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Nature Prints with Clay

7/30/2014

14 Comments

 
  We use play dough often, but we've never used clay before. Now that we have, I'm wondering what I was waiting for! 

  I think I expected clay would be similar to play dough, so I didn't bother getting around to it. But it's a very different material and one worth adding to your art supplies!

Nature prints with clay

  We gathered some nature items from the backyard that we thought might make interesting prints. We chose leaves, dandelions, pine needles. Then we pulled off some clay, flattened it as best we could, and gently pushed the item into the clay. 
Pine needle imprints clay preschoolers
Some worked (the pine needles showed up beautifully!) and some didn't (we got nothing from the leaves despite our best attempts). The dandelion left some yellow color after we pressed it into clay, which Kay thought was pretty cool. 
Dandelion imprints clay fine motor skills
  The next day she was interested in trying again, so this time we just did some creating with it. I (unwisely) thought the play dough tools might be fun with it. Wrong. In generally the clay was too sticky for the rolling pin, scissors or cookie cutters. But we gave it a try and came out with some shapes that almost resembled what we were trying to make!

Exploring clay preschoolers fine motor
  Since we'd never used clay before, there was some trial-and-error involved. They probably seem pretty obvious to more experienced clay-users, but if you're a clay-newbie, keep these in mind: 
  • It is sticky. It will stick to the table, so be sure to cover it with something. We found parchment paper worked the best.
  • Thicker pieces - greater than 1/4" thick - are more durable and less likely to break. (We found this out the hard way!)
  • When it's dry (which can take up to a couple of days) you can paint it or decorate with markers.

Preschooler clay creations beads

What we're working on here: 
  • Fine motor skills
  • Nature appreciation
  • Creativity



Getting ready for kindergarten
Welcome to the Getting Ready for Kindergarten series, full of ways to prepare for school - the fun way! See what you've missed so far...

  • Number hunt
  • Exploring nature with mirrors
  • Fun with tangrams - and why they matter
  • Sight word slam
  • Letter learning with alphabet stamps
  • Feed the monster counting game


14 Comments
JDaniel4's Mom link
7/29/2014 09:46:33 pm

I just love the dandelion print!

Reply
Nicole Sanford link
7/30/2014 09:12:22 pm

I love this idea! My boys are older now, but I still think we would have a great time using clay. Love that you collected items in nature and used them to turn the clay into art. You have truly inspired me with this post. I may have to make a trip to Michael's and get some clay now. Thanks for this great post! :)

Reply
Susen Kuchta link
7/31/2014 04:47:00 am

the fish is SO cute!

Reply
Tricia the Good Mama link
7/31/2014 11:33:04 am

Great idea! My son is only a year, but I'll have to keep this in mind for when he stops putting everything in his mouth! I love clay though. I use to teach kindergarten and the kids always loved it. It's not as messy as play dough.

Reply
Nicci link
8/1/2014 07:25:13 am

Clay is helpful in counseling sessions with kids too. They color and decorate during art therapy. I love clay!

Reply
Ashley link
8/1/2014 10:09:34 am

I love how you added nature to clay! Such a great way to explore texture!

Reply
Natasha link
8/1/2014 10:49:54 pm

This is a lovely activity that I can do with my girls. We have clay in the house and they love to make little figures with it for playing.

Reply
Victoria link
8/2/2014 01:28:06 am

Great idea! We have tons of clay and this is exactly what we are going to use it for :)

Reply
Joanna Sormunen link
8/3/2014 01:35:05 am

What a delightful idea! Clay is a wonderful material to work with and the nature prints make it really special!

Reply
Kat @ World for Learning link
8/3/2014 10:32:35 am

Your nature prints turned out so pretty! And I love the rainbow fish at the end :-) I think my boys would definitely enjoy trying out some nature prints of our own. Thanks so much for sharing!

Reply
Birute link
8/5/2014 06:29:55 am

this is so pretty to me. I love nature crafts so much. Those prints are just gorgeously simple!

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Jen link
8/6/2014 05:02:08 am

So Cute!! My daughter would love this project... especially painting flower prints.

Reply
Sue Lively link
8/6/2014 10:51:08 am

Love this idea! Thanks for sharing with the Love to Learn Linky. I will be sharing on FB too.

Reply
Carrie link
8/8/2014 07:26:07 am

Oh, we always love these kind of activities. Thanks for sharing at Sharing Saturday!

Reply



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