Putting The Pretty In Preschool

Finding Beauty In Everyday Early Childhood Experiences

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Lighted Dinosaur Small World

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If there’s one thing I know, young children love playing with animal figurines. And in the realm of animals, dinosaurs are among their favorite. Setting up these fascinating creatures in a lighted dinosaur small world adds interest to their play.

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Supplies To Collect

The following easy-to-find supplies are in the dinosaur small world setup:

  • dinosaur figurines
  • artificial grass panels
  • artificial palm branches
  • wood slabs
  • small logs
  • small rocks
  • fillable eggs
  • marbles
  • blue placemat
  • sturdy blue paper
  • table cover
  • stage light

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The Lighted Dinosaur Small World

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This dinosaur-themed setup works perfectly on a table, or in an active world tray. I chose to decorate the table with a gold table cover. It fits the natural color scheme and works well with a professional stage light.

Artificial grass panels and palm branches provide ample ground cover for the dinosaur figurines.

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Small rocks, logs, and wood slices add nature pieces to the play invitation.

Fillable eggs and marbles are the dinosaur eggs, from which babies can hatch from.

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Curved lines cut from around the edge of a blue placemat or sturdy piece of paper provide a pond and add a dose of color to the scene.

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Shining a professional stage light on the display adds interest and beauty to the play invitation. The idea was inspired a stunning dinosaur display at a local museum.

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More Dinosaur Activities

Dinosaur and Sweet Potato Vine Activities

Dinosaur and Sunflower Sensory Bin

Polar Dinosaur Sensory Play

Dinosaur Valentine Craft

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More Small Worlds

Reptile Active World Tray

Cherry Blossom Tree Small World

Hockey Game Small World

Polar Bear Small World

Christmas Small World on the Light Table

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Balloon Painting Flower Art

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This balloon painting flower art is quick and easy to do and can make a room look cozier in no time. It is an unexpected, novel way to create art. Since children love activities with balloons, they’ll surely enjoy participating in this art invitation.

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Supplies To Collect

Gather the following supplies for this large-scale art project:

  • round balloons
  • tempera paints in a variety of colors
  • paper plates
  • 18-inch x 24-inch sturdy paper
  • paintbrushes and paint pots
  • sponge dish wands
  • thin metallic garland
  • white glue and glue paddle
  • scissors
  • waterproof table cover

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Balloon Painting Flower Art Set Up

To set up this art project, start by covering an art table with a waterproof table cover.

Next, blow up round balloons to about 1/3 their usual size. Small balloons work fine for this project.

Then pour tempera paint in a variety of colors onto paper plates.

Afterward, drop paint into small plates or paint pot lids and add a sponge dish wand into each one.

Set out the paint trays, balloons, dish wands, and large sheets of sturdy paper on the art table. Your painting invitation is now ready to go.

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The Balloon Painting Flower Art Project

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To create eye-catching balloon art flowers, press a balloon into one of the paint colors, lift it off, and carefully press it down onto a piece of sturdy paper.

Tip: The firmer a paint-dipped balloon is pressed on paper, the bigger the print. Pressing the balloon down gently creates a smaller print.

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Continue to make balloon prints. It’s fun to create flowers in hues of blue and green in addition to more commonly seen colors.

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Afterward, dip a sponge dish wand into a contrasting paint color and stamp a circle in the center of each flower-shaped print.

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When the roundish prints are dry, cut them out.

Then dip a paintbrush into a pot of green tempera and paint leaves and stems on a large sheet of cardstock paper.

For a shimmery look, add a line of white glue to each leaf and press on a strip of thin metallic garland.

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Next, glue the round, bold, balloon-painted flowers on top of the stems using white glue or a glue gun.

To embellish the flower centers, add a circle of glue to each one and affix a strip of thin metallic garland to each of them.

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You will have large-scale, stunning flower art ready for display.

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Related:

Tulip Art Painting Project

Dish Wand Print Flower Art

Flower Theme Activities

Mother’s Day Crafts and Gifts

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Paper Plate Sun Craft

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A few weeks ago, I was looking for tableware for a space kitchen dramatic play center and found speckled and silver supplies that fit the bill. These metallic rainbow plates gleamed next to the iridescent silver ones I chose, and caught my attention. It was a no-brainer to use them in an easy and cute paper plate sun craft.

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Supplies To Collect

Just the following few supplies are needed for this simple sun craft:

  • 9-inch metallic rainbow party plates
  • bright yellow cardstock paper
  • marker
  • glue stick
  • scissors and pencil

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Preparing The Paper Plate Sun Craft

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Craft preparation is easy for this paper plate sun craft. First, use a marker to draw lines along the ribs on the edge of 9-inch rainbow plate backs. The lines will be about two inches long.

Next, cut circles from bright yellow cardstock, about 6 inches in diameter.

Then choose a marker in a matching color to use for creating sun faces.

Set out a paper plate front side down and a pair of scissors for each child participating.

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The Paper Plate Sun Craft

For this craft, invite children to cut along the lines on the back side of their plate. This is great scissor skill practice.

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Next, have each participant draw a face on their yellow circle using a color that matches one of the metallic plate hues.

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After turning their paper plate right side up, give each child a glue stick to affix their yellow paper face to the center of their sun.

Finally, encourage participants to bend up every other fringed section on the edge of their plate to enhance the sun’s rays and create a 3D effect.

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The shiny, adorable paper pate suns beg to be displayed and will look cute together tacked to a bulletin board or wall.

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Variation of the Paper Plate Sun Craft

As an alternative to using metallic plates for this craft, offer plain white paper plates. Invite children to paint or color their plate yellow or orange, snip sun rays around the edge, and then glue on a round yellow paper face.

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Related:

Scented Moon Playdough

Outer Space Pretend Play

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Moon Colors Art Project

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This “moon colors” art project is inspired by a gorgeous spiral montage of 48 moon hues photographed over the years by Marcella Pace. The stunning image was selected by NASA as the Astronomy Photo of the Day and is available as an art print.

The surface of the moon is a dull grey color due to the combination of minerals present. The moon appears lighted because it reflects light from the sun. It sometimes appears to change colors due to its position in the sky and the atmospheric conditions present. At times it can appear red, pink, yellow, orange, or even blue. The impending arrival of these uniquely hued full moons is regularly announced on social media platforms such as Facebook or X, giving everyone a heads-up about when to search for them in the night sky.

Since I love to feature objects in unexpected colors in creative activities, this art activity features moons in a variety of colors using a simple salt and glue technique. I previously debuted this popular art activity on a grey paper moon base in a post titled Salt and Glue Moon Art.

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Colors of the Moon Art Supplies

Gather the following supplies for this striking moon art project:

  • 8 ½ inch x 11-inch cardstock paper in red, pink, yellow, orange, blue, turquoise, purple, and green hues
  • 9-inch x 12-inch black cardstock
  • white glue
  • glue paddle
  • disposable plate
  • table salt
  • small bowls or paint cups
  • spray adhesive
  • hot glue gun
  • table cover

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Colors of the Moon Art Process

To prepare this easy-to-do art activity, cut circles about 7 ½ inches in diameter from gray cardstock.

Next, set up a station for each child participating with a

  • cardstock paper circle
  • small bowl of salt and a teaspoon
  • container of white glue and glue paddle
  • disposable plate

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Invite little learners to drizzle white glue on their circle-shaped paper in a random manner.

Then have them sprinkle salt from a teaspoon over the glue, and shake excess salt onto their disposable plate.

Let the colorful art projects dry overnight.

To help preserve the moon art, spray each salted circle with adhesive spray. Hairspray works fine for this task too.

When thoroughly dry, adhere each salt and glue moon to a 9-inch x 12-inch sheet of black cardstock or construction paper background using a hot glue gun.

Display the striking moons on a bulletin board or wall. They will look amazing together!

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Different Moon Colors Explained

Red Moon

When the sun illuminates the whole moon in a lunar eclipse, it can appear red.

This moon is commonly called a “blood moon.”

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Yellow or Orange Moon

A yellow or orange moon is called a Harvest Moon since it is usually seen in late summer or early fall during harvest time. The moon can appear orange or yellow when it is close to the horizon.

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Pink Moon

The pink moon is the first full moon in April, and it only occasionally looks pink.

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Purple Moon

Although it doesn’t look purple the second full moon in April is called a purple moon. It has been photographed as purple in Marcella Pace.

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Blue Moon

The moon rarely appears blue. When it does look blue, the hue is the result of a huge amount of dust or smoke in the air due to a volcanic eruption or forest fire.

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Green Moon

There have been no sightings of a green moon. But it is fun to reimagine the moon in a green hue using the salt and glue art technique.

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Turquoise Moon

Like a green moon, a turquoise moon won’t be spotted in the night sky. It is also fun to create in art.

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Moon Colors In Art

Depicting different colors of the moon is popular in digital art and photos, and there are many beautiful moon artworks available. Why not join in the fun and create colorful moon art using the salt and glue technique?

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Related:

Scented Moon Playdough

Starry Sky Sensory Bin

Space Father’s Day Craft

Space Restaurant Dramatic Play

Watercolor Planets With Markers

Outer Space Pretend Play

Earth Day Heart Art

Earth Day Craft

Space Loose Parts Play

Space Theme Light Table

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Squish Painting Shamrock Art

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This March I needed to get new art up quickly, and decided to have my little learners participate in a squish painting shamrock art project. Squish painting is a quick and satisfying art activity that little children love to do. Using folded hearts for the art project, the shamrock art is effortless to create.

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Supplies To Collect

Gather the following supplies for this seasonal squish art activity:

  • magenta, green, and white tempera paint
  • magenta and green cardstock paper
  • manila tag paper
  • ruler, pencil, and scissors
  • paint pots and spoons

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The Squish Painting Art Project

To prepare this activity, start by tracing and cutting out hearts from sturdy paper. Manila tag paper works well for the project. It comes in 9 x 12-inch, 12 x 18-inch, or even 18 x 24-inch paper sizes. The larger-sized paper allows for cutting bigger hearts.

When finished with the cutting part, fold the hearts in half. 

Next, mix a little yellow into the green tempera paint to create a lighter brighter color.

Then set out green and white paint pots, and add a spoon to each one.

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Invite participants to spoon each paint color onto their hearts, then fold one side over the other.

Have children rub their hands over their heart halves to smooth out the paint.

Finally, ask them to open their hearts to see the new design created.

Shamrock Art Display

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To make a shamrock using the squish-painted hearts, group the hearts into three leaflets. Glue them to a large cardstock background or tape them to a wall. Then cut a long, thin petiole from green cardstock paper. Affix the petiole to the shamrock design.

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Variation of the Squish Painting Shamrock Art Project

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Introduce a new tempera paint color for an interesting way to vary this squish painting shamrock art project. Since shamrock plants also come in a purple variety called purple oxalis, using magenta paint instead of green is a natural fit for changing up the activity. 

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Related:

Shamrock Leaf Print Art

St. Patrick’s Day Sheep Craft

Shamrock Paper Plate Lion

Leprechaun Gnome Craft

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[Read more…] about Squish Painting Shamrock Art
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