Fall Leaves Fall

We continued our celebration of leaves with Fall Leaves Fall by Zoe Hall.  Then, we did wet on wet watercolor painting.  Wet on wet watercolor painting is done in Waldorf schools, and we love to do it every week on our painting day.  

In preparation for our painting, we soak good quality watercolor paper in water for about 5 minutes.  Then, we dab off any excess water with a sponge and place the paper on our painting boards.  While I am setting out all the supplies we sing a little painting song.  Now we are ready to paint.  On this particular day, we use our red and yellow watercolor paints to color our papers.  The most beautiful part of wet on wet watercolor painting is the way the colors mix and move around on the paper and the paper seems to just shine with color.  I believe this is one of the most purely joyful ways for young children to experience color.  My children have always absolutely delighted in watching the colors dance across the paper.  The colors can be soft and light or deep and dark.  When we are done and our papers are filled with color, we let them dry.  Later, I cut the watercolor paper into leaf shapes to decorate our playroom.