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Taking art outside opens up exciting new possibilities for your little learners to develop their skills and embrace their creativity. It also provides a great opportunity to incorporate nature into activities. 

To give you some inspiration, here are six outdoor art activities that allow your little ones to learn in new and exciting ways.

Hit it, stamp it, print it

Make beautifully patterned masterpieces with this simple but effective activity. Ask your little ones to look around and gather plants such as flowers and leaves to use (this will help them build their investigation skills and provoke curiosity). Then, place the materials onto some fabric and gently tap them with hammers to create unique natural art pieces.

What you’ll need

Leaf stamping art

 

Magic mark making

Engage your little learners in this low-budget, mess-free activity. Let them dip paintbrushes in water and create squiggles and patterns on rocks or pebbles. The stones can be reused, making this activity resourceful and enjoyable.

What you’ll need

Two girls playing outside with a water tray

 

Over the rainbow spray painting

Spray bottles offer endless fun for children and they're great for developing fine motor skills and hand-eye coordination. Fill the spray bottles with different colours of paint, attach sheets of paper to a wall, and provide splash mats to minimise mess. Let the children practice their fine motor skills by squeezing the bottles to create their marvellous rainbow paintings.

What you’ll need

Two girls doing arts and crafts outdoors

 

Fine motor flower pots

Create your own fine motor flower pots using only three materials. Gather some cardboard (you could save some YPO delivery boxes for this) and cut it into squares. Draw different-sized and shaped flower pots on each square and poke holes into the cardboard. Ask your little learners to pick some flowers and then poke them through the holes to create their masterpieces whilst sharpening their fine motor skills.

What you’ll need

Cardboard flower art

 

Stained glass switch up

No window? No problem! Create a beautiful stained glass effect on the pavement by sticking masking tape in a pattern resembling stained glass. Then, let the children unleash their creativity by colouring the design with chalk. It's easy to do and easy to clean!

What you’ll need

Two girls playing outside with chalk

 

Terrific transient art

Promote teamwork and collaboration with this engaging activity. Provide children with various natural materials like pine cones, pebbles and sticks, and encourage them to work together to create a large mosaic collage on the ground. You’ll be amazed at all the wonderful ideas the children come up with!

What you’ll need

Outdoor play tray

 

Enjoyed reading this blog? This article has been taken from a previous issue of our Little Learners magazine. We've got loads more ideas and inspiration for early years teachers in our latest issue of Little Learners. Check it out here.

Did you know you can also subscribe to receive all future issues of Little Learners for FREE? Click here to subscribe.

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The YPO Team

YPO supplies products and services to a wide range of customers including schools, local authorities, charities, emergency services, public sector and other businesses such as nurseries and care homes. YPO are 100% publicly owned, by 13 local authorities, which means the profits made are returned to public sector customers, delivering even better value for money.