Sometimes I post about things you can make for children to create with on their own, like our play dough, sidewalk paint, baking clay, or even our much loved mud pie kitchen. Most of what I post about here, though, are coordinated crafts. That is not most of the art we do around here, however.
And it is certainly not the most important.
Day to day, I set my kids up with a requested medium, or introduce them to something new, and let them have at it.
It is far more important to let them explore...
Let them experience art, on their own terms...
...Than to try and get them to make something you envision. Don't get me wrong, I very much enjoy the crafts we do together, working with each other to achieve a preplanned goal. Those activities are important to us, too, but in an entirely different way.
I make materials available to them, and sometimes I may suggest a way they could use them, such as showing them how tissue paper will stick to wet paint, or bubble wrap will leave a print, but it is up to them. It should be up to them.
Because the process is so much more important than the product.
I don't usually post about their free form art activities, because... well, who really needs to be told how to let their children do what they wish with their art materials? You don't need a tutorial for that.
I did wish to let you know, though...
About the most important art in our home.
