Melting Marker Colors

crayola supplies

Arts & Crafts Brushes
Washable Markers

household supplies

recycled newspaper
white paper
container(s) of water

Why

Creative activities, such as Melting Marker Colors, enable children to expand their understanding of color and art on their own terms.

Steps

1. Cover your craft area with newspaper. Wet a piece of heavy, light-colored paper. You're going to experiment with mixing colors. With a Crayola Paint Brush and clear water, dampen the paper.
2. Choose a Crayola Washable Marker. Make strokes of color on your wet paper.
3. Color over the first color with another color. Or put a line of one color close to another color. Watch how the colors melt into each other to create a third color, or a rainbow effect.
4. Experiment with different colors and amazing effects. What new colors can you make? Air-dry your papers on more newspaper, spreading them out so they don't touch.

When & Where

"My children love experimental art. They get so excited when they try their own ideas."
- Judy K., mom of three, ages 4 to 10.

"This was the perfect art project to end our Fun With Water unit."
- Baruti E., camp counselor.

Interesting Info

A research study on creativity found that children benefit from open-ended art experiences where they can decide what to draw and how. The study found that when children were given predrawn, V-shaped birds to color, they began using the simple, check-mark shapes for all birds in their drawings. They stopped creating birds with original details. In contrast, children who made their own bird drawings thought about what real birds look like. They chose what features to draw, where to place bird parts in the picture, and increased their knowledge about birds. Doing imaginative drawing on plain paper promotes children's critical and creative thinking skills. They also feel more competent about their artistic skills.