Sometimes books inspire art, either because of the subject matter or the illustrations. Below you will find some of our favorite books that have inspired us to create works of art.
10 Black Dots
This morning we read “10 Black Dots” by Donald Crews. The simple rhyming text, along with minimalistic pictures in this book, take the reader on an adventure to see just what can be created with 1 dot, 2 dots, 3 dots etc. After reading, I handed Big Kid a few strips of little black dots…
Butterfly Butterfly: A Book of Colors
This shimmery covered book tells the story of a little girl who sees a butterfly fluttering around her garden. She loses sight of the butterfly, but discovers there are many other different colored bugs in her garden for her to enjoy. “Butterfly Butterfly” by Petr Horacek, introduces youngsters to colors in a subtle, natural way…
The Very Hungry Caterpillar
What can one say about The Very Hungry Caterpillar? I will never find the words to do justice to this quintessential children’s book, but I can show you some of the ways we used it. The little caterpillar in this timeless tale hatches one evening on a leaf. Very hungry, he sets off eating new…
Mouse Paint
I’m going to be honest. This one scared me a little because there was only one way to go with it, and that way involved a lot of paint. And, Big Kid has not been interested in watercolors recently, so the tempera paint or finger paint had to come out. This is something I have…
Yellow Time
The Book: Yellow Time by Lauren Stringer Why We Read It: It’s currently fall here in Central New Jersey, possibly a little late for “yellow time”, but we have been watching the leave change colors very closely this year. What It Inspired: After reading we took a walk around the block to collect yellow leaves.…
Henri’s Scissors
Big Kid got ShapeScapes for Christmas. I have pulled them out a few times since then, but she didn’t have much interest. This week I pulled them out again and put them in our “learning basket”. She is now fascinated by them. She has spent countless hours, mostly with dad, building sculptures and moving the…
Action Jackson
The Book: Action Jackson by Jan Greenburg, Sandra Jordan, & Robert Andrew Parker alongside The Usborne Art Treasury by Rosie Dickins & Nicola Butler Why We Read It: Big Kid is learning about Jackson Pollock at preschool by exploring the ways he painted. I wanted to extend this at home with some process art. What…
Claude Monet
Big Kid has been learning about Claude Monet at preschool, meaning his art is displayed and one of the art projects she can choose to do is inspired by his painting “Waterlilies and Japanese Bridge”. I like to extend what she’s doing at school when possible. The Usborne Art Treasury has made that easy! There…
Kid's Lit Life 