Simple Fun for Kids

Fun printables and hands-on learning and play! Educational and enjoyable simple play ideas for babies, toddlers, preschool, kindergarten, and elementary. Includes seasonal fun for Christmas, Valentine's Day, Easter, Halloween, Thanksgiving, and more.

Tons of matching games for toddlers and preschoolers!
  • Home
  • VIP Membership
  • New? Start Here!
  • About
    • Privacy Policy
    • Disclosure
  • Activities for Kids
  • Printables
  • Themes
  • Recipes

Sign up for more info!

You are here: Home / Art for Kids / Outdoor Window Painting

Outdoor Window Painting

We always like to explore new ways of painting and new art techniques. This Outdoor Window Painting activity was great fun, not nearly as messy as it looks, and a great gross motor exercise at the same time.

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Outdoor window painting on a big window!

(E was 2 years and 5 months old.)

You’ll need:

  • Window.
  • Tempera paint.
  • Dish soap.
  • Stick or similar for mixing.
  • Bowls for the paint.
  • Sponges (optional).


How to make homemade window paint:

Mix tempera paint and dish soap to taste. The more dish soap you use, the easier the clean-up, and the runnier your window paint.

I only used a little bit of dish soap because I didn’t want to dilute the vibrant colors of the tempera. The window paint really wasn’t runny at all, and still quite easy to clean up.

 

How it worked for us:

After a LONG winter, temperatures suddenly went up into the 70s, and we didn’t want to miss out on the opportunity to enjoy the sun while being creative.

I set out the window paint in plastic bowls with half a sponge in each one and a scrub brush on the side.

 

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

At first, E wasn’t able to get a lot of paint on the window

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

until she figured out that she needed to press the sponge down in the bowl to cover it in paint.

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

Now we’re talking!

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

She rotated all three colors over and over again and ended up with wonderfully colorful hands.

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

Two colors at a time? No problem!

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

E enjoyed this activity very much and kept saying “Oooh, Mama, look!” and “Papa, look!” {he wasn’t there but she thought it was awesome enough to tell him about it later 😉 }.

The sponges didn’t always go back into the original bowls but the colors didn’t really mix too much.

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

E tested gravity a few times by “sticking” a sponge on the window and letting go. Sometimes, it took a little nudge for the sponge to fall 😉

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

 

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

She tried the scrub brush once but wasn’t too impressed and preferred the sponges.

When E was done painting, I filled a bucket with water, and we put the paint-soaked sponges in it

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!

then used them to wash the windows. Sure, it took a bit longer than if we’d used clean sponges but the clean up was almost as much fun as the actual painting activity.

While we washed the window, the diluted paint started running down and pooling at the bottom. E was fascinated and laid on the ground to get a closer look.

Large-Scale Toddler Art: Paint a big window outside!


What I learned:

  • It really wasn’t nearly as messy as I’d thought it was going to be. If we’d used a bit more restraint during the clean-up, we would’ve even been able to paint an inside window.
  • It was a bit harder to get the paint off where E painted the plastic window frames, so you may consider discouraging your child from doing that. {Maybe it would’ve been easier if I’d added more dish soap to begin with.}


Additional suggestions:

  • Use different painting implements. Finger painting would work well, too.
  • Paint an inside window. If you make sure the paint isn’t runny and don’t use a lot of water for the clean-up, there’s minimal mess.
  • Paint a mirror with the same paint.


Inspiration:

Handsonaswegrow’s Homemade Window Paint Take 2.

 

Click here to subscribe to my newsletter and receive an email twice a week with news from our house and links to all new posts! If you prefer daily updates, you have the option of subscribing to my RSS feed or my printables RSS feed on the same page. If you ever want to stop receiving emails from me, you can unsubscribe at any time.

Join me in my Facebook group where we discuss simple play ideas for young kids every day!

Art for Kids// Gross Motor Activities// Outdoor Activities1 Comment

« Yoga Movement Die
Soccer Girls Graphing Game »

Trackbacks

  1. Summer Toddler Activities | Building Blocks Preschool Inc says:
    July 11, 2017 at 3:20 am

    […] Outdoor Window Painting – Simple Fun for Kids […]

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Welcome

Hi and welcome to Simple Fun for Kids! I'm Tina, mom of a kindergartener and a toddler, wife, German in Texas, blogger at all hours of the night. Click here to find out more about me...

Recent Posts

  • Do You Want to Build a Snowman? Sequencing Printable
  • Penguin Snowball Play I Spy Game
  • Baby Penguin Cutting Practice

Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 · Savory theme by Restored 316

Copyright © 2021 · Savory Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in · Privacy Policy