This nature art stamping activity incorporates a nature hunt and an easy stamped art activity. Perfect for crafty toddlers and preschoolers and so easy to set up!
Playing and creating outdoors provides so many rich learning opportunities for children. Creating nature art is a really fun way for kids to explore natural objects and to observe their intricacies. This fun art activity combines a treasure hunt for natural items with a fun ink stamping art project.
Stamping is an activity that kids of all ages love to do. There’s something so captivating and magical about pressing a stamp into an ink pad and then on to a piece of paper to make a print. As a child, I spent hours, making prints with the rubber stamp set I had, and I love that kids today still enjoy that simple pleasure.
We have quite a collection of store-bought stamps and homemade stamps, but stamping with items found in nature is a fun way to make prints too!
Prior to engaging in this nature art stamping activity, you’ll head out on a treasure hunt.
This is a great opportunity for kids to engage in some sensory play, paying attention to the way natural objects feel, look and smell. They can even predict what the prints of various items might look like. Bonus, our stamping activity is a great exercise in fine motor practice too.
By using found items in nature for stamping, kids can really observe the different shapes and details of the items they have carefully searched for.
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Supplies Needed for Nature Art Stamping:
Suggested natural items to look for:
- flowers
- seed pods
- leaves
- pinecones
- flat stones
- sticks
How to Create the Nature Art
Prior to creating the nature art, go for a nature treasure hunt in your yard or neighbourhood. This is a great opportunity to use team work or to hunt for specific items.
Younger children can simply collect any items that they like. Whereas older children might like the challenge of finding predetermined objects. These can be open-ended like ‘find something smooth’ or ‘find something rough’, or detailed like ‘find a leaf with many veins’.
My kids loved going on multiple hunts after first experimenting with the stamping, and finding which items made the most detailed prints such as leaves and flowers.
Once all nature treasures have been collected, set up a nature art stamping station!
On a tray or a table, place some white paper and washable ink pads.
Children can press their nature treasures into the ink pad, then place on a sheet of paper and press down. When they lift their treasure off of the paper, a replica of their treasure will be revealed on the paper!
Print with different textures and shapes, and observe the prints, wondering with your children why certain objects printed better than others. This would be a fun practice to engage in throughout various seasons with items such as acorns, fresh flowers, or evergreen branches.
Your kids can even turn to this nature art activity to make homemade gift wrap or gifts.
Look at our bookmarks! Won’t they make a lovely gift for kids to give to parents, grandparents and teachers.
Let the nature art prints dry and enjoy this beautiful outdoor artwork.
More Nature Art Activities for Kids:
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Katie Chiavarone writes at Views From a Step Stool about kids activities, the importance of play-based learning, and positive parenting techniques. Currently a mom to 3 young children, with previous roles as a preschool teaching assistant, the director of an after-school program, and a behavior therapist for children with Autism, she has had more than 10 years of experience working with children. Additionally, she relies on her Master’s in Educational Psychology from NYU when writing about children and education. She has co-authored the book The Undeniable Power of Play.
