Rainbow watercolor shapes just pop off the page, and they’re fun for any age, and even easy for preschoolers.
Perfect for preschoolers who can’t keep their hands off of the tape, and perfect for elementary aged kids who will want to experiment with shapes, rainbow order, and color mixing, this project has it all.
And the set up for it is so fast, it will make your head spin.
Supplies
- Watercolor paper
- Washi tape (the kind that comes up no matter how hard you try to stick it down)
- Watercolor pan set
Instructions
Have kids rip, or cut, pieces of washi tape to whatever length their heart desires. Encourage longer strips because bigger shapes are easier to paint, but it really doesn’t matter here.
Encourage kids to make their favorite shapes with the pieces of tape: ones with corners. Triangles, squares, rectangles are all perfect. Or go crazy, and have them do a trapezoid or rhombus if you want to get further into geometry.
Once the tape is down, have them dip their brush in water and then the paint (if using pan watercolors), or directly into the liquid watercolor jar (or whatever container you used to pour out a small amount). Then have them paint stripes of color from end to end.
I love encouraging kids to make a rainbow, because who doesn’t love rainbow watercolor shapes? But ultimately kids can choose whatever colors they love.
When they are done painting, have kids slowly remove the tape and they will love seeing the sharp edges. If a bit of paint snuck under the tape, remind them that paint can do magical things, but sometimes it has a mind of its own…
Creative Ideas for Rainbow Watercolor Shapes
- Teach warm and cool colors by having them make a warm-colored triangle, and a cool-colored square.
- Teach color mixing by only giving them primary colors and having them mix their secondary colors within the shapes.
- See how many rainbows they can fit within a shape by painting narrow strips of color.
- Add a background color to make the shapes pop.
- Add some glitter stripes!
Did you try it? I would love to know how it turned out! Leave a comment in the comments below.
We would love it if you’d share!
Don’t forget to tag us at @soulsparklettes on social media if you make this rainbow art project with your kids or students – we love to see what you create!
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