Total Time 1 hour Ages preschooler
Kids will love dotting their thumbprints onto the paper and adding the details to make these darling little ladybugs.
by Amanda Formaro
What you'll need
- 1 sheet green construction paper
- 1 sheet light blue construction paper
- 2-3 cotton balls
- Acrylic paint: light blue, red, orange, light green, pink, black and white
- Toothpick
- Glue stick
- Scissors
Helpful Tip:
Instead of creating the eyes with paint and a toothpick, you can glue on tiny wiggle eyes. Because thumbprints are definitely keepsakes, be sure to write the child's name and date on the back. For added color, allow children to create flowers with their fingertips along the grass horizon line.
How to make it
1. Place the light blue construction paper on the work surface. With glue, cover the bottom third of the paper where the "grass" will be. Place the green paper on top of the glued area and press down to seal. (See photo.)
2. Turn paper over and trim off all but 1 inch of the green paper. (See photo.)
3. Apply glue stick to that remaining 1 inch of green paper, and then fold it up onto the blue paper and press to seal to make a clean bottom edge. (See photo.)
4. Turn paper back over. Use the glue stick to "draw" on some clouds in the sky. Pull apart cotton balls and attach to the glue to create the clouds. (See photo.)
5. Dip child's thumb into colored paint and press thumb onto green area of the paper. Repeat in different colors and press onto different areas of the green paper. Let the colored paint dry. (See photo.)
6. Dip only the tip of the child's thumb in black paint and press onto the front of each of the colored thumbprints to create the ladybug heads. (See photo.)
7. Use a toothpick dipped in black paint to add the ladybug spots. (See photo.)
8. Wipe the black paint off of the toothpick. Turn toothpick around and dip the clean end into white paint to dot on the eyes. Let dry. (See photo.)
9. When white paint is dry, use toothpick dipped in black paint to add the pupils. (See photo.)
Crafts
