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March 14, 2008 | 14 Comments

No Mess Color Mixers


This is a fast and fun activity that can be done with almost any age.

  1. Gather your materials. You will need one ziplock per child and a few colors of paint.
  2. Pour the paint into your bag , flatten as much air out as you can, and then seal it.
  3. If you want to make the lesson about color mixing you can wait and add in another color after playing with the first color for a while, asking your child if they know what color it will turn into.
  4. You can make letters, numbers and pictures too. Remember to ask your child how it feels, is it cold, soft? squishy?
  5. For added fun you can put different colored paper under your ziplock and the designs will be more colorful!

* You may be wondering why my little model isn’t doing this activity. I did let him play with it but all he wanted to do was chew the bag- trust me though the preschool classes I have done this with love it! You may just want to avoid doing it with toddlers who are cutting teeth! *

Books!

These two authors are childhood favorites of mine, as sentimental as these two books are to me they are also perfect for the theme at hand!

” A Rainbow Of My Own” by Don Freeman is a charming story about wanting a rainbow, you may notice that the colors are out of order but I have always used that as a teaching tool in my classes.

” Little Blue and Little Yellow”
by Leo Lioni is a profound book with underlying commentary about race relations while the surface story is about little blobs of color who when squished together turn into one green blob!

Filed Under: Age: Toddlers, Children's Book Reviews, Color mixing, Preschool Crafts, Sensory Activities | 14 Comments

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14 Comments

  1. alison says

    September 11, 2008 at 5:58 pm

    Paint can be expensive…I’ve don’t this in my first grade with cheap hair gel from the dollar store 🙂 I bet pudding would also work.

    to alison" aria-label='reply to this comment to alison'>reply to this comment
  2. Allie says

    November 7, 2008 at 10:10 pm

    I love the hair gel, yes paint can be $ so with a group those alternatives are great!

    to Allie" aria-label='reply to this comment to Allie'>reply to this comment
  3. Amanda says

    November 13, 2012 at 8:29 am

    The hair gel works AMAZING!! Also another tip is to add food coloring!

    to Amanda" aria-label='reply to this comment to Amanda'>reply to this comment
  4. Aviva says

    February 17, 2013 at 8:03 am

    Yeh..until the baby rips the bag (like mine)… I used a ziploc and taped over it but that only delays the inevitable…

    to Aviva" aria-label='reply to this comment to Aviva'>reply to this comment
    • admin says

      February 17, 2013 at 12:12 pm

      Oh no Aviva I am so sorry. I can honestly say I have never had that happen but I can see how it just takes one time to make a huge mess .

      to admin" aria-label='reply to this comment to admin'>reply to this comment
  5. Destiny says

    November 15, 2013 at 10:25 pm

    I would love to do this unfortunately my 2 year old has been trouble since birth lol and can open ziplock bags which he will be determined to do instead of play as they are intended. (He also figured out how to toss himself over baby gates and crawl out of his crib/playpen by 18 months) (>.<)

    to Destiny" aria-label='reply to this comment to Destiny'>reply to this comment
    • Allison McDonald says

      November 16, 2013 at 10:02 am

      My youngest is much more like that than my oldest was – I will send you luck but know that problem solvers are good we just have to stay a step ahead until they are a little older!

      to Allison McDonald" aria-label='reply to this comment to Allison McDonald'>reply to this comment

Trackbacks

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  3. Tot School: Mouse Week says:
    June 24, 2013 at 1:15 am

    […] The color mixer is simply a Ziploc baggie filled with two different colored paints. I squeezed the air out before sealing it shut so that we were left with a colorful “canvas” that can be “written on”. This idea was found on a very inspirational blog called No Time For Flashcards. […]

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