style.

S’mores bars were originally classic campfire treats. Made indoors they can be enjoyed year-round. And little learners love to help make them!

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S’mores Bars Supplies To Collect

Just three ingredients are needed for this melty, tasty, indoor s'mores bars recipe.

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Gather the following ingredients and baking supplies:

toasted coconut marshmallows
coin-shaped chocolates
graham wafers or gluten-free crackers
parchment or wax paper
2 cookie sheet pans

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Making These Easy S’Mores Bars

Steps to make an easy sheet pan s'mores dessert recipe.

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Preheat an oven to 350 degrees.

Spread the graham wafers onto two sheet pans lined with parchment or wax paper.

Place a toasted coconut marshmallow on top of each wafer on one pan. Set unwrapped chocolates on the wafers on the other pan.

Heat both pans in the oven for three to five minutes. Watch carefully as the square halves can easily be overbaked.

Sandwich wafers with chocolate together with marshmallow wafers and place on a dessert plate. Serve when slightly cooled.

Delicious s'mores bars recipe using just three ingredients.

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Stacked s'mores bars made with an easy, three-ingredient recipe.

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Variations Of This S’Mores Bars Recipe

My recipe features gluten-free graham crackers. Graham wafers are a traditional choice.

Regular or mini marshmallows can be substituted for toasted coconut ones.

Creamy Hershey’s chocolate bar squares can be used instead of wrapped chocolates. And why not experiment with one of Hershey’s festive flavors, such as “Strawberries ‘n’ Cream, “Birthday Cake”, or “Cookies ‘n’ Mint.”

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Seasonal Recipes

If you wish to go seasonal and are up for a bit more challenge, try one of these ingenious s’mores bars recipes:

Fall S’mores (Recipe at southernfatty.com)

Christmas S’mores (Recipe at darcyandbrian.com)

Snowman S’mores (Recipe at kitchenfunwithmythreesons.com)

Valentine’s Day S’mores (Recipe at prettyinpistachio.com)

Easter Peeps S’mores (Recipe at domesticsuperhero.com)

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Or surround this gooey, three-ingredient s’mores bars dessert with seasonal décor.

Make this easy, three-ingredient s'mores bars recipe that takes a classic campfire treat indoors. Serve surrounded by festive decor at Christmas time.

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Edible Playdough Pumpkins

November 21, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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These easy to create edible playdough pumpkins depict the lumpy, bumpy, warty pumpkins that add contrast and edginess in fall decorating projects.

Warty pumpkins can be caused by any of the following:

a mosaic virus
growing conditions that are too cold and wet
insects feeding on young pumpkins

The result is warts that appear to be under the shell.

But some pumpkin varieties are grown especially for their bumpy look. They are genetically engineered and have been cross-pollinated many times. In these pumpkins, the ornamental bumps appear on top of the surface.

Warty pumpkins are trending in fall decorating projects. They add ornamentation, contrast, and edginess in displays.

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Peach Edible Playdough Recipe

This easy-to-make, no-cook playdough recipe is perfect for fashioning these trending pumpkins. I previously featured it (minus the orange color) in a chocolate chip sea star sculpting activity.

Creating warty pumpkins is easy and fun with white chocolate chips and an edible, no-cook playdough recipe.

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Ingredients To Collect:

1 cup store-bought vanilla frosting
1/2 cup cornstarch
1/4 cup icing sugar
¼ teaspoon peach icing color

Mix and knead the frosting, cornstarch, and icing sugar in a bowl. Then knead in the food coloring until it is completely blended. If the playdough is a little sticky, knead in a bit more cornstarch. If the dough is dry, add a spoon or two of frosting. You can also increase the amount of icing color for a darker peach shade.

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Making The Edible Playdough Pumpkins

A warty pumpkin-themed playdough tray with taste-safe, edible dough.

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Set out white chocolate chips, playdough, and pumpkin cookie cutters on a tray. A pumpkin ice cube tray and gem pumpkins could be included for more play opportunities.

Give each little learner a rolling pin.

Invite your little charges to create lumpy, bumpy pumpkins with the soft, silky dough, adding the chocolate chips for ornamentation. You might want to wait till they are almost finished using the playdough before you let on that it is edible. It is super sweet!

Creating pumpkins with warts is easy and fun with white chocolate chips and an edible playdough recipe.

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Tip: Using peach icing color works super well for this recipe, as the color comes out nice and bright.

Sculpt a trendy, warty pumpkin with edible peach playdough.

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For more food coloring tips, check out chefmaster.com.

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If this post inspires you to consider adding warty pumpkins to your garden next spring, the appropriately named Gargoyle, Knucklehead, and Goosebumps are some popular varieties to grow.

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Pet-Themed Playdough Tray

November 20, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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This fun-filled pet-themed playdough tray is bound to engage your little learners for a nice chunk of time. It will inspire meaningful conversations and imaginative play, and strengthen little fingers.

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Pet-Themed Playdough Tray Supplies

An inviting supply of cat and dog-themed playdough accessories. Links to three easy-to-make playdough recipes are included.

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Supplies in this playdough added, pet-themed loose parts tray:

cat and dog cookie cutters
cookie cutter bones
dog erasers
eraser bones
dog-themed buttons
miniature pet dish
lattice with bell cat toys

The supplies were gathered from a variety of places. The exquisite cookie cutters were purchased from a store with a generous baking supply section, and the jingly lattice balls and teeny tiny dog-themed buttons from dollar stores. The round dog erasers were salvaged from a book club promotion, and the miniature eraser bones came with a set of Valentine cards.

Super popular with my preschoolers, the dog and cat figurines were gathered from pet sets and a pet adoption game.

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Playdough Recipes

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Warm, earth-toned playdough colors work well with this pet-themed playdough tray.

My preschoolers used the loose parts with a red-orange pumpkin spice playdough, as it was still pretty fresh after our October pumpkin activities. Just to make sure the color was fit for this second topic, I did a quick online search for “orange cats,” and “orange dogs.” Lengthy lists of orange tabby felines and ginger canines came up, so I knew the spicy playdough could have a second life.

View my post “Pumpkin Playdough Activities“ for this aromatic recipe.

You could also offer a batch of my all-time favorite basic playdough or a tangy orange jello dough. And setting out all three hues would provide opportunities for creating patchwork pets, or patterned tabby cats.

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Pet-themed Playdough Play

Invite your early learners to make cookies, bury bones, and create textures and imprints with playdough and pet-themed loose parts.

Cat and dog playdough supplies that encourage creativity and imaginitive play.

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You could swap out or add additional supplies for pet-themed creation. Buttons for animal spots, cut pipe cleaners for whiskers, rope for collars, and wiggle eyes are some suggestions.

Can you think of other accessories to include in this tray? Leave a comment below.

This pet-themed playdough tray is filled with cat and dog supplies little learners will love to imagine and create with.

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Coffee Filter Poppy Art

November 10, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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Red poppies are available everywhere at the moment. That is because on November 11 our country (and many others), observe Remembrance Day. Ceremonies are held on this day at 11:00 a.m. in order to remember the soldiers who died in war or while performing military tasks. And the poppy is a symbol of Remembrance Day.

Art activities with poppies also help us remember. In this post, I feature a stunning coffee filter poppy art project in recognition of this day. But first, some poppy facts.

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Remembrance Day Poppy Facts

Since 1921, after World War I, the poppy flower is a reminder of the soldiers who died and those who serve courageously today.

People began wearing poppies inspired by the poem “In Flanders Field,” written by Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae. McCrae wrote the poem after seeing red poppies grow around the grave of a soldier friend.

This poppy is native to the eastern Mediterranean and grows easily in western Europe. The poppy’s seeds germinate in spring and only grow in recently disturbed land, such as places devastated by war.

In recognition of the soldiers, people wore real poppies at first. But eventually, they began to wear crafted ones.

Craft poppies have been sold for many years in order to raise money to support army veterans and their families.

Today, millions of poppies are sold throughout the world.

In Canada, poppies are worn from the last Friday in October up until Remembrance Day.

This year (2021) is the 100^th anniversary of the poppy.

Easy to create, stunning coffee filter poppy art.

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Coffee Filter Poppy Supplies To Collect

Like most of my craft ideas, supplies to collect for this project are simple. Gather together:

coffee filters
red, green, black, and orange non-permanent felt pens
water spray bottle
green and black fade resistant cardstock or construction paper
12-inch x 16-inch white art or construction paper
glue stick
plastic tub

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Creating The Coffee Filter Poppy Art

Cut coffee filters into poppy shapes. If helpful, download the pattern further in the post.

Have early learners color a coffee filter with felt pens, starting with a black or green round shape in the middle. The rest can be decorated in red and orange, or only red.

Supplies to make coffee filter poppy art.

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Add water to the spray bottle. Have children take turns squirting water on their paper filters in a plastic tub. Just a few squirts of water will blend colors nicely…easy does it for this project!

Dry the vibrant designs on a flat surface.

Note: The blended colors look quite dark at first, but will lighten as they dry.

Cut black or green stems and leaves from construction paper. Help little ones glue a stem, leaf, and poppy flower to a white art paper background. Add a favorite Remembrance Day saying if desired.

Easy and fun coffee filter Remembrance Day art activity.

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To insert a bud into the craft, little learners can decorate two coffee filters. After they dry, one can be folded twice, and glued on the picture as a poppy bud.

This showy poppy and bud art activity is easy and fun to create.

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Variation Of This Remembrance Day Craft

Instead of using coffee filters, have your little charges color a paper plate with felt pens. The plates can be precut in a poppy shape. The downloadable pattern below may be helpful.

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Poppy Pattern Printable Download

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When coloring, the poppy centers can be drawn with a felt pen or filled in with a grey, black or green crayon.

Have little learners spray their design with water afterward. Or invite them to paint over the felt pen colors with water. This will create a watercolor effect without needing to use watercolor paints!

This paper plate version dries fast. The curved edges of the plates add a 3D element to the project.

For a finishing touch, early learners can glue on a large button to the middle.

A paint-over-felt pen technique adds a watercolor effect to this paper plate poppy.

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Eye Dropper Leaf Art

November 7, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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Young children love variety in painting tools, so they will welcome this eye dropper leaf art activity. Using liquid watercolors ensures that the art will be bright and cheerful. And who wouldn’t want to squeeze in just a little more splashy color before the winter season sets in!

The large leaves for this project are inspired by the many leaf paintings by American artist Georgia O’Keefe. Georgia loved the colors and shapes in fall leaves and painted them to completely fill her canvasses.

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Supplies To Collect

For this easy to do art activity, collect the following:

liquid watercolors
paper towel roll
eye droppers or pipettes
paint containers
leaf templates

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Creating The Eye Dropper Leaf Art

Steps to creating beautiful eye dropper leaf art on paper towel designs.

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Draw or trace large leaves onto a paper towel roll. You may need two attached sections for each leaf if you go big, as Georgia O’Keefe did. I used oversized wall art leaves as templates and cut out a few different types.

Mix liquid watercolors of choice with a little water, and pour into paint trays. Featured are magenta, orange, and green hues.

Invite children to use eye droppers or pipettes to drip paint on their paper towel leaves.

A paper towel pattern accents the design in this eye dropper-painted maple leaf.

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When filled with color, dry the leaves on a flat surface.

Tip: Maple leaf designs work especially well for this activity. Little learners enjoy accenting their many curves and pointy edges.

Eye-catching leaf painting activity using an eye dropper technique.

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The colorful leaves can be displayed as-is, or mounted on cardstock.

Note: Because paper towel is so absorbent and the colors spread quickly, large shapes are perfect for this craft. And a paper towel canvas adds a unique texture to the art.

Eye dropper painting technique on paper towel leaves.

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Variations Of This Eye Dropper Leaf Art Project

Invite your little charges to drop paint onto leaves cut from sturdy art paper. I used 11-inch x 14-inch, 98 lb, mixed media paper for the leaves.

Steps to create eye dropper and blow dryer painted leaves.

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The paint will pool and start to blend slowly. As the art dries, invite little learners to check back periodically to observe the color changes.

In the completed project, I used a blow dryer set on low to hurry the drying process. It was fun and created a uniquely blended earthy-hued color combination.

A blow dryer painting technique yields beautiful results on a maple leaf cut out.

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Tip: For young children, I recommend inviting them to blow the paint around with straws instead of a blow dryer.

Copy paper also works for this drippy art activity. Below, the maple leaf is cut from 11-inch x 17-inch paper and decorated in two colors. This version dries the quickest.

Eye dropper painting on a maple leaf with magenta and orange liquid watercolors.

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Little learners can get overwhelmed with having to decorate a large canvas. But with this activity, bigger is better!

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Coffee Filter Sunflower Craft

November 6, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

Create stunning coffee filter sunflowers in two different ways. An easy to do, all-ages craft and science project.

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Although it is early November in Alberta, this coffee filter sunflower craft shows that we are not done with color! The fall season in our area of the world is filled with bright, flamboyant hues. But it goes by quickly, and we often get early snows we are not quite ready for.

Aside from being colorful, this craft is easy for little learners to do. And toddlers can join in too!

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Supplies To Collect

As with many of my craft ideas, the supplies for this project are easy to find. Gather together the following:

coffee filters
non-permanent felt pens in yellow, red, orange, and brown
orange craft foam
yellow, red, and orange fade-resistant cardstock or construction paper
water spray bottle
12-inch x 12-inch white or complementary hued cardstock
glue stick
plastic tub

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Creating The Coffee Filter Sunflower Craft

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Invite little learners to color coffee filters with non-permanent felt pens. If interested, they can color more than one.

Afterward, each child can take a turn spraying their works of art with a few squirts of water. Placing the designs in a plastic tub helps contain the liquid. Everyone will love this color blending phase!

Let the moistened coffee filter canvases dry on a flat surface.

Tip: Children enjoy the squirting phase so much that they are tempted to blast all the color out of their masterpieces. That’s why encouraging your little charges to decorate at least two coffee filters works well. Then they could wet one design with about five squirts of water, and save it to craft a sunflower with. And they could squirt the rest of their designs with as much liquid as they like.

Cut large circles from the orange foam. Ask little learners to use a glue stick or white glue to adhere a circle to the middle of one of their artsy coffee filters.

Next, have everyone glue a stem and two leaves precut from construction paper to a 12-inch x 12-inch piece of cardstock. Children can choose one color or a variety of colors for these sunflower parts. The printable below may be a helpful template.

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Sunflower Pattern DownloadDownload

This printable is for individual or one classroom use only.

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To finish the project off, have them glue on the sunflower head.

This coffee filter sunflower craft looks stunning displayed.

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Bright sunflower art with felt pens and coffee filters.

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Felt pen-decorated coffee filter sunflowers that are easy to make.

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Variation Of This Coffee Filter Sunflower Craft

Steps to creating a sunflower with a scrunched tissue center.

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Instead of a foam center, have children glue brown tissue squares to a large sunflower middle cut from similar colored construction paper. They can scrunch the squares, dip them into white glue, and stick them to the circle. When dry, the crafts can be completed as above.

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Related: Activities With Sunflowers

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Turtle Pond Sensory Bin

November 4, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

Easy to sert up nature-based tutle pond sensory bin.

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Why debut a turtle pond sensory bin, eggs included, in fall? Because although we generally associate spring as the time for baby animals to be born, many turtle hatchlings peck out of their shells in autumn.

And…because I have a light-up “toss and dive” turtle set that I’ve longed to use for over two years! I never stored it in a permanent spot because I was always planning to do a pond activity “very soon.” But with so many fantastic curriculum ideas to choose from every week, “soon” never came.

So this September as I was reorganizing storage areas, I noticed the colorful turtles once again. I googled “turtles in fall” to see how I could use them alongside typical fall themes such as leaves, pumpkins, bats, and spiders. Finding that turtle eggs and hatchlings are part of the fall season motivated me to include the diving turtles in a sensory activity at this time.

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Ten Turtle Reproduction Facts

Although turtles spend a lot of time in water, nearly all lay their eggs on land.
Many turtles lay a clutch of eggs in about 3 – 6 weeks after mating.
Mother turtles dig a nest in sandy or wet dirt with their hind legs. They cover the eggs laid in the nest with soil and plants.
Depending on turtle size and species, there can be from 5 to 100 eggs in a clutch.
Most turtles don’t guard their nests, leaving right afterwards.
It takes the baby turtles two to three months to hatch.
Most hatch in autumn, pecking their way out with an egg tooth.
These fall babies often stay in the nest through winter and emerge the following spring.
They survive their first winter by not eating and living on their own fat reserves. Some can handle cold temperatures and may even produce a sort of antifreeze.
Only a few turtles survive to adulthood. Turtle eggs and hatchlings have many predators.

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Turtle Pond Supplies To Collect

Loose parts for a turtle-themed sensory bin.

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A turtle-themed sensory bin can be set up very quickly with the following supplies:

kitchen supply bus bin
turtle figurines
rocks of varying sizes
small logs or twigs
gemstone slices
real or artificial leaves
marbles
small disposable food container with a ridge
a large piece of brown craft foam

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Making The Turtle Pond Sensory Bin

Nature[ based, easy to set up turtle pond sensory bin.

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Pour a layer of water into the bin. I used a kitchen bus bin for this activity.

Add rocks, logs, and gemstone slices.

Cut a few curves around the edge of the foam, and a hole in the middle just big enough to fit the disposable container. Float the foam in the water.

Set the disposable container in the hole to represent a turtle nest.

Add marble “eggs” to it. I used blue marbles because they were handy, but real turtle eggs are white or cream-colored.

This turtle pond sensory bin includes a sunken nest with "eggs."

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Surround the “nest” with a few craft or real leaves for covering the eggs up.

Add turtle figurines. Three light-up “toss and dive” turtles are the stars of this sensory bin, but any turtle figurines would be heartily welcomed by early learners.

Three "toss and dive" turtles are the stars of this pond sensory bin.

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Spider Theme Activities

October 31, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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For years I have been collecting supplies for spider theme activities. And fall is the best time to add to the theme, as spider décor and toys are everywhere in stores.

But I’ve been hesitant to do a whole theme about these little crawlers. That might involve just too many spiders for some children’s comfort!

This fall I decided to introduce just a few spidery things in the classroom, and touch on the theme a little more than usual. I added spider activities sequentially over a two-week period. It didn’t hurt that a family on the route to preschool positioned a humungous spider on top of their home, with a web that extended from rooftop to ground. I’m sure this helped break the topic in!

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Here are some spider theme activities we completed. They would work well for the children in your life too.

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Spider Mask

Easily transform into a spider with this easy papercraft mask.

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First, we decorated a spider mask. I used a wooden puppet as a template and traced it on pieces of black cardstock. I cut out enough spider masks for each child to have one and then glued on little orange hats. Each preschooler glammed up a mask with sticker gems. Afterward, I punched holes on each side of the masks and attached 18-inch pieces of thin elastic cord. The activity went over well, and children were happy to pose for pictures wearing their masks.

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Spidery Dramatic Play

Oh so fun spider-themed accessories for the play kitchen.

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Next, I added a few spider décor pieces to a pumpkin store and play kitchen. The items were a hit with everyone, and both centers were popular play areas for the children.

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Spiders and Spouts Sensory Tray

An Itsy Bitsy Spider inspired construction and sensory tray little learners will love.

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The following week I added a “Spiders And Spouts” sensory tray, inspired by the Itsy Bitsy Spider sensory tub blog post by Rubber Boots And Elf Shoes.

For the tray, I selected tubes from a sports net, a musical instrument set, a marble run toy, and a construction set. I added paper webs, spiders in many sizes, and bug viewers.

We followed up the sensory play with Itsy Bitsy Spider nursery rhyme picture books. Some favorites were:

The Itsy Bitsy Spider by Joe Rhatigan

Pete The Cat And The Itsy Bitsy Spider by James Dean

The Eency Weensy Spider by Mary Ann Hoberman

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Other Good Spider Books

We also squeezed in the storybooks “Aranea: A Story About A Spider” by Jenny Wagner, and “The Very Busy Spider” by Eric Carle.

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Spider Math Tray

Once the children thoroughly explored the spiders and spouts tray, it was turned into a Math center where students could roll a dice and put the correct number of spiders on a paper web. They could also add in tiny ants as prey.

Bring on the math with spiders and dice counting game.

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Spider Web Printable

Feel free to download this printable for use in a sensory or math center.

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Spider Web PrintableDownload

This printable is for personal or one classroom use only.

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Gross Motor Activities

Finally, we had spoon races with spiders, and used bouncy spider balls in our gymnasium. Playing with the bouncy balls was definitely the favorite activity of the children.

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Spider balls to get little learners moving.

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Floral Decorated Skeleton

October 30, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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It’s always a treat to check the latest trends in home décor and craft stores, and this fall the offerings did not disappoint. Design ideas that stood out from the crowd were the floral accents on skeletons in wall art, sculptures, and figurines spotted at Michael’s stores. The pastel flowers totally romanticized and softened skeletons and skulls, and made them super fun.

Little learners can experience and create a floral decorated skeleton with a nature-themed transient art opportunity.

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Floral Decorated Skeleton Supplies To Collect

Gather the following supplies for this invitation to create:

flowers

tray

large model skeleton

large frame

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Decorating The Skeleton

Set a skeleton in a frame and add floral accents to soften up the look.

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On a table, set a skeleton model inside a 16-inch x 20-inch art frame.

Arrange flower heads in a tray. Mine were picked from begonias and marigolds grown in my yard over the summer: end-of-season plants that were about to freeze over due to frosty fall mornings.

A nature tray filled with flowers ready to be used for crafts, playdough, and sensory play.

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Invite early learners to decorate the skeleton with flowers.

Yellow and orange flowers brighten up this skeleton and allow children to become floral designers.

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You might enjoy adding floral touches to the skeleton too!

Yellow marigolds brighten up this skeleton and allow children to become floral designers.

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Pink begonia flowers soften up this skeleton and give young children a chance to be floral designers.

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Felt Pen Chromatography Experiment

October 30, 2021 by Annette Kaminsky Leave a Comment

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This felt pen chromatography experiment uses supplies from the kitchen, has quick results, and can be tailored to a variety of topics. Creativity and center play is easily incorporated. And the experiment is super family-friendly.

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Basic Felt Pen Chromatography Experiment

See what colors felt pens are really made up of with this felt pen chromatography experiment.

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The simplest version of this experiment is to draw three filled-in circles with nonpermanent felt pens near the bottom of a section of paper towel.

Add a thin layer of water with 2.5 ml salt stirred in to a measuring cup or jar. Place the towel with the colored side down into the container. The water level should sit just below the felt pen colors.

Simply watch what happens!

After the color movement stops, remove the paper towel from the container and let it dry flat. Discuss the color changes/new color results.

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Felt Pen Chromatography Experiment Scary House

Scary house imaginative play with a felt pen experiment chromatogram.

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Although I am not into scary things and don’t do much frightening stuff with my preschool students, this version of the experiment produces a house that bats and spiders might like to inhabit. And here’s where the creative element kicks into high gear.

Draw the outline of a house on a paper towel section with a black nonpermanent felt pen. Trim the edges with scissors. Then add a thin line of black to the bottom of the house with the felt pen. Pour a little water with a bit of salt added into an ice cream pail. Position the paper towel so it reaches the bottom of the pail but does not slide in. Watch the immediate results. Then check back periodically to note more color changes.

This easy-to-do felt pen chromatography experiment has stunning results.

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When the colors have finished spreading, take the paper towel out of the pail, and dry it flat.

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Tip: Choose nonwashable felt pens for this experiment, as washable felt pens do not work well.

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The color on my paper towel chromatogram stopped just short of the top of the house. I decided to wet the top a bit so the color filled in completely. That made the design ready to be a placemat for pumpkins, bats, and spiders.

Try this easy-to-do felt pen chromatography "scary house" experiment. It has possibilities for art and imaginaive play.

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Two Felt Pen Chromatography Experiment

Try this easy felt pen chromatography experiment using a permanent and nonpermanent felt pen.

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Using both permanent and nonpermanent black felt pens produces nice results too. For this second version, draw the house on the paper towel with a black permanent felt pen. Then fill in the thin line of color at the bottom with a nonpermanent felt pen. Finish the experiment with the same process as above.

As with the first project, the resulting colors did not spread to the very top of the paper towel house. So I wet the top of this chromatogram too. The color record looks like a house on fire to me, so adding people, pets, firefighters, and orange, black, and clear gems creates another imaginative play invitation.

Sensory and imaginative play with a felt pen experiment chromatogram.

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Firefighter diorama created with a felt pen experiment chromatogram.

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Interpreting The Felt Pen Chromatography Experiment

The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines chromatography as “a process in which a chemical mixture carried by a liquid or gas is separated into components as a result of differential distribution of the solutes as they flow around or over a stationary liquid or solid phase.”

Although each felt pen appears to be just one color, the hues are actually made up of different chemicals called pigments. As saltwater seeps up stationary paper towels, the pigments move up with it. New colors appear because some pigments travel faster than others, and certain colors are less soluble and/or adhere to the paper towel more.

Each color-infused paper towel is called a chromatogram, a graphic record of the separation of colors into different pigments by chromatography.

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