Happy Independence Day- A Firework Painting

     Ten years ago, when I was an art teacher, I had my second graders create their own fireworks paintings.  My dear friend Darcy, from No Monsters In My Bed, reminded me of this project, and inspired me to try it with my children.
     In order to adapt this lesson for a 3 and 4 year old, I cut a huge piece of black craft paper, and laid it outside on the patio.  We also gathered fluorescent paint, tubes of glitter paint, and brushes.
     Before we began, I showed the kids a 4th of July Fireworks, on YouTube.  We talked about all the bright colors against the black sky and the different types of lines.  On a piece of paper I wrote out some of the lines that we saw, and invented some new ones.  My favorite one was the "binocular line."
     Once outside, I told the kids not to mix colors. Each brush corresponded with the color of paint. ( I wanted each color to stand out and not end up a muddy mess). They had to make a mark, then put the brush back in the container.  After most of the black surface was covered with fluorescent paint, I showed them how to squirt glitter paint.  They practiced making zig-zag lines, straight lines, and even splatter paint all over the place.  In the end our masterpiece looked more like a neon Jackson Pollock rather than a firework painting.  Still, they had a blast and were thrilled to paint outside.