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Sharpie Art

Great for preschool, daycare, school age after school program or camp.

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3-12 years

Materials

Glossy Paper
Sharpies (thicker tip works best)
Painters Tape
Newspaper or Plastic to cover the table

Learning Outcomes

Shapes
Color composition
Light/dark concepts

Activity Prep:

Step 1: Cover your activity space with newspaper or plastic. Sharpies are permanent and you won’t want them all over the table when you are done.


Step 2: Set out materials, sharpies, tape and one sheet of glossy paper per student.


Step 3: Depending on the age, have the children put on a smock before getting started. Protect their clothes, their parents will thank you later. These work great.


Step 4: Hang the pictures on a sunny window and enjoy the light coming through!



Activity Instructions:


Introduce the activity with the following instructions:
“Today we are going to create Sharpie stained glass window art! Use the black sharpie to break your paper up into 10-15 different shapes (show example if possible). Once you are done, start coloring in the shapes. Use a variety of colors as you go along.”

Adaptions:

Ages 3-5:
Pre-draw the lines and shapes. Just have them fill in the color. The thicker the markers the better. Try using washable markers for younger learners.

Ages 5 and up:
Let the children freehand their artwork and encourage them to make smaller shapes on their paper for more complexity. Talk about creating patterns and the types of pen strokes you can create.

Learning Questions

1. How many shapes did you create?
2. Which colors show light through the most? The least?
3. Did you mix any colors? if so what did you find?

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