This craft is perfect for even the youngest artists. Spring is a wonderful time to explore outside and see what nature is doing. Take your young artist outside and see if you can find birds’ nests. What do they make their nests out of? Which bird do you think makes the nest? Mommy bird or daddy bird? How do they keep it safe during wind and rain? Which kinds of birds like to make their nest high up in a tree or low down on the ground?
What you need:
2 Styrofoam bowls
2 coffee filters (white or brown)
Brown tempera paint
2 other colors of tempera paint
Elmer’s glue
Paintbrush
Straw pieces
2 plastic eggs
Feathers
2 sandwich baggies
What to do:
Trim the ridges off the top of one of the Styrofoam bowls. In the other bowl, add about a tablespoon each of brown paint and Elmer’s glue. Add about a teaspoon of water and mix well.
Place the trimmed bowl inside one coffee filter. Paint the coffee filter until it’s covered and the edges stick to the bowl. Then place the other coffee filter inside the bowl and cover with paint until it’s all covered and edges are matted down. Remember, nests aren’t perfect, so let your child be messy.
Add a few pieces of straw while the paint is still wet. You can use your fingers to dip into the paint/glue mixture to help the straw pieces stick inside the bowl. Let dry.
Use the sandwich baggie like a glove (see picture 2) and hold the plastic egg and add a few dabs of paint. Roll the egg around so the two colors of paint covers the egg. Set the egg aside to dry. Throw away the sandwich baggie (unless you want two eggs of the same colors) and repeat this step with the other egg.
Once everything is dry, place the eggs inside the nest and add a couple of feathers.
Happy crafting!
