Blog: Open-ended Ideas for an Art Project

I would love to share with you a few ideas for some ART Projects. On one hand, the ideas are very simple and do not require much energy or money from you. On the other hand they give children the opportunity or anyone who creates them to explore, imagine, play and feel empowered.

#1 Project: Fall Collage

Goals: Enjoyment of the process; sensory awareness; generation of new possibilities and ideas; use of imagination; flexibility of thought; experimentation and drawing conclusions; and language development.

Materials: Shoebox lids, nature items, glue, vegetable tray sorter.

 1. Collect lids from shoe boxes or candy boxes.

You can add an old calendar picture for a background if you wish.

2. Collect fall nature treasures: acorns, pine cones, leaves, dry flowers, twigs, etc.
It could be a group activity: have a nature hunt in the garden or play ground. Place nature items in veggie sorter tray.

3. You will need just one more item – glue.


4. Now you can start your creation…..



There are almost no directions to this project: children can choose to glue any of the fall treasures onto the lid.


…But you can turn this activity into language art. Children can write or dictate you a story about fall. They can name colors of leaves in another language. You can use this project as a great opportunity for problem solving: can we glue that big pine cone? Will it stay? How we can connect this twig? We have only one green rock and two friends want it. What should we do?

Enjoy !
Cheers, Teacher Kira