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LITTLE LESSON 20 · PRESCHOOL · TK · EARLY K
Color Everywhere!
Allow extra drying time for paint or glue. Children can pause and return.
Elements of Art focus: Color & space. Arrange color and marks; decide where to leave space open. Meet the seven art ideas →
Let’s wonder!
“Can a picture be full of ideas without being a picture of a thing?”
Our little purpose: Compose colors and marks without needing to represent an object.
Gather a little magic
Paper and washable paint sticks, daubers, or crayons.
For your grown-up: Use paint sticks gently with only a little exposed. The activity stands alone and does not require the original classroom read-aloud.
Make it yours
Wonder together · 2–3 min Try & make · 12–20 min Share & tidy · 3–6 min
- Look around for a color or shape that catches your attention.
- Make a dot, line, or swirl inspired by it. Choose where it belongs on your paper.
- Add another mark and notice how the picture changes. You decide when to fill space or leave it open.
- Turn your picture around. Tell someone about a choice you made, even if it does not have a name.
“I’ll show you how I did mine. Yours doesn’t have to look like mine.”
Look what you discovered
Ask: “What did you choose? What changed? What would you try next?”
Notice: The child makes, changes, or explains a personal mark or space choice.
Listen, watch, or accept pointing and home-language responses. Notice the process, not resemblance to an example.
Every idea belongs
A little support: Offer a small selection of tools and allow one mark to be a finished work.
A little more: Turn the artwork and describe how a choice looks different.
No supplies today? The child can make choices, predict, and direct a grown-up.
The learning underneath
California Preschool/TK Learning Foundations · Visual Arts: 1.3, 1.5. Kindergarten bridge · California Arts Standards: K.VA:Cr3.
These are planning connections selected for this activity, not a claim of mastery or state endorsement. The kindergarten code is an extension, not a preschool requirement. Read the code key and official California sources →
PLAY THIS ART ADVENTURE · 20
A Picture of an Idea
Arrange color and marks; decide where to leave space open.
Art ideas: Color & space. One playful connection to this project.
Find this resource again: mrrichiecreates.com/lessons/color-everywhere