July is World Watercolor Month. If you look online, you’ll find lots of painting prompts and giveaways. I love watercolor paints! They’re completely unpredictable, and that teaches me to let go of perfection and go with the flow. I didn’t always feel this way. As a child, watercolors were less than spectacular. I was unimpressed with the little pans, tiny brushes, and weak colors. That’s why I’m all about supersize pans of good student-quality paints and bigger brushes for younger children. It makes a big difference!
Have students explore watercolors with this simple process art! To prepare, get plastic wrap, watercolor paints, a cup of water, and watercolor paper (or card stock). A child uses a big brush to paint a sheet of paper with water. Then she brushes watercolor paints over the moistened paper. While still wet, she presses a length of plastic wrap over her art. (The more wrinkles in the plastic wrap, the more interesting the final artwork will be.) When the paper is dry, she removes the plastic wrap to reveal the artwork.