7 Fun Autumn Art Activities

Hello autumn!

With the cooler, crisp days and the leaves changing colour, there’s no better opportunity to get creative by taking arts and crafts outdoors. We’ve provided a few autumnal ideas to get you started.

1. Leaf Printing

The delicate shape of leaves and their interesting tree-like spines create beautiful artwork. To try this, you will need to position your chosen leaf onto a plain sheet of A4 paper.

Whilst holding in place, gently sponge around the outside of the leaf with paint to reveal the pretty shape on the paper.

Then using a fine paint brush or small sponge, turn a leaf over and carefully press paint along the spine, place this into the blank areas of picture to add detail and depth.

Repeat this with different shaped leaves to create an effective leaf-themed masterpiece.

2. Stick and Pebble Art

This is an artistic activity which makes use of natural materials you’d often find lying around in your outside area. Use small sticks, pebbles, fallen leaves and grass to create a scenic picture or portrait directly onto the ground.

You’ll be amazed how effective, yet simple, this artwork is!

3. Wonderful Weaving

This multifunctional display board will support children’s inquisitive instinct and develop their fine motor skills.

Getting children involved with the build process will help them to problem solve and boost their confidence.

You’ll need four similar sized sticks, rope to secure the corners together to make a square, then wrap the rope the length and width of the square to create the weave pattern required.

Once complete, it’s time for the children to weave to their hearts content! Long grass, fern leaves, pinecones and ribbon will create a colourful combination to brighten up your outdoor space.

4. Leaf Garlands

These garlands are a great way to celebrate the arrival of autumn. Thread the leaves through long, strong string then hang from the trees, outdoor classrooms or play equipment. This is a lovely activity that children can keep coming back to over a few days, you may also find that you have dedicated leaf collectors at playtimes too!

The garlands can be a rainbow of colours or perfectly placed to show the array of leaf shades - whichever you choose, they will provide a colourful and decorative addition to your outside space.

5. Nature Masks

Encourage the children to head outdoors to collect a variation of different shapes and coloured leaves, the more interesting the pattern, the more effective the mask will be! Have they got an animal they’d like to recreate? Perhaps an owl, a squirrel or a mouse?

Once they have their selection of leaves, let the children’s imaginations run wild as they create their animal or outdoor themed masks.

6. Painting with ‘Bushes’

Forget the standard paint brushes and artistic tools, why not make your own? Let the children’s creativity shine (and their love for mess). For the paint ‘bushes’, we recommended using sticks for the base and string to wrap around any natural materials that they find.

The children will love exploring the textures and patterns each one makes when painting with colours or mud!

7. Outdoor Art Gallery

After having so much fun being arty and crafty, what better way to display the children’s creative skills than displaying them around the outside space for all to enjoy?

Organising a whole school art gallery will be a lovely way to reconnect the children and keep the positivity high!

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We have developed new ways to conduct playground consultations safely, and we’d love to help you get the most out of your school grounds. Contact Us here for more information or to book a visit, and we will work around you.