Create Squishy Paint Art Activity

3.6 based on 42 ratings
Updated on Sep 16, 2011

Kids are naturally drawn to the creative and exploratory aspects of art...especially when it gives them free license to get messy! Parents, on the other hand, can appreciate the opportunity for exploration and hands-on learning that art projects provide but are less thrilled about the cleanup at the end. Featuring plenty of good old fashioned gooey fun without the mess, this art project is sure to please little ones and grown-ups alike. Kids have fun learning about mixing primary colors by squishing paper onto paint, but the mess stays contained for easy cleanup.

What You Need:

  • Paper
  • Red, yellow, and blue paint
  • Flat, non-porous work surface such as a metal baking sheet or acrylic cutting board

What You Do:

  1. In the center of your work surface, help your child squeeze out a dollop of red paint about the size of a fifty-cent piece. Place the same amount of yellow paint about an inch to the right of the red paint. Centered about an inch above the red and yellow paint, pour a dollop of blue paint.
  2. Talk with her about the colors and explain how red, yellow, and blue—called primary colors—make other colors when mixed.
  3. Help her hold a piece of paper over the paint and set it down gently on top. Have her press, squish, rub, or otherwise manipulate it as she wishes.
  4. Now have her carefully pick up the paper straight off the work surface and examine what happened when the primary colors mixed. Talk with her about the different colors that each combination created.

Squishy paint makes beautiful modern art! Let the paint dry, then frame her artwork and display it on the wall to bring a dash of color to the room.