This is my preschoolers favorite way to paint!  Basically, it is what it sounds like; shaving cream mixed with paint.  We usually mix the shaving cream with tempera paint as it has the smoothest consistency and is the cheapest!  We have three tubs of primary colored paint: red, blue and yellow that we mix to get a whole host of colors.  When mixed with the cream, the colors look more neon and bright.

Are you struggling to find something to give/make for someone on your list?  Wanting to give a handmade gift that people will really use?  In this day of heightened environmental awareness a canvas bag is a great gift.  I found this was a project that showcased the work of  even the youngest budding artists in an aesthetically pleasing way.   Use it as the gift itself or as an eco friendly alternative to wrapping paper.
Materials to make your tote bag:

old cereal box to use as a “frame”
tote bags (pick the size and …

Play with aluminum foil is a great way to learn about our sense of touch, texture and spatial reasoning as kids can ball the foil up into shapes, cover items and make imprints of them, all while exploring textures.   Here are some great ideas of ways you can use aluminum foil to teach your kids and instructions on how to paint textures idea.
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Activities to learn with foil:
Build vocabulary with texture terms: crinkle, wrinkle, smash, smooth, pointy, etc.
Work on gross motor skills as you throw an aluminum foil ball at each …

Paint is our favorite medium.  It is the good ole’ standby at our house.  As we are learning about birds this week, we decided to paint with feathers.
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Materials Needed:

Paint, we used our shaving cream paint recipe
Feathers
Glue
Paper

Originally we were going to use the feathers as one would use a paintbrush.  Silly me thought my two-year old was up for the fine motor skill challenge.  Once my little fella discovered th joy of getting his fingers wet in the paint their was no stopping them and my older child joined in.  …

Chalkboard paint is great.  You can use it to transform any blank surface into a creative masterpiece (or at least a place for notes).  Kristen had a terrific idea!  She painted the side of her refrigerator with chalkboard paint to use it as a note or list making area.  She inspired me and we painted the side of our refrigerator and have made it into a little art niche.
She gives instructions for the project here.  But basically, we needed to clean the surface and apply several coats of the paint.  …

My kids love art projects (maybe even more than I do) and this week we are exploring with water.  This is our experiment where we interacted with water, dye, oil and shaving cream to learn about emulsion, flotation, absorption and make a lovely mess.
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Materials we used:

an old baking dish
liquid food coloring
Tempera Paint
Spray Oil
Shaving Cream
Paper (cut into fourths)

We began our mess with water by mixing liquid food coloring in to water and dipping our paper into it to get a baseline (or control group) – it didn’t look like much.
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We next …

My preschool kids love to paint and I don’t love to clean up the mess.  What if you could combine painting with cleaning the bathtub?  Wouldn’t that be awesome?  This is bathtub paint.  You can make it thick and use it as finger paint, or you can dilute it and use it with paintbrushes.  This “paint” is washable, does not stain and will help you clean your tub.  So sit near the bathroom with a good book and let your kids have a blast!  It won’t be quiet, but at …