So many of us have been impacted by Eric Carle at some point in our lives. As part of a Kindergarten art lesson, we did a few Eric Carle-inspired texture collage craft activities.
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The Freedom to Create
Adults often envy a child’s ability to be so creative and free and this craft actually brought me back to my own childhood.
As I was explaining the first steps in creating this art collage to my kids, they became a bit confused. At 4 and 6 years old, they are already developing a standard form of painting, where they must think within the box.
So this was a great exercise to remind them of this freedom to create whatever they wanted and that it would then transform into something else afterward.
And of course, I too participated in creating the artwork because I simply could not help myself. When can I ever?
Eric Carle Craft Materials
- Paper
- Tempera Paint
- Paintbrushes
- Texture Materials (fork, spoon, stamp, bubble wrap, your finger, etc.)
- Cup with water
- Paper Towels (for cleanup)
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Glue
It’s important to use the right kind of paper for painting, especially with textures. Printer paper will crinkle with paint and fingerpaint paper is also not ideal for this type of art. You need heavyweight paper.
With kids, you’ll need to use washable, or tempera, paint. This set has been lasting me quite a while!
For creating textures, I recommend having a variety of different paintbrushes. Thicker brushes are great for quickly filling the page with enough paint to scrape off later.
When switching between different paint colors, you’ll need to clean your brushes. I always keep a tiny cup of water and a paper towel nearby to quickly swirl my brush and pat it dry before moving on to another color. I particularly like using bathroom cups for this.
For the last steps of the craft, you will need a pencil for outlining your shapes, scissors for cutting them out, and glue to put the collage together. Let your child practice cutting with safety scissors.
How To Make An Eric Carle Collage Craft
In creating an Eric Carle-inspired collage craft, you need to set up your paints. Each paper will be one object, an animal or shape, using an average of three tones of one solid color.
Whether you’re using a plate, jars, or a palette, set up three sections: one full with just your color choice, one with your color and a bit of white, and one with your color and a bit of black. Adding a bit of white or black to your color will create two additional varied values, or tones, the lighter value is called ‘tint‘ and the darker value is called ‘shade.‘
Once you have your materials set up, apply thick layers of paint throughout your entire paper, using a variety of tones throughout. Have fun with it and don’t worry about it looking even or symmetrical in any way. Before the paint dries, play with texture. Use household tools like utensils, a sponge, or even your finger to leave various types of lines and patterns throughout your painting.
After the paint has dried you can trace and cut out the shape of your object (I recommend doing this on the backside) to assemble for your collage.
Eric Carle Inspired Objects And Animals to Collage
The best part about creating this craft art is that you can pick what you want to make and later make another. We’ve already made a bear, bunny, and the sun, all inspired by Eric Carle, but there are so many options out there!
Eric Carle is most famous for The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?, which both include several collage opportunities.
I just so happened to have picked up an Eric Carle early reader book at the library the week before his death called Where Is The Sun?, which inspired me to create the sun for an Instagram reel. It came out so cool and the kids loved getting to do this again.
I’ll make sure to update this post with our future creations to share with you guys as well!
Comment below your favorite Eric Carle story or art.
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If you like book & craft pairings like these, be sure to check out this Rainbow Fish Paper Craft and The Kissing Hand Craft from some of my great mom blogger friends!
My name is Paula and I’m a mom of two scrumptious cuties. Thanks Mommy Blog became a project for me to help guide other new moms and current moms through any of my own personal experiences and struggles. My hobbies include singing, doing jigsaw puzzles, baking, designing and trying to stay creative.
I love a good book and craft pairing activity, especially one that involves a classic by Eric Carle! Thanks for sharing!
Yes! I love Eric Carle and this craft idea is amazing! I have to try this with my daughter. We were just watching the Eric Carle episode on Mister Rogers Neighborhood, too. This is perfect timing.
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