Kids' Activity: Make a Nature Collage!

Yes, yes, I know: this feature used to be on Wednesdays, and had a snappy little title (What-to-Do Wednesdays). I'm not that organized these days, but the girls and I did have a fun time the other day doing this activity. I like it because it combines outdoor active play with indoor artiness, but you may like it just because it fills the time. Either way, toddlers/preschoolers think it's awesome and fun, so get to it. Summer's a great time to get out and enjoy nature. And then pour Elmer's glue all over it.

In order to make a nature collage, of course you first need to get out into nature, so get ready for your nature walk. Don't forget to bring along a bag with which to carry the treasures you find. You need to have some way to get them back home for the art project. When Julia, Genevieve, and I went on our walk last week, we collected pebbles, dandelions, leaves, blades of grass, seed pods, clover, pinecones, bark, sticks, and unidentifiable weeds. (We also ended up with a fair amount of tagalong ants, but that was unintentional.) They loved every minute of it, and we probably got a mile's walk out of the whole endeavor.

Once home, I spread our nature specimens out on an old cookie sheet.


The girls each got a piece of construction paper and a bottle of glue.



They glued the leaves, twigs, and grass to the paper to make their own designs.


The finished products:



Easy, outdoorsy, fun. Go to it!