M - Marble Painting

Materials: 

marbles, cups of paint, spoons, paper, cardboard box

Directions:

Cut paper to fit in the bottom of the box.  Drop marbles in the cups of paint.  With a spoon, remove the marbles and place them in the box.  Tilt the box, rolling the marbles around to make a design.

Adaptations:

Roll paper and place it inside a cheese ball container or similar cylinder.  Drop jingle bells in paint, then spoon into the container Put on the lid and shake. (Sing "Jingle Bells” as you shake.) Remove paper to see the jingle bell painting.

Use golf balls, rocks, and other objects to paint in a similar way.

More! 

Put a little water in a cup and add a squirt of food coloring. Let children dip marshmallows in the colored water and print on paper for M.  Clean up is easy!  MMMMM!

N - Negative Space

Materials: 

crayons, scissors, paper

Directions:

Have children cut a hole out of the middle of a sheet of paper.  Can they draw a picture incorporating the hole ("negative” space)?

Adaptations:

Let children tear holes out of a sheet of paper and exchange papers with a classmate. Use markers or paints to create objects around the hole.

More! 

You can also do nature prints for N by printing with leaves, feathers, and other natural objects.

O - Oil and Water

Materials: 

dry tempera, vegetable oil, tub of water, spoons, paper

Directions:

Mix one heaping teaspoon of powdered paint with 1/3 cup vegetable oil. (I like to use green and blue for this project because it looks like the earth.)

Fill the tub half full with water and dribble a little paint on the surface.  Hold the paper in both hands and gently lay on the water and then lift it off.  Dry.

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