This happens a lot at our house. The kids never seem top get bored with it. We just keep running out of chalk. I had a delve through my photos and found pics from a few different occasions that we'd done this to post.
All you need to do is wet the floor outside (we have a concrete yard, which is great for this) and then give the kids some sidewalk chalk and some brushes. The colours are so vibrant when the chalk is wet that the kids just love it and it washes off with a quick hose down so easily.
It's a good way to teach colour mixing too. Letting them create blobs of colour next to each other and then using the brush to mix them on the floor.
We are super classy here and my kids love to splash about and paint each other with watercolour blocks in an under the bed storage box. I did briefly entertain the idea of getting an inflatable paddling pool until I realised that it would last approximately five minutes after the two hours that I would spend inflating it, and they are more than happy with the storage boxes anyway (we actually had eight kids playing in and around two of these boxes full of water today with the chalk).
MaryAnne of Thrifty craft mama posted about using these storage boxes with the lid as a dinky and thrifty sand pit, so we got ourselves set up for the summer with one of those this weekend too. It's great! I chucked in a load of treasure (beads) and a couple of seives and the kids are happy as Larry. Hopefully the lid will prevent the local cats from leaving us their little bum trinkets. I just have to remember to put the lid on it now. This I suspect is the weak link in the plan.
10 comments:
Could you baby sit Egg for the whole summer, kay thanks ;)
I definitely need to do some chalk and water painting with my kids, they'll love it! So glad your kids like the sand pit, I'll have to add a second storage box to use as a kiddie pool in our yard!
Great projects! Love the sandbox, thanks for the link (I subscribe to Thrifty Craft Mama... I must have missed that post on one of those "oh no! I have 368 things in my reader!! better just hit 'read all'" days!) Also, I love your bead/sieve add on!
Ooo, I never thought of adding water to chalk! Well, OK, I saw a neighbor do it 2 years ago and became frightened at how messy my then-small kids would get. Must've repressed the memory. But you know, I think I'm going to do it this summer, especially since the youngest still eats the chalk and gets it all wet anyway. I can see my kids really enjoying mixing colors. Have I said before how much I like that you're completely unafraid of creative mess? You're inspiring that way (among other ways). Thank you!
I have a quick question and hope that you can get back to me. What did you put in the sand? Are those just like little beads and rocks for them to sift threw and find?? This is an amazing idea and would love to do this for my son..
e-mail is toddntrisha@verizon.net
Yep Fall Bride, they are just random beads and pom poms and stuff that I had around the house. I would never have been able to do this last year, because my youngest continued to taste test any small objects until she was nearly two and a half! Choking hazard nightmare. She tried to eat a live snail once!
I absolutely love your blog...I have one of these containers and I am going to make it into a sand box and possibly buy another for use as a kiddie pool...I love how the lid can keep all the nasties out! or as you say...the kitties "bum trinkets" lololol your blog makes me laugh sooo hard these containers are absolutely perfect for apartment dwellers like myself
Dear Filth Wizardry Mama, I think I LOVE you! Seriously, I can't begin to tell you how inspired and in awe I am of your exploits with the kiddos. SO. Darn. COOL.
I'm going to co-opt all of your marvelous ideas and start making wonderful messes with my little girl. Thanks so much for sharing, and please, DON'T EVER STOP!
A quick question- where did you find those amazing water color blocks?
I absolutely love your blog... I definitely need to do some chalk and water painting with my kids, they'll love it! Thanks so much for sharing, and please, DON'T EVER STOP! You want to more water painting for kids, just click the link and watch it.
thank you for your wonderful ideas!! i've posted a link to this post, set for 5/18/2010-
http://crafty.littlerockmamas.com/index.php/2010/05/18/chalk-and-water-painting/
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