After School Fun for the Wee One

    My little guy has school two, sometimes three times a week. He arrives home early in the afternoon, and their is usually quite a bit of time until I need to start preparing Dinner. So during this time I like to arrange an activity of some sort, to constructively occupy his time. Whether it be drawing, finger painting, coloring or simply reading a book, it gives him a chance to learn through play.
    Today was Bubble Painting Day. The supplies needed for this activity are typically found around the house, and offer atleast 30 minutes of playtime fun. I usually keep the end product from his art projects in a craft folder, but something such as this would make a great greeting card, or even wrapping paper.

Here is how we did it if you are interested;

Bubble Painting

Materials Needed

 
Materials

• Newspaper/Garbage bag
• Liquid dishwashing detergent
• 2-3 Shallow trays (even styrofoam cups will work if that's all you have on hand)
• Tempera paint
• Straws
• Construction paper or other paper

Directions

1) Cover your child's work surface with newspaper or a garbage bag.
2) Pour a quarter cup liquid dishwashing detergent into each shallow tray. (If you use powdered tempera paint, prepare the paint mix with a small amount of water). Add enough water to be able submerge a straw to about 1/8" deep.
3) Add the paint mixture or liquid tempera to the dishwashing liquid until the color is intense (really dark with paint). You will want to use a different color paint for each tray/cup.
4) Place one end of a straw into the mixture, and blow until the bubbles are almost billowing over the edge of the tray.
5) Gently place a piece of construction paper or other paper on top of the bubbles and hold it in place until several bubbles have popped.
6)Continue this process with different colors, blowing more bubbles as needed.
7) When dry, your child can add drawings to the picture and sign their name.

End Result