Fingerprint Art
Here's What To Do
1
Use watercolor paints or washable colored ink pads for this activity.
2
Help your child dip a finger into the watercolor paint or press their finger on the ink pad, then help them press their finger onto paper.
3
Repeat, and encourage your child to make many fingerprints to make a design.
4
Give your child a pencil, crayons, or markers to add to their fingerprint design.
Put PEER Into Action
P
Pause:
- Work on a flat surface, free from distractions.
E
Engage:
- "Let me show you how to make fingerprints!"
- "Can you keep filling the page with fingerprints to make a design?"
E
Encourage:
- Say to your child, “your fingerprints are special because no one else’s prints are like yours."
- Describe your child's art, like: "I'm noticing that you are spreading out all your fingerprints so the page looks balanced."
R
Reflect:
- Ask your child to explain their fingerprint artwork to you.
Not quite ready?
Guide your child's finger onto the ink pad, then press their finger on the paper. Talk about what you're doing as you do it.
Ready for more?
Add details to the fingerprints to create people, animals, or vehicles.
As your child masters this skill...
They will know another technique for making visual art.