Looking for some preschool art projects or process art to add to your preschool lesson plans? This dinosaur art activity for preschoolers is so fun! You’ll be surprised at what we used to make the colorful scaly pattern. (Hint: not bubble wrap).
We had so much fun making these that we now have a LOT of dinosaur paintings on display. The beauty of this activity is that it’s suitable for all age groups, with younger toddlers being able to join in too. Add it to your preschool dinosaur theme and dinosaur preschool lesson plans.
And to make things extra easy on you, you can grab a free printable dinosaur template at the end of this post!
Dinosaur Art for Kids, Plus Dinosaur Painting Ideas
For the Love of Dinosaurs
This week my eldest daughter has been learning about dinosaurs. She’s one of those people who has a very inquisitive mind (don’t most kids!), and we have been reading and researching about dinosaurs all week. Not only have we checked out way too many dinosaur books from our local library, but we also decided to take a trip to our local museum which has a great dinosaur exhibit.
As I’m keen to encourage her with this current dinosaur passion (some may say obsession!), we decided to make these Duplo-stamped dinosaurs. We’ve stamped with Duplo before and it’s a great process art activity, but we really enjoyed the dinosaur theme today. I know there’s a lot of debate about process versus product, but I believe a bit of both makes for a lot of fun too!
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Insects Activity Pack$5.00 -
Dinosaur Printable Pack$5.00
Get Dinosaur Lesson Plans for Toddlers!
FAQ About Doing Process Art with Preschoolers
By definition, process art emphasizes the act and process of making art over the product produced. It is open-ended, self-motivated and based on experience and experimenting. Characteristics of process art include:
> no specified outcome
> no step-by-step directions
> no sample for children to follow
> work is entirely of the children’s own choice, both in product and whether or not to participate
True process art is simply allowing children a range of materials to use and allowing them to create at their own cares and whims. Ideas for inspiration can be posted, however process art is not about the outcome, but rather the intent of the creator.
Here are some fun process art ideas to get you started:
> paint and an atypical “paintbrush” like a comb or using string
> oil and water paintings
> magazine collages
> glue resist paintings
> cellophane collages on sticky tagboard
Check out all my process art ideas for toddlers and preschoolers here.
The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) touts Process Art as highly developmentally appropriate for the preschool classroom. Some benefit of process art includes:
> nurturing social and emotional health
> reinforcing skills like focus, relaxation, and emotional sharing
> inspiring creativity and problem solving
> builds cognitive skills like comparison, planning, and problem solving
> encourages vocabulary development and verbal expression of language
Related Reading
How to Make Duplo-Stamped Dinosaur Art for Preschoolers
If you’re looking for dinosaur art activities to do with preschoolers, you’re in the right spot! But this activity is easy enough for toddlers, and most importantly, safe enough for toddlers, too.
Materials
- White paper or cardstock (I used paper)
- Colored paper for the backing
- Glue
- Scissors
- Paint in your choice of colors
- A paper plate or tray to put the paint on
- Duplo or any other blocks that you have at home in a few different sizes.
The Set-Up
These are really easy to make! It only took a few minutes to set this activity up. And it can be a relatively independent activity, depending on the age of the child.
First, print out or draw your dinosaurs on the white paper – download the dinosaur printable at the bottom of this post.
Next, set up your paints on a tray or plate. I like to use a paper or plastic plate as you can throw it away when you are done and it makes clean up much easier.
After that, it’s time to have your child stamp the dinosaur! Encourage him to mix colors and experiment with different ways to stamp.
Dinosaur Art for Toddlers and Preschoolers
This activity is awesome for a preschool dinosaur theme, but toddlers love dinosaur painting the most. This is because it has a sensory element!
Invite your toddlers and preschoolers to pick a Duplo block and dip it into the paint. Show them how to wiggle the block a little bit to get paint on the block, and then gently stamp it onto the dinosaur printable.
It didn’t take long for my students to jump in and start stamping. As soon as everyone joined in, their eyes got big and wide over the noise the stamping made. Seriously this is one of the best dinosaur painting ideas ever!
Some of my toddlers stamped their dinosaur until there was nearly no white space left. Some of my preschoolers did the same, but some of them left a lot of white space. To each their own. That’s what makes these process art!
There is not need to worry about staying in the lines when stamping because after they dry, we will be cutting them out. We, as in the adults. The dinosaur templates are a little too intricate for even advanced preschoolers to cut out, so I did it after hours.
Related Reading
Already, these little dinosaurs each have a character of their own.
Depending on the age of the child they no right or wrong way with this, especially for the dinosaurs that are a little bit intricate.
Draw an eye onto each dinosaur, or you can use googly eyes.
Glue the cut out dinosaurs onto the colored paper or construction paper. This really makes the scaly pattern pop!
Cut out around the dinosaur leaving a 1/2 inch gap. This creates a nice border.
Finally, hang them on display!
More Dinosaur Art Ideas Using
I get it. Not everyone have Dulpo blocks on hand. Here are some alternative ideas. You can use:
- Legos
- bubble wrap
- cardboard tube (toilet paper roll)
- colored bubbles
- pencil top erasers
- sponges
- potato masher
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Dinosaur Printable Pack$5.00
Get Dinosaur Lesson Plans for Toddlers!
Grab Your FREE Dinosaur Temple Here
Think stamping some Duplo on a dinosaur looks like fun? Grab your dinosaur art templates below!
Want More Dinosaur Activities for Preschoolers?
From salt dough dinosaur fossils and pretend dinosaur eggs in a sensory bin to paper plate dinosaur crafts for kids and stomping dinosaur feet, here are some romping and roaring dinosaur activities!
I’m Sarah, an educator turned stay-at-home-mama of five! I’m the owner and creator of Stay At Home Educator, a website about intentional teaching and purposeful learning in the early childhood years. I’ve taught a range of levels, from preschool to college and a little bit of everything in between. Right now my focus is teaching my children and running a preschool from my home. Credentials include: Bachelors in Art, Masters in Curriculum and Instruction.
[…] printed off some dinosaur templates from Stay at Home Educator and let the boys choose a dinosaur and rubbing surface. I taped the papers down to keep them […]