Puffy Paint Clouds

Simple and fun, but still educational ! This cloud painting activity is great sensory experience for toddlers and preschoolers.  It opens up a dialogue about weather too.  You can use the shaving cream puffy paint like we did or simply ( and not as messy) use regular old white paint. I liked that we used the cotton batting to make clouds with” clouds “and my son liked it too but it would be tricky for toddlers if you are using the puffy paint, finger painting would work great since the paint dries puffy.

1. Gather your materials . You will need some blue construction paper ( we used 2 sheets) , plain white shaving cream, white glue , a spoon, bowl and cotton balls/batting or sponges.
2. Start by mixing your paint – I used 3/4 cup shaving cream to a 1/4 cup of glue.
3. Dip your cotton clouds in the paint .
4. Print it on your paper.
5. We used a big cloud for one color paper and a smaller piece of cotton for the other.
6. Let dry- the paint will dry puffy!

Weather Song ( to the tune of Clementine)

What’s the weather?
What’s the weather ? What’s the weather like today?

Tell me _(insert kids name)__ what’s the weather,
What’s the weather like today?Is it sunny?
Is it rainy?
Is it cloudy out today?Is it snowy?
Is it windy?
What’s the weather like today?

Weather Books

Weather by Pamela Chanko and Daniel Moreton is the perfect little non fiction book about weather for toddlers and young preschoolers. It’s short and has big interesting photos depicting different weather. Don’t be fooled, it looks like nothing, but trust me little guys will ask you to read it again and again. It’s important that children get read a variety of things, not simply fiction, so don’t be afraid to get your child a simple little non fiction book like this one!

I Love The Rain by Margaret Park Bridges is a sweet book about relishing the wet weather instead of hiding from it. Two little girls are on their way home from school, one hiding under her umbrella the other tongue out loving the rain. With a little encouragement both girls are loving all the amazing things about rainy weather, from racing raindrops on the bus windows to comparing the sounds of the rain to tap dancers! Living on the rainy west coast I love books about rain and it was an instant hit with my son.

It Looked Like Spilt Milk by Charles G. Shaw goes perfectly with our activity. In the book all different shapes are shown and readers can guess they look like ice cream cones, a bird, but really they are all clouds. After reading this simple book I like going outside to see the clouds and see what shapes, and objects we can find in them.