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Practice your pencil grip at home!

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Children who read often demonstrate better fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Here is a fun summer reading challenge to improve literacy skills and increase your little one's desire to read. :)

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Children who read often demonstrate better fluency, vocabulary and comprehension. Here is a fun summer reading challenge to improve literacy skills and increase your little one's desire to read. :)

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A link to all the Jesus Storybook Bible videos.

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Share your videos with friends, family, and the world

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Place ice cubes or small objects in your backyard water table. Use tweezers or scoops to exercise those fine motor muscles!

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Description of uppercase and lowercase letter formations

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Do your kids get annoyed when you put sunscreen on them? Or just flat out say no? I know mine sometimes get frustrated and just want to get out and play already!

I get it. They don't see how the sunscreen is working for them. But there is an easy and fun way to show them just why sunscreen is so important.

Paint with it.

This simple art project will wow your kids and show them just how important proper sun protection can be. And we'll talk a little bit about how sunscreen works.

What's In This Post?

Painting with Sunscreen

This is a great art project to try if you are low on paint because, well, because you don't need paint for it. Most of us have sunscreen lying around somewhere.

Most importantly, this project made it very easy for my kids to see what sunscreen does for us. That made it very worthwhile.

Materials for Sunscreen Painting

As I said, you don't need much for this project. A few items and the sun.

Sunscreen

Paint Brush

Black Construction Paper (or other dark colored paper)

How To Paint with Sunscreen

Set this up just like a regular painting activity, only instead of paint put sunscreen out. You can squeeze a bit onto a paper plate, into a cup, or on your paint palate.

This activity does need a dark-colored piece of paper to be most effective. If you have black construction paper, use that. But blue, purple, brown, etc all work too.

Once your child has completed their painting take it outside. Place it in the sun, using rocks at the corners to make sure it doesn't blow away. (Even if it isn't windy out, put a rock or something on a corner, it will come into play later.)

Leave your picture in the sun for a bit. This is best in direct sunlight for a couple of hours. We left ours out for 2 hours. However, it works to put it out and leave it until our child remembers it is out there a few hours later.

After you have left your painting out to dry in the sun for a few hours, go and check it.

You will see that the paper that was covered in the sunscreen 'paint' is the same color it used to be, while the rest of the page has faded! You can pick up the rocks you put in the corners to double-check. They physically blocked the sun and kept the color intact.

Now ask your child, if sunscreen can protect the paper that well, do you think it can protect their skin?

The Science of Sunscreen

So how exactly does this art project work?

Sunshine will fade the paper. This is because the ultraviolet waves from the sun break down the chemical bonds in the dyes that produce the colors we see. This breakdown makes the color look faded.

Sunscreen creates a barrier so those ultraviolet waves can't reach the chemical bonds of the dyes. Yep, it's just that simple. When you put on sunscreen you are creating a barrier between your skin and the UV rays from the sun. This is how you avoid sunburns.

There are 2 main ways sunscreens create a barrier.

Physical Barrier: Some sunscreens create a physical barrier so the UV rays can't get through. This is your zinc oxide or titanium dioxide usually. These inorganic compounds physically reflect the UV rays.

This sort of barrier used to be white. (Think old movies with where lifeguards had what looked like white paint on their noses.) Now technology is better and you can have the same protection with sunscreen that is clear when applied.

Chemical Barrier: There are also organic compounds that stop UV rays from getting to your skin. These compounds absorb the UV rays and release that energy as heat.

Most sunscreens contain a combination of these two barriers. But you can find some that contain just physical barriers.

(You can learn more about how SPF works and what sort of sunscreen is best for kids here: SPF for Kids)

My kids were really wowed by this activity. It's almost as if you are painting secret messages that will appear later. And yes, they were all a lot more willing to slather on the sunscreen after. Happy painting!
More Must-Try Activities for Kids

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Sunscreen Painting: STEAM For Kids - Team Cartwright

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Sunscreen painting! Creative STEAM activity teaches the science of sunscreen and is a fun art project. Perfect for preschool, kindergarten, and all kids.

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Are you are looking for an awesome art project to do with your kids? You have found it! This Firework Salt Painting Project is a favorite with kids and it looks AMAZING when it is done! As a work at home mom, I'm always looking for fun (and easy) art projects to do with my kids and this one was a huge hit.

Bonus: This one is also super simple. This firework salt painting project is one of our favorite projects to do with kids and it looks so cool when it's done. Combine it with our 4th of July Flag Magnet Craft and you've got some great kid-made holiday decor ready to go!

Want 10 more of our favorite art projects for kids? Click here and we will send them.

Laying on the grass, watching the fireworks is such a magical time. You can recreate it with this cool salt painting project. This is the perfect art activity to do with your kids this summer or any other time of the year!

I knew I wanted to do some kind of firework art project, and remembered doing salt paintings in elementary school when I was a kid, so this was kind of nostalgic for me.

We only had art once a week but it was always my absolute favorite class. Katherine is an artist today but there is something about kids art projects that is such a great way to spend time with your kids.

I chose to do fireworks for the Fourth of July but let your kids be creative with it! I can see an outer space or under the sea scene being really awesome as well!

Art is great for kids but moms screw it up all the time (me included).

I'm a mom of six and a former teacher. I've seen art done really well with kids and I've seen art turn kids (and moms) into a crying mess. I want to make sure you and your kids have a great experience with this. Here's what I recommend:

1. Turn off the perfection. There's a time and a place for perfection. Doing art with your kids is definitely not one of them. Take a step back, relax, and be ready to just go with it.

2. Focus on the process. Art should be fun, especially when kids are involved. Keep things light. Focus on kids art projects that let them be creative. Don't worry so much about what the end product looks like, just have fun making it. Art is about the experience for kids. They are spending time with you, learning to express themselves, exploring materials. The final product pales in comparison to those things.

3. Don't worry about the mess. Art can get messy. Sure, take some precautions. Lay a cheap plastic tablecloth down on the table and the floor. Have your kids wear old clothes or an art apron. Then just let go. Have fun. The mess can be cleaned up later.

Ready for the salt painting? First we need some materials.
Materials Needed

Optional: You could also use food coloring and an eye dropper instead of watercolors if you'd like.

Recommended Products

Salt Painting Instructions

Start by laying your paper on a cookie sheet so the salt doesn't get all over the place.

Draw out your design with the glue. It works better if you do it thick. If you aren't comfortable free handing a design, draw it out with a white crayon or colored pencil first.

Next, sprinkle salt over the glue before it dries. Apply generously! You want to get everything covered. Shake off excess salt onto your tray.

Get your watercolors really wet, and lightly paint onto the salt. You can use food coloring and an eye dropper here if you'd prefer. You don't want to drag it too much or it will mess up the salt. I tried to get my brush extra drippy so I barely had to tap the design. Have fun with colors! It looks great when they bleed together.

Let the project dry completely and you are done! Your kids will love how the salt sparkles when its all dry.

*Over time this project will flake off and won't last forever, so make sure to take pictures of your kiddos creating!

UPDATE: A reader shared this awesome tip with us. Spray your project with hairspray when you are done to make it last longer.

Don't have time to plan summer projects?

I totally get it. We have those moments around here more often than I'd like to admit. We have gathered together some of our favorite outdoor toys for summer here.

If you want to craft with your kids, one of my favorite summer boredom busters is Kiwi Crate (and their partner crates for different age groups). They come with everything you need to have some fun with your kids and the projects are always amazing!

My 13-year old LOVED their Chemistry Crate and my tween gets so excited when his Tinker Crate comes every month.

Want more craft ideas for kids? Check out our Kids Art Projects Pinterest Board

Follow Busy Mommy Media's board kids art projects on Pinterest.

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Are you are looking for an awesome art project to do with your kids? You have found it! This Firework Salt Painting Project is a favorite with kids and it looks AMAZING when it is done! As a work at home mom, I'm always looking for fun (and easy) art projects to do with my kids and this one was a huge hit.

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