Hot hot hot - warm weather activities for the garden! Part 1

It's so warm here at the minute - who knows how long it will last but we're all making the most of it by opening those doors and windows and letting the summer in! We've got the paddling pool and water slide out already this morning (and it's only twenty to ten!) but when they get bored with that it's a good opportunity to try out some outdoor art and craft activities that we might not have space for in the house (or just not want to do in the house!!!)

Here's some ideas you might want to try.......

Ice cube painting

My kids LOVE doing this - it's great for all ages but takes a wee bit of pre planning. Make some ice cube painting sticks - you can either do this by using ice lolly moulds or alternatively ice cube trays and toothpicks/lollysticks. Make up the ice cubes/lollies by pouring paint in and then freezing overnight. You can use normal non toxic liquid paint or try watercolours mixed with water. Then when frozen the kids can have great fun using the lollies/ice cubes to paint pictures - make sure the paper you use is quite thick. Just remember to remind the kids that the lollies aren't for eating!

Life size self portraits

Fab activity for on the lawn! Get a large roll of paper (wallpaper is great for this) or stick a few sheets together. Get your child to lie down and then draw round them and cut the shape out. They can then paint the figure, make a collage person......

Football painting

In a previous blog post I talked about bouncy ball painting - this is a super sized version! Get a large piece of paper and a tray of paint. Roll the football through the paint then have fun kicking it around the paper (best to do this barefoot!). If you're not too precious about garden toys you could try scooter painting or even space hopper painting using the same theory - but thick card or even board will work best.

Painting with water

This is one for the teeniest tots - give them a bucket of water and a paintbrush and set them off to "paint" the fence, the patio....keeps them entertained for hours and is a good way of mastering holding a paintbrush, a fun way of learning to draw shapes etc.

Den building and decorating

All kids love building dens - easy enough to do with chairs and a couple of sheets. Then they can spend many happy hours decorating then den and getting really creative designing bunting, keep out signs, pictures to decorate the den....!

Hope this might give you a few ideas to be getting on with - my ice cube paints are now frozen so off we go...!