Here in Connecticut, we are lucky enough to have the wintery weather for children to play in and explore. But when it’s too cold to go outside; you can bring the outside indoors for a little snow day fun! Painting with, and on, snow is a fun way to let children explore concepts of color mixing and the scientific properties of snow.
To get started, you can scoop up a small bucket of clean snow and bring it inside. If you scoop your snow before you are ready to use it, then you'll need to keep it in the freezer until you are ready. Next, put snow into small bowls for children to use while watercolor painting. Instead of using cups of water, the children wet their paint brushes with the snow. You can talk about what snow is made from (water), and how as the snow gets warmer inside it will start to melt (properties of matter). Using the snow instead of water keeps the brushes from getting too wet, which makes the watercolor pictures more vibrant, as well.
Inevitably, as the children clean and wet their brushes on the snow; the snow will start to turn colorful. You can explore some color mixing in the process. In the end, many children may prefer painting ON the snow more than on their papers!
You can also do some indoor snow painting by using liquid watercolor in cups, and having children dip their brushes in the colors and paint directly on the snow. This can be done indoors or outdoors, and is another great opportunity for open-ended art in the winter!
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