Fall Leaf Prints

Is it fall? All these beautiful leaves are falling but the weather is so warm! Well, in honor of the (eventual) arrival of cool fall weather, we did a leaf print today.



The kids began by picking out 4 of their favorite leaves from a collection on the table. Then we felt the leaves for texture. The backs of the leaves had more texture so we painted and printed using the back side.

Then in pairs the kids painted the backs of their leaves with warm fall colors (red, orange, yellow and a sparkly bronze). After painting the leaves, the kids pressed them onto their black paper. They were free to arrange them in any way they chose. And finally we opened up the project a little and everyone was given the option of painting a final leaf with any combination of colors they liked and printing that.

And finally we mixed up some blue paint and added a sky (if the artist thought the leaves were falling) or pool of water (if artist thought the leaves had already landed). The thoughtful and careful approach that all the kids displayed today really shows in these pieces. Enjoy! And happy fall!