The Adventures of Art Lady: Kindergartners and Sticks

No, this isn’t a story about sword fights (though I have to admit I was nervous about that happening), it’s a story about making Garden Art Sticks with a group of fifteen 5- and 6-year olds.

I found this idea on this wonderful blog and thought it would be a great project for our Kindergarten class to make for the school's bi-annual auction.

My dear adventurous Mother, affectionately known as Cuckoo Grandma by my children, gathered a bundle of shapely beach sticks already smooth from being tossed in the ocean and sand. Once they were completely dry (let them sit in the dry place a few weeks), I painted them with a couple coats of white acrylic primer. After that, they were ready to cart to the school Art Room and let the kids slather on bright acrylic paints however they desired.

Here is how they looked after the first step:

And here is how they turned out!

The kids did such a great job. They seemed to take extra care since this was something special to raise money for their school. It was a bit messy but everyone did their best and I love how their Art Sticks turned out. Here are a few shots from my lesson that day:

Yes, getting more and more messy but most kids wore aprons

...except for this one

I was concerned that parents would be upset if their kids came home with stained clothes (acrylic paint doesn't wash out). As I was looking through photos from the lesson, I realized it was only my dear boy freely wiping his painted fingers onto shirt and pants... oops

"Look Mom, I put on an apron," after he was done... The ladies still love my little guy--this particular friend likes him so much she painted a spot of his hair blue (and he liked it). Kindergarten rocks.