Looking for a fun, low prep art activity for winter? This puffy paint snowman only needs 2 key ingredients!
Does puffy paint stay puffy?
I’ve created these with my students many times, and it always surprises me how long the dried “paint” DOES stay puffy. When I take out my winter theme box the following year, I always find an example, and it somehow still is puffy!
This simple activity is perfect to add to a winter theme in kindergarten, and provide a sensory experience mixed with art.
What you will need:
- shaving cream*
- liquid white glue
- construction paper (darker color)
- popsicle sticks
- containers
- items to create eyes, nose, mouth and decorate (found items, paper scraps, buttons, etc.)
*must be cream, not gel, and white
How to make a puffy paint snowman:
Step 1: Mix equal amounts of white glue and shaving cream in a container. I pour and let my students mix it up, giving them each their own container.
Step 2: Use the popsicle stick to paint their snowman shape on their paper. You can guide them to make 3 snowballs, or allow them freedom to make their own creation. Another option would be to paint a snow scene, a melted snowman, or something winter related.
Step 3: Have your students add parts of the snowman – eyes, nose, mouth, hat, arms, buttons, etc. – and any other decorations they like. Before completing this activity, you can take them on a nature walk outdoors and have them collect twigs, leaves, and other items to use in their project.
Step 4: Let the paint dry. This will take a few hours, but better not to touch it too much until the following day.
Step 5: Feel how puffy that snowman is! Be gentle, however, since the paint can damage if pressing too hard.
When putting the snowmen on display, keep in mind they may be a little heavy from the paint.
Math Extension
I can’t leave math out of this one!
Some options to extend your art lesson to include math are to measure the glue and shaving cream (discuss volume and related vocabulary) and to explore the topics of equal (the same) and half. You can also have your students count the pieces they used to decorate, discuss the shapes in their design (circles for snowman, buttons, and eyes, square for hat, etc.) and talk about symmetry.
