At OMO, we believe that every stain represents an important experience - mud stains are the stamp of adventure, grass stains are the sign of exploration and fruit stains are the aftermath of discovery. Encourage your kids to get messy with our fun activities for happy, healthy, confident kids. We'll be there to sort out the dirty clothes afterwards.
Stamp it Out
Use bubble wrap to create a magical rainbow coloured painting.
What you’ll need:
What to do:
Tape a large rectangular piece of bubble wrap to a flat surface. Lay out paints in all colours of the rainbow in shallow containers and give your child a paint roller. Ask your child to paint each of the colours in a stripe onto the bubble wrap using the paint roller. Show them how to dip the roller in the paint and then gently roll it along the bubble wrap, starting at the end closest to them and pushing gently forwards as far as they can reach. It’s a great way to strengthen your child’s arms and shoulders. Ask your child to name each colour as they paint it on. You can set up the colours in rainbow order or let your child choose the order they want the colours in.
When all the paint colours have been tried out, give your child a piece of paper and show them how to lay it down on the bubble wrap and press lightly on it, then lift it to see the beautiful rainbow pattern.
Talk about the different colours of the rainbow while doing this activity. Ask your child how each colour makes them feel. Encourage them to express which colours they associate with being happy, sad or angry. Talk about how we can express emotions in lots of different ways, including through playing, making music or making art.
Alternative Materials:
Change it up:
Make it easy: Use just a few colours and give your child examples of how people associate different colours with different feelings. For example, you could say “I like sunny days, and the sun is yellow, so I think yellow is a happy colour”.
Make it a challenge: Ask your child to paint the stripes in the order of rainbow colours. Do not set the colours out in order.
Play with friends: Each child can paint a different coloured rainbow stripe. As each colour is applied, ask the children to talk about what feelings they associate with that colour.
Indoor play: Lay down an old sheet or newspaper for your child to work on if you’re doing this activity indoors.
Developmental areas:
Spatial orientation
Thinking skills
Creativity
Fine motor
Values:
Creativity; love of nature; understanding change as a normal part of life.