It’s Only a Paper Tree!
This easy activity explores your Early Years’ artistic side, with a fun bit of destruction thrown in! It is best suited to younger children in any size of group.
Follow our simple step-by-step guide to have a go at this activity today:
What you will need:
- Green paper (a few sheets per child)
- Glue sticks or PVA glue
- Bowls or trays (one per child)
- Christmas tree outline, printed to A3 (one per child), downloadable here
- Yellow and brown felt-tips
Preparing the activity:
- Prepare the activity area for each child with some sheets of green paper and a bowl.
Doing the activity:
Help your Early Years shred that paper! Tell them they can rip up the green paper into small chunks (not too small – it may be helpful to demonstrate first) and place in the bowl (/tray).
Once the paper is shredded, you can use the glue sticks or PVA to apply a thin layer of glue to the tree outlines. Maybe the children might like to colour in their tree with the paper shreds. Depending on the ability of your children, they may want to glue the tree themselves, but be on hand if they want help.
While working, you can ask the children about the activity – how does the glue feel? Is the paper hard or easy to tear?
Once finished, you can colour in the star and trunk of the tree, and leave to dry!
Adapting the Activity:
While this plan is very Christmas-oriented, it can easily be adapted to have a range of focusses. Children could colour in any kind of image with ripped-up paper - why not print out animal shapes or flowers? Or equally they may want to totally freestyle it! The most important thing is to provide the materials and observe their engagement with them.
Tracking the activity:
22-36 months
Expressive arts and design: Exploring and using media and materials: “Experiments with blocks, colours and marks.”
Physical Development: Moving and Handling; “Shows control in holding and using jugs to pour, hammers, books and mark-making tools.; Beginning to use three fingers (tripod grip) to hold writing tools.; May be beginning to show preference for dominant hand.”
30-50 months
Expressive arts and design: Exploring and using media and materials: “Beginning to be interested in and describe the texture of things.; Uses various construction materials.”
