Recommended ages: 1+

Young children love to paint with water. Mahogany Long, a member of CCRI’s Early Learning Team and Quality Every Day coach, suggests letting your child dip a paintbrush or other tools into water and “paint” whatever he or she can imagine. It’s an easy activity that can be done almost anywhere — great for outdoors on a sunny day or indoors on a rainy one.

Painting tools might include:

• Different sizes of paintbrushes
• Paint rollers
• Old makeup brushes
• Sponges (try cutting old sponges into shapes)
• Cotton balls
• Q-tips
• Small balls (explore different textures using golf balls or dryer balls)

Outside

Children can “paint” most anything with water — concrete, brick, or wood. Painting a surface with water and watching it disappear introduces the concept of evaporation.

Inside

Your child can dip any type of “paintbrush” into a bowl of water and create a picture using colored construction paper. Cookie cutters and cups can also help your child create a disappearing masterpiece.

Pro Tip for Ages 4+: Use chalk to write your child’s name on the painting surface. Let your child paint over his/her name to practice pre-writing skills.

Safety Tip: Never leave your child unattended (not even for a second) near water, especially children between ages 1 and 2.

Stay safe and take care.