CREATIVE PROMPT

THE UNEXPECTED

This creative prompt is designed to inspire kids to think creatively about all the different ways they can make marks using just one tool or object. Exploring the different ways that a single tool can be flipped upside down, used sideways, rolled on its edge, slid across a surface, or dabbed onto paint will open a whole new world of visual possibilities for your child and give you both a new way of looking at that object. Whether the tool is a rough sponge, comb, bottle cap, palette knife, used gift card, or stiff bristle brush, your child will learn to experiment and explore with just one object while making different types of paint marks. Challenge kids by giving them a specific number of marks to create!

Help your child pick out a safe (and fun!) item to use in this exercise. Whatever you choose, keep in mind that the object of this exercise is to get paint all over your tool, and it may need to be rinsed off a few times if your child uses multiple paint colors.

Set up your creative space by laying a sheet of wax paper or a vinyl tablecloth on your work surface with a piece of scrap paper on top. Next, have your child choose a few different paint colors and squirt them on a paint palette or paper plate. With their tool of choice in hand, kids are ready to start making marks on the paper.

Encourage your child to slide, tilt, flip over, lay flat, dab, and roll the object in paint and then onto the paper to create unique, unexpected marks. Your child can fill up the paper using different paint colors and washing or wiping the tool in between colors as needed.