Preschool Express by Jean Warren

	Invite your children to join you one at a time.
	Help each child paint one hand and part of their arm with green tempera paint.
	Have children hold their middle three fingers straight and touching each other, with the thumb and little finger stretched out.
	Then have them make a green arm and hand print on their papers.
	Set out a dishpan filled with warm soapy water and some sponges to help the children clean their arms and hands.
	When the paint is dry, have each child draw a happy face on his or her cactus.

HAND PRINT SPIDERS
	Set out black paint and brushes, plus some white paper.
	Have your child paint four fingers and part of her palm on one hand.
	Then, holding her thumb out of the way, press her painted fingers down on a piece of paper.
	Repaint the four fingers and partial palm and this time press the fingers down next to the first print but with the fingers pointing in the opposite direction.
	Now, you should see an eight legged black spider crawling across the paper.

SUNFLOWERS
Here is a bright and cheery hand art activity.

	Set out a small cake pan filled with ¼” of yellow tempera paint.
	Have child place one hand into the paint and make a print of the yellow hand on a large piece of paper.
	Then have your child repeat the action, by moving the paper slightly and pressing down the palm in the same spot, but with the fingers moving around in a circle.
	This will create a flower with yellow petals.
	When the yellow paint is dry, have child paint the center of their flower brown.
Extension Ideas:
	Have your child use green paint to paint on a stem and leaves.
	Let children glue on real sunflower seeds onto the brown centers of their flowers.
	Add additional paper and let your child create a really long stem.
	For younger children, you may want to give them brown paper circles to glue to the center of their handprints, rather than having them paint the centers brown.

RAINBOW FISH
This is always a fun and easy project with young children. You will need a variety of colors of paint and brushes.

	Hold out one hand, palm up.
	Paint stripes of colors vertically across palm.
	Press hand on blue paper (thumb stuck out a little.)
	When dry, add a black eye and mouth to fish.

TULIPS
Here is a fun Spring Hand Art activity.

Set out some red, yellow or pink paint and some brushes.

Give your child a piece of white paper, approximately 9" x 12".

Have your child paint the palm of one hand with the paint.

Then, have them press their palm on the top of their paper.

Let the paint dry, then give your child a green paper stem and some leaves to glue onto their hand print to make a tulip picture.

BIRDS IN A NEST

	Have your child paint their hand blue this time.
	Next, have them spread their fingers and make an impression in the middle of a piece of paper.
	When the print is dry, give her a nest shape (1/2 circle), cut from a tan piece of paper.
	Have her glue the nest across the bottom of the blue impression.
	You now should have a nest with 5 blue birds in it.
	Let your children add eyes and v beaks with a thin black marking pen.
	Have your child hold up her bird picture as you sing the song "Two Blue Birds" at the Music Station.

KISSING SWANS

Here is a different hand art activity for Valentine’s Day.

Cut a large heart shape for your child from a 12” x 18” piece of red construction paper.

Set out some white tempera paint.

Help your child by painting each of his hands white.

Then, have him spread his thumbs out so they are touching each other at the top (like two swans kissing). Their other fingers will represent the swan’s feathers.

Have your child, then make an impression of his hands in the middle of his red heart shape.

When he lifts his hands off of the paper, he will find two white swans kissing.

HOLIDAY WREATH

	Make a 5 inch wide, heavy white paper wreath for your child.
	The easiest way to make the wreath, would be to place a cup upside-down on a piece of paper and draw around the cup. This will we the center of the wreath.
	Next, remove the cup and measure out 5" at certain points all around the circle and then draw another circle 5" out from the smaller circle.
	Finally, cut out the wreath.
	Take a paper towel and fold it in fourth and lay it on a small plate.
	Next, pour some green tempera paint on the paper towel.
	Have your child dip her hand into the paint and make hand prints all around the wreath in one direction. Overlapping handprints look best but individual ones are ok, too.
	Tape on a red bow when the wreath is dry and then, hang it up.

Variation: Instead of a wreath, you can make a holiday swag by cutting out whatever shape you want from heavy paper and having your children make green bough prints all over it.

SNOWFLAKES

	Set out a small plate with a folded paper towel on top.
	Pour some white tempera paint on the plate.
	Give your child a piece of colored construction paper.
	Have him dip his hand into the white paint and make 4-6 hand prints on his paper - in a circle from an imaginary center. Fingers should point outward from the center.

Variation: These large snowflakes are pretty as is or you can let your child sprinkle on some white or clear glitter when the paint is still wet.

HAND PRINT TURKEYS
This activity has always been a favorite with young children, especially at Thanksgiving time.

	Set out some brown paint and a large brush.
	Have your child paint the palm and fingers of one hand brown.
	Then, set out a sheet of orange or yellow construction paper and have her make a hand print on the paper with her fingers spread out.
	Let the turkey print dry.
	Then, using a black marking pen, add turkey feet and an eye.
	Then, using marking pens, let your child add additional features to her picture, such as; grass, a tree, a barn, a fence, etc.

Variation: If you want a more colorful turkey, you could let your child paint each of her fingers a different color.

DOVES OF PEACE

	Set out some paints or watercolors and have children paint a 9” x 12” piece of paper with bright colors.
	When the paint is dry, set out a shallow pan of thick white paint.
	Have children take turns dipping a hand in the paint and then making an impression on top of their painted papers. (Their hand should be held with thumb out and other fingers together, with hand tilted to the side.
	The impressions should resemble white doves.
	When dry, take a thin black pen and draw a beak, an eye for each dove.

HAND PRINT GHOSTS

	Set out a thin layer of white paint in a shallow pan.
	Set out some black paper.
	Have your toddler place her hand in the paint and then lift it out and make a print on the black paper.
	Try to get her to keep her middle fingers together while spreading out the two outside fingers.
	When dry, make a mouth and eyes on the handprint ghost using a black marking pen.

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