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Eric Carle’s colorful illustrations are instantly recognizable, but one of the things I love most about his artwork is how much texture and movement you can see in something as simple as a piece of painted paper.

We originally tried this Eric Carle craft as part of an art lesson with my kids, experimenting with color, texture, and collage. Instead of trying to recreate his illustrations exactly, we painted our own textured papers and used them to create completely different pictures — including animals, a sun, and, of course, our own Very Hungry Caterpillar.

It’s a simple art project that works well for kids of different ages because there really isn’t one “right” finished result. They can experiment with paint, everyday objects, color mixing, cutting, and collage while making something entirely their own.

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Letting Kids Experiment With Art

One of my favorite parts of this project was watching the kids realize that their paintings weren’t supposed to look like anything yet.

When we first started, they were a little confused by the idea of simply covering the paper with paint, mixing different shades, and adding random textures. They were already used to painting with a finished picture in mind.

But that’s what makes this activity so much fun. The painted paper is just the beginning. Kids can experiment with colors, brushstrokes, lines, stamps, scratches, and whatever other textures they can create without worrying about making the “right” picture.

Once the paper dries, all of those colorful painted textures become the material for something completely new. That could be an animal, a character, a flower, a landscape, or anything else they imagine.

Eric Carle Craft Materials

• Mixed media paper
• Washable tempera paint
• Paintbrushes in different sizes
• Items for creating texture – forks, spoons, sponges, bubble wrap, stamps, etc.
• Water cup
• Paper towels
• Pencil
• Scissors
• Glue

You don’t need anything fancy for this project, and you probably already have several of these supplies at home. The two things that matter most are the paper and paint. Regular printer paper can wrinkle or become too soft once it’s covered in paint, so I recommend using mixed media paper that can handle plenty of paint and texture.

Washable tempera paint works well for kids, and having a few different paintbrush sizes makes it easier to experiment with different marks and textures. You can also look around the house for things like forks, spoons, sponges, bubble wrap, or even fingers to create patterns in the wet paint.

Once the painted paper is completely dry, you’ll also need a pencil, safety scissors, and glue to turn the textured paper into your collage. Kid-friendly safety scissors are a great option if you want kids to do as much of the cutting themselves as possible.

Want all the supplies in one place? I put together a list of our favorite kids’ art and craft supplies with paper, paints, brushes, scissors, and other basics we use for projects like this.

How to Make an Eric Carle Collage Craft

The fun part of this Eric Carle-inspired art project is creating your own colorful, textured paper first and then turning it into something completely new. Each sheet of painted paper can become part of an animal, object, or scene.

For our project, we experimented with different shades, textures, and everyday tools to make each piece of paper unique.

1. Choose Your Colors

Start by deciding which colors you’ll need for your collage. We used a separate sheet of mixed media paper for each main color.

For each color, set up three slightly different tones:

• Your original paint color
• The same color mixed with a little white to create a lighter tint
• The same color mixed with a little black to create a darker shade

You don’t need to be precise. The variations are what make the finished collage interesting.

2. Paint the Paper

Apply a fairly thick layer of paint across the paper, using the different tints and shades throughout the page.

Don’t worry about making the paint perfectly even or symmetrical. The goal is actually the opposite—you want visible variation in the color and brushstrokes.

3. Add Lots of Texture

Before the paint dries, experiment with different tools to create lines, marks, and patterns in the wet paint.

We used simple household items like forks, spoons, bubble wrap, brushes, and even our fingers. Try scraping, swirling, stamping, dragging, or pressing different objects into the paint.

This is a great part of the project to let kids experiment without worrying about what the finished artwork is “supposed” to look like.

4. Let the Painted Paper Dry

Set all of your painted sheets aside until they’re completely dry.

You’ll end up with a collection of colorful textured papers that can be mixed and matched to create the final collage.

5. Draw and Cut Out Your Shapes

Once the paint has dried, decide what you want to create.

Turn the painted paper over and lightly draw the individual shapes you’ll need on the back. Drawing on the backside keeps pencil marks from showing on the finished artwork.

Cut out each shape using kid-appropriate scissors when children are doing the cutting themselves.

6. Build Your Collage

Arrange the cut pieces on a separate sheet of paper before gluing anything down. Kids can move the pieces around, overlap colors, and experiment with their design until they’re happy with it.

Once everything is in place, glue the pieces down to create the finished collage.

And that’s it. The same process can be used again and again to make completely different artwork—and even the leftover painted paper can be saved for another project.

Eric Carle Inspired Objects And Animals to Collage

One of my favorite things about this project is that there isn’t one finished craft everyone has to copy. Once you have a collection of painted and textured papers, kids can use them to create almost anything.

We’ve made a caterpillar, bear, bunny, and sun, but you can use the same technique for animals, plants, people, landscapes, or completely imaginary creations.

If you’re pairing the activity with an Eric Carle book, kids can look at the shapes, colors, and textures in the illustrations for inspiration before creating their own version. The Very Hungry Caterpillar and Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? are easy places to start because they offer so many opportunities to talk about color, shape, and collage.

Our sun actually came from a book we happened to find at the library, Where Is the Sun? I used it as inspiration for a sun collage, and the kids had so much fun with the process that we kept coming back to it with different ideas.

The goal doesn’t have to be recreating Eric Carle’s artwork exactly. Let the books inspire the process, then give kids the freedom to decide what their own painted papers become.

More Ways For Kids to Experiment With Art

One of the things I love about this project is that kids get to experiment with the materials instead of simply trying to copy a finished picture. If they enjoyed creating textures, combining colors, and watching their artwork slowly take shape, there are lots of other ways to explore art through the process.

Create Pictures With Stamps

Stamping is another fun way for kids to experiment with shapes, placement, color, and repetition while creating their own pictures. A Melissa & Doug Stamp-a-Scene set gives kids individual stamps they can mix and match to build an entire scene, while still leaving plenty of room to decide where everything goes and add their own details.

It’s a nice next step for kids who enjoyed using different objects to make marks and textures in the painted paper for this collage.

Experiment With Watercolor Resist

Watercolor resist is one of those simple art techniques that feels a little like an experiment. Kids draw with crayons first and then paint over the design with watercolor, watching as the wax resists the paint and the picture starts to appear.

We used this technique for both spiderweb and bat watercolor resist art in our collection of Halloween crafts for kids. It’s an easy way to explore what happens when different art materials interact—and no two paintings turn out exactly alike.

Try Water Marbling

For an entirely different way to experiment with paint, water marbling kits let kids drip and swirl colors across the surface of water before transferring the patterns onto paper.

Part of the fun is not knowing exactly what the finished design will look like. Kids can experiment with how the colors move and mix, create different patterns, and then see what happens when they make the print. It has that same open-ended quality I love about making painted collage paper—the process itself is part of the activity.

Creative Art Activities Kids Can Do More Independently

Not every creative activity needs to involve setting out paints and supplies together. I also like having a few activities kids can pick up and work on more independently, especially for quiet time at home or when we need something easy to bring along.

Watch a Picture Come Together With Paint by Sticker

Paint by Sticker books give kids that satisfying experience of starting with lots of little pieces and slowly watching them turn into a complete picture. Kids match numbered stickers to the spaces on each page, so there’s plenty of fine-motor practice along with number recognition, matching, and even counting practice for younger kids.

They’re also the kind of contained activity that can be useful when you need a little quiet time to work or want something to bring to a restaurant, appointment, or while traveling. There are lots of different themes available, so it’s easy to choose one based on what your child is interested in.

Try a Mess-Free Foil Art Activity

Foil art kits are another option when kids want to make something colorful but pulling out the paint isn’t practical. Kids add pieces of colorful foil to the adhesive areas of the pictures, gradually building up different colors, patterns, and shiny details.

It’s a completely different process from painted-paper collage, but it still gives kids the chance to work through a project and watch their artwork change as they add each new piece. Because everything is fairly contained, it can also work well for independent creative time without much setup or cleanup.

More Creative Activities for Kids

If your kids enjoy hands-on art and creative projects, here are a few more ideas to try:

• Paper Popsicle Craft for Kids
• 50+ Creative Pool Noodle Activities for Toddlers
• Paper Roller Coaster STEM Project

More Book-Inspired Crafts

If you enjoy pairing books with creative activities, here are two more fun ideas from fellow mom bloggers: Rainbow Fish Paper Craft and The Kissing Hand Craft.