2. The Art Area How Children Use the Art Area

2.
The Art Area
How Children Use the Art Area
Take a look at the art area, and you will see
children exploring and creating with a wide
variety of interesting materials. Children typically spend their time in the art area mixing
colors, painting, writing, drawing, pasting,
taping, cutting, pounding play dough, and
making models out of clay and other threedimensional items. Eager artists choose
which materials they will use and what they
will do with those materials. A phrase used
a lot in developmentally based educational
programs is “process over product,” and it
is especially appropriate in this interest area,
with supportive adults understanding the
importance of children’s exploration, creativity, and problem solving.
As with all areas of the learning environment, it’s important to stock the art area
with materials that reflect the individual interests and developmental levels of all of the
children in your classroom. Keep in mind
that you may have a child who spends three
minutes pulling apart chunks of play dough
and placing them in a bowl working next to
a child who spends forty minutes carefully
shaping play dough to form a body and
head, then adding sticks, buttons, jewels,
and yarn for arms, hands, legs, feet, eyes, a
nose, ears, a smile, and hair. In addition to
having a rich variety of materials available,
it’s equally important to have enough of the
same materials or tools so that the area can
accommodate as many children as needed.
Remember that in addition to making
art, young children are also beginning to
appreciate art. To encourage their appreciation, provide books about artists and art,
and display actual examples and reproductions of artwork. Ask families if they have
A child paints with paint in a plastic cup that he has
filled himself and will clean out later.
30
Setting Up the Preschool Classroom
In the art area,
children may create
things they need to
carry out their plans
in other areas, for
example a pretend
cape.
artwork they’d like to share, including
pieces created by the children’s parents.
Include art made by local artists. Talk about
the pieces you choose to display and the
materials and process the artist used. Do
not be concerned that children will “copy”
the artwork they see on display. Observing
the work of others will instead inspire more
creativity as they explore the materials and
techniques on their own. Place materials
that reflect the arts and crafts typical of the
local community in your art area, for example, items for weaving or making pottery
as well as items such as beads, feathers, or
seashells.
Considerations in Setting
Up the Art Area
When arranging the learning environment,
position the art area near the classroom’s
water source to allow children to use water
for mixing paints and cleaning up messy
projects. Hard, smooth flooring, such as vinyl or tile, is desirable to make cleaning up
spills and messes easier. While this is ideal,
classrooms that have carpeting throughout can make adaptations by placing drop
cloths, plastic shower curtains, or plastic
office chair mats over the carpet. If you do
this, be sure to secure these coverings to
the floor to avoid tripping, especially if you
have children or adults with physical handicaps or visual impairments in your room.
When the art area is stocked with interesting and open-ended materials, it will
be a popular place for children to carry out
their plans. Be sure to create a large enough
space in order to accommodate many children working at one time. Include a large
table (which can also be used for snack-,
meal- and small-group times), easels, and
spaces for drying and displaying artwork.
Low drying racks and bulletin boards allow
children to put away or hang up their own
art projects, rather than depend on adults
for assistance. It’s also important to designate a safe place to keep projects that are
still “works in progress” so that children can
return to their creations the next day and
continue their work. Make several “work-inprogress” signs for children to attach to their
The Art Area
31
For easy cleanup, this art area is set up near the sink, with the main work table and easel nearby, as well as
a rack with waterproof aprons. Along the wall are self-service paint jugs and a table for drying artwork. In
the foreground is a shelf with coloring and molding materials.
work. For example, fold a piece of heavy
cardboard into a tent shape, draw a picture
of a hand with a line through it (to signify
“do not touch”), and write the words “work
in progress.”
Paint is such an important material in
the art area, it deserves a little discussion.
We find the best and most cost-effective
strategy for paint is to buy it in gallon pump
dispensers in a minimum number of colors:
black, white, and primary colors (red, blue,
yellow). Children can mix their own colors.
This not only eliminates the need for continual monitoring and reordering, but gives
children a great learning experience. We encourage children to pump paint themselves,
right out of the gallon containers into plastic
cups, and to rinse out and put away the
cups and paintbrushes after each use. No
longer will teachers be stuck cleaning out
paint cups, or making sure paintbrushes are
Hands off! Children use work-in-progress signs to
identify artwork or block constructions that they
plan to finish at a later time.
34
Setting Up the Preschool Classroom
Equipment and Materials for the Art Area
Art Area Equipment
Essential art area equipment
Additional art area equipment
Double easel
Shelving unit, as space allows
Wall hooks or peg tree, to hang paint smocks; can
be shared with sand and water area
Double easel, as space allows
Drying rack
Sectioned shelving unit (at least 24" high and 36"
wide)
Shelving unit (at least 24" high and 36" wide)
Table (large enough to accommodate a small
group of 6–10 children plus 1 adult)
Chairs (1 chair per child plus an extra for adult)
Art Area Materials
For consumable materials, such as paint, easel
paper, construction paper, tape, and glue, the
quantities below are suggestions and may need
to be adjusted, based on the interest and use of
the materials at various times throughout your
program year. Monitor your stock and replenish as
needed. For natural and found consumable materials, such as feathers, leaves, stickers, buttons,
and bottle caps, no estimated quantity has been
given in the list below: don’t forget to keep an eye
on these materials too, restocking them periodically so there is always an ample supply.
Essential materials for mixing and painting
Liquid tempera paint: black,
white and the primary colors:
red, yellow, and blue (1 gallon
of each in pump dispensers)
Liquid starch, can be mixed with
tempera paint to make finger
paint or used as glue with tissue paper
Paint cups (plastic): 5 cups for
each side of a double easel,
plus additional cups — at least
2 per child — for group activities
Paintbrushes, long handled easel brushes (several per easel)
Paintbrushes, chubby brushes (at
least 2 per child and adult for
group activities)
Washable watercolor paint
sets (1 per child and adult for
group activities)
Vinyl smocks, may be shared
with sand and water area
(1 per child and adult for
group activities)
Newsprint, for easel (2 packages, each 500 sheets —
18" × 24")
Finger-paint paper (2 packages,
each 100 sheets — 16" × 22")
35
The Art Area
Additional materials for mixing and painting
Soap flakes
Nontoxic liquid dish soap
Sponges, for sponge painting (at
least 3 per child and adult for
group activities)
Shaving cream (approximately
5 cans)
Foam paint rollers with textures
or designs (2 per child and
adult for group activities)
Glitter shakers (use empty spice
shakers; 1 per child and adult
for group activities)
Glitter, various colors
Plastic spoons
Spices and seasonings: cinnamon, nutmeg, paprika, oregano, parsley flakes, coffee, etc.
Coffee stirrers
Coffee filters (1 box)
Plastic squeeze bottles or tubes
(at least 2 per child and adult
for group activities)
Eye droppers (at least 2 per
child and adult for group
activities)
Styrofoam trays, paint trays,
bowls, pie tins, muffin tins, or
empty plastic containers
Toothbrushes (at least 2 per
child and adult for group
activities)
“Messy” trays (1 per child and
adult for group activities)
Bubble wrap (1 roll)
Food coloring, various colors
Paint palettes (1 per child and
adult for group activities)
Foam paint rollers (2 per child
and adult for group activities)
Fly swatters (1 per child and
adult for group activities)
These shelves hold Stryofoam
bits, small cardboard and foam
cylinders, soft plastic pieces,
pine cones, brightly colored pipe
cleaners, ABC stamps, small wood
scraps, and other materials for
making pictures, collages, and
models.
Cotton swabs (1 box)
Spray bottles (1 per child and
adult for group activities)
Essential materials for holding things together and taking them apart
Scissors (1 per child and adult
for group activities)
Masking tape (1 roll per child
and adult for group activities)
Staplers (1 per child and adult
for group activities)
Glue bottles (4 oz. size, 1 per
child and adult for group
activities)
Tape dispensers (1 per child and
adult for group activities)
Staples (5 refill boxes)
Glue, for refilling bottles (2 gallons)
Transparent tape, for dispensers
(1 roll per child and adult for
group activities)
Paper punches (1 per child and
adult for group activities)
String
Yarn
Additional materials for holding things together and taking them apart
Scissor holder
Shoelaces
Craft punches (at least 2 per
child and adult for group
activities)
Blunt needles with big eyes;
yarn needles (1 per child and
adult for group activities)
Crinkle-cut or craft scissors
(1 per child and adult for
group activities)
Paperclips, jumbo (5 boxes)
Ribbon
Rubber bands (5 boxes)
Twist ties
Glue sticks (1 per child and adult
for group activities)
Colored masking tape or craft
tape, various colors (1 roll per
child and adult)