Inspired Art Project from the Book A Stick is an Excellent Thing By Marylin Singer
For ages 3+
June is a perfect time to create art outside and a stick is an excellent thing to use to create art. You can use it to make all kinds of art. Here are some ideas to get you started:
- Be a Rock Star and make a microphone: Cover it in tin foil and add something round to the end, perhaps a pom pom. See directions below.
- Make a summer Christmas tree. Bury one end in the ground so it stands on its own. Decorate it with leaves, flowers, etc. whatever you can find in the yard.
- Dance Like a Fairy. Wrap your stick with ribbons and leave some loose ribbons at the end so that they can fly around when you swing your fairy wand. You can also make a fairy crown with flowers.
- Create people/dolls. Find a stick with “arms and legs” or tie multiple sticks together to form a body. Next create clothes with paper, old mail or fabric scraps. Add some yarn for hair, or maybe find some pine needles. Use your people as puppets and put on a show.
- Make a Door Wreath. Create a larger shape by tying sticks together, perhaps a star. Then decorate it with flowers, leaves, seed pods etc.
- Chalk Art: Tie a piece or even a few pieces of chalk to a stick and then use it to draw a picture on the sidewalk. Does having a stick make drawing easier or harder? Did you add different colored chalk to your stick and draw with multiple colors at once?
- Build a Fort. Use multiple sticks stacked on top of each other to create a fort. You can even add an old shirt or a bandana to a stick and have a special flag for your building.
What ideas do you have?
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How to make a Pom Pom [this can be a separate box or broken up how you see fit]
Step 1 - Grab a skein of yarn.
Step 2 - Hold the end of the yarn between your thumb and pointer finger.
Step 3 - Wrap the yarn lightly, you don’t want to cut off the circulation, around your 4 fingers on the same hand. The more yarn you wrap, the fatter your pom pom will be. When you have wrapped it enough, cut the end of the yarn.
Step 4 - Carefully remove the wrapped yarn from your hand and lay it down.
Step 5 - Cut another piece of yarn long enough to tie around your wrapped yarn. Tie the new piece of yarn around the middle of the wrapped yarn. Tie it as tight as you can.
Step 6 - Cut the loops of each string, on each side of the knot in the middle.
Step 7 - Puff it up to look like a sphere.
Other uses for pom poms: Use it as hair on the top of your person/doll. Make a bunch and pretend they are snowballs, you can protect yourself in your fort. Use them as decorations for your summer Christmas tree or to add to the decorations on your wreath.
About Art Cart Kids:
Art Cart Kids Enrichment Studio is a child-choice art space where creativity and confidence grow side by side. Located at 77 Bells Hill Rd, in Stafford VA, each child is given the freedom to make independent decisions, follow their imagination, and create artwork that is entirely their own. In this calm, supportive environment, children learn that mistakes are a natural and valuable part of the process. Small missteps become opportunities to problem-solve, adjust, and try again—building resilience and self-trust along the way.
As your child explores, chooses, and creates, confidence begins to take root. They discover that their ideas matter, that challenges can be worked through, and that they are capable of figuring things out. This is a place where independence is nurtured, creativity feels easy and open-ended, and every child leaves feeling more sure of themselves than when they arrived.
Ready to give your child a simple, creative space where imagination leads the way? Check out our classes, camps and parties at ArtCartKids.com.